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Re: /bin/login curiosa



On Wed, May 22, 2002 at 02:29:24PM -0400, Michael Stone wrote:
> On Wed, May 22, 2002 at 09:58:54AM -0700, John H. Robinson, IV wrote:
> > since /bin/login is not SUID, 

> Well, it usually is...I don't know what you did to yours. :)

> > how can it read the /etc/shadow passwords?

> It's not strictly necessary to be setid anything to check passwords
> these days, if there's a setuid helper for the pam library being called.
> (as there is for pam_unix)

Though the one included with pam_unix by default is particularly
ineffectual at authenticating users to /services/ running as non-root
processes, because it takes a secure-by-default approach whereby you can
only re-authenticate the user whose uid you're currently running under.
Not that anyone would get much use out of a /bin/login that can
authenticate users but not change uid's, anyways. :)

Steve Langasek
postmodern programmer

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