On (23/12/04 10:40), Cameron Hutchison wrote: > Once upon a time Clive Menzies said... > > > > I've never really understood what the first digit does <shame-faced> but > > having reread the chmod manpage it falls into place ....almost. Setting > > the group ID at 2, means any file or directory created by someone in 'group' > > will apply the same attributes? > > Not quite. I does not matter who creates the file/directory (as long as > they have permission to create a file in the directory). But the file > will be created with a group the same as the directory. It does not > affect the attributes any new files though - hence your need for a 002 > umask. Directories created in a setgid parent directory will > automatically have the setgid bit set on them, so the group ID will > continue to propogate down the hierarchy. > > Also, your terminology is a little off. "Setting the group ID at 2", > should really say "Setting the setgid bit". Setting the gid bit is done > by using the numeric prefix of 2, or the symbolic mode of "g+s". "Setting > the group ID at 2" means something different (setting the group ID is > done with chown/chgrp, not chmod). > > For an executable, the setgid bit (2, or g+s in symbolic form) means > that when the program executes, its group id will be changed to the > group of the executable. On a directory, this makes no sense, and it has > been subverted to mean what I described above. Hi Cameron
Your help has been invaluable - I've been setting up two pairs of servers (File server and remote backup server) and getting the right ownerships and permissions was causing me some angst. I now have a much clearer understanding of all this - thanks ;) This list is the best educational resource I've come across Regards Clive -- www.clivemenzies.co.uk ... ...strategies for business -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]
