The "substitute user" Unix command that changes the current user
23
votes
3answers
1k views
Sudo su vs su linux
If I enter in the password to su when prompted, it doesnt work while sudo su does. Also, when a command is executed using sudo (command), does sudo automatically execute it by root by default (since ...
15
votes
2answers
24k views
Command: sudo su -
I understand what su - does
logs you into root with the root environment
(as opposed to su which logs you into root with your environment)
And I understand what sudo does
you are root for one ...
7
votes
2answers
777 views
What's the difference between “su” with and without hyphen?
I'm quite new to Linux terminal and I'm not quite sure what the difference between su with a hyphen and su without a hyphen is, for example: su - username vs. su username.
I looked into the ...
5
votes
2answers
281 views
Is it possible for root to execute a command as non-root
I am root user and suppose i want to run any application as another user. is it possible, without switching to another user.
Something like
# google-chrome user=abc
I am actually executing a cli ...
5
votes
1answer
920 views
Can't write to file /sys/class/backlight/acpi_video0/brightness (ubuntu)
I am trying to change the brightness by overwriting the value on this file:
sudo echo 5 > /sys/class/backlight/acpi_video0/brightness
-bash: /sys/class/backlight/acpi_video0/brightness: Permission ...
5
votes
1answer
51 views
`su` for the OS X GUI
With OS X I wan the ability to log in to the computer as admin but set myself to another user on the system so I'm working on their profile with their privs, see all their settings, files, and run ...
4
votes
4answers
59 views
Any differences between `su` vs. `su -` beside the pathing? [duplicate]
I see that su - makes the shell a login shell from su --help. I'm curious what the differences are between this and a normal su command.
I know there seems to be a difference in the paths, any other ...
3
votes
6answers
1k views
a safer no password sudo?
Ok, here's my problem - Please don't yell at me for being insecure! :) This is on my host machine. I'm the only one using it so it's fairly safe, but I have a very complex password that is hard to ...
3
votes
2answers
572 views
use gnu screen when ssh'ed as a user, but su as another
Below is what happens when trying to use gnu screen. Essentially, it all works fine until I su as another user. then I get a Cannot open your terminal '/dev/pts/7' - please check. error
l413:~$ ssh ...
3
votes
2answers
548 views
Supply SU password in a bash script, within the script?
The purpose is to restart the machine if it doesn't get an abort command from the user. The problem is that the way the terminals are set up, user must supply SU password for shutdown, init, reboot, ...
3
votes
1answer
1k views
What's the difference between sudo su - and sudo -i?
It is my understanding that they do the same: they ask for my password (if I am allowed in /etc/sudoers), and give me a login shell as root.
Is there any difference between them?
sudo su -
sudo -i
...
3
votes
1answer
511 views
Problems with bash path when using 'su'
In Ubuntu Lucid Lynx, I'm trying to do
su -l user -c "foo.sh args"
where foo.sh is an executable bash script on the PATH set in ~user/.bashrc. Unfortunately, this fails because it can't find ...
3
votes
1answer
90 views
solaris 8 init script asks for user password
I've got a script in the Solaris 8 initialization phase, under /etc/rc3.d, that contains a su - username -c "a command", but I see thru the boot messages that the su command is asking for the user ...
2
votes
2answers
170 views
Is there a way to remove root requirements for a specific command in linux? If yes, how so?
I'm using Ubuntu 12.04 LTS, and I'm trying to make it so that the specific command
dhclient
doesn't require root privileges. I've done some research that leads me to believe I could unlock an "su" ...
2
votes
3answers
388 views
How do I su to user login shell directly
I do the following many times a day
I login to a server via ssh as user1,
I then do su - to become root,
then I do su --login user2 to become user2
Is there a way to tell su to go to user2 ...
2
votes
2answers
416 views
sudo, runuser, su don't work as I expect when run as root with command as “echo $HOME”
When I run these commands it outputs as shown. /root
sudo -u someuser -i "echo $HOME"
/root
runuser -l someuser -c "echo $HOME"
/root
su - someuser -c "echo $HOME"
/root
What i expected was
...
2
votes
3answers
6k views
Automating the “sudo su - user” command
I want to automate
sudo su - user
from a script. It should then ask for a password.
2
votes
2answers
96 views
gksu is a front end to su?
gksu manual page says that it is a front-end to su, however su doesn't need a command to be executed, while gksu does. Also, gksu doesn't seem to change the user ID of my shell, while su does. Is it ...
2
votes
1answer
79 views
SSH as Normal User --> SU --> SCP as Root
I'm on a Win7 box connecting to a linux server.
From reading: http://winscp.net/eng/docs/faq_su it looks like I need to open my SCP connections as the particular user.
When I connect via SSH, I can ...
2
votes
2answers
270 views
Changed the permissions on /usr/bin
I executed
sudo chown -R USER /usr/bin
Now, when I try to "sudo" anything, I get
sudo: effective uid is not 0, is sudo installed setuid root?
I tried
pkexec chown root:root /usr/bin/sudo
and ...
2
votes
1answer
165 views
Root authentication with another root user
I have a PC at work running Fedora 14. For some reason, the IT guys do not give out the password for the root user, but instead, if needed they create a specific suXXX user with root permissions.
The ...
2
votes
1answer
775 views
Use su to switch to a local (mutually-trusted) user, without a password?
I'm curious if there is a way to enable one user to login (via su) into another user, without needing to know that users password. For instance, if I'm logged in as user1, I would like to give user2 ...
2
votes
1answer
2k views
How can i block su access to some users only in linux
I want to configure pam in a way so that my some users can su to only some user.
In RHEL4, I used
/etc/pam.d/su
auth required /lib/security/$ISA/pam_stack.so service=system-auth
auth ...
2
votes
2answers
442 views
How can I automatically pass the password to 'su'?
I am working on an exploit for a security course. The object is to obtain a root shell in a linux virtual machine. So far, I can write to /etc/passwd and change root's password to an arbitrary string. ...
1
vote
4answers
1k views
Any latest linux distro which gives full root access ( NO SUDO )?
Is there Any latest linux distro which gives full root access ( NO SUDO ) ? I want to use it for programming in which I have to use / file system very frequently.
What I need is any good linux ...
1
vote
2answers
2k views
How can I find out what password I need to use for 'su'?
I am using Mac OS X 10.5, and have my account set up so that I don't need to login.
When I go to Network Preferences and click the lock icon on the lower left corner, I am prompted for my username and ...
1
vote
1answer
150 views
su - for some users
in a linux system with
su -
any user (with root password) can get root privileges.
how I can restrict to some users ?
// similar to AllowUsers in sshd_config
1
vote
2answers
974 views
What happens to the environment when you run “su -c”?
What happens to the environment when you run "su -c"?
The reason I ask, is this mysterious behavior:
bash$ which firefox
/usr/local/bin/firefox
bash$ su - user -c "echo $PATH"
...
1
vote
3answers
2k views
Trouble setting up PATH for Java on Debian
I am trying to get Oracle Java 7 update 3 working correctly on Debian 6. I have downloaded and set up the files in /usr/java/jre1.7.0_03. I have also set the following two lines at the end of ...
1
vote
1answer
87 views
Autologout after logging in
I have a Ubuntu 10.04 LTS server.
I'm currently logged in as root, because I suddenly cannot log into my account anymore.
When I execute su useraccount, nothing happens.
The log file auth.log ...
1
vote
3answers
323 views
Use sudo command for script SSH server
I have to do following steps on several servers:
log in with my username
type in sudo su -
type in amCLI -l 32/1 | grep Firmware
So I would like to write this all in one script, my idea was:
...
1
vote
2answers
173 views
Best way to store root passwords
I have over ten web servers to manage and configure, with each server having its own root user and password. I have to maintain a database of all the root passwords on my development machine, but I ...
1
vote
1answer
290 views
Fedora 15 su user problem
I'm new to Fedora 15 and Linux. I've stumbled upon a problem while installing Oracle XE; I can't set environment variables or do anything else - any change I make won't stick.
I'm using the terminal:
...
1
vote
1answer
51 views
su not working when non-root (authentification failure)
On a VPS I own (hosted at bluevm.com), I have three users:
userone, with password foo, and sudo rights.
usertwo, with password bar, without sudo rights.
root, with now password (deleted with passwd ...
1
vote
2answers
167 views
sudo to run command as different user
I am trying to setup a script that will be run as a "maint" user. The script is basically a menu that allows maintenance personnel to do different things on the server.
However, some of the scripts ...
1
vote
3answers
419 views
Accessing an exit code outside of a su -m $USER -c “<cmd>”
The below command prints "0" or "1" correctly depending on failure or not because i put $? inside the "su" command.
sudo su -m $USER -c "./shutdown.sh &> /dev/null; echo \$?"
However, if i ...
1
vote
1answer
826 views
How to get the env vars I want with the superuser command?
I'm running OpenSuse 12.1 KDE. I was previously running Ubuntu. In Ubuntu there was a superuser option (sudo -s) that preserved the original user's HOME env var (and another option, sudo -i, that set ...
1
vote
0answers
48 views
OS X: change root umask for su?
In recent versions of OS X (10.6+), the sudo command by default takes the "union" (bitwise or) of 0022 and the caller's user mask. This can lead to problems if the umask is more restrictive than 0022: ...
0
votes
2answers
44 views
How do I stop using root privileges?
I know this is extremely basic, but I am using Ubuntu Linux and I have just typed in
sudo su
I entered my password and performed the actions that I had to get done. Now how do I stop being root ...
0
votes
2answers
127 views
Stuck In su in CentOS 6
I accidentally did
su
with no arguments while logged into the root account.
It then put me into su and at the beginning of the command line, it now shows
-bash-4.1#
How do I "get out of" su ...
0
votes
1answer
131 views
Difference between su command for Fedora and Ubuntu?
To log in as root while using Fedora I use :
su
and then enter the password.
But while using Ubuntu this fails even if I use the correct password. But if I enter:
su -s
and then enter the ...
0
votes
3answers
340 views
No access to root thru su
I'm trying to access my PC as root
su
and it doesn't says root@something
it says
mypcname username # vi /something/
and in the normal terminal display says
username@mypcname ~ $
someone that ...
0
votes
3answers
2k views
Linux PuTTY - automate su for password related issue
I am connecting to a server via PuTTY as follows:
putty.exe -ssh user@host -pw password -noagent -m commands.txt
After that I have to use:
su someUser
It will ask for a password - I have put ...
0
votes
1answer
45 views
Forgot su password at virtual machine?
I'm new to Fedora-17 and Linux.
I've stumbled upon a problem after created my su password;
I added some sequence and after this see prompt Setup is complete!
But generally I didn't remember this ...
0
votes
2answers
105 views
su misbehaves when executing a command that prompts for a password
I have 2 users in my debian server, gooduser and root.
Command my_cmd prompts for a password (it connects to a ssh server).
When I execute my_cmd as gooduser, everything works as expected:
...
0
votes
1answer
98 views
Cannot use `su` or `sudo` after set up key-based access to SSH
I'm following this tuturial to setup key-based access to the SSH
I created a user. I add copy the key to the client via ssh-copy-id <username>@<host> Becasuse ssh ...
0
votes
2answers
34 views
Ubuntu cant login as super user Authentication failure,for a previously accessed password
i cant login as super user using su command ,previously it was successful and i am sure that password is correct,previosly there was an issue by changing file permission of www folder and i follow ...
0
votes
0answers
86 views
Not able to log in as root in fedora 17
I am not able to log in as root in Fedora 17
Error is
su: cannot set groups: Operation not permitted
What to do to solve this error The permission has been changed to
-rwxrwxrwx
I want to ...
0
votes
0answers
51 views
Weird behavior of sudo
I use putty to log in to a remote LINUX machine. (Ubuntu 10)
When I log in I have to authenticate myself, that goes on pretty smooth.
Whenever I try to use sudo or su though, I experience ...
0
votes
1answer
41 views
Debian user keeps getting killed
I keep getting booted out of one of the user account on my Debian Squeeze server. At first I thought that it had something to do with SSH, but it still happens even if I log into another account and ...
