file premissions

longbow99 · 02-01-2005, 03:37 PM

Hello,
I have recently installed mandrake linux as part of a website project. I have not done this before. I tried to change some files in the /var/www folder, however it says i do not have rights to change them. I believe i need to login as "root". can you tell me how to do this using the konsol?

Thank you

rjlee · 02-01-2005, 03:47 PM

Login as a normal user.
Type

Code:

su

When prompted, enter the root password. When you are finished, log out of the root sub-shell by pressing Ctrl+D or typing

Code:

exit

You should only use the root account where you have to, as it has the capability to seriously damage your system. In particular, programs run by root are more susceptible to security attacks and viruses, unless they are specifically designed to be run as root.

For this purpose you can also run individual commands as root:

Code:

su -c 'command'

However, this way you have to keep entering your password each time.