rpm_selinux(8)

📦
version 20250627+git412.dbf877ab7 · 7 versions
, in opensuse-leap 16.0

💅 rpm_selinux(8) — the SELinux Policy rpm glow-up

okay so bestie, welcome to rpm_selinux(8), the page that lives under the SELinux Policy rpm umbrella and explains how SELinux keeps the rpm processes on a leash. grab a strawberry drink and let's go 🍓✨

✨ NAME ✨

rpm_selinux — Security Enhanced Linux Policy for the rpm processes

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

So basically, Security-Enhanced Linux secures the rpm processes via flexible mandatory access control. that's the whole vibe: the processes don't just get to do whatever, they get confined, and the policy is what decides. 💅

The rpm processes execute with the rpm_t SELinux type. wanna check if you've got these processes running? run the ps command with the -Z qualifier, easy.

For example:

ps -eZ | grep rpm_t

no cap, that's it. 👑

🚪 ENTRYPOINTS 🚪

The rpm_t SELinux type can be entered via the debuginfo_exec_t, rpm_script_exec_t, rpm_exec_t file types. three doors, one domain, iykyk 🚪✨

The default entrypoint paths for the rpm_t domain are the following:

/usr/libexec/dnf-utils, /usr/bin/debuginfo-install,
/usr/lib/YaST2/bin/.*, /usr/bin/rhn_check-[0-9]+.[0-9]+,
/usr/libexec/yumDBUSBackend.py, /usr/lib/YaST2/startup/YaST2.*,
/usr/bin/dnf, /usr/bin/pup, /usr/bin/rpm, /usr/bin/yum, /usr/bin/zif,
/usr/bin/dnf5, /usr/bin/bcfg2, /usr/bin/dnf-3, /usr/bin/pirut,
/usr/bin/smart, /usr/bin/yast2, /usr/bin/zypper, /usr/bin/apt-get,
/usr/bin/up2date, /usr/bin/synaptic, /usr/bin/yum-cron, /usr/bin/apt-
shell, /usr/bin/repoquery, /usr/bin/rhn_check, /usr/bin/rhnreg_ks,
/usr/bin/packagekitd, /usr/bin/anaconda-yum, /usr/bin/yum-builddep,
/usr/bin/yum-updatesd, /usr/bin/zypp-refresh, /usr/bin/dnf-automatic,
/usr/bin/online_update, /usr/bin/yum-deprecated, /usr/bin/package-
cleanup, /usr/libexec/packagekitd, /usr/bin/fedora-rmdevelrpms,
/usr/bin/rpmdev-rmdevelrpms, /usr/bin/system-install-packages,
/usr/bin/yum-complete-transaction, /usr/share/yumex/yum_childtask.py,
/usr/share/yumex/yumex-yum-backend, /usr/libexec/rhc/rhc-package-
manager-worker, /usr/libexec/pegasus/pycmpiLMI_Software-cimprovagt

like, that's a lot of package-manager lore bestie, but every single one is in the list 🫶

👑 PROCESS TYPES 👑

SELinux defines process types (domains) for each process running on the system. yes ma'am, every process gets a little label of who they are.

You can see the context of a process using the -Z option to ps. 🔍

Policy governs the access confined processes have to files. SELinux rpm policy is very flexible allowing users to setup their rpm processes in as secure a method as possible. flexible and secure, we love a multitasker 💖

The following process types are defined for rpm:

rpm_t, rpmdb_t, rpm_script_t
Note: semanage permissive -a rpm_t can be used to make the process type rpm_t permissive. SELinux does not deny access to permissive process types, but the AVC (SELinux denials) messages are still generated. so like, permissive = it won't block anything, but it's still gonna talk about it 😭 the receipts are always kept.

🎀 BOOLEANS 🎀

SELinux policy is customizable based on least access required. rpm policy is extremely flexible and has several booleans that allow you to manipulate the policy and run rpm with the tightest access possible. least privilege is literally the main character here 👑

If you want to control the ability to mmap a low area of the address space, as configured by /proc/sys/vm/mmap_min_addr, you must turn on the mmap_low_allowed boolean. Disabled by default.

setsebool -P mmap_low_allowed 1

If you want to allow system to run with NIS, you must turn on the nis_enabled boolean. Disabled by default.

setsebool -P nis_enabled 1

If you want to disable kernel module loading, you must turn on the secure_mode_insmod boolean. Disabled by default.

setsebool -P secure_mode_insmod 1

If you want to allow unconfined executables to make their heap memory executable, you must turn on the selinuxuser_execheap boolean. and bestie, hear me: Doing this is a really bad idea. Probably indicates a badly coded executable, but could indicate an attack. This executable should be reported in bugzilla. Disabled by default. 💀

setsebool -P selinuxuser_execheap 1

If you want to allow unconfined executables to make their stack executable, you must turn on the selinuxuser_execstack boolean. This should never, ever be necessary. Probably indicates a badly coded executable, but could indicate an attack. This executable should be reported in bugzilla. Disabled by default. 🙈

setsebool -P selinuxuser_execstack 1

📂 MANAGED FILES 📂

The SELinux process type rpm_t can manage files labeled with the following file types. The paths listed are the default paths for these file types. Note the processes UID still need to have DAC permissions — SELinux is not out here overriding DAC, they're a team 🤝

  • file_type

all files on the system

like… yes, genuinely all of them. the whole filesystem. no big deal 💀✨

🗂️ FILE CONTEXTS 🗂️

SELinux requires files to have an extended attribute to define the file type. everything's got a label, it's giving organized 🏷️

You can see the context of a file using the -Z option to ls.

Policy governs the access confined processes have to these files. SELinux rpm policy is very flexible allowing users to setup their rpm processes in as secure a method as possible.

🌸 EQUIVALENCE DIRECTORIES 🌸

rpm policy stores data with multiple different file context types under the /var/lib/rpm directory. If you would like to store the data in a different directory you can use the semanage command to create an equivalence mapping. If you wanted to store this data under the /srv directory you would execute the following command:

semanage fcontext -a -e /var/lib/rpm /srv/rpm
restorecon -R -v /srv/rpm

literally just two lines and your data gets to live somewhere else with the same label energy 🦋

💜 STANDARD FILE CONTEXT 💜

SELinux defines the file context types for the rpm, if you wanted to store files with these types in a different paths, you need to execute the semanage command to specify alternate labeling and then use restorecon to put the labels on disk.

semanage fcontext -a -t rpm_exec_t '/srv/rpm/content(/.*)?'
restorecon -R -v /srv/myrpm_content
Note: SELinux often uses regular expressions to specify labels that match multiple files. regex girlies stay winning ✨

The following file types are defined for rpm:

⭐ rpm_exec_t

  • Set files with the rpm_exec_t type, if you want to transition an executable to the rpm_t domain.

Paths:

/usr/lib/YaST2/bin/.*, /usr/bin/rhn_check-[0-9]+.[0-9]+,
/usr/libexec/yumDBUSBackend.py, /usr/lib/YaST2/startup/YaST2.*,
/usr/bin/dnf, /usr/bin/pup, /usr/bin/rpm, /usr/bin/yum,
/usr/bin/zif, /usr/bin/dnf5, /usr/bin/bcfg2, /usr/bin/dnf-3,
/usr/bin/pirut, /usr/bin/smart, /usr/bin/yast2, /usr/bin/zypper,
/usr/bin/apt-get, /usr/bin/up2date, /usr/bin/synaptic,
/usr/bin/yum-cron, /usr/bin/apt-shell, /usr/bin/repoquery,
/usr/bin/rhn_check, /usr/bin/rhnreg_ks, /usr/bin/packagekitd,
/usr/bin/anaconda-yum, /usr/bin/yum-builddep, /usr/bin/yum-
updatesd, /usr/bin/zypp-refresh, /usr/bin/dnf-automatic,
/usr/bin/online_update, /usr/bin/yum-deprecated, /usr/bin/package-
cleanup, /usr/libexec/packagekitd, /usr/bin/fedora-rmdevelrpms,
/usr/bin/rpmdev-rmdevelrpms, /usr/bin/system-install-packages,
/usr/bin/yum-complete-transaction,
/usr/share/yumex/yum_childtask.py, /usr/share/yumex/yumex-yum-
backend, /usr/libexec/rhc/rhc-package-manager-worker,
/usr/libexec/pegasus/pycmpiLMI_Software-cimprovagt

⭐ rpm_file_t

  • Set files with the rpm_file_t type, if you want to treat the files as rpm content.

⭐ rpm_log_t

  • Set files with the rpm_log_t type, if you want to treat the data as rpm log data, usually stored under the /var/log directory.

Paths:

/var/log/dnf.log.*, /var/log/dnf.rpm.log.*,
/var/log/dnf.librepo.log.*, /var/log/YaST2(/.*)?,
/var/log/hawkey.*, /var/log/up2date.*, /var/log/yum.log.*

⭐ rpm_script_exec_t

  • Set files with the rpm_script_exec_t type, if you want to transition an executable to the rpm_script_t domain.

⭐ rpm_script_tmp_t

  • Set files with the rpm_script_tmp_t type, if you want to store rpm script temporary files in the /tmp directories.

⭐ rpm_script_tmpfs_t

  • Set files with the rpm_script_tmpfs_t type, if you want to store rpm script files on a tmpfs file system.

⭐ rpm_tmp_t

  • Set files with the rpm_tmp_t type, if you want to store rpm temporary files in the /tmp directories.

⭐ rpm_tmpfs_t

  • Set files with the rpm_tmpfs_t type, if you want to store rpm files on a tmpfs file system.

⭐ rpm_var_cache_t

  • Set files with the rpm_var_cache_t type, if you want to store the files under the /var/cache directory.

Paths:

/var/adm/mount(/.*)?, /var/cache/dnf(/.*)?, /var/cache/yum(/.*)?,
/var/cache/zypp(/.*)?, /var/spool/up2date(/.*)?,
/var/cache/PackageKit(/.*)?

⭐ rpm_var_lib_t

  • Set files with the rpm_var_lib_t type, if you want to store the rpm files under the /var/lib directory.

Paths:

/var/lib/dnf(/.*)?, /var/lib/rpm(/.*)?, /var/lib/yum(/.*)?,
/usr/lib/YaST2(/.*)?, /var/lib/YaST2(/.*)?,
/var/lib/PackageKit(/.*)?, /usr/lib/sysimage/dnf(/.*)?,
/usr/lib/sysimage/rpm(/.*)?, /var/lib/alternatives(/.*)?,
/var/lib/rpmrebuilddb.*(/.*)?, /usr/lib/sysimage/libdnf5(/.*)?,
/run/rpmdb

⭐ rpm_var_run_t

  • Set files with the rpm_var_run_t type, if you want to store the rpm files under the /run or /var/run directory.

Paths:

/run/yum.*, /run/PackageKit(/.*)?

⭐ rpmdb_exec_t

  • Set files with the rpmdb_exec_t type, if you want to transition an executable to the rpmdb_t domain.

Paths:

/usr/bin/rpmdb, /usr/lib/rpm/rpmdb_migrate

⭐ rpmdb_tmp_t

  • Set files with the rpmdb_tmp_t type, if you want to store rpmdb temporary files in the /tmp directories.
Note: File context can be temporarily modified with the chcon command. If you want to permanently change the file context you need to use the semanage fcontext command. This will modify the SELinux labeling database. You will need to use restorecon to apply the labels. temporary vs permanent, bestie — know the difference or your labels will ghost you 😭💅

🛠️ COMMANDS 🛠️

semanage fcontext can also be used to manipulate default file context mappings.

semanage permissive can also be used to manipulate whether or not a process type is permissive.

semanage module can also be used to enable/disable/install/remove policy modules.

semanage boolean can also be used to manipulate the booleans

system-config-selinux is a GUI tool available to customize SELinux policy settings. clicky clicky for the GUI girlies 🖱️✨

🧚 AUTHOR 🧚

This manual page was auto-generated using sepolicy manpage . (yes, a robot wrote it, and it ate 💅)

🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

selinux(8), rpm(8), semanage(8), restorecon(8), chcon(1), sepolicy(8), setsebool(8), rpm_script_selinux(8), rpm_script_selinux(8)

okay that's the whole page, go forth and label things correctly bestie 🌈🫶

rpm — 26-10-06 — rpm_selinux(8) ✨ that's the version and date, mwah, bye! 🎀

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