agent: query chrony over loopback UDP command socket (unix socket unusable under sandbox)

Root cause of the blank chrony fields (found on comet-beacon-54): chrony 4.x
(RHEL 9) defaults its command interface to the UNIX socket only
(/run/chrony/chronyd.sock), usable by root or the chrony group with a writable
/run/chrony. The fleet-agent unit is hardened — DynamicUser (group tss, not
chrony) + ProtectSystem=strict (/run read-only) — so it cannot open the unix
socket nor create chronyc's reply socket. Bench proof: normal-user 'chronyc
tracking' -> 506 Cannot talk to daemon; only sudo worked; 'chronyc -h 127.0.0.1'
failed and ss showed no UDP :323. So the probe always failed and every chrony_*
field stayed empty. SELinux permissive did NOT help — it was never (only) an
SELinux problem; the nnp_transition module (prev commit) is still needed for the
enforcing exec transition.

Fix: bind chronyd's command socket on 127.0.0.1 (bindcmdaddress in chrony.conf,
idempotent in the 2c provisioner) and point the probe at it (chronyc -n -h
127.0.0.1 tracking). UDP needs no fs write or group and rides the unit's
already-allowed AF_INET. Loopback + monitoring-only (state changes still need the
root unix socket), so exposure is minimal. Rejected the unix-socket route (chrony
group + ReadWritePaths=/run/chrony) because /run/chrony is 0750 (group has no
write). Documented in docs/stig-deviations.md #17; .te bench note updated for the
enforcing UDP path. Needs a workstation image rebuild + reboot.

diskless.pkr.hcl

@@ -405,6 +405,17 @@ build {
       "restorecon /etc/NetworkManager/dispatcher.d/10-chrony-dhcp-ntp",
       "sed -i -E 's/^[[:space:]]*(pool|server)[[:space:]]/#&/' /etc/chrony.conf",
       "grep -q '^sourcedir /run/chrony-dhcp' /etc/chrony.conf || echo 'sourcedir /run/chrony-dhcp' >> /etc/chrony.conf",
+      # Bind chronyd's command socket on LOOPBACK UDP so the fleet-agent can query
+      # clock health (`chronyc -h 127.0.0.1 tracking`). chrony 4.x (RHEL 9) defaults
+      # the command interface to the UNIX socket /run/chrony/chronyd.sock ONLY
+      # (root or the chrony group + a writable /run/chrony for chronyc's reply
+      # socket). The agent runs hardened — DynamicUser (not in chrony group),
+      # ProtectSystem=strict (/run read-only) — so it can't use the unix socket; a
+      # loopback UDP command socket needs no fs write or group and rides the unit's
+      # already-allowed AF_INET. Localhost-only + monitoring-only (state changes
+      # still require the root unix socket), so the exposure is minimal. Documented
+      # in docs/stig-deviations.md #17.
+      "grep -q '^bindcmdaddress 127.0.0.1' /etc/chrony.conf || echo 'bindcmdaddress 127.0.0.1' >> /etc/chrony.conf",
 
       # Inject the fleet NIC drivers into the dracut config
       "sed -i 's/@NIC_DRIVERS@/${var.nic_drivers}/' /etc/dracut.conf.d/90-diskless.conf",

docs/stig-deviations.md

@@ -287,6 +287,48 @@ AVC under the agent's mount namespace (extend the `.te` if any appears); (d)
 hash stability across two builds (same concern as #12/#14/#15). NB: only shipped
 when `enable_stig=true`; a non-STIG enforcing build would still see the AVC.
 
+**Not the whole story — see #17.** Permissive-mode bench (`comet-beacon-54`,
+2026-07-10) showed the chrony fields STILL empty with SELinux permissive, proving
+the module isn't the only blocker: chronyd's command interface was reachable only
+via its **unix socket**, which the hardened agent can't use. #17 is the companion
+fix; this module remains needed for the enforcing exec transition.
+
+## 17. chronyd loopback UDP command socket for the fleet-agent probe (added 2026-07-10)
+
+Not a STIG-rule waiver — a **one-line `chrony.conf` addition**
+(`bindcmdaddress 127.0.0.1`) so the hardened `fleet-agent` can read clock health.
+
+**Why:** the agent reports offset/source/stratum via `chronyc tracking`. On chrony
+4.x (RHEL 9) the command interface defaults to the **unix socket only**
+(`/run/chrony/chronyd.sock`), usable solely by root or the `chrony` group **and**
+needing a writable `/run/chrony` for chronyc's reply socket. The agent unit is
+hardened — `DynamicUser=yes` (ephemeral uid, group `tss` only, not `chrony`) and
+`ProtectSystem=strict` (`/run` read-only) — so it cannot open the unix socket nor
+create a reply socket. Bench (`comet-beacon-54`, 2026-07-10): as a normal user
+`chronyc tracking` → `506 Cannot talk to daemon`; only `sudo chronyc` worked;
+`chronyc -h 127.0.0.1` failed and `ss -lnup` showed **no UDP :323** — the loopback
+command socket wasn't bound. Result: the probe always failed, every `chrony_*`
+field stayed empty (Monitor chrony row `—`), and SELinux permissive did NOT help
+(this is a sandbox/socket issue, orthogonal to #16).
+
+**The change:** bind chronyd's command socket on `127.0.0.1` (UDP 323, loopback)
+in the 2c provisioner (idempotent, next to the DHCP `sourcedir` edit); the agent
+probe uses `chronyc -n -h 127.0.0.1 tracking`. UDP needs no filesystem write and no
+group, and rides the unit's already-allowed `AF_INET` — the one transport that
+works under the sandbox. The unix-socket alternative (add `chrony` group +
+`ReadWritePaths=/run/chrony`) was rejected: `/run/chrony` is `0750` (group has no
+write), so chronyc still couldn't create its reply socket.
+
+**Scope / risk:** the command socket is bound **loopback-only** and is
+**monitoring-only** — chronyd still requires the root unix socket for any state
+change (`makestep`, `add server`, etc.), so a local caller can *read* clock status
+but cannot alter time. No network exposure (127.0.0.1, not the fleet LAN). This is
+also chrony's historical pre-4.x default. **BENCH-VERIFY:** (a) `ss -lnup | grep
+:323` shows the loopback socket after boot; (b) the Monitor chrony row populates;
+(c) under enforcing, no follow-on `chronyc_t → chronyd_t` UDP AVC (extend
+`fleet-agent-chronyc.te` if so — see #16). Only applied when the NTP/DHCP provisioner
+runs (always, independent of `enable_stig`).
+
 ## Things that are NOT deviations (kept / enforced)
 
 - **SELinux enforcing** (`selinux --enforcing`; labels preserved into the erofs).

files/agent/snapshot.go

@@ -305,8 +305,15 @@ type chrony struct {
 
 // chronyTracking runs `chronyc tracking` once and parses it. Best-effort: a zero
 // chrony{} (state "") if chronyc is unavailable — never fails the snapshot.
+//
+// -h 127.0.0.1 forces the LOOPBACK UDP command socket instead of chronyd's unix
+// socket. Under the agent's hardened unit (DynamicUser — not in the chrony group;
+// ProtectSystem=strict — /run read-only) the unix socket at /run/chrony is
+// unreachable (can't open it, nor create chronyc's reply socket there). UDP needs
+// no fs write or group and rides the unit's already-allowed AF_INET. The image
+// binds this socket via `bindcmdaddress 127.0.0.1` in chrony.conf.
 func chronyTracking() chrony {
-	out, err := runShort("chronyc", "-n", "tracking")
+	out, err := runShort("chronyc", "-n", "-h", "127.0.0.1", "tracking")
 	if err != nil {
 		return chrony{}
 	}

files/stig/fleet-agent-chronyc.te

@@ -23,10 +23,16 @@ module fleet_agent_chronyc 1.0.0;
 # This single allow lets the transition proceed to the MORE-confined chronyc_t
 # domain (the safe direction NNP's nnp_transition permission exists to gate), with
 # no loosening of the agent's own sandbox. Minimal + auditable; justified in
-# docs/stig-deviations.md. BENCH-VERIFY: after this, the manager's Monitor chrony
+# docs/stig-deviations.md #16.
-# row populates (offset/source/stratum). If a FOLLOW-ON chronyc_t AVC appears on
+#
-# the bench (e.g. reaching chronyd's socket under the agent's mount namespace),
+# NB this is necessary but NOT sufficient: the agent reaches chronyd over the
-# extend here.
+# LOOPBACK UDP command socket (`chronyc -h 127.0.0.1 tracking`; the image binds it
+# via `bindcmdaddress 127.0.0.1`, see stig-deviations #17) because the unix socket
+# is unusable under the agent's sandbox. Under enforcing, once chronyc runs in
+# chronyc_t it must also be allowed to reach chronyd_t on UDP 323 — the base chrony
+# policy is expected to cover chronyc_t's command traffic, but BENCH-VERIFY on the
+# first enforcing boot and, if a FOLLOW-ON chronyc_t AVC appears (e.g. a corenet
+# udp_socket/name_connect denial to chronyd), extend here.
 ########################################
 
 require {