[SOLVED] Ubuntu's kdesu does not pass full environment

CollieJim · 08-18-2013, 03:42 AM

Since starting to use Kubuntu, environment variables I set have not been passed on to emacs. Lisp functions that work with Gentoo/KDE4 fail.

I have narrowed the problem to kdesu, which I use to start emacs. Kubuntu's version seriously restricts what it passes to programs it starts. I'm using

Code:

/etc/alternatives/kdesu -> /usr/lib/kde4/libexec/kdesu-distrib/kdesu

rather than the default kdesudo because it provides an Ignore button, and kdesudo passes far less that kdesu.

Short of compiling my own version, how do I get kdesu to pass the full environment? --help is no help.

Thanks
Jim

eSelix · 08-18-2013, 07:41 AM

To select what environment variables are passed by sudo, you can edit "/etc/sudoers" (by visudo of course). kdesu nor kdesudo does not decide about that. There should be "env_reset" flag set, so you could set if off (some security complications) or add your own variables to be passed by

Code:

Defaults env_keep += "SOME_VAR_A SOME_VAR_B SOME_VAR_C"

CollieJim · 08-18-2013, 09:00 AM

Thanks.

It works, but not quite what I'm looking for. kdesudo uses /etc/sudoers but kdesu does not appear to. Using kdesudo means having 2 menu items and 2 icons rather than singles with an option.

At least it works from the command line in konsole, but I'm still looking.

I have just determined that using kdesudo from the command line works, but it does not work in the menu.

eSelix · 08-18-2013, 12:12 PM

You should be able to specify which backend is used by kdesu by this command

Code:

kwriteconfig --file kdesurc --group super-user-command --key super-user-command sudo

For not working command in menu, can you paste here its desktop file?

CollieJim · 08-18-2013, 11:12 PM

Desktop file created when emacs was installed:

Code:

[Desktop Entry]
Categories=Utility;Development;TextEditor;
Comment=View and edit files
Exec=/usr/bin/emacs23 %F
GenericName=Text Editor
Icon=emacs23
MimeType=text/english;text/plain;text/x-makefile;text/x-c++hdr;text/x-c++src;text/x-chdr;text/x-csrc;text/x-java;text/x-moc;text/x-pascal;text/x-tcl;text/x-tex;application/x-shellscript;text/x-c;text/x-c++;
Name=GNU Emacs 23
NoDisplay=false
Path[$e]=
StartupNotify=true
StartupWMClass=Emacs23
Terminal=0
TerminalOptions=
TryExec=emacs23
Type=Application
Version=1.0
X-KDE-SubstituteUID=false
X-KDE-Username=

Desktop file for root from menu entry I added:

Code:

[Desktop Entry]
Comment=
Exec=kdesudo emacs
Icon=emacs22
Name=Emacs(r)
NoDisplay=false
Path[$e]=
StartupNotify=true
Terminal=0
TerminalOptions=
Type=Application
X-KDE-SubstituteUID=false
X-KDE-Username=

eSelix · 08-19-2013, 03:42 AM

In first exec is "/usr/bin/emacs23 %F", and you have just "kdesudo emacs", are you sure there is a program with that name, maybe try "kdesudo /usr/bin/emacs23 %F".

CollieJim · 08-19-2013, 06:09 AM

emacs and emacs23 both link to the same executable.

Code:

225 16:21:07 ~ $ file `which emacs`
/usr/bin/emacs: symbolic link to `/etc/alternatives/emacs'
$ file `which emacs23`
/usr/bin/emacs23: symbolic link to `emacs23-x'
$ file `which emacs23-x`
/usr/bin/emacs23-x: ELF 32-bit LSB executable, Intel 80386, version 1 (SYSV), dynamically linked (uses shared libs), for GNU/Linux 2.6.24, BuildID[sha1]=0xce7af5c7ef306f506b7076879687d88fa467e305, stripped
$ ls -al /etc/alternatives/emacs
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 18 Aug  7 23:29 /etc/alternatives/emacs -> /usr/bin/emacs23-x

The problem is not whether the second version works (it does) but the passing of environment variables, which klauncher does not.

eSelix · 08-19-2013, 07:04 AM

So, if "kdesudo from the command line works, but it does not work in the menu", how you set these environment variables? Settings in /etc/environment or these exported by ~/.profile should be passed.

CollieJim · 08-19-2013, 07:43 AM

When using the KDE desktop, I have 2 ways to start emacs.
The first is to select it from the Start menu.
The second is to start Konsole and enter 'emacs' as a command.

The first does not pass environment variables while the second does.

This applies to both 'emacs' and 'kdesudo emacs'.

eSelix · 08-19-2013, 02:21 PM

Yes, I understand, but you must somewhere set these environment variables. Can you explain how you do that? I just check how behave my Kubuntu and it pass my variables to program launched from menu.

CollieJim · 08-21-2013, 04:04 AM

I have this code in /etc/bash.bashrc

Code:

if [ -e /mnt/NAS-Share/data ] ; then
  NAS_SHARE=net
  NAS_PATH=/mnt/NetWolf/jeh
  touch ~/.net-available
else
  NAS_SHARE=no
  NAS_PATH=/usr/local/share/emacs/site-lisp/jeh
  rm -f ~/.net-available
fi

export NAS_SHARE NAS_PATH

eSelix · 08-21-2013, 07:33 AM

I think this file is only executed when you run bash. I have on top of it

Quote:

System-wide .bashrc file for interactive bash(1) shells.

For setting global environment variable you can use "/etc/environment"

CollieJim · 08-22-2013, 08:54 AM

Finally!
I shifted the code to /etc/environment and all is well now.

Thanks