Question about last meeting

[Cyber Source]

Thanks for the input Bob. It's been printed for future ref (hopefully not
needed). The linux init 1 at the lilo prompt worked perfect. Thanks

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-nflug at nflug.org [mailto:owner-nflug at nflug.org]On Behalf Of
Robert Meyer
Sent: Friday, May 11, 2001 10:32 AM
To: nflug at nflug.org
Subject: Re: Question about last meeting

Well, depending on the version of Unix and the machine configuration
(hardware
passwords, etc), most of the time, you can stuff an install disk in the
machine
and get to a point that you can mount file systems.  With Mandrake systems,
you
stuff the install CD in the drive and type 'rescue'.  From there, you can
get
to a shell prompt (without a password) that will allow you to mount the root
filesystem and make whatever changes that need to be made.  Sun systems can
be
worked the same way unless someone has passworded the boot rom.  If that's
the
case, you have to open the machine up and force a dump of the NVRAM to get
it
to forget.

The '-s' boot flag will typically allow you to reboot the machine into
'standalone' or 'single user' mode.  If the console is tagged as secure and
your bootstrap isn't passworded (grub lets you password protect the boot
mode
so that users can only boot the normal multiuser startup), you will be
presented with a root prompt.  This can be done at the normal boot prompt
and
no install disk is needed.

I can forsee problems in the future as people and companies start believing
in
turbo security and start encrypting the disk drives.  If you lose the key
for
the drive, you go hungry.  It would take a serious bit of horsepower to
crack
it.  Point to note about this, if someone can get your hard drive out of the
machine and has the time and resources, ANY encryption scheme can be
cracked.
There are folks out there with a false sense of security that their data
cannot
be taken without their consent.  This is simply not true.  If someone has
PHYSICAL access to the machine, then it is NOT secure.  Period.  That's why
you
notice that most data centers are in special rooms with cyber locked or pass
carded doors.

Hope this helps...

Cheers!

--- Cyber Source <peter at thecybersource.com> wrote:
> Hello All,
>   More specifically, Bob. At the last meeting when we were working on my
> RedHat Linux box (I had the tower next to the guy?s that we put Mandrake
8.0
> on). When we were doing something, you put a command in, I think it was
?-s?
> at the boot prompt with the cd install, that let us bypass the password
> prompt. Do you remember that I had commented about the fact that that
could
> be a good issue to talk about security and you had said that anytime
anyone
> is physically near a box, that the security can be breached. My question
for
> all of this, is that I have someone that forgot their root password and
they
> had data they cannot loose. I don?t know which flavor of Linux it is. Any
> help would be greatly appreciated from anyone out there. Thanks,
> peter at thecybersource.com <mailto:peter at thecybersource.com>
>


=====
Bob Meyer
Knightwing Communications, Inc.
36 Cayuga Blvd
Depew, NY 14043
Phone: 716-308-8931 or 716-681-0076
Meyer_RM at Yahoo.com

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