[Bug 1097473] Re: Invoking "env -i bash" unnecessarily results in confusing message

[Hugo Heden]

Hmm, I'm starting to think this is not a "bug" but rather something that
belongs to a "policy discussion" (as suggested by the Ubuntu bug
reporting tutorial)?

Anyway, the version info:

Ubuntu 12.10

$ bash --version
GNU bash, version 4.2.37(1)-release (x86_64-pc-linux-gnu)
Copyright (C) 2011 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
License GPLv3+: GNU GPL version 3 or later <http://gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html>

This is free software; you are free to change and redistribute it.
There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.


** Description changed:

  I was invoking bash as follows:
  
  env -i bash
  
  This caused this message to be printed:
  
  $ env -i bash
  To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
  See "man sudo_root" for details.
  
  While I think I understand the rationale for the message, I found it
  more confusing than helpful in this situation. I thought I had done
  something wrong, or that there was some error with the new shell I was
  starting.
  
  The message is, I believe, caused by the following snippet in
- /etc/bash.bashrc (not that the "env -i" part above causes $HOME to not
+ /etc/bash.bashrc (note that the "env -i" part above causes $HOME to not
  be set)
  
  # sudo hint
  if [ ! -e "$HOME/.sudo_as_admin_successful" ] && [ ! -e "$HOME/.hushlogin" ] ; then
-     case " $(groups) " in *\ admin\ *)
-     if [ -x /usr/bin/sudo ]; then
-         cat <<-EOF
-         To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
-         See "man sudo_root" for details.
-         
-         EOF
-     fi
-     esac
+     case " $(groups) " in *\ admin\ *)
+     if [ -x /usr/bin/sudo ]; then
+         cat <<-EOF
+         To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
+         See "man sudo_root" for details.
+ 
+         EOF
+     fi
+     esac
  fi
  
  It would perhaps be better if the if-statement also checked that $HOME
  is set (to refer to an existing directory?) before checking if
  $HOME/.sudo_as_admin_successful and $HOME/.hushlogin exist.

** Description changed:

  I was invoking bash as follows:
  
- env -i bash
+ $ env -i bash
  
  This caused this message to be printed:
  
  $ env -i bash
- To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
- See "man sudo_root" for details.
+ > To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
+ > See "man sudo_root" for details.
  
  While I think I understand the rationale for the message, I found it
  more confusing than helpful in this situation. I thought I had done
  something wrong, or that there was some error with the new shell I was
  starting.
  
  The message is, I believe, caused by the following snippet in
  /etc/bash.bashrc (note that the "env -i" part above causes $HOME to not
  be set)
  
  # sudo hint
  if [ ! -e "$HOME/.sudo_as_admin_successful" ] && [ ! -e "$HOME/.hushlogin" ] ; then
      case " $(groups) " in *\ admin\ *)
      if [ -x /usr/bin/sudo ]; then
          cat <<-EOF
          To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
          See "man sudo_root" for details.
  
          EOF
      fi
      esac
  fi
  
  It would perhaps be better if the if-statement also checked that $HOME
  is set (to refer to an existing directory?) before checking if
  $HOME/.sudo_as_admin_successful and $HOME/.hushlogin exist.

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1097473

Title:
  Invoking "env -i bash" unnecessarily results in confusing message

Status in “bash” package in Ubuntu:
  New

Bug description:
  I was invoking bash as follows:

  $ env -i bash

  This caused this message to be printed:

  $ env -i bash
  > To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
  > See "man sudo_root" for details.

  While I think I understand the rationale for the message, I found it
  more confusing than helpful in this situation. I thought I had done
  something wrong, or that there was some error with the new shell I was
  starting.

  The message is, I believe, caused by the following snippet in
  /etc/bash.bashrc (note that the "env -i" part above causes $HOME to
  not be set)

  # sudo hint
  if [ ! -e "$HOME/.sudo_as_admin_successful" ] && [ ! -e "$HOME/.hushlogin" ] ; then
      case " $(groups) " in *\ admin\ *)
      if [ -x /usr/bin/sudo ]; then
          cat <<-EOF
          To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
          See "man sudo_root" for details.

          EOF
      fi
      esac
  fi

  It would perhaps be better if the if-statement also checked that $HOME
  is set (to refer to an existing directory?) before checking if
  $HOME/.sudo_as_admin_successful and $HOME/.hushlogin exist.

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