Question on what account I should use.
 

Ok. I am running my computer on a small home network of which I am the only one with Linux (slackware) and I was wondering if it would be safe to just log in as Root. Or, should I just take the time to chmod myself to where I can edit what I need to.


Thanks in Advance
A curious :newbie:

"Ok. I am running my computer on a small home network of which I am the only one with Linux (slackware) and I was wondering if it would be safe to just log in as Root. Or, should I just take the time to chmod myself to where I can edit what I need to."

If you are using the internet or a local net then running as user limits the amount of damage that any malware you encounter can do.

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Steve Stites

Ok, thank you.

Don't log in as root. Always a bad idea. Nor would I mess around `chmod`-ing files which are root access only (which I think is what you mean...). Use `sudo` or `su -c 'command'`from your normal user login.

Then how should I access these files?

Suppose you need to edit the file /etc/lilo.conf, which is writable only by root. Do (substitute kwrite with whatever editor you'd prefer) then enter the root password. Make your edit, save the file and exit. You'll be dropped back to your normal user.

If you need to run multiple commands, "su -" will work just fine, but remember to type "exit" as soon as you no longer need those priviledges.

NEVER run KDE/Gnome/WM as root. Just not good security sense.