this post was submitted on 30 Apr 2024
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Linux

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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 7 months ago (1 children)

It's the same drama as with the home directory replacement they announced and that no-one ever used.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (1 children)

homed isn't exactly a home directory replacement, more of an extension. You can mix and match homed and normal home directories like you want (on a per-user basis at least, not within a single user). It does have some nice things, such as user-password based encryption of the home directory, so the password is required to unlock it (no admin access) or automatically using subvolumes on btrfs.

[–] taladar 7 points 7 months ago (2 children)

user-password based encryption of the home directory, so the password is required to unlock it (no admin access)

That seems like a very niche feature given that it is only relevant if the admin isn't the same person as the user but the admin would have to set it up and condemn themselves to hearing endless whining from users who lose their files when they forgot their password.

[–] atzanteol 3 points 7 months ago (2 children)

Let me introduce you to selinux.

[–] taladar 2 points 7 months ago (1 children)

In what way does selinux allow your users to lock themselves out of their own home directories in a way that the admin can not fix?

[–] atzanteol 0 points 7 months ago (1 children)

SElinux is a "global ACL." You can stop root from doing anything you like with it. Usually by accident and without realizing it's been done in my experience...

[–] taladar 2 points 7 months ago (1 children)

No, that is just not true. You can stop root from doing things without a reboot with SELinux but encrypting something with a password root does not know actually does stop them from doing it at all short of a brute force attack on the encryption.

[–] atzanteol 0 points 7 months ago (1 children)

That's true - you can often recover a bad ACL. I was thinking more of the "niche use case" where separating duties and restricting root are concerned.

[–] taladar 1 points 7 months ago

Oh, I was specifically thinking that admins that have users either competent enough not to forget/lose their passwords or mature enough not to whine to the admin when that causes the loss of all their files are pretty niche.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago

no...nonono... AHHHHH! - Vegita DBZA

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago

I don't know, unless I personally allow the admin to have that kinda access to my files I wouldn't really want it. And for that case you can enroll recovery keys (which would need to be manually stored, but still) or a fido token or whatever other supported mechanism there is, its LUKS2 backed encryption after all. Then there is also the possibility to just not encrypt the home directory at all.