F37 proposal: Preset All Systemd Units on First Boot (Self-Contained Change proposal)

[Ben Cotton]

https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/Preset_All_Systemd_Units_on_First_...

This document represents a proposed Change. As part of the Changes
process, proposals are publicly announced in order to receive
community feedback. This proposal will only be implemented if approved
by the Fedora Engineering Steering Committee.

== Summary ==
Systemd will execute the equivalent of '''systemctl preset-all'''
when
an unconfigured system is booted
([https://www.freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/machine-id.html#First%20...
"First Boot"] condition). This means that units will be enabled or
disabled according to the preset configuration. We currently do the
equivalent of '''systemctl preset-all
--preset-mode=enable-only''',
and this will be extended to also disable units, i.e. '''systemctl
preset-all --preset-mode=full'''. Any units which are manually
symlinked but presets say they shouldn't (which is against the
packaging guidelines for packaged units) will be disabled.

Note that this applies to "first boot" only, i.e. to boot from an
image without ''/etc'' fully populated. In does not apply to systems
that were installed using Anaconda.

== Owner ==
* Name: [[User:jlebon| Jonathan Lebon]]
* Name: [[User:Zbyszek| Zbigniew Jędrzejewski-Szmek]]
* Email: zbyszek at in.waw.pl, jlebon at redhat.com


== Detailed Description ==
Our [https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/packaging-guidelines/Scriptlets/#_sy...
guidelines] say that units that are packaged in rpms must be enabled
through macros (''%systemd_post'') and the preset system. Almost all
packages conform to this, so effectively their enablement state
follows the preset config. When the system is installed, or more
precisely when ''systemd.rpm'' is installed, we do
''preset-all''. But
for historical reasons, when booting an unconfigured system ("first
boot") we only 'enable' units in this fashion. In Fedora and RHEL
CoreOS, some symlinks are created in the golden image, but should be
disabled in the local image after local preset configuration has been
inserted. To make this work, the call in systemd will be changed to
execute the equivalent of ''preset-all --preset-mode=full'', making
enablement during "first boot" more like enablement during an Anaconda
installation.


== Benefit to Fedora ==
* CoreOS can insert local preset configuration through Ignition and
this configuration will be applied on the first boot.
* Users can do something similar with local preset configuration on
distributed images.
* The system is made a bit simpler and easier to understand, because
we can say that "units are enabled/disabled after installation as
specified by the preset system".
* Users can call ''systemctl preset-all'' at any time to apply
preset-configuration. If no local changes to configuration have been
made, ''preset-all'' would make no changes to unit state. If units
have been enabled or disabled, ''preset-all'' would return unit
enablement to the pristine state after installation.

== Scope ==
* Proposal owners:
** implement patch for systemd to configure preset-all mode on first
boot (https://github.com/systemd/systemd/pull/15205)
** build systemd with this mode changed to ''--preset-mode=full''
** provide pull requests for two packages which have been identified
to not use the preset system for enablement to conform to the
packaging guidelines
(https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2070862,
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2070726)

* Other developers: review and merge the pull requests
* Release engineering: N/A
* Policies and guidelines: none, this change is about following the
guidelines more closely
* Trademark approval: N/A (not needed for this Change)
* Alignment with Objectives:

== Upgrade/compatibility impact ==
None.

== How To Test ==
* On a newly installed system, with arbitrary set of packages: call
''systemctl preset-all''. This should result in no changes.
* On a system which is booted from an unconfigured image (e.g. the new
Server VM image should qualify, see
[[Changes/Supplement-server-by-kvm-vm-image]]): before the first boot,
enable some units manually that are disabled in presets. After
booting, those units should be disabled again.

== User Experience ==
In general this change will be a noop for users, because it only
applies to "first boot", i.e. to the case when a system is booted from
a distributable image without local configuration and is configured
when initially booted. In case where Anaconda is used to install
images, /etc is populated before the first boot and the "first boot"
condition never applies, thus this change is irrelevant. On systems
installed from a "golden image" such as Fedora CoreOS, units will
follow the preset configuration more closely. Thanks to the fixes to
make packages conform to packaging guidelines, users can call
'''preset-all''' to return the system to defaults.

== Dependencies ==


== Contingency Plan ==
* Contingency mechanism: (What to do?  Who will do it?) Systemd
maintainers: flip back the default in systemd, rebuild.
* Contingency deadline: N/A (not a System Wide Change) This can be
done at any time up to the release.
* Blocks release? No.

== Documentation ==
N/A (not a System Wide Change)





-- 
Ben Cotton
He / Him / His
Fedora Program Manager
Red Hat
TZ=America/Indiana/Indianapolis

[Neal Gompa]

On Wed, Jul 6, 2022 at 2:14 PM Ben Cotton <bcotton(a)redhat.com&gt; wrote:
>  https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/Preset_All_Systemd_Units_on_First_...
>
>  This document represents a proposed Change. As part of the Changes
>  process, proposals are publicly announced in order to receive
>  community feedback. This proposal will only be implemented if approved
>  by the Fedora Engineering Steering Committee.
>
>  == Summary ==
>  Systemd will execute the equivalent of '''systemctl preset-all'''
> when
>  an unconfigured system is booted
>
> ([https://www.freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/machine-id.html#First%20...
>  "First Boot"] condition). This means that units will be enabled or
>  disabled according to the preset configuration. We currently do the
>  equivalent of '''systemctl preset-all
> --preset-mode=enable-only''',
>  and this will be extended to also disable units, i.e. '''systemctl
>  preset-all --preset-mode=full'''. Any units which are manually
>  symlinked but presets say they shouldn't (which is against the
>  packaging guidelines for packaged units) will be disabled.
>
>  Note that this applies to "first boot" only, i.e. to boot from an
>  image without ''/etc'' fully populated. In does not apply to systems
>  that were installed using Anaconda.
>
>  == Owner ==
>  * Name: [[User:jlebon| Jonathan Lebon]]
>  * Name: [[User:Zbyszek| Zbigniew Jędrzejewski-Szmek]]
>  * Email: zbyszek at in.waw.pl, jlebon at redhat.com
>
>
>  == Detailed Description ==
>  Our [https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/packaging-guidelines/Scriptlets/#_sy...
>  guidelines] say that units that are packaged in rpms must be enabled
>  through macros (''%systemd_post'') and the preset system. Almost all
>  packages conform to this, so effectively their enablement state
>  follows the preset config. When the system is installed, or more
>  precisely when ''systemd.rpm'' is installed, we do
> ''preset-all''. But
>  for historical reasons, when booting an unconfigured system ("first
>  boot") we only 'enable' units in this fashion. In Fedora and RHEL
>  CoreOS, some symlinks are created in the golden image, but should be
>  disabled in the local image after local preset configuration has been
>  inserted. To make this work, the call in systemd will be changed to
>  execute the equivalent of ''preset-all --preset-mode=full'', making
>  enablement during "first boot" more like enablement during an Anaconda
>  installation.
>
>
>  == Benefit to Fedora ==
>  * CoreOS can insert local preset configuration through Ignition and
>  this configuration will be applied on the first boot.
>  * Users can do something similar with local preset configuration on
>  distributed images.
>  * The system is made a bit simpler and easier to understand, because
>  we can say that "units are enabled/disabled after installation as
>  specified by the preset system".
>  * Users can call ''systemctl preset-all'' at any time to apply
>  preset-configuration. If no local changes to configuration have been
>  made, ''preset-all'' would make no changes to unit state. If units
>  have been enabled or disabled, ''preset-all'' would return unit
>  enablement to the pristine state after installation.
>
>  == Scope ==
>  * Proposal owners:
>  ** implement patch for systemd to configure preset-all mode on first
>  boot (https://github.com/systemd/systemd/pull/15205)
>  ** build systemd with this mode changed to ''--preset-mode=full''
>  ** provide pull requests for two packages which have been identified
>  to not use the preset system for enablement to conform to the
>  packaging guidelines
>  (https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2070862,
>  https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2070726)
>
>  * Other developers: review and merge the pull requests
>  * Release engineering: N/A
>  * Policies and guidelines: none, this change is about following the
>  guidelines more closely
>  * Trademark approval: N/A (not needed for this Change)
>  * Alignment with Objectives:
>
>  == Upgrade/compatibility impact ==
>  None.
>
>  == How To Test ==
>  * On a newly installed system, with arbitrary set of packages: call
>  ''systemctl preset-all''. This should result in no changes.
>  * On a system which is booted from an unconfigured image (e.g. the new
>  Server VM image should qualify, see
>  [[Changes/Supplement-server-by-kvm-vm-image]]): before the first boot,
>  enable some units manually that are disabled in presets. After
>  booting, those units should be disabled again.
>
>  == User Experience ==
>  In general this change will be a noop for users, because it only
>  applies to "first boot", i.e. to the case when a system is booted from
>  a distributable image without local configuration and is configured
>  when initially booted. In case where Anaconda is used to install
>  images, /etc is populated before the first boot and the "first boot"
>  condition never applies, thus this change is irrelevant. On systems
>  installed from a "golden image" such as Fedora CoreOS, units will
>  follow the preset configuration more closely. Thanks to the fixes to
>  make packages conform to packaging guidelines, users can call
>  '''preset-all''' to return the system to defaults.
>
>  == Dependencies ==
>
>
>  == Contingency Plan ==
>  * Contingency mechanism: (What to do?  Who will do it?) Systemd
>  maintainers: flip back the default in systemd, rebuild.
>  * Contingency deadline: N/A (not a System Wide Change) This can be
>  done at any time up to the release.
>  * Blocks release? No.
>
>  == Documentation ==
>  N/A (not a System Wide Change)
>  
This really feels like a system wide change. It totally changes how
the system configures itself across the board, and changes how all
images wind up being configured when building them.



-- 
真実はいつも一つ！/ Always, there's only one truth!

[Miroslav Suchý]

Dne 06. 07. 22 v 20:13 Ben Cotton napsal(a):
> https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/Preset_All_Systemd_Units_on_First_...
>
>  This document represents a proposed Change. As part of the Changes
>  process, proposals are publicly announced in order to receive
>  community feedback. This proposal will only be implemented if approved
>  by the Fedora Engineering Steering Committee.
>
>  == Summary ==
>  Systemd will execute the equivalent of '''systemctl preset-all'''
> when
>  an unconfigured system is booted
>
> ([https://www.freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/machine-id.html#First%20...
>  "First Boot"] condition). This means that units will be enabled or 
`systemctl preset-all` is hard to debug. Can we please have implemented this first:

https://github.com/systemd/systemd/issues/17898

RFE - dry-run for preset-all

Miroslav

[Matthew Miller]

>  Systemd will execute the equivalent of '''systemctl
> preset-all''' when
>  an unconfigured system is booted
>
> ([https://www.freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/machine-id.html#First%20...
>  "First Boot"] condition). This means that units will be enabled or
>  disabled according to the preset configuration. We currently do the
>  equivalent of '''systemctl preset-all
> --preset-mode=enable-only''',
>  and this will be extended to also disable units, i.e. '''systemctl
>  preset-all --preset-mode=full'''. Any units which are manually
>  symlinked but presets say they shouldn't (which is against the
>  packaging guidelines for packaged units) will be disabled. 
This seems good to me. Everything else aside, it will lead naturally to more
consistency.

-- 
Matthew Miller
<mattdm(a)fedoraproject.org&gt;
Fedora Project Leader

[Zbigniew Jędrzejewski-Szmek]

On Wed, Jul 06, 2022 at 02:26:33PM -0400, Neal Gompa wrote:
>  On Wed, Jul 6, 2022 at 2:14 PM Ben Cotton <bcotton(a)redhat.com&gt;
> wrote:
>  >
>  > https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/Preset_All_Systemd_Units_on_First_...
>  >
>  > This document represents a proposed Change. As part of the Changes
>  > process, proposals are publicly announced in order to receive
>  > community feedback. This proposal will only be implemented if approved
>  > by the Fedora Engineering Steering Committee.
>  >
>  > == Summary ==
>  > Systemd will execute the equivalent of '''systemctl
> preset-all''' when
>  > an unconfigured system is booted
>  >
> ([https://www.freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/machine-id.html#First%20...
>  > "First Boot"] condition). This means that units will be enabled or
>  > disabled according to the preset configuration. We currently do the
>  > equivalent of '''systemctl preset-all
> --preset-mode=enable-only''',
>  > and this will be extended to also disable units, i.e. '''systemctl
>  > preset-all --preset-mode=full'''. Any units which are manually
>  > symlinked but presets say they shouldn't (which is against the
>  > packaging guidelines for packaged units) will be disabled.
>  >
>  > Note that this applies to "first boot" only, i.e. to boot from an
>  > image without ''/etc'' fully populated. In does not apply to
> systems
>  > that were installed using Anaconda.
>  >
>  > == Owner ==
>  > * Name: [[User:jlebon| Jonathan Lebon]]
>  > * Name: [[User:Zbyszek| Zbigniew Jędrzejewski-Szmek]]
>  > * Email: zbyszek at in.waw.pl, jlebon at redhat.com
>  >
>  >
>  > == Detailed Description ==
>  > Our [https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/packaging-guidelines/Scriptlets/#_sy...
>  > guidelines] say that units that are packaged in rpms must be enabled
>  > through macros (''%systemd_post'') and the preset system. Almost
> all
>  > packages conform to this, so effectively their enablement state
>  > follows the preset config. When the system is installed, or more
>  > precisely when ''systemd.rpm'' is installed, we do
> ''preset-all''. But
>  > for historical reasons, when booting an unconfigured system ("first
>  > boot") we only 'enable' units in this fashion. In Fedora and RHEL
>  > CoreOS, some symlinks are created in the golden image, but should be
>  > disabled in the local image after local preset configuration has been
>  > inserted. To make this work, the call in systemd will be changed to
>  > execute the equivalent of ''preset-all --preset-mode=full'', making
>  > enablement during "first boot" more like enablement during an Anaconda
>  > installation.
>  >
>  >
>  > == Benefit to Fedora ==
>  > * CoreOS can insert local preset configuration through Ignition and
>  > this configuration will be applied on the first boot.
>  > * Users can do something similar with local preset configuration on
>  > distributed images.
>  > * The system is made a bit simpler and easier to understand, because
>  > we can say that "units are enabled/disabled after installation as
>  > specified by the preset system".
>  > * Users can call ''systemctl preset-all'' at any time to apply
>  > preset-configuration. If no local changes to configuration have been
>  > made, ''preset-all'' would make no changes to unit state. If units
>  > have been enabled or disabled, ''preset-all'' would return unit
>  > enablement to the pristine state after installation.
>  >
>  > == Scope ==
>  > * Proposal owners:
>  > ** implement patch for systemd to configure preset-all mode on first
>  > boot (https://github.com/systemd/systemd/pull/15205)
>  > ** build systemd with this mode changed to ''--preset-mode=full''
>  > ** provide pull requests for two packages which have been identified
>  > to not use the preset system for enablement to conform to the
>  > packaging guidelines
>  > (https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2070862,
>  > https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2070726)
>  >
>  > * Other developers: review and merge the pull requests
>  > * Release engineering: N/A
>  > * Policies and guidelines: none, this change is about following the
>  > guidelines more closely
>  > * Trademark approval: N/A (not needed for this Change)
>  > * Alignment with Objectives:
>  >
>  > == Upgrade/compatibility impact ==
>  > None.
>  >
>  > == How To Test ==
>  > * On a newly installed system, with arbitrary set of packages: call
>  > ''systemctl preset-all''. This should result in no changes.
>  > * On a system which is booted from an unconfigured image (e.g. the new
>  > Server VM image should qualify, see
>  > [[Changes/Supplement-server-by-kvm-vm-image]]): before the first boot,
>  > enable some units manually that are disabled in presets. After
>  > booting, those units should be disabled again.
>  >
>  > == User Experience ==
>  > In general this change will be a noop for users, because it only
>  > applies to "first boot", i.e. to the case when a system is booted from
>  > a distributable image without local configuration and is configured
>  > when initially booted. In case where Anaconda is used to install
>  > images, /etc is populated before the first boot and the "first boot"
>  > condition never applies, thus this change is irrelevant. On systems
>  > installed from a "golden image" such as Fedora CoreOS, units will
>  > follow the preset configuration more closely. Thanks to the fixes to
>  > make packages conform to packaging guidelines, users can call
>  > '''preset-all''' to return the system to defaults.
>  >
>  > == Dependencies ==
>  >
>  >
>  > == Contingency Plan ==
>  > * Contingency mechanism: (What to do?  Who will do it?) Systemd
>  > maintainers: flip back the default in systemd, rebuild.
>  > * Contingency deadline: N/A (not a System Wide Change) This can be
>  > done at any time up to the release.
>  > * Blocks release? No.
>  >
>  > == Documentation ==
>  > N/A (not a System Wide Change)
>  >
>  
>  This really feels like a system wide change. It totally changes how
>  the system configures itself across the board, and changes how all
>  images wind up being configured when building them. 
Hi,

sorry for the later reply, I somehow completely missed this.

The change *seems* to be large, but it really only applies to some very
specific systems. In particular, it applies to FCOS, but FCOS already has
a workaround that implements something like this. So once this is implemented,
and their workaround is dropped, things should behave as before.
Self-contained changes apply to "a small set of related packages", and
that should be the case here. The Change was published to raise awareness,
but the expected impact is rather small (unless people start using or are
using presets much more than I know, which I'd be happy to learn about).

Zbyszek

[Zbigniew Jędrzejewski-Szmek]

On Sun, Jul 10, 2022 at 04:46:38PM +0200, Miroslav Suchý wrote:
>  Dne 06. 07. 22 v 20:13 Ben Cotton napsal(a):
>  > https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/Preset_All_Systemd_Units_on_First_...
>  > 
>  > This document represents a proposed Change. As part of the Changes
>  > process, proposals are publicly announced in order to receive
>  > community feedback. This proposal will only be implemented if approved
>  > by the Fedora Engineering Steering Committee.
>  > 
>  > == Summary ==
>  > Systemd will execute the equivalent of '''systemctl
> preset-all''' when
>  > an unconfigured system is booted
>  >
> ([https://www.freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/machine-id.html#First%20...
>  > "First Boot"] condition). This means that units will be enabled or
>  
>  `systemctl preset-all` is hard to debug. Can we please have implemented this first:
>  
>  https://github.com/systemd/systemd/issues/17898
>  
>  RFE - dry-run for preset-all 
This shouldn't be too hard. I added it to Scope.

Zbyszek