Fix problem with file.append and unicode input
Handle unicode in highstate outputter

Refs #16651
Simplify decoding
2 of 500000

Let's not hardcode the SSH tests to the root user without the need for
that.
Switch `run_ssh` with `run_function`
Fixing a bug that was introduced while fixing another bug related to saving the current iptables when a rule was being managed but already existed.  This fixed caused the iptables.save to run *all* the time, regardless of the state of rules had changed.  This fix ensures that the save only happens when the saved rules differs from those that are in memory, and only if the save option is included.
Merge pull request #17257 from garethgreenaway/iptables_fixing_iptables_save

Fixes to iptables state
Merge pull request #17253 from s0undt3ch/2014.7

2 of 500000
Merge pull request #16664 from cachedout/issue_16651

Unicode fixes in file.append and highstate outputter
Remove release candidate message from docs sidebar
Merge pull request #17268 from rallytime/remove_rc_version

Remove release candidate message from docs sidebar
Revert "Freeze the testing runtime configs at a latter stage"

This reverts commit 5da3ad341b6b4ffb6c947916dfa47664cef4f1cc.
Pass the right environ to VT's env.

Fixes #17262
Closes #17263
Merge pull request #17276 from s0undt3ch/2014.7

Revert "Freeze the testing runtime configs at a latter stage"
Merge pull request #17277 from s0undt3ch/hotfix/pass-the-right-env-to-vt

Pass the right environ to VT's env.
adding docstrs to _render_filenames
add unit tests for salt/modules/cp.py