Linux
Hi,
My friend shows this to me:
After bootup, at the lilo prompt, he just key in "linux single", then he can login and run "passwd root" to change the root password!
How can this happen? Anyway to secure this?
Thx.
by alexei
by chew
That is by design. Linux single is completely disconnected from the network, in SINGLE user mode. It exists so that if the Root Password is lost or forgotten, the system can still be accessed (among other reasons.)
Most NOSes are compromised once a person has physical access, this isn't any different.
If you want, you can add a password to LILO. This will help further secure the system.
Kev.
by chew
by rob_freyder
Greetings,
you'll want to assign a password in lilo.conf and also use the restricted keyword. You might also put a password on your CMOS so that you can't boot of the floppy or CDROM if you want to carry this a little further. Someone with bootable media could accomplish the same thing by mounting those filesystems after booting from other media....
do check the man page on lilo.conf and lilo so that you get this set right. Errors can be fatal...
Good Luck.
Rob.
by chew
by chew
by jcmcintyre
To prevent users from entering single-user mode, you add two entries to /etc/lilo.conf. The first entry is the word
restricted
on a line by itself. A good place for this entry is on the line below the
"timeout=" line.
Once the restricted keyword is added, on the line below it, you add a new line:
password="Password"
where "password" is the password required to enter single-user mode. Don't use the root password for this. Use a separate to restrict single-user mode.
Cheers
Jim
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