[3169] in bugtraq
Re: [linux-security] Re: Possible bufferoverflow condition in
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (David DeSimone)
Wed Aug 14 19:41:33 1996
Date: Wed, 14 Aug 1996 17:54:55 -0500
Reply-To: fox@mailhost.rsn.hp.com
From: David DeSimone <fox@mailhost.rsn.hp.com>
To: Multiple recipients of list BUGTRAQ <BUGTRAQ@NETSPACE.ORG>
In-Reply-To: <Pine.LNX.3.91.960814145258.2891A-100000@garrison.inetcan.net>;
from Digital Dreamer on Aug 14, 1996 14:58:05 -0600
Digital Dreamer <dreamer@garrison.inetcan.net> wrote:
>
> On the same note, after all the problems with sendmail, why does it
> still need suid to operate?
Sendmail needs to be root in order to become another user, for example,
to run any pipe programs indicated in the .forward file. It wouldn't do
to have those programs run as the user who was sending the mail.
Naturally, some other scheme could probably be concocted to avoid having
sendmail immediately be root, or to have some other daemon perform final
delivery if the uid needs to be changed, but that's going to probably be
a major design change.
--
David DeSimone | "The doctrine of human equality reposes on this:
fox@convex.hp.com | that there is no man really clever who has not
Hewlett-Packard | found that he is stupid." -- Gilbert K. Chesterson
Convex Division | PGP: 5B 47 34 9F 3B 9A B0 0D AB A6 15 F1 BB BE 8C 44
