Re: [9fans] how to lock cpu console

[baux80@gmail.com]

On 31 August 2010 at 10:55, John Floren <slawmaster@gmail.com>wrote:
>
> This seems to come up every so often. The usual answer, and the one
> which I use, is "who cares?" :) Where is your CPU server located? Are
> there that many untrustworthy types passing through every day?

ok, you unmasked me :-) It was only a teoric question... not a real need :-)

> I left
> one of my CPU/auth/file servers sitting in a campus lab, accessible by
> grad students and some undergrad courses, for over two years and never
> saw so much as an "ls" entered, even though I had the keyboard, mouse,
> and monitor hooked up the whole time. My biggest problem was that
> people kept unplugging the network cable to use with their laptops!

mine too :-)

[...]

> There is also, somewhere, a screen locker program that (I think) Rob
> wrote a few years back; I compiled it and used it successfully last
> year, and you could certainly stick that in your cpustart to
> automatically lock the screen. However, for the life of me I can't
> find the code right now, so maybe somebody else can point to it.

this sounds good, a screen locker called by cpustart

[...]

> rebooting with
> a LiveCD and grabbing your data that way. There's something to be said
> for deterring casual fiddlers who can't help but touch an open
> computer, though, and luckily it's not too hard in Plan 9.

obviously... If an attacker got console place, the smartest thing to do (in my
opinion) is to steal the hard disks :-) (or insert a bootable cd and throw
away avery dummy password and user).

thanks,

bye