Satellite installer fails with 'Errno::EACCES: Permission denied @ dir_initialize - /usr/share/foreman/lib/satellite' error

Environment

• Red Hat Satellite 6.16

Issue

• Satellite installer fails with the following error:

    # satellite-installer
    2025-12-24 22:24:05 [NOTICE] [root] Loading installer configuration. This will take some time.
    2025-12-24 22:24:10 [NOTICE] [root] Running installer with log based terminal output at level NOTICE.
    2025-12-24 22:24:10 [NOTICE] [root] Use -l to set the terminal output log level to ERROR, WARN, NOTICE, INFO, or DEBUG. See --full-help for definitions.
    2025-12-24 22:24:11 [NOTICE] [checks] System checks passed
    Package versions are locked. Continuing with unlock.
    2025-12-24 22:25:19 [NOTICE] [configure] Starting system configuration.
    2025-12-24 22:25:29 [NOTICE] [configure] 250 configuration steps out of 1997 steps complete.
    2025-12-24 22:25:31 [NOTICE] [configure] 500 configuration steps out of 1997 steps complete.
    2025-12-24 22:25:35 [NOTICE] [configure] 750 configuration steps out of 2001 steps complete.
    2025-12-24 22:25:36 [NOTICE] [configure] 1000 configuration steps out of 2006 steps complete.
    2025-12-24 22:25:36 [NOTICE] [configure] 1250 configuration steps out of 2008 steps complete.
    2025-12-24 22:25:36 [NOTICE] [configure] 1500 configuration steps out of 2008 steps complete.
    2025-12-24 22:25:37 [NOTICE] [configure] 1750 configuration steps out of 2008 steps complete.
    2025-12-24 22:26:17 [ERROR ] [configure] '/usr/sbin/foreman-rake db:migrate' returned 1 instead of one of [0]
    2025-12-24 22:26:17 [ERROR ] [configure] /Stage[main]/Foreman::Database/Foreman::Rake[db:migrate]/Exec[foreman-rake-db:migrate]/returns: change from 'notrun' to ['0'] failed: '/usr/sbin/foreman-rake db:migrate' returned 1 instead of one of [0]
    2025-12-24 22:26:32 [NOTICE] [configure] 2000 configuration steps out of 2008 steps complete.
    2025-12-24 22:26:35 [NOTICE] [configure] System configuration has finished.
  
    Error 1: Puppet Exec resource 'foreman-rake-db:migrate' failed. Logs:
      /Stage[main]/Foreman::Database/Foreman::Rake[db:migrate]/Exec[foreman-rake-db:migrate]
        Adding autorequire relationship with User[foreman]
        Starting to evaluate the resource (1832 of 2008)
        Evaluated in 30.61 seconds
      Exec[foreman-rake-db:migrate](provider=posix)
        Executing check '/usr/sbin/foreman-rake db:abort_if_pending_migrations'
        Executing '/usr/sbin/foreman-rake db:migrate'
      /Stage[main]/Foreman::Database/Foreman::Rake[db:migrate]/Exec[foreman-rake-db:migrate]/unless
        rake aborted!
        Errno::EACCES: Permission denied @ dir_initialize - /usr/share/foreman/lib/satellite
        <internal:dir>:15:in `open'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/zeitwerk-2.6.18/lib/zeitwerk/loader/helpers.rb:60:in `children'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/zeitwerk-2.6.18/lib/zeitwerk/loader/helpers.rb:60:in `has_at_least_one_ruby_file?'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/zeitwerk-2.6.18/lib/zeitwerk/loader/helpers.rb:34:in `block in ls'
        .
        .
        .
        /usr/share/gems/gems/railties-7.0.8.7/lib/rails/application.rb:506:in `block in run_tasks_blocks'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/rake-13.0.3/exe/rake:27:in `<top (required)>'
        Tasks: TOP => db:abort_if_pending_migrations => db:load_config => environment
        (See full trace by running task with --trace)
      /Stage[main]/Foreman::Database/Foreman::Rake[db:migrate]/Exec[foreman-rake-db:migrate]/returns
        rake aborted!
        Errno::EACCES: Permission denied @ dir_initialize - /usr/share/foreman/lib/satellite
        <internal:dir>:15:in `open'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/zeitwerk-2.6.18/lib/zeitwerk/loader/helpers.rb:60:in `children'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/zeitwerk-2.6.18/lib/zeitwerk/loader/helpers.rb:60:in `has_at_least_one_ruby_file?'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/zeitwerk-2.6.18/lib/zeitwerk/loader/helpers.rb:34:in `block in ls'
        .
        .
        .
        /usr/share/gems/gems/railties-7.0.8.7/lib/rails/application.rb:348:in `require_environment!'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/railties-7.0.8.7/lib/rails/application.rb:506:in `block in run_tasks_blocks'
        /usr/share/gems/gems/rake-13.0.3/exe/rake:27:in `<top (required)>'
        Tasks: TOP => db:migrate => db:load_config => environment
        (See full trace by running task with --trace)
        change from 'notrun' to ['0'] failed: '/usr/sbin/foreman-rake db:migrate' returned 1 instead of one of [0]
  
    1 error was detected during installation.
    Please address the errors and re-run the installer to ensure the system is properly configured.
    Failing to do so is likely to result in broken functionality.
  
    The full log is at /var/log/foreman-installer/satellite.log
    Package versions are being locked.
  

Resolution

1. Run the following commands to fix the permission on /usr/share/foreman/lib/satellite:

# ls -ldZ /usr/share/foreman/lib/satellite
# chmod -R 755 /usr/share/foreman/lib/satellite
# ls -ldZ /usr/share/foreman/lib/satellite

2. Run the following script to test:

# cat <<SCRIPT | foreman-rake console
  p "testing"
SCRIPT

3. If the script doesn't complain about Errno::EACCES: Permission denied @ dir_initialize - /usr/share/foreman/lib/satellite error, run the satellite-installer command:

# satellite-installer

For more KB articles/solutions related to Red Hat Satellite 6.x Installation/Upgrade/Update Issues, please refer to the Red Hat Satellite Consolidated Troubleshooting Article for Red Hat Satellite 6.x Installation/Upgrade/Update Issues.

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