Could default templates be provided in the post_install(){} hook for the systemd package? Something like post_install() { if [ ! -e /etc/timezone ] ; then cat > /etc/timezone <<EOF UTC fi if [ ! -e /etc/localtime ] ; then ln -s /usr/share/zoneinfo/UTC /etc/localtime fi if [ ! -e /etc/hostname ] ; then hostname > /etc/hostname fi } That way, on upgrade, they would not be overwritten, but on install you would at least have working settings. -- Sébastien Leblanc