[Date Prev][Date Next] [Thread Prev][Thread Next] [Date Index] [Thread Index]

Re: PPP as normal user



*- john@dhh.gt.org wrote about "Re: PPP as normal user"
| Brian writes:
| > This fix doesn't seem like the right way to fix this problem.]
| 
| The right way is to figure out what happened to your options file and then
| purge and reinstall ppp.
| 
| > Why would running it as root NOT fail when the options file is not
| > present and when run as a user it needs to have the options file present.
| 
| Some pppd options are privileged and may only be given in certain files (or
| not at all) when the user is not root.  Root, on the other hand, can give
| all options on the command line.  Therefor it isn't too surprising that
| root can run pppd with no options file.

The pon script without any options calls pppd as

/usr/sbin/pppd call provider.

>From the pppd man page

...
       call name
              Read  options  from  the  file /etc/ppp/peers/name.
              This file may contain privileged options,  such  as
              noauth, even if pppd is not being run by root.  The
              name string may not begin with / or include .. as a
              pathname component.  The format of the options file
              is described below.
...
       The normal way that pppd should be set up is to  have  the
       auth  option  in  the  /etc/ppp/options  file.   (This may
       become the default in later releases.)  If users  wish  to
       use  pppd  to  dial  out  to  a  peer which will refuse to
       authenticate  itself  (such   as   an   internet   service
       provider),  the  system  administrator  should  create  an
       options file under /etc/ppp/peers  containing  the  noauth
       option,  the  name  of  the  serial  port  to use, and the
       connect option (if required), plus any  other  appropriate
       options.   In  this  way, pppd can be set up to allow non-
       privileged users to make unauthenticated connections  only
       to trusted peers.

       As  indicated  above,  some security-sensitive options are
       privileged, which means that they may not be  used  by  an
       ordinary  non-privileged  user running a setuid-root pppd,
       either on the command line, in the user's  ~/.ppprc  file,
       or  in an options file read using the file option.  Privi­
       leged options may be used in /etc/ppp/options file  or  in
       an  options  file  read using the call option.  If pppd is
       being run by the root user, privileged options can be used
       without restriction.


So there does not need to be an /etc/ppp/options file.  However in an
effort to try and get this going I created an /etc/ppp/options file
with the single line of auth in it. This did not change the results.

My /etc/ppp/peers/provider file is(stripped of comments from pppconfig):

noauth
connect "/usr/sbin/chat -v -f /etc/chatscripts/provider -r /var/log/chat-report.log"
debug
/dev/ttyS3
115200
defaultroute
noipdefault
user servis
persist
lock
holdoff 1


Am I interpreting this wrong?

Thanks,

Brian 
---------------------------------------------------------------------
"Never criticize anybody until you have walked a mile in their shoes,  
 because by that time you will be a mile away and have their shoes." 
							   - unknown  

Mechanical Engineering                              servis@purdue.edu
Purdue University                   http://www.ecn.purdue.edu/~servis
---------------------------------------------------------------------


Reply to: