Re: cp and SELinux context

[Bruno Haible]

Jim Meyering wrote:
> >       --preserve[=ATTR_LIST]   preserve the specified attributes (default:
> >                                  mode,ownership,timestamps), if possible
> >                                  additional attributes: context, links, all
>
> ... it's the SELinux context,

Why does the default list of preserved attributes (mode,ownership,timestamps)
not include the SELinux context?

The SELinux FAQ [1] states that
  "When backing up and recovering files with a SELinux system, care must be
   taken to preserve SELinux context information."

Naïvely, I would think this rule should also hold when copying file trees
as root using "cp -p"?

Bruno


[1] http://www.crypt.gen.nz/selinux/faq.html#GA.10