This is a Fedora installation with BackupPC installed from the Fedora repository, and the service enabled at runlevels 3 and 5. I have not touched the configuration files for either BackupPC or sendmail; I just installed BackupPC from the repository. I'm not sure why sendmail is trying to -write- to the backups directory, so I don't know which package this problem relates to. Summary: SELinux is preventing /usr/sbin/sendmail.sendmail "write" access on /var/lib/BackupPC. Detailed Description: SELinux denied access requested by sendmail. It is not expected that this access is required by sendmail and this access may signal an intrusion attempt. It is also possible that the specific version or configuration of the application is causing it to require additional access. Allowing Access: You can generate a local policy module to allow this access - see FAQ (http://docs.fedoraproject.org/selinux-faq-fc5/#id2961385) Please file a bug report. Additional Information: Source Context system_u:system_r:sendmail_t:s0 Target Context system_u:object_r:var_lib_t:s0 Target Objects /var/lib/BackupPC [ dir ] Source sendmail Source Path /usr/sbin/sendmail.sendmail Port <Unknown> Host (removed) Source RPM Packages sendmail-8.14.4-4.fc13 Target RPM Packages BackupPC-3.1.0-14.fc13 Policy RPM selinux-policy-3.7.19-28.fc13 Selinux Enabled True Policy Type targeted Enforcing Mode Enforcing Plugin Name catchall Host Name (removed) Platform Linux gfdatavirtual 2.6.33.5-124.fc13.i686 #1 SMP Fri Jun 11 09:48:40 UTC 2010 i686 i686 Alert Count 1 First Seen Thu 15 Jul 2010 01:00:03 AM PDT Last Seen Thu 15 Jul 2010 01:00:03 AM PDT Local ID 16e16a44-5c7d-4357-89ac-bc2be54fee41 Line Numbers Raw Audit Messages node=gfdatavirtual type=AVC msg=audit(1279180803.481:21905): avc: denied { write } for pid=15568 comm="sendmail" name="BackupPC" dev=dm-0 ino=262935 scontext=system_u:system_r:sendmail_t:s0 tcontext=system_u:object_r:var_lib_t:s0 tclass=dir node=gfdatavirtual type=SYSCALL msg=audit(1279180803.481:21905): arch=40000003 syscall=5 success=no exit=-13 a0=bff6a65c a1=4c1 a2=180 a3=0 items=0 ppid=15565 pid=15568 auid=4294967295 uid=490 gid=478 euid=490 suid=490 fsuid=490 egid=478 sgid=485 fsgid=478 tty=(none) ses=4294967295 comm="sendmail" exe="/usr/sbin/sendmail.sendmail" subj=system_u:system_r:sendmail_t:s0 key=(null) Hash String generated from catchall,sendmail,sendmail_t,var_lib_t,dir,write audit2allow suggests: #============= sendmail_t ============== #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following type: # var_log_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t, tmp_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t, tmp_t, user_home_dir_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t, tmp_t, user_home_dir_t, mail_spool_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t, tmp_t, user_home_dir_t, mail_spool_t, mail_spool_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t, tmp_t, user_home_dir_t, mail_spool_t, mail_spool_t, mqueue_spool_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t, tmp_t, user_home_dir_t, mail_spool_t, mail_spool_t, mqueue_spool_t, etc_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t, tmp_t, user_home_dir_t, mail_spool_t, mail_spool_t, mqueue_spool_t, etc_t, var_run_t #!!!! The source type 'sendmail_t' can write to a 'dir' of the following types: # var_log_t, sendmail_tmp_t, dovecot_spool_t, etc_aliases_t, sendmail_log_t, tmp_t, user_home_dir_t, mail_spool_t, mail_spool_t, mqueue_spool_t, etc_t, var_run_t, user_home_t allow sendmail_t var_lib_t:dir write;
restorecon -R -v /var/lib/BackupPC Should fix
restorecon -R -v /var/lib/BackupPC did not produce any output, so I don't think it changed any file labels in /var/lib/BackupPC. The error occurs at exactly 1:00AM so I will update this bug report if I encounter the error again tomorrow.
It didn't occur again after using restorecon. I was able to reproduce the problem by installing BackupPC on a fresh Fedora install, so my guess is that the BackupPC rpm install script is supposed to call restorecon at some point, but doesn't.
There is no specific BackupPC context for /var/lib/BackupPC ; so the RPM will not call restorecon on that directory. If the restorecon -v does not produce any output ; labels were already correct and the command did no change anything. I do not know why sendmail is trying to write in that directory ; that is not BackupPC related as long as I can see. I've no idea how to solve that.
Thanks for the input, Johan. I saw the access error again on Sunday morning at 1:00 AM, so you're right that restorecon did not change anything. According to BackupPC's documentation, there is a configurable minimum period between emails, which is 3 days by default. Last time the problem occurred was 2010-09-02 at 1 AM, and it occurred again 2010-09-05 at 1 AM. Based on the timing this seems to be happening when the BackupPC daemon tries to send emails. I just ran BackupPC's email test program; the test email went through and did not cause any SELinux warnings to appear. Still, BackupPC itself can't send any emails due to the SELinux write permission for sendmail on /var/lib/BackupPC. I'm not sure how to trigger BackupPC to send its email immediately. For now I have reduced the minimum period to 1 day so I expect to get the SELinux error nightly if that worked. This is the first setting I have changed in BackupPC since installing the package.
sendmail has its stdout redirected to content in this directory, which is why sendmail is getting this avc. BackupPC should label this directory to be able to allow sendmail to output there or change sendmails stdout to /var/log/BackupPC
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I don't use BackupPC anymore so unfortunately I don't know if this problem was ever fixed.