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  • I downloaded the current iso file of Ubuntu MATE from the website.
  • I did a completely fresh install of Ubuntu MATE 16.04 (specifically 16.04.5).
  • I created a default user while installing with its GUI called test (full name Test). The system thus created a UPG called test.
  • after installation had finished, I restarted the system.
  • Now on the completely fresh system I open System > Control Center > Users and Groups > Manage Groups.
  • I look for the test group and press Properties, and here it is... user test is not member of group test!

it looks like /etc/group suggests the same: (2nd last line)

test@test ~ $ less /etc/group | grep test
adm:x:4:syslog,test
cdrom:x:24:test
sudo:x:27:test
dip:x:30:test
plugdev:x:46:test
lpadmin:x:113:test
test:x:1000:
sambashare:x:129:test

but according to how should `id` and `/etc/group` be read? the primary group of a user is only listed in /etc/passwd and not additional in /etc/group to avoid redundancy.

id <username> seems to suggest a little bit different:

test@test ~ $ id test
uid=1000(test) gid=1000(test) groups=1000(test),4(adm),24(cdrom),27(sudo),30(dip),46(plugdev),113(lpadmin),129(sambashare)

the best way to proof is groups <username>:

test@test ~ $ groups test
test : test adm cdrom sudo dip plugdev lpadmin sambashare

So is this a bug by the GUIs? - Somehow i doubt it, because of how long time it is there and also present in two well known DEs...

DJCrashdummy
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    Whether a user gets assigned a UPG or not at account creation is determined by the /etc/adduser.conf settings (unless the account is created using lower-level means such as useradd) . What happens after that is up to the admin. – steeldriver Aug 27 '18 at 12:06
  • @steeldriver reads as an answer to me; besides maybe a remark that UPG is not used by default ;) – Rinzwind Aug 27 '18 at 17:01
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    @Rinzwind everything in the OP's terminal output says that user test is in group test (the UPG) - so I guess the question should really be why the GUI users-and-groups pane said something different? – steeldriver Aug 27 '18 at 17:15
  • I can confirm this behavior in Ubuntu Studio 18.04 (xfce4). The GUI shows that I'm not a member of my UPG, but for all other groups I am a member of (according to id) the membership is displayed correctly. Likely a bug in the GUI. – mook765 Aug 27 '18 at 17:49
  • It's correct in my Ubuntu MATE 18.04, same settings structure as OP - Properties for my group lists me as a member – Zanna Aug 27 '18 at 17:55
  • @steeldriver thanks for understanding my confusion...! ;-) – DJCrashdummy Aug 27 '18 at 20:23
  • @Zanna i did exactly the same with Ubuntu MATE 18.04.1 as described in the OP and got the same result... (just different GID for lpadmin and sambashare). :-/ – DJCrashdummy Aug 27 '18 at 20:25
  • I'm talking about the GUI, not /etc/group which afaik is normal the way you showed. It's the same in mine. The possible weirdness here is the GUI which should show the user in the group (I believe id and you can also run groups I think)(Also OP is a person and it's you!) – Zanna Aug 27 '18 at 21:00
  • It looks like the GUI only uses the information from /etc/groups. When I use the GUI to add or remove myself to or from my UPG I definitely have a change in /etc/groups but no change in the output of id. – mook765 Aug 28 '18 at 08:43
  • @mook765 yes, this is also my assumption... but why is this so? for a reason? a bug? - IMHO the only GUI-item "Users and Groups" should list all groups/users/members no matter if primary or supplementary groups nor where they are noted. ...the average GUI-user has no idea of and mostly also no interest in such internals. – DJCrashdummy Aug 28 '18 at 10:15
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    I think the UPG is handled in a special way, I believe one must belong to this group, the UPG is defined in /etc/passwd. The GUI is probably meant to manage /etc/groups and nothing else. I agree with you that this is confusing, in my opinion we could call it a bug. – mook765 Aug 28 '18 at 11:55

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