root user and any GUI

[Dazed_75]

On 11/27/06, JT Moree <moreejt at pcxperience.com> wrote:
>
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> Dazed_75 wrote:
> > 1) Can anyone tell me why distros prevent root from using GUI
> > applications (e.g. display not defined)?
> Root isn't prevented from running GUI apps per se but ubuntu does not
> set a root password so logging in and running apps as root is more
> involved.


Maybe I did not need to but I have given root a password so doing that part
is trivial.  Perhaps I could get rid of that but the other part below may be
more to my question.

> 2) Can I set up ubuntu like that and so root could startx and run GUI
> > apps if I wanted instead of having to sudo them from my user?
> you can run apps as root as long as root has permissions to display on
> your x windows session.  Use xhost to allow it.
>
> xhost + allows anyone to display to your Xwindows session.
> xhost +root allows root to display apps in your session
>
> run a terminal and type
> xhost +root
> sudo su
> xterm


I remember now having to do this years ago.  It still begs the issue of how
to actually run some of the gui apps but that is another subject entirely.
However, xhost +root responds with

xhost:  bad hostname "root"

The man page clearly shows the argument can be a host or a user name so
either it is rejecting root or there is additional syntax. E.G. I tried
xhost +root at ldesk which also fails with:

> root at ldesk being added to access control list
> X Error of failed request:  BadValue (integer parameter out of range for
> operation)
>   Major opcode of failed request:  109 (X_ChangeHosts)
>   Value in failed request:  0xfe
>   Serial number of failed request:  7
>   Current serial number in output stream:  9
> l
>

in the terminal type
> whoami
>
> - --
> JT Morée
> PC Xperience, Inc.
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