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I like to set up Debian or Ubuntu as servers and have to install many applications before configuring them. Sometimes, I install an application just so that I have the option to use it at a later date if needed.

I don't want these apps to automatically be enabled and started. This creates problems, especially if their settings hasn't been changed and there are conflicts with other apps.

For example, I installed the following software: apt install nginx apache2 lighttpd.

And when I reboot, Nginx is listening on port 80, mis-configured and insecure, and I have to disable it.

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I disable it and reboot, see now who took over the port:

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If I disable lighttpd, Apache2 will take its place.

This doesn't make sense, I feel like I'm fighting with the applications I install... Any way to make it stop? Any way to disable this behavior of enabling and starting services upon installation?

EDIT

Found a solution for preventing auto start:

echo exit 101 > /usr/sbin/policy-rc.d chmod +x /usr/sbin/policy-rc.d

Found a solution for preventing auto enable:

https://unix.stackexchange.com/a/723679/547917

But this is ridiculous there's nothing simpler, some kind of swtch using apt --no-enable --no-start, for example.

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  • Hard to believe there is no way to prevent services from being started upon installation, incredible! Commented Nov 5, 2022 at 15:22

3 Answers 3

Reset to default
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You can ensure that newly-installed services — at least, those configured using systemd units, which is most now — are disabled by default by setting up a systemd preset:

sudo mkdir -p /etc/systemd/system-preset echo 'disable *' | sudo tee /etc/systemd/system-preset/99-default-disable.preset

See man systemd.preset for details.

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  • Sadly that didn't work, when I installed dnsmasq afterwards, it tried to start it and there was a big red message because port 53 is already taken by another service. Commented Nov 4, 2022 at 18:45
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If you are creating your own package and do not want the service to automatically start, you can install a preset file. There are many locations, I chose the following for my package because the folder already exists with the default systemd file:

/etc/systemd/system-preset/

I named my file after my package with 50- at the start and .preset as the extension:

50-<package-name>.preset

And inside the file, I added one line:

disable <service-name>.service

Usually, <service-name> is the same as <package-name>, but not always.

Now, in the debian/<package-name>.install file, I have one more line:

/usr/share/<package-name>/50-<package-name>.preset /etc/systemd/system-preset/

Somewhere in one of my CMakeLists.txt file, I install that .preset file in the /usr/share/<package-name>/ directory because you cannot directly install files under /etc/.... Something like this:

project(service-config) INSTALL( FILES 50-<package-name>.preset DESTINATION share/<package-name> )

Now the service status says:

...; vendor preset: disabled)

In other words, start with a disabled service. In my case, the service requires the installation of a key before it has a chance to work so I wanted it disabled by default.

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We added the following lines in the debian/rules file of our own services:

override_dh_installsystemd: dh_installsystemd --name yourservicename --no-start
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