[PLUG] The WP saga: update

D. Cooper Stevenson cooper at linux-enterprise.net
Tue May 7 14:32:12 UTC 2002


On Tue, May 07, 2002 at 07:01:15AM -0700, Rich Shepard wrote:
>   Well, I'm totally stumped. Grepping all the files in the wp8/ directory
> tree for instances of the hostname, I find only one (and a backup). I modify
> that file, rename it, delete the /tmp/ directory and so on and WordPerfect
> still won't load. Sigh.
> 
Have you tried searching www.dejanews.com for something like, "Wordperfect for Linux won't load?"

This might generate some ideas on where to go from here as well as save you the cost of an upgrade!

Here's what I found:


    DO NOT INSTALL Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux as ?root?.
    
    Explanation of the problem:
    
    When Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux loads, it creates a directory called
    /tmp/wpc-<hostname> (where <hostname> is the host name of your computer)
    that has the UMASK 777.
    
    Some necessary temporary files are stored in this folder, all containing the
    UMASK 666. When Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux loads, it checks to see that
    these files exist, and if so, it will overwrite them.
    
    However, Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux doesn't check to see if these files
    have been replaced with sym-links of the same name. If this has been done
    (perhaps to compromise system security), Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux will
    follow those sym-links and, if it has the rights to do so (which it will if
    you install the application as ?root?), it will overwrite the file pointed
    to by the sym-link. This problem could be used to exploit a system.
    
    Procedure to eliminate the problem:
    
    If you have not installed Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux yet, simply follow
    the instructions under ?Installation Procedures?.
    
    If you have already installed Corel WordPerfect, we strongly recommend that
    you delete that installation and re-install the application. To delete a
    current installation of Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux, execute the following
    instructions:
    
    rm -r <path to Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux Installation> (answer yes to
    the prompts)
    rm -rf ~/.wprc
    rm /etc/magic
    
    Installation Procedures:
    
    If you already have another user account setup on your system, then simply
    login under that user account, and run the installation program as you
    normally would.
    
    NOTE: On most systems, you can only mount the CD-ROM drive as root, so you
    should do this before you login as a non-root user.
    
    If you do not have a ?non-root? user account setup on your system, the
    following will set that up (for RedHat Linux only):
    
    Login as root
    
    
    Type: adduser <username>
    where <username> can be any name you wish, but should be something short
    and easy to remember
    
    
    Next type: passwd <username>
    where <username> is the same as what you chose for the previous step
    
    
    You will be prompted for a password for that user, and then asked to confirm
    that password
    
    
    If all went well, you will receive a message similar to the following:
       "passwd: all authentication tokens updated successfully"
    To enact a fix to Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux without re-installing the
    software (this should only be attempted by advanced Linux users ? Corel
    recommends deleting the software and reinstalling using the previous
    method).
    
    This procedure will change the installation of Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux
    so that it can't be used to exploit the host system. This procedure must be
    executed as root, and is recommended for advanced users only.
    
    Command list:
    
    cd <path to Corel WordPerfect 8 for Linux Installation>/..
    chown <non-root user>: chown <non-root user>: rm -rf /tmp/wpc*
    
    
    EXAMPLE:
    
    cd /usr/local/wp8/..
    chown johnd:johnd wp8 -R
    chown johnd:johnd /etc/magic
    rm -rf /tmp/wpc*
    
-- 
______________________________________________________
Cooper Stevenson        |cooper.stevenson at wahchang.com
UNIX Administrator      |PH: (541)791-1322
Telledyne Wah Chang     |FAX: (541)924-6895
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