Re: Allowing users to execute shell scripts without seeing password

Thanks was making me aware of the capabilities of Perl.    

  Had tried to use, trap command, but users in the system always got around it in the long run. The solution, that I had to implement was to use the shell script name in /etc/passwd file instead of the name of the shell.    

  Interpretive languages need to read the script and thereby need a read privilege on the file. Compiled languages could also have the same deficiencies, if some-one tried to debug a core dump file.    

  Main problem is with password being stored in files. How can scripts/programs run by some other user (other than owner) utilize this password, without actually being able to see it. Basically, this boils down to sharing a password.    

  One solution for this could be that every user, who runs the script/program should have his own password. I have liked Oracle os authenication not "remote os authent'. but this can be only used if the database is local.    

  Regards    

  Joseph   

Michael Haddon <m.haddon_at_comcast.net> wrote:   There is nothing Magic about perl that would solve the security issues that come up when using a 'setuid' bit on the executible. The setuid capability is a Unix capability and not one specific to the shell. A setuid script has it's risks if it is written in perl, ksh, bash, awk, tck/tkl, or whatever. It just needs to handle any security issues, if they exist, in the code.

Most scripts really don't need the setuid bit, those that do, can use the 'trap' in the shell to handle any post signal processing. One example of this can be found in the /etc/profile script that is executed by everyone that logs into a Unix system. Part of the login process executes this script to set up a system wide default environment.

The beginning of the script uses the trap command to set up signals that need to be handled and the end of the script releases the trap.

My point is that sometimes the setuid bit can help accomplish a task that would otherwise take some considerable time to design and code. You just have to be aware of it's use and test it thoroughly.

Hope this helps
Mike

Mladen Gogala wrote:
On 02/18/2006 11:38:01 PM, Joseph Amalraj wrote:   

After doing some reading, I agree, that setting suid for shell scripts is poses security risks. Probably the solution is not to use Shell, but some else like Perl.

  So, if switching UID is dangerous with a shell script, it will somehow be rendered harmless if you use Perl, which allows all kinds of programming tricks and hacks?
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http://www.freelists.org/webpage/oracle-l Received on Sun Feb 19 2006 - 08:10:34 CST