Rights-management in Linux

[Nickpick]

Hi!

After spending several hours googling, clicking here and there and pressing random buttons, I'm finally giving up trying to understand how Linux manages the user privs. I've had a simple problem: Make the folder containing "Wolfenstein ET" readable -and- writeable to a user different than root. Unless I run the program specifically as root, it can't write to its own files and crashes.

What I tried was:

1.) Find the program folder
2.) Open he Nautilus via root
3.) Create a group consisting of root and my_other_username "XYZ"
4.) Give "Access Files" permission over the folder to the grouo "XYZ" with "Read and Write Files"
5.) Pressed the button to apply it to all enclosed files

That didn't work. I then tried given that group "Create and Delete Files" access to the folder and eventually giving either one of the above to all subfolders. It still didn't work.

Could anybody -please- explain to me step by step how to give somebody else read/write access to a folder and everything in it, before I start running around with a chainsaw like a complete lunatic.

Thanks in advance.

[67GTA]

Where is the folder located? If it is in the root directory, then it isn't wise to change the permissions. You can give yourself super user powers temporarily by using sudo. Open a terminal and run

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sudo gedit path_to_the_file

[Nickpick]

Where is the folder located? If it is in the root directory, then it isn't wise to change the permissions. You can give yourself super user powers temporarily by using sudo. Open a terminal and run

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sudo gedit path_to_the_file

It's in Filesystem/usr/local/games/<folder>. It works alright with SUDO SU, but I'd rather find a way of using the program without having to do it everytime.

[67GTA]

That is one of the reasons Linux is so safe. It is meant to be that way. What version of Mint are you using?

[Nickpick]

That is one of the reasons Linux is so safe. It is meant to be that way. What version of Mint are you using?

I thought you'd say that. It's Mint Daryna.

What can I do about it?

[67GTA]

Mint 5 (Elyssa) has a "Open As Administrator" option added to the right click menu. You can add this to Daryna. You can add a script to Nautilus file manager such as http://www.gnome-look.org/content/show. ... HPSESSID=6 Then you can right click on the file you want to edit, and choose "Open As Root". The whole idea behind this is security. In Windows, the user is usually the administrator. If you have something malicious on your system, then it has all of the permissions it needs to change/delete files/folders, and mess up your stuff. In Linux, the user only has permission to change things in his/her /home folder. The important system files are in "/" (root). If something malicious gets on your Linux system, it has to have the root password to be able to make any changes. If you have the whole "/"(root) directory open, then anything has the permissions to change whatever it wants while you have it open as root. The "Open As Root" script at least minimizes this to the file you have open.

[Nickpick]

Mint 5 (Elyssa) has a "Open As Administrator" option added to the right click menu. You can add this to Daryna. You can add a script to Nautilus file manager such as http://www.gnome-look.org/content/show. ... HPSESSID=6 Then you can right click on the file you want to edit, and choose "Open As Root". The whole idea behind this is security. In Windows, the user is usually the administrator. If you have something malicious on your system, then it has all of the permissions it needs to change/delete files/folders, and mess up your stuff. In Linux, the user only has permission to change things in his/her /home folder. The important system files are in "/" (root). If something malicious gets on your Linux system, it has to have the root password to be able to make any changes. If you have the whole "/"(root) directory open, then anything has the permissions to change whatever it wants while you have it open as root. The "Open As Root" script at least minimizes this to the file you have open.

Ahh... Alright. So if I store it in my folder in /home it'll work fine? Thanks a huge bunch!:)

[Fred]

Nickpick,

Anything that isn't in /home is in root's world. No well behaved program will attempt to put user files anywhere outside of /home. It is always risky and unwise to let user programs run as root. It is this very practice that makes Windows almost impossible to secure.

My advice is to not run this program as root. Set it to save user files where they belong, in /home. If it won't run like that, find another program solution for your needs.

Fred

[Nickpick]

So where would I install it, if I wanted to make it public? It's a program I want multiple users to run, which means that they'll need both the r and the w rights for it.

[67GTA]

Did you install this with the package manager? If you did, then it is where it should be. I assume this has something to do with a game. Why do you need to edit this file? It sounds like you are going about this the wrong way. What exactly are you trying to do?

[Nickpick]

Did you install this with the package manager? If you did, then it is where it should be. I assume this has something to do with a game. Why do you need to edit this file? It sounds like you are going about this the wrong way. What exactly are you trying to do?

I installed it from a .run file. Unless I run it as root, it can't write to its own files, thus crashing with a happy "Cannot write to XXXXX.YYY".=/