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* Re: Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but not shared libraries?
@ 2001-10-03 12:49 Jesse Pollard
  2001-10-03 18:06 ` Eric W. Biederman
  0 siblings, 1 reply; 76+ messages in thread
From: Jesse Pollard @ 2001-10-03 12:49 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: viro, Rob Landley; +Cc: linux-kernel

Alexander Viro <viro@math.psu.edu>:
> On Tue, 2 Oct 2001, Rob Landley wrote:
> 
> > Anybody want to venture an opinion why overwriting executable files that are 
> > currently in use gives you a "text file busy" error, but overwriting shared 
> > libraries that are in use apparently works just fine (modulo a core dump if 
> > you aren't subtle about your run-time patching)?
> > 
> > Permissions are still enforced, but it seems to me somebody who cracks root 
> > on a system could potentially modify the behavior of important system daemons 
> > without changing their process ID numbers.
> > 
> > Did I miss something somewhere?
> 
> Somebody who cracks root can attach gdb to a daemon, modify the contents of
> its text segment and detach.  No need to change any files...

True, but the original problem still appears to be a bug.

Even the owner of the file should not be able to write to a busy executable,
whether it is a shared library, or an executable image. Remove it, yes.
Create a new one (in a different inode) -  yes.

But not modify a busy executable.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jesse I Pollard, II
Email: pollard@navo.hpc.mil

Any opinions expressed are solely my own.

^ permalink raw reply	[flat|nested] 76+ messages in thread
* Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but not shared libraries?
@ 2001-10-03  2:55 Rob Landley
  2001-10-03  7:07 ` Alexander Viro
  0 siblings, 1 reply; 76+ messages in thread
From: Rob Landley @ 2001-10-03  2:55 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: linux-kernel

Anybody want to venture an opinion why overwriting executable files that are 
currently in use gives you a "text file busy" error, but overwriting shared 
libraries that are in use apparently works just fine (modulo a core dump if 
you aren't subtle about your run-time patching)?

Permissions are still enforced, but it seems to me somebody who cracks root 
on a system could potentially modify the behavior of important system daemons 
without changing their process ID numbers.

Did I miss something somewhere?

Rob

^ permalink raw reply	[flat|nested] 76+ messages in thread

end of thread, other threads:[~2001-10-15 12:30 UTC | newest]

Thread overview: 76+ messages (download: mbox.gz / follow: Atom feed)
-- links below jump to the message on this page --
2001-10-03 12:49 Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but not shared libraries? Jesse Pollard
2001-10-03 18:06 ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-03 23:20   ` Rob Landley
2001-10-04  3:38     ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-04  4:19       ` Alexander Viro
2001-10-04  6:15         ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-04  8:21           ` CaT
2001-10-04  8:35             ` john slee
2001-10-04  8:45               ` CaT
2001-10-04 13:11             ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-04 14:24               ` Kernel size Richard B. Johnson
2001-10-13 20:35                 ` Aaron Lehmann
2001-10-04  8:30           ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but not shared libraries? Ville Herva
2001-10-04  9:46             ` Erik Andersen
2001-10-04  8:53           ` Andreas Schwab
2001-10-04 13:23             ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-04 19:50           ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but no Kai Henningsen
2001-10-04  9:12         ` Bloatware (was Re: Security question: "Text file busy"...) VDA
2001-10-04  5:38     ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but not shared libraries? Linus Torvalds
2001-10-04  5:44       ` Alexander Viro
2001-10-04  5:49         ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-04 15:01           ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-04 15:49             ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-04 16:11               ` Alexander Viro
2001-10-04 17:25               ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-13 14:53                 ` Jamie Lokier
2001-10-13 17:13                   ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-13 18:18                     ` Rik van Riel
2001-10-13 18:40                     ` Pablo Alcaraz
2001-10-13 19:05                       ` Jamie Lokier
2001-10-13 18:54                     ` Jamie Lokier
2001-10-13 19:23                       ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-13 19:46                         ` Jamie Lokier
2001-10-13 21:43                           ` Aaron Lehmann
2001-10-13 22:27                             ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-13 22:50                               ` Aaron Lehmann
2001-10-15 11:24                                 ` Jamie Lokier
2001-10-13 22:19                           ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-14  6:49                             ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-14 15:40                               ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-14 18:49                                 ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-14  8:17                             ` Xavier Bestel
2001-10-15 11:43                             ` Jamie Lokier
2001-10-13 22:27                         ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-13 22:41                         ` Richard Gooch
2001-10-15 11:35                           ` Jamie Lokier
2001-10-15 11:51                             ` Alexander Viro
2001-10-15 12:29                               ` Jamie Lokier
2001-10-14 12:57                     ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but no Kai Henningsen
2001-10-14 21:43                     ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but not shared libraries? Mark H. Wood
2001-10-04 19:28               ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but no Kai Henningsen
2001-10-04 16:02             ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but not shared libraries? Richard Gooch
2001-10-04 16:20               ` Andreas Schwab
2001-10-04 17:19               ` Richard Gooch
2001-10-04 20:39         ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but Alan Cox
2001-10-05 16:30           ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-05 16:58             ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-05 17:35               ` Horst von Brand
2001-10-05 17:44                 ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-05 18:51                   ` Oliver Xymoron
2001-10-06 19:05                     ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-14  8:02               ` [RFC] "Text file busy" when overwriting libraries Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-14 12:08                 ` Alan Cox
2001-10-14 20:48                   ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-15  1:44                     ` Alan Cox
2001-10-15  2:06                       ` Linus Torvalds
2001-10-15 10:11                         ` Eric W. Biederman
2001-10-15 11:54                           ` Alan Cox
2001-10-15 11:57                             ` Alexander Viro
2001-10-15 12:08                               ` Alan Cox
2001-10-15 12:11                                 ` Alexander Viro
2001-10-04  5:53       ` Security question: "Text file busy" overwriting executables but not shared libraries? Richard Gooch
2001-10-04  6:50       ` George Greer
2001-10-04 12:54       ` John Levon
  -- strict thread matches above, loose matches on Subject: below --
2001-10-03  2:55 Rob Landley
2001-10-03  7:07 ` Alexander Viro

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