Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!osu-cis!tut!triceratops!karl
From: karl@triceratops.cis.ohio-state.edu (Karl Kleinpaste)
Newsgroups: news.admin
Subject: Re: Forgeries: a suggestion for bringing them under control
Message-ID: <5552@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu>
Date: 29 Jan 88 16:53:52 GMT
References: <1861@epimass.EPI.COM> <14276@oddjob.UChicago.EDU> <5300@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu> <774@brandx.rutgers.edu>
Sender: news@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu
Lines: 37
In-reply-to: webber@brandx.rutgers.edu's message of 28 Jan 88 16:05:54 GMT

webber@brandx.rutgers.edu writes:
   Instead it sounds more like you were hired to maintain the system
   rather than boss the users.

Try again.  I was hired to run these systems.  There are 4000
undergrads taking courses from us, of which 827 are computer science
majors, 267 computer science grad students, and 65 faculty, and then
you can add in all the extra accounts on our systems from people not
directly in our department but who have access to our systems for one
reason or another.

The only way to run these systems is to keep control of the users at a
certain level.  Usually, this consists of little more than blowing
away umpteen-Mb processes that suck up all the swap space on Wednesday
afternoons.  We have a serious security problem which reared its ugly
head just last night.  For matters such as these, we boss the users
around, and we don't apologize for it.

I have never actually used the mechanism I described to restrict
users; the /usr/lib/news/authorized file is empty and has been so
since creation.  But I keep the tools ready if the need arises.  The
need came very close to arising about 2 weeks ago; I'm glad I didn't
have to use it.

   It is a real shame that so many admins post
   messages essentially indicating that if they can't boss the users then
   there is nothing in life worthwhile -- sigh.

Stow it.  It is a real shame that some admins can't see that there are
environments with needs dissimilar to their own.  If I weren't allowed
to destroy runaway monster processes, or if I couldn't do anything
about individuals trying to break into these systems, or if I couldn't
cut off Usenet access to the (thus far purely hypothetical) news
abuser, I *would* quit.  My bosses are very intelligent people and
don't restrict me in the areas where I have to be able to act.
-=-
Karl