GNU bug report logs - #74674
30.0.91; Can't delete an empty symlink when trashing is enabled for root

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Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: the_wurfkreuz <the_wurfkreuz <at> proton.me>
To: "bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org" <bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org>
Subject: 30.0.91;
 Can't delete an empty symlink when trashing is enabled for root
Date: Tue, 03 Dec 2024 19:51:35 +0000

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If I evaluate the code to enable trashing for root and try to delete an empty symbolic link from Eshell, I get:
File is missing: /path/to/link

Steps to reproduce:

1. emacs -Q
2. M-: (connection-local-set-profile-variables 'remote-trash-directory '((trash-directory . "/sudo::~/.local/share/trash/")))
3. M-: (connection-local-set-profiles `(:application tramp :protocol "sudo" :machine ,(system-name)) 'remote-trash-directory)
4. M-x eshell
5. (require 'em-tramp)
6. (setq delete-by-moving-to-trash t)
7. sudo touch /usr/local/bin/test-file
8. ln -s /sudo::/usr/local/bin/test-file /sudo::/usr/local/bin/test-file-line
9. sudo rm /usr/local/bin/test-file
10. sudo rm /usr/local/bin/test-file-line

"File is missing: /usr/local/bin/test-file-link".

Expected behavior:

I'm able to delete it.

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Message #8 received at 74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: the_wurfkreuz <the_wurfkreuz <at> proton.me>
To: "74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org" <74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org>
Subject: (No Subject)
Date: Wed, 04 Dec 2024 20:47:26 +0000

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The problem got even more complicated. Now i'm trying to just delete any file, and i can't do that whether i have trashing enabled or not:

~/.emacs.d $ (require 'em-tramp)
em-tramp
~/.emacs.d [1] $ eshell/sudo touch /usr/local/bin/test-file
~/.emacs.d $ eshell/sudo rm /usr/local/bin/test-fileRemoving old name: Permission denied, /usr/local/bin/test-file

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Message #11 received at 74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: the_wurfkreuz <the_wurfkreuz <at> proton.me>
To: "74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org" <74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org>
Subject: (No Subject)
Date: Fri, 06 Dec 2024 17:35:00 +0000

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

I can delete the file if i just use /usr/bin/rm instead.

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Message #14 received at 74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Stefan Kangas <stefankangas <at> gmail.com>
To: the_wurfkreuz <the_wurfkreuz <at> proton.me>, 74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Cc: Jim Porter <jporterbugs <at> gmail.com>
Subject: Re: bug#74674: 30.0.91; Can't delete an empty symlink when trashing
 is enabled for root
Date: Sun, 8 Dec 2024 20:49:01 -0500

the_wurfkreuz via "Bug reports for GNU Emacs, the Swiss army knife of
text editors" <bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org> writes:

> If I evaluate the code to enable trashing for root and try to delete an empty symbolic link from Eshell, I get:
> File is missing: /path/to/link
>
> Steps to reproduce:
>
> 1. emacs -Q
> 2. M-: (connection-local-set-profile-variables 'remote-trash-directory '((trash-directory . "/sudo::~/.local/share/trash/")))
> 3. M-: (connection-local-set-profiles `(:application tramp :protocol "sudo" :machine ,(system-name)) 'remote-trash-directory)
> 4. M-x eshell
> 5. (require 'em-tramp)
> 6. (setq delete-by-moving-to-trash t)
> 7. sudo touch /usr/local/bin/test-file
> 8. ln -s /sudo::/usr/local/bin/test-file /sudo::/usr/local/bin/test-file-line
> 9. sudo rm /usr/local/bin/test-file
> 10. sudo rm /usr/local/bin/test-file-line
>
> "File is missing: /usr/local/bin/test-file-link".
>
> Expected behavior:
>
> I'm able to delete it.

I'm copying in Jim Porter.

Message #17 received at 74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Jim Porter <jporterbugs <at> gmail.com>
To: the_wurfkreuz <the_wurfkreuz <at> proton.me>,
 "74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org" <74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org>
Subject: Re: bug#74674: (No Subject)
Date: Sun, 8 Dec 2024 18:04:08 -0800

On 12/4/2024 12:47 PM, the_wurfkreuz via Bug reports for GNU Emacs, the 
Swiss army knife of text editors wrote:
> The problem got even more complicated. Now i'm trying to just delete any 
> file, and i can't do that whether i have trashing enabled or not:
> 
> ~/.emacs.d $ (require 'em-tramp)
> em-tramp
> ~/.emacs.d [1] $ eshell/sudo touch /usr/local/bin/test-file
> ~/.emacs.d $ eshell/sudo rm /usr/local/bin/test-file
> Removing old name: Permission denied, /usr/local/bin/test-file

This is the correct behavior; you shouldn't be able to delete the file 
using this method. In short, "/usr/local/bin/test-file" refers to a 
*local* file name, so it's not going through Tramp's "sudo" method, and 
thus it's correct to report that you don't have permission.

Some more detail: Eshell built-in commands like "rm" (which the built-in 
"eshell/sudo" will call) treat absolute file names as ordinary, local 
files, just like the rest of Emacs would. Specifically, it won't 
automatically prepend the "/sudo::" method to it. Doing that is 
bug#70792, which I have a patch for but haven't finished yet.

Message #20 received at 74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Stefan Kangas <stefankangas <at> gmail.com>
To: Jim Porter <jporterbugs <at> gmail.com>
Cc: "74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org" <74674 <at> debbugs.gnu.org>,
 the_wurfkreuz <the_wurfkreuz <at> proton.me>
Subject: Re: bug#74674: 30.0.91; Can't delete an empty symlink when trashing
 is enabled for root
Date: Wed, 1 Jan 2025 19:53:58 -0600

Jim Porter <jporterbugs <at> gmail.com> writes:

> On 12/4/2024 12:47 PM, the_wurfkreuz via Bug reports for GNU Emacs, the Swiss
> army knife of text editors wrote:
>> The problem got even more complicated. Now i'm trying to just delete any file,
>> and i can't do that whether i have trashing enabled or not:
>> ~/.emacs.d $ (require 'em-tramp)
>> em-tramp
>> ~/.emacs.d [1] $ eshell/sudo touch /usr/local/bin/test-file
>> ~/.emacs.d $ eshell/sudo rm /usr/local/bin/test-file
>> Removing old name: Permission denied, /usr/local/bin/test-file
>
> This is the correct behavior; you shouldn't be able to delete the file using
> this method. In short, "/usr/local/bin/test-file" refers to a *local* file name,
> so it's not going through Tramp's "sudo" method, and thus it's correct to report
> that you don't have permission.
>
> Some more detail: Eshell built-in commands like "rm" (which the built-in
> "eshell/sudo" will call) treat absolute file names as ordinary, local files,
> just like the rest of Emacs would. Specifically, it won't automatically prepend
> the "/sudo::" method to it. Doing that is bug#70792, which I have a patch for
> but haven't finished yet.

Should the bugs be merged perhaps?

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