KPPP

[Derek Broughton]

Homer wrote:

> Thank you for your comments:
> 
> On Tue, Nov 17, 2009 at 12:44 PM, Mark Greenwood <fatgerman at ntlworld.com>
> wrote:
>> On Tuesday 17 Nov 2009 18:30:37 Homer wrote:
>>> Fresh install of 9.10.  In the past when I have done fresh installs,
>>> I've been able to copy over my kppprc file and everything picked up
>>> where I left off.  This time I'm experiencing something different...
>>>
>>> 1.  When I start KPPP I have to enter my password.  How can I set it
>>> up so it runs as a regular user?
>>
>> KPPP needs root permissions because PPP needs root permissions. If it
>> worked differently before then lord knows how they did that.

ppp (and kppp) _don't_, and never have, need to be run as root.  However, 
back around 2000, a change was made in Debian, which is also in Ubuntu, that 
used a default setting that _does_ need root.  It was a totally stupid idea, 
caused numerous people to be confused and upset, and had exactly the 
opposite effect to that which was desired, because most people simply 
removed the setting anyway.  It quite rightly assumes that for _dial in_, 
you should be root, but even then, if the option is set in one of the 
"provider" configurations, rather than the base config, it doesn't require 
root permission.  Of course, very few single user systems actually used 
dial-in then, and even fewer now.  

Now, since it's about 10 years since I needed to know this, I don't recall 
the option - but try googling my name and ppp.  I explained how to fix this 
numerous times back then...
-- 
derek