unscd is more noisy than nscd while invalidating caches

[Stephen A. Zarkos]

When using user management tools such as usermod we see spurious messages due to unscd, for example:

  # usermod -a -G testgroup username
  sent invalidate(passwd) request, exiting
  sent invalidate(group) request, exiting
  sent invalidate(passwd) request, exiting
  sent invalidate(group) request, exiting

The command completes successfully, but the spurious message looks like an error and causes concern among our users. This issue was apparently fixed in Debian here: https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=622230. Can Ubuntu please take this fix?

[Marco Bicca (mbicca)]

Hi Guys,

Do we have any updates around this? We still see users complaining about these errors.

Thank you,
-Marco

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Marco Bicca (mbicca)]

Tested with Ubuntu 16.04 image on Azure:

root@ubuntu16:/# uname -r
4.4.0-43-generic
root@ubuntu16:/# cat /etc/*release
DISTRIB_ID=Ubuntu
DISTRIB_RELEASE=16.04
DISTRIB_CODENAME=xenial
DISTRIB_DESCRIPTION="Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS"
NAME="Ubuntu"
VERSION="16.04.1 LTS (Xenial Xerus)"
ID=ubuntu
ID_LIKE=debian
PRETTY_NAME="Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS"
VERSION_ID="16.04"
HOME_URL="http://www.ubuntu.com/"
SUPPORT_URL="http://help.ubuntu.com/"
BUG_REPORT_URL="http://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/"
VERSION_CODENAME=xenial
UBUNTU_CODENAME=xenial
root@ubuntu16:/# adduser test
Adding user `test' ...
sent invalidate(passwd) request, exiting
sent invalidate(group) request, exiting
Adding new group `test' (1002) ...
sent invalidate(passwd) request, exiting
sent invalidate(group) request, exiting
sent invalidate(group) request, exiting
sent invalidate(passwd) request, exiting
sent invalidate(group) request, exiting
Adding new user `test' (1002) with group `test' ...
sent invalidate(passwd) request, exiting
sent invalidate(group) request, exiting
sent invalidate(passwd) request, exiting
sent invalidate(group) request, exiting
sent invalidate(passwd) request, exiting
sent invalidate(group) request, exiting
Creating home directory `/home/test' ...
Copying files from `/etc/skel' ...

[Marco Bicca (mbicca)]

Hi Guys,

This issue is still reproduced on Ubuntu 16.04 and UNSCD version 0.52-1build1

Do we have any updates?

Thank you,
-Marco

[C. Alex Roeber (caroeber)]

Also in VERSION="16.04.3 LTS (Xenial Xerus)"