Problems with PAM and PermitRootLogin without-password

[Antonio Paulo Salgado Forster]

Hello all,

I was running some tests with openssh 3.7.1p2 and I noticed that
PermitRootLogin without-password does not work when PAM is enabled. In
fact, when PAM is enabled, PermitRootLogin will work as "yes" if  "
without-password" is used, no matter what kind of authentication is used
for root login.  Is that a bug,  I missed something in the configurations,
or expected behavior? This is the output of a debugged session of ssh:

debug1: sshd version OpenSSH_3.7.1p2
debug1: read PEM private key done: type RSA
debug1: private host key: #0 type 1 RSA
socket: Address family not supported by protocol
debug1: Bind to port 80 on 0.0.0.0.
Server listening on 0.0.0.0 port 80.
debug1: Server will not fork when running in debugging mode.
Connection from x.x.x.x port 2319
debug1: Client protocol version 2.0; client software version OpenSSH_3.4p1
debug1: match: OpenSSH_3.4p1 pat
OpenSSH_3.2*,OpenSSH_3.3*,OpenSSH_3.4*,OpenSSH_3.5*
debug1: Enabling compatibility mode for protocol 2.0
debug1: Local version string SSH-2.0-OpenSSH_3.7.1p2
debug1: permanently_set_uid: 74/74
debug1: list_hostkey_types: ssh-rsa
debug1: SSH2_MSG_KEXINIT sent
debug1: SSH2_MSG_KEXINIT received
debug1: kex: client->server aes128-cbc hmac-md5 none
debug1: kex: server->client aes128-cbc hmac-md5 none
debug1: SSH2_MSG_KEX_DH_GEX_REQUEST received
debug1: SSH2_MSG_KEX_DH_GEX_GROUP sent
debug1: expecting SSH2_MSG_KEX_DH_GEX_INIT
debug1: SSH2_MSG_KEX_DH_GEX_REPLY sent
debug1: SSH2_MSG_NEWKEYS sent
debug1: expecting SSH2_MSG_NEWKEYS
debug1: SSH2_MSG_NEWKEYS received
debug1: KEX done
debug1: userauth-request for user root service ssh-connection method none
debug1: attempt 0 failures 0
debug1: PAM: initializing for "root"
debug1: PAM: setting PAM_RHOST to "x.x.x.x"
debug1: PAM: setting PAM_TTY to "ssh"
Failed none for root from x.x.x.x port 2319 ssh2
Failed none for root from x.x.x.x port 2319 ssh2
debug1: userauth-request for user root service ssh-connection method
keyboard-interactive
debug1: attempt 1 failures 1
debug1: keyboard-interactive devs
debug1: auth2_challenge: user=root devs=
debug1: kbdint_alloc: devices 'pam'
debug1: auth2_challenge_start: trying authentication method 'pam'
Postponed keyboard-interactive for root from x.x.x.x port 2319 ssh2
Postponed keyboard-interactive/pam for root from x.x.x.x port 2319 ssh2
Accepted keyboard-interactive/pam for root from x.x.x.x port 2319 ssh2
Accepted keyboard-interactive/pam for root from x.x.x.x port 2319 ssh2
debug1: monitor_child_preauth: root has been authenticated by privileged
process
debug1: Entering interactive session for SSH2.
debug1: server_init_dispatch_20
debug1: server_input_channel_open: ctype session rchan 0 win 65536 max
16384
debug1: input_session_request
debug1: channel 0: new [server-session]
debug1: session_new: init
debug1: session_new: session 0
debug1: session_open: channel 0
debug1: session_open: session 0: link with channel 0
debug1: server_input_channel_open: confirm session
debug1: server_input_channel_req: channel 0 request pty-req reply 0
debug1: session_by_channel: session 0 channel 0
debug1: session_input_channel_req: session 0 req pty-req
debug1: Allocating pty.
debug1: session_pty_req: session 0 alloc /dev/pts/1
debug1: server_input_channel_req: channel 0 request shell reply 0
debug1: session_by_channel: session 0 channel 0
debug1: session_input_channel_req: session 0 req shell
debug1: PAM: setting PAM_TTY to "/dev/pts/1"
debug1: PAM: establishing credentials
debug1: Setting controlling tty using TIOCSCTTY.
debug1: Received SIGCHLD.
debug1: session_by_pid: pid 17636
debug1: session_exit_message: session 0 channel 0 pid 17636
debug1: session_exit_message: release channel 0
debug1: session_close: session 0 pid 17636
debug1: session_pty_cleanup: session 0 release /dev/pts/1
debug1: channel 0: free: server-session, nchannels 1
Connection closed by x.x.x.x
Closing connection to x.x.x.x
debug1: PAM: cleanup


Thanks for the help.

Forster