I have never used telnet and was wondering what would be the best method of editing text files remotely and reboot linux remotely.

Cheers,

Well if you can use the command line on your linux box then you can use telnet (bad) or secure shell (aka ssh - good).


A really thorough admin would set up a superusers system (sudo) so that each superuser can be limited in command access and properly authenticated.

I am aware of the Implications of using telnet, only my linux box is at home and none of the data is sensitive.


I was actually in need of a good remote text editor? I can run emacs but i find that difficult to use. Is it possible for me to run a prog like a Kwrite remotely?

Cheers

I'd say vi - but thats worse than emacs to learn. If you have Pine installed (the mail client) then you can use 'pico' its nice and simple.

I take it that K write is an X application? You can run X apps externally you just need an X server running on the machine your sat on then you set your DISPLAY environment to point to the machine you're sat on too.

cheers

Jamie...

I use Joe as my default text editor it is based on wordstar and dead simple to use.

Hope this helps

___________________
Have Fun

It's less a question of how sensitive your data is and more one of how dangerous your system can be to others if rooted.

To use a (charged) analogy, people lock up their guns because they are worried about the cost of replacing them, but moreso the damage that that a stolen gun can cause.

While the risks are admittedly small that you can get rooted, you don't really want to unknowingly be a participatory node in the next DDoS attack.

not to mention i think the owner is liable for all damages....and that is YOU! scary huh?

DDos attack? What do you mean when you say my system be rooted for others? should i use a firewall or something?

Please explain,

Cheers!

someone could easily (if you didnt watch your machine) log into it, then do whatever he wanted, whether it be break into a system or a DoS attack. The IP would be from your machine. and you would be liable. Thats why hackers do it; so they cant get caught.

I see, as telnet does not establish a secure connection with your server, passwords and usernames can be learnt by 'middle men' etc.

If i were to change files remotely, i.e. modify httpd.conf which is owned by root, how would i modify this file without loging in as root

I am a SuSe user, i think it has no remote login for 'root' set by default.

Somebody mentioned the creation of a super-user, how would i do this? and could i grant the super user to modify files owned by root?

cheers,

Even if you login and user X and then become a superuser, a decent packet sniffer on your subnet can watch everything being sent between client/server. If you're on a cable modem your audience is probably much larger.

Using something like ssh establishes a secure (encrypted) connection at login and for the session.

it would look something like this.Once you have logged in, you can use 'su' to become the superuser (root) after you supply the root password. You could also set up 'sudo' as well.

OK i understood all of the above exept 'sudo' what is sudo and how would i go about implementing it?


Thanks

'sudo' is a method for keeping superusers accountable for varying levels of access. Try 'man sudo' and read up on it. If you are the only superuser on the box then it's really not much more than an academic excersize.

Learn VI. Its not bad at all once you get the hang of it and you will be much happier with the performance and simplicity than exporting an Xsession just so you can edit a text file. Its also the defacto standard in ALL Linux and UNIX variants. Very very good to know.

You can secure your telnet daemon with the /etc/hosts.allow and /etc/hosts.deny options so that only your internal addies can use it, but I still recommend SSH because if you ever use Linux in the outside world it will be good to know.

I highly recommend PUTTY if you will be telneting or SSHing from a Windows box.


KevinJ