Modifications to the /etc/pam.d/system-auth configuration file are removed after applying a patch or rebooting the host

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

Symptoms:

• After rebooting an ESXi host, changes made to the /etc/pam.d/system-auth file are deleted.
• Changes to the /etc/pam.d/system-auth file do not persist across reboot.
• Changes to the /etc/pam.d/system-auth file, such as the default password complexity or reset period, are lost after you reboot the host.
• This issue occurs even after you apply a patch to the host.

Environment

VMware vSphere ESXi 5.0
VMware ESXi 4.1.x Embedded
VMware ESXi 4.1.x Installable
VMware vSphere ESXi 5.1

Resolution

This is expected behavior in ESXi 4.x.

Complete this workaround to force the changes to persist even after you apply a patch or reboot the host:

1. Update the /etc/pam.d/system-auth-generic file with the changes that were made to the /etc/pam.d/system-auth file.
2. Delete the changes from the /etc/pam.d/system-auth file .
3. Reboot the host.