Re: rootly stuff

[awilliam@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

>>>Also, I've always known that it's a serious no-no to establish a 
PPP
>>>connection while logged in as root... Why is that, and what kind of
>>>powers does someone on the other side of a PPP connection have? If 
I'm
>>>logged in as a user, can they execute any command I have set to be
>>>xecutable by that user?

PPPD must run as root, that is ok.  You shouldn't run Internet servers 
or clients (i.e. netscape) as root.

>>
>> I don't know about all that. As far as I know, only root can make new
>> network interfaces.

Yes.

> However, if I do call up pppd as root, my dip-grp account cannot kill 
the
> process, as pppd is being run by root. setuid is not the same as 
running
> apps from root -- the latter seems to carry more privilege. As for 
what

Well, it is running with an "effective id of root,  but it is still 
your process.  If rout himself starts it then the process belongs to root.

> trickery may be done by someone who tries to hack your pppd from
> internet-side, I have no specific info, sorry.

Hacking PPPD would be very hard,  there are several DOS attacks 
however.  Usually you simply just use the connection PPD provides to 
attack some server, like sendmail or apache.

> FWIW, I always just su and run shutdown, et al.

GDM offers shutdown button, or they are easy to add to XDM,  assuming 
your using a GUI login.