Hi guys,
When carrying out various administrative tasks on the desktop (such as starting up YaST or the package manager) I have to type the password every single time. I really don’t wanna do that since my whole disk is encrypted and I always lock my desktop when being away, etc…
How can I make all those admin apps not asking passwords?
Thanks in advance!
Laci
Unless you logon as root (highly, HIGHLY INADVISABLE except for very, very special circumstances) what you’re seeing is the natural consequence of non-root User permissions, and it’s fundamental to preventing hackers from gaining super-user permissions automatically if you’re compromised.
There is a workaround, but beware its consequences… You can leave open a root CLI, and from that launch anything you want with root permissions.
HTH,
Tony
On 10/19/2011 04:26 AM, tsu2 wrote:
>
> Unless you logon as root (highly, HIGHLY INADVISABLE except for very,
> very special circumstances)
i can’t think of any of those “special circumstances” can you?
at least, i’ve ran across any since i first messed up my Linux system by
logging into Gnome as root…in about 2001…have not had so log in
since…
–
DD
http://tinyurl.com/DD-Caveat
openSUSE®, the “German Automobiles” of operating systems
On 10/19/2011 01:16 AM, mondalaci wrote:
> (such as starting up YaST or the package manager)
yep, its a pain…but, depending on how you look at it and mitigating
steps it may not be a BIG pain:
open the YaST control panel and leave it open (from there you have a
wide selection of tools (including package manager and online updater)
available without retyping the pass)
i maintain physical control of my machine so, in additin to the above
i often do what Tony advised (open a root powered x-terminal, konsole,
etc and leave it open/available) where instead of using a graphical text
editor (like kwrite) or file manager (like dolphin or nautilus) i
install Midnight Commander and from the open root terminal type mc to
open a marvelous app to do lots of root duties without having to type
another pass…
more on mc here: http://en.opensuse.org/SDB:Midnight_Commander_tips
as for avoiding all root passwords at all times i only know of one way,
and i do NOT advise it even in the “whole disk is encrypted and I always
lock my desktop” scenario…don’t advise it as it makes for EASY
cracking and root kit installing if you are breached though any of the
vectors which encrypted/locked desktop does not guard against (like
through ssh, telnet, ftp, VPN, social engineering, downloaded nasty, etc
etc etc etc)…that ill-advised way would be to assign no password to
root…in other words when anything asks for root password, just hit
enter…
i have forgotten how to do that…but, i guess google knows…
–
DD
openSUSE®, the “German Automobiles” of operating systems
On 2011-10-19 08:57, DenverD wrote:
> i can’t think of any of those “special circumstances” can you?
I can >:-)
–
Cheers / Saludos,
Carlos E. R.
(from 11.4 x86_64 “Celadon” at Telcontar)
On 2011-10-19 01:16, mondalaci wrote:
>
> Hi guys,
>
> When carrying out various administrative tasks on the desktop (such as
> starting up YaST or the package manager) I have to type the password
> every single time. I really don’t wanna do that since my whole disk is
> encrypted and I always lock my desktop when being away, etc…
But anybody can come, force a reboot (power button) and log in as root. No
password. Then, so can anybody coming from the net break in as root,
because you have no password. You are very much at risk. Encryption does
not save you, because the disk is accessible while running.
The trick is having a terminal opened as root. Or, that the Desktop
remembers the password for the session, but that is up to the developers to
implement or not.
You can also define certain tasks in sudoers that can be run by your user
with no password given, or with your user password.
–
Cheers / Saludos,
Carlos E. R.
(from 11.4 x86_64 “Celadon” at Telcontar)
Yet another way, although I also recommend an x-term as super user and mc, is to open your file manager as super user (menu->System->File Manager->File Manager-Super User Mode). There you have access to your files as root and you can just go to applications:/ to access your, well, applications as root in a nice, friendly GUI. This works if Dolphin or Konqueror are your default file managers. Other file managers? I dunno.
HTH!
Thanks for this tip!