GNU bug report logs - #22952
MacBook2,1 brightness control requires root privileges

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

From: Albin <albin <at> fripost.org>
To: bug-guix <at> gnu.org
Subject: MacBook2,1 brightness control requires root privileges
Date: Tue, 8 Mar 2016 23:50:44 +0100

Hi,

I've discovered that the non-working brightness controls for the
MacBook2,1 are due to insufficient permissions.

The first indication of this was that I could change brightness by
running the program redshift with root permissions (`sudo redshift`).

Today I was presented with this dialog box in GNOME 3 after having
pressed one of the brightness-control keys:

"Authentication is needed to run
'/gnu/store/[...]-gnome-settings-daemon-3.18.2/libexec/gsd-backlight-helper'
as the super user.

Administrator
Password [__________]"

I tried to input both the user password and the root password but none
of this this had any effect. When I back into GNOME 3 as root, however,
the brightness controls were working.

Does anyone have a suggestion what I could try to give the various
brightness control programs (for GNOME 3, Xfce, etc.) the required
permissions without having to be logged in as root?

Cheers!

Albin

Message #8 received at 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: ludo <at> gnu.org (Ludovic Courtès)
To: Albin <albin <at> fripost.org>
Cc: Andy Wingo <wingo <at> igalia.com>, 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#22952: MacBook2, 1 brightness control requires root privileges
Date: Wed, 09 Mar 2016 14:21:47 +0100

Albin <albin <at> fripost.org> skribis:

> I've discovered that the non-working brightness controls for the
> MacBook2,1 are due to insufficient permissions.
>
> The first indication of this was that I could change brightness by
> running the program redshift with root permissions (`sudo redshift`).

Interesting.  I use a simple window manager (ratpoison), and ‘redshift’
works fine as non-root.

> Today I was presented with this dialog box in GNOME 3 after having
> pressed one of the brightness-control keys:
>
> "Authentication is needed to run
> '/gnu/store/[...]-gnome-settings-daemon-3.18.2/libexec/gsd-backlight-helper'
> as the super user.
>
> Administrator
> Password [__________]"

This is something Andy is working on:

  https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/guix-devel/2016-03/msg00247.html

Looks like we’re almost there.  :-)

Ludo’.

Message #11 received at 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Joshua Branson <bransoj <at> hotmail.com>
To: "22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org" <22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org>
Subject: Macbook2,1 brightness control requires root privileges
Date: Wed, 19 Apr 2017 22:23:47 +0000

	I use a Macbook 7,1 and I do not have this issue.

Perhaps this issue is resolved?

Message #14 received at 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: ludo <at> gnu.org (Ludovic Courtès)
To: Joshua Branson <bransoj <at> hotmail.com>
Cc: "22952-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org" <22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org>
Subject: Re: bug#22952: Macbook2, 1 brightness control requires root privileges
Date: Thu, 20 Apr 2017 10:45:35 +0200

Joshua Branson <bransoj <at> hotmail.com> skribis:

> 	I use a Macbook 7,1 and I do not have this issue.
>
> Perhaps this issue is resolved?

Indeed, I believe it was fixed about a year ago with the elogind/polkit
integration in GuixSD.

So I’m closing the bug, please reopen if you think it’s not resolved!

Thanks,
Ludo’.

Message #27 received at 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: "pelzflorian (Florian Pelz)" <pelzflorian <at> pelzflorian.de>
To: 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Backlight brightness keys in GDM and MATE require password
 authentication
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2020 22:23:59 +0100

I’m reopening this bug because it is very similar to my issue.

When using my Macbook’s keyboard XF86MonBrightnessUp/Down keys to
adjust screen brightness (probably on non-Macbooks too) in GDM or
MATE, I am asked to enter my authentication password to make
gnome-settings-daemon’s libexec/gsd-backlight-helper (or some
equivalent program on MATE) change screen brightness.

This should not be so; gsd-backlight-helper should have PolicyKit, pam
or setuid or whatever.

Regards,
Florian

Message #30 received at 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Marius Bakke <marius <at> gnu.org>
To: "pelzflorian (Florian Pelz)" <pelzflorian <at> pelzflorian.de>,
 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#22952: Backlight brightness keys in GDM and MATE require
 password authentication
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 2020 22:14:32 +0100

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

"pelzflorian (Florian Pelz)" <pelzflorian <at> pelzflorian.de> skriver:

> I’m reopening this bug because it is very similar to my issue.
>
> When using my Macbook’s keyboard XF86MonBrightnessUp/Down keys to
> adjust screen brightness (probably on non-Macbooks too) in GDM or
> MATE, I am asked to enter my authentication password to make
> gnome-settings-daemon’s libexec/gsd-backlight-helper (or some
> equivalent program on MATE) change screen brightness.
>
> This should not be so; gsd-backlight-helper should have PolicyKit, pam
> or setuid or whatever.

gnome-service-type installs a PolicyKit rule for gnome-settings-daemon.

Should the MATE service do the same?

To work around it locally, try adding:

  (simple-service 'gsd-polkit polkit-service-type
                  (list gnome-settings-daemon))

to the (services ...) section of your system configuration.

[signature.asc (application/pgp-signature, inline)]

Message #33 received at 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: "pelzflorian (Florian Pelz)" <pelzflorian <at> pelzflorian.de>
To: Marius Bakke <marius <at> gnu.org>
Cc: 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#22952: Backlight brightness keys in GDM and MATE require
 password authentication
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 2020 19:39:29 +0100

On Wed, Nov 18, 2020 at 10:14:32PM +0100, Marius Bakke wrote:
> To work around it locally, try adding:
> 
>   (simple-service 'gsd-polkit polkit-service-type
>                   (list gnome-settings-daemon))
> 
> to the (services ...) section of your system configuration.

Thank you.  You are correct for GDM.  Adding this fixes changing the
backlight in GDM.  Perhaps the GDM service should extend the polkit
service like that.  It also does not conflict with adding a
gnome-service-type.

MATE still complains.  Without changing services, normally both on the
first log-in to MATE and on subsequent log-ins, when pressing the keys
to change the backlight, a message window still tells me that
/gnu/store/5kmmwc9q23lihpy3nv2knbvsr9qv2aln-mate-power-manager-1.24.2/sbin/mate-power-backlight-helper
needs to be authenticated as the super user; I need to enter the
password.

Only with gnome-service-type and when not removing the GDM service,
after GDM (which uses the gsd), on the first log-in to the MATE
desktop, the backlight keys do nothing at all.  When I try to log out,
it says Power Manager is not responding.  When I force the log-out
despite the Power Manager, then log back in, I again get the message
each time I press the backlight keys.

I added:

(simple-service 'mate-power-polkit polkit-service-type
                (list mate-power-manager))

It does not work.

Regards,
Florian

Message #36 received at 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: zimoun <zimon.toutoune <at> gmail.com>
To: "pelzflorian (Florian Pelz)" <pelzflorian <at> pelzflorian.de>
Cc: 22952 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Marius Bakke <marius <at> gnu.org>
Subject: Re: bug#22952: MacBook2, 1 brightness control requires root privileges
Date: Wed, 05 Jan 2022 00:46:54 +0100

Hi,

I am doing triage of old bug and I hit this one [1].  Is it still happening?

1: <http://issues.guix.gnu.org/issue/22952>


On Thu, 19 Nov 2020 at 19:39, "pelzflorian (Florian Pelz)" <pelzflorian <at> pelzflorian.de> wrote:
> On Wed, Nov 18, 2020 at 10:14:32PM +0100, Marius Bakke wrote:

>> To work around it locally, try adding:
>>
>>   (simple-service 'gsd-polkit polkit-service-type
>>                   (list gnome-settings-daemon))
>>
>> to the (services ...) section of your system configuration.
>
> Thank you.  You are correct for GDM.  Adding this fixes changing the
> backlight in GDM.  Perhaps the GDM service should extend the polkit
> service like that.  It also does not conflict with adding a
> gnome-service-type.
>
> MATE still complains.  Without changing services, normally both on the
> first log-in to MATE and on subsequent log-ins, when pressing the keys
> to change the backlight, a message window still tells me that
> /gnu/store/5kmmwc9q23lihpy3nv2knbvsr9qv2aln-mate-power-manager-1.24.2/sbin/mate-power-backlight-helper
> needs to be authenticated as the super user; I need to enter the
> password.
>
> Only with gnome-service-type and when not removing the GDM service,
> after GDM (which uses the gsd), on the first log-in to the MATE
> desktop, the backlight keys do nothing at all.  When I try to log out,
> it says Power Manager is not responding.  When I force the log-out
> despite the Power Manager, then log back in, I again get the message
> each time I press the backlight keys.
>
> I added:
>
> (simple-service 'mate-power-polkit polkit-service-type
>                 (list mate-power-manager))
>
> It does not work.

Especially, many things had been improved since 2020. :-)

Let close it or provide more details for fixing it. ;-)


Cheers,
simon

Message #41 received at 22952-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: "pelzflorian (Florian Pelz)" <pelzflorian <at> pelzflorian.de>
To: zimoun <zimon.toutoune <at> gmail.com>
Cc: 22952-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Marius Bakke <marius <at> gnu.org>
Subject: Re: bug#22952: MacBook2, 1 brightness control requires root privileges
Date: Thu, 6 Jan 2022 13:30:52 +0100

On Wed, Jan 05, 2022 at 12:46:54AM +0100, zimoun wrote:
> I am doing triage of old bug and I hit this one [1].  Is it still happening?

Thank you for asking again.  All is fixed and no password gets asked
when using brightness keys on my same Macbook on GNOME/GDM nor
MATE/SDDM.  I cannot test the original poster’s Redshift even after
adding it to the geoclue-service-type applications because I lack WiFi
hardware.

Closing.

Regards,
Florian

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