[SOLVED] chroot question

validator456 · 11-19-2015, 12:35 AM

I have a question to the professionals out there: when do you make use of chroot? In what kind of situations?

Ztcoracat · 11-19-2015, 12:59 AM

Chroot is a way of isolating applications from the rest of your computer, by putting them in a jail. This is particularly useful if you are testing an application which could potentially alter important system files, or which may be insecure.

Chroot can be used in a number of instances.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chroot

Code:

SEE ALSO
       chroot(2)

       The  full  documentation  for chroot is maintained as a Texinfo manual.
       If the info and chroot programs are properly installed  at  your  site,
       the command

              info coreutils 'chroot invocation'

       should give you access to the complete manual.

GNU coreutils 8.21               February 2013                       CHROOT(1)
lines 32-56/56 (END)

HTH

zhjim · 11-19-2015, 03:28 AM

chroot can also be used to reset the root password coming from a rescue system. Image you lost root password, start a live cd, then mount the "original" system and chroot to it. After that passwd root sets a new password.
Another example is if you installed a system through debootstrap to finalize the process you chroot to the new system. Or if you have a virtual disk that you want to access outside of the virtual machine. Mount it through loop and chroot to it.

validator456 · 11-19-2015, 09:42 AM

Thank you for answers. The answers were most helpful.

Emerson · 11-19-2015, 09:52 AM

Here is a bit unusual way to use chroot. I have a Zotac box as MythTV frontend. Binary distros keep crashing on it, but Gentoo runs rock solid. To run Gentoo one has to compile alot. This little box really can't take compiling, it overheats and shuts down. So I export the root filesystem from Zotac over NFS, mount it from another computer, chroot into Zotac and build everything not using Zotac resources at all.

Ztcoracat · 11-19-2015, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by validator456

Thank you for answers. The answers were most helpful.

Your Welcome:-

chrism01 · 11-19-2015, 07:10 PM

I'd also add that (for RHEL derived) bind installs as chrooted automatically - this sometimes catches people out