sudo passwd

[cURIOUSgEORGE]

Can anybody explain to me........ What is the point of having a sudo passwd setup if I'm not even prompted to type it in when using sudo???   

[gerald_clark]

This is controlled by /etc/sudoers.
The tc user needs to be able to sudo to run some utilities.
You can set a password for tc, or create another user for normal logins.

[cURIOUSgEORGE]

Thanks gerald_clark but I'm still confused....... Anybody else???


Why am I not prompted for a password when using sudo before a command?



Does the password help protect against getting hacked from the internet?
If NOT then what is the purpose of having a password set for sudo?

Thanks, George

[gerald_clark]

Did you even bother to look at /etc/sudoers ?

[cURIOUSgEORGE]

Yeah and it's empty. So, what's the point?

[gerald_clark]

It is not supposed to be empty.
How did you manage that?

[cURIOUSgEORGE]

lol, uhhhh  . To tell ya the truth, "I have no clue" . I never touched it. Is that a bad thing that it's empty???

[Guy]

In most situations you don't need a password for sudo. That is how Tinycore is set up.

There are some situations where you may. For example, when setting up a printer with cups you need a root password.

[cURIOUSgEORGE]

Thanks Guy.

Also, is it a bad thing that my /etc/sudoers file is empty?


EDIT :  It is NOT empty but only appears to be empty when trying to open it as tc user. Must be root.

[Guy]

cURIOUSgEORGE

Like you say, it is not empty, you just cant see the contents as tc user.

It works the way it is set up.

[Guy]

With most other Linux distros, you need to use a password for sudo or root. This reduces the likelihood of messing up the operating system.

With Tinycore, someone could easily delete a few things and mess up the system.

With other distros, someone could run a live cd or an operating system from a usb drive, and mess up the system.

[cURIOUSgEORGE]

Hmmm very well put, thanks Guy. Gotcha

[mb]

What is the security benefit of not running as root if there is no password required with sudo?

[bmarkus]

What is the security benefit of not running as root if there is no password required with sudo?

For example you can not demage your system late night mistyping folder name due to access right restrictions.

[ixbrian]

What is the security benefit of not running as root if there is no password required with sudo?

In addition to what bmarkus said, if you use the "syslog" boot code any time sudo is used it is logged.