Problems with rsh

Question

I have problems calling a remote command by different users on different machines. This remote command shall be executed on one single machine and the rsh-session shall be terminated immediately after successful execution of this command. Multiple users can execute this command at the same time.

I know that rsh is insecure, but this isn't an issue here.

My problem here is the configuration of the remote system in regard to privileges and location of the script.

Locally, the rsh command is simply called like this:

rsh $HOST -l $USER remote_command

Some concrete questions here:

• Do I need a special user ($USER) unlike root to execute the remote command?
• Which privileges should this user have?
• Only the privileges to execute the necessary commands and read and write the files that this commands use?
• In which directory should the script be located? I would place it in /usr/bin, but I don't know if that's a good idea.

Answer 1

As you seem think that security does no matter there,

Some concrete answer:

• Do I need a special user ($USER) unlike root to execute the remote command?

  Technicaly no, (regardless of security consideration.)

• Which privileges should this user have?

  The privilege level required are only depending on what remote_command have to do.

• Only the privileges to execute the necessary commands and read and write the files that this commands use?

  So if all concern script and files at same conceptual level, I think the better way is to create an unprivileged user, with his home directory and put all files and script under this home directory.

• In which directory should the script be located?

  The best place is $HOME/bin/ (ensuring $HOME/bin is added to your $PATH variable, from your .bashrc or .profile.), the second best place, if this script have to be accessed by other users on same machine is /usr/local/bin (as this path is by default in standard $PATH assignation.