visudo enhancement to edit-syntax-check arbitrary files

[William R. Ward]

Todd C. Miller writes:
>In message <15385.45506.461372.951014 at komodo.home.wards.net>
>	so spake  (bill):
>
>> My understanding is that visudo requires you to already be root.  I
>> think that it is important to have the editor *not* run as uid 0 due
>> to the fact that you can launch sub-processes, edit other files, etc.
>> See the CAVEATS section in the man page for visudo.
>
>I see no point in running visudo as a uid other than 0 since if
>you can edit sudoers, you can grant yourself permission to run
>whatever you like.

I think you may have been confused by the fact that two different
proposals for similar things arrived at the same time.

I am referring to the idea of using sudo to grant permission to edit
files *other* than sudoers, such as /etc/aliases.

--Bill.

-- 
William R Ward            bill at wards.net          http://www.wards.net/~bill/
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