Installing an application

[mnstudio]

I have to install an application (senna sofware) and I'm not able to do it.
The installation string tells me that permission is denied.
Why?
The installing instruction says to login as a root user. Maybe I am not the root user? I thought I was: I installed the system and put my user name and password as an administrator..
Any idea?
Thanks

[DenverD]

> I have to install an application (senna sofware) and I'm not able to do
> it.

i can find no linux software by that name...
is it for linux, what does it do??


> The installing instruction says to login as a root user. Maybe I am not
> the root user?

is it an .rpm file you are trying to install?
if so, do it with YaST which will ask you for the root password..


> I thought I was: I installed the system and put my user
> name and password as an administrator..

well, you CAN have the same password for ROOT, but is very unsafe to do so..

> Any idea?

yes, when you need to install software do it with YaST...OR, open a terminal,
become root with

su -

and then run zypper..

see man zypper (or search these fora for info on zypper)..

good luck....and, CHANGE the root pasword to something SECURE (numbers, letters,
some capital, some not, some strange %&#* etc)..

--
DenverD (Linux Counter 282315)
A Texan in Denmark

[oldcpu]

I have to install an application (senna sofware) and I'm not able to do it.
The installation string tells me that permission is denied.
Why?
The installing instruction says to login as a root user. Maybe I am not the root user? I thought I was: I installed the system and put my user name and password as an administrator..
Any idea?
Thanks

Starting with openSUSE-11 (maybe 10.3 also? (not sure)) when one installs, root is given the same password as the "primary" (initial/first) regular user, unless one deliberately choses otherwise. I always choose otherwise and I think this a bad openSUSE practise, but it has been implemented and the majority of users (sadly to me) think it a good idea.

Still, the default user name of admin is different than the user name of a regular user, even IF their passwords are the same. The admin in linux is known as "root" when a regular user needs to select their own username.

If one is trying to get root permissions from a konsole, the typical methods are to use a form of "su" or "sudo".

For example while running X (ie KDE or Gnome or Xfce, or some other desktop)to open a terminal, and have all subsequent commands in that terminal window be commands from the admin, one simply types: su #and enter the password.

Alternatively, to have a single line (only) be that of the root user for a specific command, one can type type:
su -c 'rpm -Uvh application.rpm'
where in my example the command I wanted to run was "rpm -Uvh application.rpm"

Note the "su" command is used to "switch users" but if the user name is not specified, the command assumes one wishes to switch to be the admin (ie root).

[DenverD]

> Starting with openSUSE-11 (maybe 10.3 also? (not sure)) when one
> installs, root is given the same password as the "primary"
> (initial/first) regular user, unless one deliberately choses otherwise.

WHO made that decision??
someone who works for a company in Redmond i'd bet...

STUPID!

--
DenverD (Linux Counter 282315)
A Texan in Denmark

[oldcpu]

Starting with openSUSE-11 (maybe 10.3 also? (not sure)) when one
> installs, root is given the same password as the "primary"
> (initial/first) regular user, unless one deliberately choses otherwise.

WHO made that decision??
someone who works for a company in Redmond i'd bet...

I remember seeing the Video of a presentation in Berlin (on the changes to the openSUSE installer) when that "feature" was briefed. I think it was questioned, and the response was based on a survey, most openSUSE users actually use the same password for their primary user and their root account. So they decided to re-inforce this bad practise! (those are my words, not the presenters).

I was aghast!

Fortunately, there is an option (which is NOT the default option) that one can select to ensure root has a different password.

[mnstudio]

i can find no linux software by that name...
is it for linux, what does it do??

You can find it at sennASoftwareClub - Fatturazione Magazzino e Contabilita gratis per Promozione Sociale - <font color="#FF9900">Quest'area e' riservata agli Utenti <i>Registrati al sito e/o solo ai Soci del sennASoftwareClub.</i><br><br>Ti puoi registrare gratuitamen
It's an administrative sofware

is it an .rpm file you are trying to install?

No, they say you have to use terminal to install it

yes, when you need to install software do it with YaST...OR, open a terminal,
become root with

su -

Yeah, I made this command and writings become red so I am the root user. This works!
But when I arrive to install the sofware, the installion process tell me that sennadown (the folder where the software is) is not on the main directory.
The installation instructions really tell me to extract the file senna.tar.hz on the MAIN DIRECTORY, but I can't! If I try I get an error message.
Is the main directory the one upon "home"?

and then run zypper..

What is it?
I am very new to Linux...

Thanks for your infos

[mnstudio]

In other words it doesn't allow me to write in main directory: permissiom denied. How can I change this status? And can it be done only by terminal or also by system menu?

[oldcpu]

What is it?
I am very new to Linux...

Zypper is a piece of software that manages your software updates:
Zypper/Features - openSUSE

to use zypper:
Zypper/Usage/11.0 - openSUSE

Given you are new to Linux and to openSUSE, I recommend you read and brush up (become more familiar) with some of the basic concepts:
Concepts - openSUSE

[mnstudio]

Ok, thank you, I will see it. But, for now, how can I extract the software on main directory, please?

[DenverD]

ok mnstudio, i am going to try to help you...but, i also want to mention that
MAYBE you can get clearer help through a local Linux User Group...see the long
list by country at http://www.linux.org/groups/ and see if there is a group
operating near you....MOST are friendly folks who LOVE to help new folks learn
how to use Linux....who, knows there may be someone close to you who can help
you easily....but, for now...keep reading..


> Ok, thank you, I will see it. But, for now, how can I extract the
> software on main directory, please?

if like me, oldcpu is confused by what your instructions actually mean when
they/you say "the MAIN DIRECTORY"...

because in installing software, there is no "main directory"....yes, there is a
root directory (represented by the first / in our path...kinda like Window[tm]
always starts with C: or D:, we always start with the root directory) and most
install programs install to the root directory...BUT, you do not have to unpack
the tar.hz file TO a root directory..

ok, so lets try to solve this:

you do NOT have to be ROOT to do anything i'm gonna help you with in this post!!

i think you now have a directory named /sennadown somewhere (probably) in your
HOME, with a tar.hz file in it..in other words the downloaded file's full path
is something like

/home/YOUR-ID/sennadown/senna.tar.hz

i _think_ you can open it...WELL...you have not told us, are you using KDE or
Gnome??

i will assume you use KDE (if you use gnome you use other tools and have other
menu items):

open Konqueror and navigate to /home/YOUR-ID/sennadown/senna.tar.hz

and RIGHT click on the file....up will pop a menu and one item will be Extract,
and then there are three options

Extract to here
Extract to sennadown/
Extract to...

"Extract to here" will unpack the file inside the SAME directory
(/home/YOUR-ID/sennadown)

"Extract to sennadown/" will unpack to /home/YOUR-ID/sennadown/sennadown

and "Extract to..." will open a new window dialog where you can PICK where you
want to unpack to (and if we KNEW what the instructions meant by "the MAIN
DIRECTORY" we could extract to there)...

i can tell you that it is HIGHLY UNUSUAL in Linux to unpack that file to the
ROOT directory--and i do NOT recommend you do that until we have had a closer
look at what IS in that tar.hz

if i were going to GUESS i would do-----well, no i can't guess without reading
the instructions....do they tell you to run:

configure?
make?
make install?

if so, you do NOT have to be root UNTIL you run "make install"...AND, you SHOULD
unpack the tar.hz inside your HOME...right were you have it now, just unpack it
right there..

ok do this, UNPACK the tar.hz into the directory were it is, and see if there
is a README in the directory...if so, see if the instructions are the same, or
better than the ones you are working with now..

*IF* this program is really designed to run from /sennadown we can delete (or
move the files we unpacked in /home/YOUR-ID/sennadown, but i do not _think_ that
will be required...

good luck: a good rule of thumb is to be ROOT as little as possible....NEVER do
as root anything that you do not have to..

--
DenverD (Linux Counter 282315)
A Texan in Denmark