[gentoo-user] Re: sudo in kernel config ?

[Nikos Chantziaras]

On 09/11/2010 11:49 PM, Dale wrote:
> Nikos Chantziaras wrote:
>> On 09/11/2010 11:35 PM, Dale wrote:
>>> Alan McKinnon wrote:
>>>> Apparently, though unproven, at 11:46 on Saturday 11 September 2010,
>>>> Albert
>>>> Hopkins did opine thusly:
>>>>
>>>>> On Sat, 2010-09-11 at 10:24 +0200, Stéphane Guedon wrote:
>>>>>> few months ago, I read linux kernel in a nutschell(sic), and the
>>>>>> author
>>>>>> wrote we shouldn't do kernel operations (config and build) as root.
>>>>> I call bullsh*t. I've been compiling kernels for 17 years and for the
>>>>> most part have done it as root without any problems.
>>>> Same here.
>>>>
>>>> The root user (sometimes portage) creates /usr/src/linux-*
>>>>
>>>> Someone tell me again exactly how user alan is supposed to build those
>>>> sources?
>>>>
>>>
>>> If they are accessible by a user, couldn't a user then edit or add
>>> something that would then cause a security problem? If they can edit
>>> them and no one know it, then root comes along and builds a shiney new
>>> kernel with a really nice security hole.
>>>
>>> Glad only root can get to the sources. ;-)
>>
>> No, any user can't edit them; only the user you assign the files to.
>> If you assign them to root, only root can edit them. If you assign
>> them to kerneluser, only kerneluser can edit them.
>>
>> This is Unix 101 :)
>>
>>
>
> My point was, if the sources are say in the user group, then any user
> can edit them? Right now, they are in the root group and owned my root
> which for security reasons is a good idea. That way a regular user can't
> edit or modify the kernel sources.

The group can only write if the files have the group write permission 
set.  Still in Unix 101 domain, hehe :)