In Linux, the “sudo” command allows a user to execute commands with administrative privileges. By default, the root user has entire administrative privileges. However, the “sudoers” file grants specific users or groups access to execute commands with administrative privileges.
This guide will offer the meaning of the “ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL” configuration in the sudoers file.
- What is the Meaning of “ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL” in sudoers?
- How to Access the sudoers Configuration File?
What is the Meaning of “ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL” in sudoers?
The “sudoers” file is found at “/etc/sudoers” and can be edited using the text nano editor. Within the “sudoers” file, different configurations can be set to control who can use the “sudo” command and their access level. One of the common configurations found in the “sudoers” file is “ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL.”
The configuration “ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL” in the “sudoers” file means:
- “ALL” in the first field, specifying that the configuration implements to all users.
- “ALL” in the second field specifies that the configuration implements to all hosts.
- “(ALL)” in the third field specifies that the user can run commands as any user.
- “ALL” in the fourth field specifies that the user can run any command with administrative privileges.
Therefore, the “ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL” configuration gives any user on any host the ability to run any command with administrative privileges.
How to Access the sudoers Configuration File?
To access the “sudoers” file that is presented in the “/etc/sudoers” directory, use the nano text editor as below:
$ sudo nano /etc/sudoers
The output shows that any user on any host can run any command with administrative privileges.
In most cases, it is recommended to grant administrative access to specific users or groups only as needed rather than giving all users complete administrative access. It reduces the security risk, vulnerabilities, and unintended consequences of administrative actions.
Conclusion
In Linux, the syntax “ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL” grants full sudo privileges to all users on all hosts for all commands in the sudoers file. It allows full sudo rights to users to run the script as any user. This can be a security risk, so it’s important to only grant sudo privileges to the users and commands that need them.
This guide has explained the “ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL” in sudoers in Linux.
