Focal staging paxctl command to convert grub binaries are failing

[kushaldas]

Description

When we are doing new Focal staging environment, the paxctl task to convert grub binaries is failing.

This is task in question https://github.com/freedomofpress/securedrop/blob/develop/install_files/ansible-base/roles/grsecurity/tasks/paxctl.yml#L23-L27

Steps to Reproduce

• molecule converge -s libvirt-staging-focal

Expected Behavior

This should happen without any error.

Actual Behavior

Example error

    failed: [app-staging] (item={'msg': 'non-zero return code', 'cmd': ['paxctl', '-vQ', '/usr/bin/grub-script-check'], 'stdout': '', 'stderr': 'PaX control v0.9\nCopyright 2004,2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011,2012,2014 PaX Team <pageexec@freemail.hu>\n\nfile /usr/bin/grub-script-check does not have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, try conversion', 'rc': 1, 'start': '2020-09-15 12:41:58.046968', 'end': '2020-09-15 12:41:58.048760', 'delta': '0:00:00.001792', 'changed': False, 'failed': False, 'invocation': {'module_args': {'_raw_params': 'paxctl -vQ /usr/bin/grub-script-check', 'warn': True, '_uses_shell': False, 'stdin_add_newline': True, 'strip_empty_ends': True, 'argv': None, 'chdir': None, 'executable': None, 'creates': None, 'removes': None, 'stdin': None}}, 'stdout_lines': [], 'stderr_lines': ['PaX control v0.9', 'Copyright 2004,2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011,2012,2014 PaX Team <pageexec@freemail.hu>', '', 'file /usr/bin/grub-script-check does not have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, try conversion'], 'failed_when_result': False, 'item': '/usr/bin/grub-script-check', 'ansible_loop_var': 'item'}) => {"ansible_loop_var": "item", "changed": true, "cmd": ["paxctl", "-zCE", "/usr/bin/grub-script-check"], "delta": "0:00:00.001769", "end": "2020-09-15 12:41:58.612150", "item": {"ansible_loop_var": "item", "changed": false, "cmd": ["paxctl", "-vQ", "/usr/bin/grub-script-check"], "delta": "0:00:00.001792", "end": "2020-09-15 12:41:58.048760", "failed": false, "failed_when_result": false, "invocation": {"module_args": {"_raw_params": "paxctl -vQ /usr/bin/grub-script-check", "_uses_shell": false, "argv": null, "chdir": null, "creates": null, "executable": null, "removes": null, "stdin": null, "stdin_add_newline": true, "strip_empty_ends": true, "warn": true}}, "item": "/usr/bin/grub-script-check", "msg": "non-zero return code", "rc": 1, "start": "2020-09-15 12:41:58.046968", "stderr": "PaX control v0.9\nCopyright 2004,2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011,2012,2014 PaX Team <pageexec@freemail.hu>\n\nfile /usr/bin/grub-script-check does not have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, try conversion", "stderr_lines": ["PaX control v0.9", "Copyright 2004,2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011,2012,2014 PaX Team <pageexec@freemail.hu>", "", "file /usr/bin/grub-script-check does not have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, try conversion"], "stdout": "", "stdout_lines": []}, "msg": "non-zero return code", "rc": 1, "start": "2020-09-15 12:41:58.610381", "stderr": "file /usr/bin/grub-script-check cannot have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, creation failed", "stderr_lines": ["file /usr/bin/grub-script-check cannot have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, creation failed"], "stdout": "", "stdout_lines": []}                             
    failed: [mon-staging] (item={'msg': 'non-zero return code', 'cmd': ['paxctl', '-vQ', '/usr/bin/grub-script-check'], 'stdout': '', 'stderr': 'PaX control v0.9\nCopyright 2004,2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011,2012,2014 PaX Team <pageexec@freemail.hu>\n\nfile /usr/bin/grub-script-check does not have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, try conversion', 'rc': 1, 'start': '2020-09-15 12:41:58.607287', 'end': '2020-09-15 12:41:58.609454', 'delta': '0:00:00.002167', 'changed': False, 'failed': False, 'invocation': {'module_args': {'_raw_params': 'paxctl -vQ /usr/bin/grub-script-check', 'warn': True, '_uses_shell': False, 'stdin_add_newline': True, 'strip_empty_ends': True, 'argv': None, 'chdir': None, 'executable': None, 'creates': None, 'removes': None, 'stdin': None}}, 'stdout_lines': [], 'stderr_lines': ['PaX control v0.9', 'Copyright 2004,2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011,2012,2014 PaX Team <pageexec@freemail.hu>', '', 'file /usr/bin/grub-script-check does not have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, try conversion'], 'failed_when_result': False, 'item': '/usr/bin/grub-script-check', 'ansible_loop_var': 'item'}) => {"ansible_loop_var": "item", "changed": true, "cmd": ["paxctl", "-zCE", "/usr/bin/grub-script-check"], "delta": "0:00:00.001961", "end": "2020-09-15 12:41:59.166776", "item": {"ansible_loop_var": "item", "changed": false, "cmd": ["paxctl", "-vQ", "/usr/bin/grub-script-check"], "delta": "0:00:00.002167", "end": "2020-09-15 12:41:58.609454", "failed": false, "failed_when_result": false, "invocation": {"module_args": {"_raw_params": "paxctl -vQ /usr/bin/grub-script-check", "_uses_shell": false, "argv": null, "chdir": null, "creates": null, "executable": null, "removes": null, "stdin": null, "stdin_add_newline": true, "strip_empty_ends": true, "warn": true}}, "item": "/usr/bin/grub-script-check", "msg": "non-zero return code", "rc": 1, "start": "2020-09-15 12:41:58.607287", "stderr": "PaX control v0.9\nCopyright 2004,2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011,2012,2014 PaX Team <pageexec@freemail.hu>\n\nfile /usr/bin/grub-script-check does not have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, try conversion", "stderr_lines": ["PaX control v0.9", "Copyright 2004,2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011,2012,2014 PaX Team <pageexec@freemail.hu>", "", "file /usr/bin/grub-script-check does not have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, try conversion"], "stdout": "", "stdout_lines": []}, "msg": "non-zero return code", "rc": 1, "start": "2020-09-15 12:41:59.164815", "stderr": "file /usr/bin/grub-script-check cannot have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, creation failed", "stderr_lines": ["file /usr/bin/grub-script-check cannot have a PT_PAX_FLAGS program header, creation failed"], "stdout": "", "stdout_lines": []}         

[kushaldas]

diff --git a/install_files/ansible-base/roles/grsecurity/tasks/paxctl.yml b/install_files/ansible-base/roles/grsecurity/tasks/paxctl.yml
index 38072505e..8a2f204c1 100644
--- a/install_files/ansible-base/roles/grsecurity/tasks/paxctl.yml
+++ b/install_files/ansible-base/roles/grsecurity/tasks/paxctl.yml
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@
     - /usr/bin/grub-script-check
 
 - name: Adjust paxctl headers on grub binaries.
-  command: paxctl -zCE {{ item.item }}
+  command: paxctl -zcE {{ item.item }}
   with_items: "{{ paxctl_grub_header_check.results }}"
   when: "item.stdout != '- PaX flags: --------E--- [{{ item.item }}]' or
          item.rc != 0"

Wondering if this is the right way, I added to just to see if works on my staging focal.

[conorsch]

Related discussion in #5468 (comment)

@rmol Modifying the create-header flags for paxctl only for Xenial will work as far as the provisioning flow, but that's not the only place we set the flags, unfortunately:

securedrop/install_files/securedrop-grsec/etc/kernel/postinst.d/paxctl-grub

Lines 15 to 17 in f41c2f7

	paxctl -zCE /usr/sbin/grub-probe
	paxctl -zCE /usr/sbin/grub-mkdevicemap
	paxctl -zCE /usr/bin/grub-script-check

Which means that the naive approach in freedomofpress/securedrop-apt-test#62 is unlikely to work. =/ Let's discuss use of paxctld, same as we do in the Workstation.

[kushaldas]

Related discussion in #5468 (comment)

@rmol Modifying the create-header flags for paxctl only for Xenial will work as far as the provisioning flow, but that's not the only place we set the flags, unfortunately:

securedrop/install_files/securedrop-grsec/etc/kernel/postinst.d/paxctl-grub

Lines 15 to 17 in f41c2f7

	paxctl -zCE /usr/sbin/grub-probe
	paxctl -zCE /usr/sbin/grub-mkdevicemap
	paxctl -zCE /usr/bin/grub-script-check

Which means that the naive approach in freedomofpress/securedrop-dev-packages-lfs#62 is unlikely to work. =/ Let's discuss use of paxctld, same as we do in the Workstation.

If I use the patch I posed in #5495 (comment) then the above mentioned paxctl commands are passing properly. I did not see any error yet.

[conorsch]

@kushaldas Seems to me we only want to modify the behavior on Focal, not on Xenial. So customizing the behavior a bit should give us a working staging first-time install, although the need to modify the metapackage is a more significant issue for Focal support (looking like #4134 might be the path forward, after 1.6).

[kushaldas]

I think we can close this issue now, can do this after standup today.

[conorsch]

Closing, based on changes in #5518. Still unresolved are the securedrop-grsec metapackage flags, which currently won't work for Focal kernel upgrades, but we'll tackle #4134 next sprint, which solves the same problem.