-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
lee johnson wrote:
>alot of folks run root and to think the only reason we can't is because
>of something that linux 'was' protecting us from what windows suffered
>from ie: virus's..well then that is sad day indeed.......
I think you may not fully understand the Unix security model. Unix is
a multi-user system; Windows is not. Unix(ish) systems are designed
to clearly separate system functions from user activities, which has a
lot to do with why they're generally not susceptible to "viruses".
On a properly configured Unix system, it's not possible for a normal
user -- or any virus or malicious program run by that user,
accidentally or otherwise -- to do any damage except to that user's
own files. This may not sound like a big deal on a personal
workstation, but it still can mean the difference between having to
restore just your data, and having to rebuild and reconfigure your
entire system in the event of your screwup. (And if you think you
won't screw up, you're a newbie -- it happens to all of us!)
If you have to run as root to "do anything productive", then either
you're doing a lot of system-level experimentation, which is fine, or
your system is not properly configured. In the former case, if you
require X Windows, open an xterm and do 'su -'. Supply the root
password, and now you have a root window in an otherwise safe X
session. Go nuts.
In most cases on a stable system, however, you should rarely be
running anything as root, in which case sudo is your friend. Add this
to /etc/sudoers (by running 'visudo'):
lee ALL=(ALL) ALL
And you're now able to run any command you want after supplying your
own password. Alternatively, you can simply do 'su -' in an xterm,
supply the root password, and leave that terminal tucked away on your
desktop for occasional use.
Learn to configure permissions properly. Read a lot. Buy a good book
on Unix configuration (such as Frisch's "Essential System
Administration" from O'Reilly). Read it before bed, on the bus, on
the can. When you begin to understand why things work the way they do
in Unix, you'll be wowed, and you'll appreciate, instead of being
frustrated by, the organic security mechanisms of which you speak.
- -d
- --
David Talkington
http://www.spotnet.org
PGP key: http://www.prairienet.org/~dtalk/dt000823.asc
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: PGP 6.5.8
Comment: Made with pgp4pine 1.75-6
iQEVAwUBOuCCVb1ZYOtSwT+tAQGF5wf+PzLgGJl+7eea8WXPSSF4xayzsblBVT1q
plT2abcap1Z7uBel8e23uC3u7mpRHs8MmH3Gwf2tiGSGvWNqFeQRbJtgOsAlG6jG
v84ILo/ybn+V5b0CoCUkwRYBDvj6AtO6WDMoOFLlRbNd+/EHgbpd+CjG9iJGd4Ar
3xRWPvtxeDamAnZ9NMonYvrIpjQnWJ3RMurr4ukBVEyQwRgf+5XxxwgMPnHqgd9j
98GRhRn7pG7nfBopqwzc22/xhwtDQodZLv7bP4Bdw9ayaGObPXrA4y/t3fzPQDB2
JVHBCyo74uJMyipvtSIlVCZYU90SSfyfAANW8JFqpUqkwO+o8bQTQA==
=iRcC
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
_______________________________________________
Redhat-list mailing list
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/redhat-list
