use /etc/NetworkManager/conf.d snippet instead of /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf to avoid dpkg interactive conflict resolution dialog questions

[adrelanos]

Writing to /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf directly is problematic:

• causing a Qubes-Whonix build interactive question [could and probably has to be worked around in meanwhile],
• as well causing dpkg interactive conflict resolution dialog questions

Related code, qubes-core-agent-linux/debian/qubes-core-agent.postinst:

• https://github.com/marmarek/qubes-core-agent-linux/blob/4703e3fca73af9b2c7fd82f3a955bc4a74d88e61/debian/qubes-core-agent.postinst#L72-L78
• https://github.com/marmarek/qubes-core-agent-linux/blob/4703e3fca73af9b2c7fd82f3a955bc4a74d88e61/network/qubes-fix-nm-conf.sh

Did you already try if dropping a snippet into /etc/NetworkManager/conf.d would do?

[marmarek]

Not recently, some time ago (Fedora 18? earlier?) adding plugins from
there didn't worked.

Best Regards,
Marek Marczykowski-Górecki
Invisible Things Lab
A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?

[adrelanos]

How do I test if the keyfile plugin is functional? I cleared /etc/NetworkManager/system-connections/*, but the file in that folder is never regenerated for me even without config files changes.

[adrelanos]

sudo journalctl -b | grep NetworkManager | grep plugin

Sep 07 17:44:16 sys-net NetworkManager[536]: Loaded plugin keyfile: (c) 2007 - 2013 Red Hat, Inc. To report bugs please use the NetworkManager mailing list.

[marmarek]

On Tue, Sep 08, 2015 at 05:53:01AM -0700, Patrick Schleizer wrote:

How do I test if the keyfile plugin is functional? I cleared /etc/NetworkManager/system-connections/*, but the file in that folder is never regenerated for me even without config files changes.

It should be generated (and used) if you enable network-manager service
(using qvm-service). It is generated in VMs with uplink in other VMs
(ProxyVM, AppVM).

Best Regards,
Marek Marczykowski-Górecki
Invisible Things Lab
A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?

[adrelanos]

For testing purposes, I have

• copied the original /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf to /etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/30-qubes.conf
• cleared contents of /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf (to ##) for testing purposes.

Toggling

[main]
plugins=keyfile

vs

#[main]
#plugins=keyfile

does influence whether the keyfile pluing gets load as per log or not.

[adrelanos]

A suggestion on how the implementation can be improved and this ticket can be fixed.

---

/etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf:

• Don't touch, modifications by users only.

---

/etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/30-qubes-static.conf:

• Managed by the package management.
• Might in future receive changes if ever needed.
• Contents:

## Please use "/etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/50-user.conf"
## for your custom configurations.
## When Qubes is updated, this file may be overwritten.

[main]
plugins=keyfile

---

/etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/31-qubes-autogenerated.conf:

• Not managed by the package management.
  • Therefore unlikely to cause interactive questions during upgrade by the package manager.
• Contents:

## Please use "/etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/50-user.conf"
## for your custom configurations.
## This file is auto generated by Qubes. Modifications may
## be overwritten.

[keyfile]
unmanaged-devices=mac:fe:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff

---

Alternatively there could also be just one auto generated file that contains it all, that is not managed by the package manager.

---

What do you think?

[marmarek]

Two files approach seems better. I wonder would happen if
unmanaged-devices would be specified in both NetworkManager.conf and
/etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/31-qubes-autogenerated.conf.

BTW it whould be plugins+=keyfile. I wonder if NetworkManager on
Debian is new enough to support this syntax...

Best Regards,
Marek Marczykowski-Górecki
Invisible Things Lab
A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?

[marmarek]

Since we generate proper NM configuration for eth0 in VMs ('qubes-uplink-eth0'
connection), that generated part is no longer needed. Which simplifies things here :)

[marmarek]

Unfortunately it doesn't work. It looks like unmanaged devices list setting is ignored in /etc/NetworkManager/conf.d, but exactly the same line in main config file works. Needs further investigation. But for now I'm reverting the change.