Strange behavior of su

[Mikel Manitius]

> In article <667 at bu-cs.UUCP> root at bu-cs.UUCP (Barry Shein) writes:
> >>  If you were becoming another
> >>normal user, this probably means the current directory was inaccesable
> >>to the new user.  In this case, su gives up quietly.  I think this is
> >>a case there things could be a bit more verbose.
> >>>(Actually it is the shell which gives up)
> >
> >You better explain which version of UNIX you believe this happens
> >(su exits silently if '.' is not accessible.)
> >
> >I just tried it under 4.2bsd (vax), SYSVR2 (3b5) and SYSVR(1?) (PC7300)
> >and all let me su to a non-priv'd user while in a directory they had
> >no access to, of course:
> >
> 	Hmm, curiouser and curiouser. I have had it happen on both
> 4.1 and 4.2 BSD. And I know it is the directory access since doing a
> cd to a different directory always fixes it. Which *shell* were you
> using, I was using 'csh'.
> -- 
> 
> 				Sarima (Stanley Friesen)
> 
> UUCP: {ttidca|ihnp4|sdcrdcf|quad1|nrcvax|bellcore|logico}!psivax!friesen
> ARPA: ttidca!psivax!friesen at rand-unix.arpa

I have had the problem happen to me on 4.1bsd, you su to a user, who does
not have access to any of the dirrectories leading to your current dirrectory,
then you simply get your old shell back and su dies (or the new shell), at
the time I was using csh(1).


Mikel Manitius                AT&T Information Systems
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