Ooops, I deleted /etc but I do have a backup

ballatom

8/14/24, 5:34 AM

On Debian 12, I somehow managed to delete most of /etc (using rclone sync, still have to figure out what went wrong).

I can no longer run sudo or su as root, which complicates things.

I do have a backup but as it was made using rclone sync to a pCloudDrive, owner, group and permissions are missing. I know realise I should probably better create a tar of /etc before copying it to pCloud but that is too late.

I can no longer run sudo or su as root, which complicates things.

Is there anything I can try before booting a livecd and try restoring files and setting the owner-group-permissions by hand (tedious) ?

Cheers.

1 + 4

system-restore

debian

backup-restoration

Esa Jokinen

8/14/24, 5:38 AM

Not an answer, but if you had [`etckeeper`](https://etckeeper.branchable.com/README/) installed, the recovery would have been easier. Maybe try it for the future.

HBruijn

8/14/24, 6:59 AM

As the answer below suggests, you should be able to log in from the console as root. Then copy the `/etc/*` files and directories back and follow a recipe that uses the fact that packages contain the default permissions of the files they provide. Either extract those permissions and re-apply or reinstall all packages as for example explained here: https://www.matoski.com/article/debian-restore-var-ownership-permissions/

ballatom

8/15/24, 3:46 PM

@Esa Jokinen : great idea. Just had a look at the presentation page and though I know have a script that works, it is even better to use versioning as it provides even more control than the 'rewind' feature of pCloud.

ballatom

8/15/24, 3:47 PM

@HBruijn Thanks, your suggestion was part of the solution.

Score:1

Server

Paranoid

8/14/24, 6:47 AM

If the system boots from grub then you should be able to edit the kernel boot parameters in the boot process. The kernel line will look something like:

linux /boot/vmlinuz-5.14.21-150400.24.74-default root=UUID=a19111c9-5087-4821-9922-0f367e993b72 splash=silent preempt=full mitigations=auto quiet security=apparmor

Change it to:

linux /boot/vmlinuz-5.14.21-150400.24.74-default rw init=/bin/bash

This will give you a shell within the initrd image. From there you may be able to mount and rescue your system

+ 1

ballatom

8/15/24, 3:44 PM

Thanks for the idea. I did manage to get to the grub command line but somehow did not manage to get your trick to work for me. It inspired me and I used the cmd shell of a gParted live cd to do the job.

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EN: Ooops, I deleted /etc but I do have a backup

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