Date: Sun, 10 May 1998 22:44:22 -0500 From: Jon Hamilton <hamilton@pobox.com> To: Doug White <dwhite@resnet.uoregon.edu> Cc: questions@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Cron Message-ID: <199805110345.UAA29424@hub.freebsd.org> In-Reply-To: Your message of "Sun, 10 May 1998 12:02:20 PDT." <Pine.BSF.3.96.980510120014.4464H-100000@gdi.uoregon.edu>
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In message <Pine.BSF.3.96.980510120014.4464H-100000@gdi.uoregon.edu>, Doug Whit e writes: } On Sat, 9 May 1998, Shawn Ramsey wrote: } } > > > in order to fix this i just need to change the roots shell to sh??? } > > } > > Yes. You should never change root's shell, no matter how tempting. } > } > What are the consquences of changed root's shell?? I've changed root shell, } > and havent noticed any problems... } } 1) Unintended changes to scripts run as root. I've often seen/heard this claim, but frankly I don't buy it: 1) How many shell scripts exist on your system which don't begin with the magic #! on the first line? 2) Even without the magic, the default interpreter is sh; even if you are running csh as your login shell, executing a script from the command line will fire it off with /bin/sh if there is no magic number at the head. } 2) Shared-lib issues -- pick the wrong shell and you won't be able to } login as root if, say, /usr or /lib dies and takes libc with it. } /bin/sh is statically linked. This is a more persuasive argument. Let me quickly interject that I never change root's shell; I'm a firm believer in the "do as little as root as you can" maxim, and for as often as I need to be root to do anything "major", I don't find it too difficult to type a few characters to start up the shell of my choice. -- Jon Hamilton hamilton@pobox.com To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message
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