Chris --
...and then Chris Green said...
% On Thu, Mar 30, 2000 at 04:21:40AM -0600, Aaron Schrab wrote:
% >
% > Since in cases like this, the resulting install could easily be unsafe,
% > it could be argued that installing at all is an error. There should
Actually, it seems to me that the install won't be unsafe -- it just
won't be able to lock $MAIL. If you use procmail or some such to drop
your mail in a spool file that you control, then your inboxisno different
from any ofyour other folders -- and you can do anything you want. No
safety issue involved...
% > probably be more noticeable errors at the least, maybe even require the
% > person doing the install run something like "make unsafe_install".
% >
% Yes, I think this is right, if you allow the --prefix=<somewhere>
% option then it suggests that the installation can be done by a
% non-root user.
It does, admittedly, but it also allows root to install mutt somewhere
other than /usr/local (like mebbe /). Because of the nature of most mail
locking system, you're going to have to have root authority to set the
gid bit on mutt_dotlock at least once.
Now, the good news is that any mutt_dotlock with the proper perms will
do. If you can get your sysadmin to install mutt_dotlock somewhere (like
/usr/local/bin or even your personal bin) you can safely ignore any
difficulties with a mutt_dotlock in a later build and not use the new
one. As an added bonus, you can call mutt_dotlock yourself in a script
if you want to manually copy your $MAIL file to somewhere else where you
can play with it and then *safely* zero out the real one.
%
% Is the issue just one of locking the mail spool correctly by the way?
% Should it be possible for a user of mail on a system to set the
% permissions correctly or does mutt require root to install? I think
% not actually as I didn't get this error on my other (Solaris) install
% and I did that as a user too.
I guess I already answered this part :-) Yes, the only difficulty
installing mutt as a user is that you can't set the g+s bit on
mutt_dotlock, the only bit of code that needs special permissions.
[In fact, that's why mutt_dotlock was created; lots of very reasonable
people did not want a big program like mutt running with special
permissions.]
%
% --
% Chris Green ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
% Home: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Work: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
% WWW: http://www.isbd.co.uk/
:-D
--
David T-G * It's easier to fight for one's principles
(play) [EMAIL PROTECTED] * than to live up to them. -- fortune cookie
(work) [EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.bigfoot.com/~davidtg/ Shpx gur Pbzzhavpngvbaf Qrprapl Npg!
The "new millennium" starts at the beginning of 2001. There was no year 0.
Note: If bigfoot.com gives you fits, try sector13.org in its place. *sigh*
PGP signature
