Full Disclosure mailing list archives
Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command
From: "Todd C. Miller" <Todd.Miller () courtesan com>
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:36:19 -0500
In message <4AFC1708.7040508 () gmail com> so spake Leandro Malaquias (lm.net.security):
Website: http://gizmodo.com/5402796/microsoft-patents-the-sudo-command Patent: http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1 &u=/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=7,617,530.PN.&OS=PN/7,617,530&RS =PN/7,617,530
This doesn't sound like it would cover sudo to me, or even a GUI-wrapper for sudo. While I am not a patent attorney, I have been hacking on sudo for the past 15+ years. My reading of the patent indicates that it is geared towards GUI-based environments where the user may need to perform some action (such as setting the clock in a control panel) that requires increased privileges. The actual "invention" appears to be that the user is able to perform an action as a different user without having to type in the name of that other user when authenticating. One example given in that patent is the ability to click on a name in a list of privileged users as opposed to having to type in a user name. Sudo simply doesn't work this way. - todd _______________________________________________ Full-Disclosure - We believe in it. Charter: http://lists.grok.org.uk/full-disclosure-charter.html Hosted and sponsored by Secunia - http://secunia.com/
Current thread:
- Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command Leandro Malaquias (Nov 12)
- Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command Todd C. Miller (Nov 12)
- Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command Valdis . Kletnieks (Nov 12)
- Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command Todd C. Miller (Nov 12)
- Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command Leandro Malaquias (Nov 13)
- Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command Larry Seltzer (Nov 13)
- Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command Valdis . Kletnieks (Nov 12)
- Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command Todd C. Miller (Nov 12)
- Re: Microsoft Patents the "sudo" command McGhee, Eddie (Nov 12)