user.absent

Source: pkg/state/modules/user.go

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
`name`	`string`	No	State ID	Username to remove. If omitted, the state ID is used as the username.
`purge`	`bool`	No	`false`	If `true`, remove the user's home directory and mail spool (`userdel -r`).
`force`	`bool`	No	`false`	Parsed but not yet implemented in the execution layer. Has no effect.

All states also accept the full set of requisite parameters and Salt-parity state attributes — see Dependencies & Requisites.

Check Behavior

User lookup — looks up the user by name.
If the user does not exist, the state reports no changes needed.
If the user exists, the state needs changes.

Apply Behavior

Deletes the user via userdel.
If purge is true, the home directory and mail spool are also removed (userdel -r).

Revert Behavior

No-op. User deletion cannot be reverted because the original user data (password hash, groups, etc.) is not preserved.

Examples

Direct Execution

# Remove a user, keeping their home directory
zester 'web-01' user.absent olduser

# Remove a user and purge their home directory
zester 'web*' user.absent olduser purge=true

State File

Simple user removal:

olduser:
  user.absent: []

Remove user and home directory:

remove_temp_user:
  user.absent:
    - name: tempuser
    - purge: true

Remove user after stopping their service:

decommission_app:
  user.absent:
    - name: appuser
    - purge: true
    - require:
      - "cmd.run:stop_app_service"