XPost: linux.debian.maint.x   
   From: dickey@invisible-island.net   
      
   On Wed, Feb 04, 2026 at 07:44:07PM -0500, Thomas Dickey wrote:   
   > On Wed, Feb 04, 2026 at 10:53:32AM +0100, Chris Hofstaedtler wrote:   
   > > On Wed, Feb 04, 2026 at 04:43:25AM +0100, Vincent Lefevre wrote:   
   > > > On 2026-02-03 20:32:56 -0500, Thomas Dickey wrote:   
   > > > > On Fri, Jan 16, 2026 at 12:19:04AM +0100, Vincent Lefevre wrote:   
   > > > > > Package: xterm   
   > > > > > Version: 406-1   
   > > > > > Severity: normal   
   > > > >    
   > > > > perhaps wishlist.   
   > > >    
   > > > No, as since the removal of utmp, this is now a required feature, as   
   > > > said by Chris Hofstaedtler.   
   > >    
   > > I object to this statement. I filed bugs in the past so each piece    
   > > of software can evaluate if it needs/wants changes. If a change is    
   > > wanted/warranted/useful at all is in the hands of the software    
   > > authors.   
   >    
   > Which bug report did you file against xterm, proposing to remove utmp?   
      
   silence tells me that there was none.   
       
   > I see a bug for wtmp (which Sven responded to, pointing out that xterm   
   > uses libutempter), but don't see any followup to ensure that libutempter   
   > was updated and made to work with systemd.   
   >    
   > https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/pkgreport.cgi?archive=both;dis   
   =unstable;ordering=normal;repeatmerged=0;src=libutempter   
      
   ...looking further, I see that this is not really a bug in xterm, but a   
   defective development process at work.   
      
   For xterm:   
   	utmp is wanted to provide a way to display short-term connections.   
      
   	wtmp isn't used in the configuration that's built with libutempter,   
   	and since it's unlikely that Debian would package a configuration   
   	of xterm allowing it to do this, the issue of loginctl is moot.   
   	(If you have found a way to do this, you should cite systemd's   
   	documentation to prove that it will work).   
      
   Now... xterm's used libutempter since January 2000.  If the package   
   for libutempter0 is updated to ensure that /run/utmp exists, the   
   "who" program can report the information that libutempter would write   
   to it:   
      
   	who /run/utmp   
      
   apt-cache says there are a few other programs using libutempter:   
      
   libutempter0   
   Reverse Depends:   
     libutempter-dev   
     xwrited   
     xterm   
     xfce4-terminal   
     mosh   
     guake   
      
   screen apparently does not, but since its upstream terminfo file is long   
   out of date, I see that is due to neglect rather than deliberate design.   
      
   Other programs would benefit (comparing results from "who", it appears   
   that those include urxvt).   
      
   So... the way forward here is to reassign this to an appropriate package,   
   restoring /run/utmp   
      
   I have a fork/NMU proposed for this fix, which I'll tidy up this evening.   
      
   --    
   Thomas E. Dickey    
   https://invisible-island.net   
      
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