limits_conf resource

Use the limits_conf Chef InSpec audit resource to test configuration settings in the /etc/security/limits.conf file. The limits.conf defines limits for processes (by user and/or group names) and helps ensure that the system running those processes remains stable. Each process may be assigned a hard or soft limit.

Soft limits are maintained by the shell and defines the number of file handles (or open files) available to the user or group after login
Hard limits are maintained by the kernel and defines the maximum number of allowed file handles

Entries in the limits.conf file are similar to:

grantmc     soft   nofile   4096
grantmc     hard   nofile   63536

^^^^^^^^^   ^^^^   ^^^^^^   ^^^^^
domain      type    item    value

Availability

Installation

This resource is distributed with Chef InSpec and is automatically available for use.

Version

This resource first became available in v1.0.0 of InSpec.

Syntax

A limits_conf resource block declares a domain to be tested, along with associated type, item, and value:

describe limits_conf('path') do
  its('domain') { should include ['type', 'item', 'value'] }
  its('domain') { should eq ['type', 'item', 'value'] }
end

where

('path') is the non-default path to the inetd.conf file
'domain' is a user or group name, such as grantmc
'type' is either hard or soft
'item' is the item for which limits are defined, such as core, nofile, stack, nproc, priority, or maxlogins
'value' is the value associated with the item

Properties

domain

The domain property tests the domain in the limits.conf file, along with associated type, item, and value:

its('domain') { should include ['type', 'item', 'value'] }

For example:

its('grantmc') { should include ['hard', 'nofile', '63536'] }

Test limits

describe limits_conf('path') do
  its('*') { should include ['soft', 'core', '0'], ['hard', 'rss', '10000'] }
  its('ftp') { should eq ['hard', 'nproc', '0'] }
end

Matchers

For a full list of available matchers, please visit our matchers page.