Call external prog from withing chroot jail

The_JinJ · 12-13-2005, 03:29 PM

Hi all

Is it possible to call a process from outside a chroot jail eg. run a command as root in the real /bin, or is it completely limited to the jail?. Could this be done using sticky bits?
I want to mount a drive when in as a user in a chroot environment and to do this I need to run it as root - can anyone think of a way to do it...safely

Thang yaw

bulliver · 12-13-2005, 04:12 PM

So why use the chroot then? By definition you will only be able to run programs in the chroot. You can try putting a static version of mount in the chroot (or DL version with the appropriate libraries, see ldd). Now in your fstab (must also be in the chroot) set it with "user" option, and a regular user will be able to mount it.

Really though, what you are asking for defeats the purpose of the chroot. Perhaps if you give us the big picture of what your up to, you could get some more ideas of how to accomplish it.

The_JinJ · 12-13-2005, 04:38 PM

Thanks bulliver

Yep I guessed about being able to add the lot inside the chroot.
The user can ssh to the jail but only to a limited shell with 1 available command (rsync) - what I wanted is to have an encrypted directory setup with dm-crypt. A command could be passed via ssh to mount the drive (with key), then rsync to it, then unmount it.
Don't think what I need is possible......any enlightenment appreciated