Fixing chmod -R 777 /

This document (7014410) is provided subject to the disclaimer at the end of this document.

Environment

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 8
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop

Situation

A user has run the chmod -R 777 / command and all file permissions for the entire system have read/write/execute for every user.
***Note NEVER run this command***

Resolution

There are only two viable options. 
Reinstall - Copy off all pertinent data and then wipe the drive and reinstall with an up to date version of SLE.
Restore - Restore from a full system backup taken before the change was made.

Cause

The command chmod -R 777 / makes every single file on the system under / (root)  have -rwxrwxrwx permissions.  This is equivalent to allowing ALL users read/write/execute permissions.  If other directories such as home, media, etc are under root then those will be affected as well.  This causes a very large security hole for the entire system and should be fixed immediately.

Additional Information


Disclaimer

This Support Knowledgebase provides a valuable tool for SUSE customers and parties interested in our products and solutions to acquire information, ideas and learn from one another. Materials are provided for informational, personal or non-commercial use within your organization and are presented "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND.

  • Document ID:7014410
  • Creation Date: 14-Jan-2014
  • Modified Date:03-Mar-2020
    • SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop
    • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server

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