the console ( keyboard+mouse+screen ) of a linux system can be locked up
by a non-root user with the "help" of an xfree86 server.
I first reported it to the linux kernel mailing list, but they pointed me here.
Here are the relevant messages :
My first mail :
---begin---
Subject: Simple local DOS
Date: Wed, 09 Jan 2002 17:51:03 +0100
From: David Balazic <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
log in on some virtual terminal, then run the following line
in a bourne type shell, like bash :
X 2>&1 | less
A reboot "fixes" it. We want to reach windows level quality on desktop
after all, don't we ?
---end---
Message from David S. Miller suggesting to take it to xfree86 people :
---begin---
Subject: Re: Simple local DOS
Date: Thu, 10 Jan 2002 05:56:51 -0800 (PST)
From: "David S. Miller" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
CC: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED]
From: David Balazic <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Date: Thu, 10 Jan 2002 14:46:19 +0100
> all this is off-topic on linux-kernel,
non-root user locked up the console code. console code is part of kernel.
it is a kernel topic.
The real issue is that X has the console in an indeterminate state (it
probably just saved the VGA state and is outputting probing
information) but now it is blocked on terminal output due to the
"less".
There is nothing the kernel can do about what X is up to. The suid
wrapper for X can check if stdout/stderr is a pipe and refuse to run
if it is.
So really, it is in fact off topic for linux-kernel. Please take this
to the xfree86 lists, I'm sure they'll be more than happy to fix it.
Franks a lot,
David S. Miller
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
---end---
--
David Balazic
--------------
"Be excellent to each other." - Bill S. Preston, Esq., & "Ted" Theodore Logan
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