[BUG] Augeas provides actions but not checks

[hramrach]

Description

Not sure this is a bug in the docs of if this is deficiency of the augeas plugin.

The docs say https://docs.saltproject.io/en/latest/ref/states/all/salt.states.augeas.html

zabbix-service:
  augeas.change:
    - lens: services.lns
    - context: /files/etc/services
    - changes:
      - ins service-name after service-name[last()]
      - set service-name[last()] "zabbix-agent"
      - set "service-name[. = 'zabbix-agent']/port" 10050
      - set "service-name[. = 'zabbix-agent']/protocol" tcp
      - set "service-name[. = 'zabbix-agent']/#comment" "Zabbix Agent service"
      - rm "service-name[. = 'im-obsolete']"
    - unless: grep "zabbix-agent" /etc/services

This is not a way to manage the file. The string zabbix-agent may be in the file but commented out. There might be a service like zabbix-agent-ng. When the file is modified by augeas the check that the modification was applied should also be done by augeas.

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[OrangeDog]

As far as I know, augeas doesn't work like that. If you tell it to ins then it does.

If the example were changed to grep '^zabbix-agent\s' /etc/services would that make you happier?

[hramrach]

No, I mean that Augeas upstream provides both functions to change the file and get data from the file.

Then if I did not use Salt but rather Augeas upstream tools I could write a check that parses the file and looks if "zabbix-agent" service definition is present, and execute the actions to add it when it is not.

However, here the check is executed with 'grep' which has very little idea about the structure of the file rather than with Augeas, the very thing Augeas is supposed to prevent.

[OrangeDog]

Then this should be a feature request that's going to require some design of how to implement that in a Salt state.

[hramrach]

So it's not merely an omission in the documentation.

Does not look like I can change the labels to mark this a feature.

[OrangeDog]

Create a new issue using the feature template and fill in the details.

[hramrach]

Moved to #65359

[OrangeDog]

Ignoring half the template was not helpful.