From: Lamar Owen <lowen@pari.edu>
Organization: Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute
To: "Chad N. Tindel" <chad@tindel.net>, Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us>
Subject: Re: Mysql -> Postgresql pitfalls
Date: Mon, 4 Aug 2003 13:27:59 -0400
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On Saturday 02 August 2003 13:04, Chad N. Tindel wrote:
> I didn't say "require them to run as a non-root user".  I said "Give them
> the choice to decide what is correct for their environment".  In the case
> of apache, there are many internal webservers that are not exposed to the
> threat of the public internet; for such servers, it may be appropriate to
> run apache as root because it simplifies the administration and automation
> of tasks.

It also simplifies a bug in apache crashing your box and scribbling all over 
your disk.  Apache does have bugs, you know. (as do MySQL and PostgreSQL, but 
that's another story).

The postmaster will not run as root.  That is just the way it is, and has 
been, for quite some time.  It is foolish to run an RDBMS server (or any 
other server that doesn't need root's permissions) as root when it is not 
necessary. It is lazy  to run things as root to 'simplify' administration; 
properly administering a box isn't that hard, and user protections and 
permissions should be used to their intended effect in the course of routine 
administration.  That's just basic Unix sysadmin practice that is well 
accepted by the vast majority of sysadmins.  We just encourage the best 
practice in a more direct way than other servers, that's all.

As to the subject matter of this thread, there are a great number of 
educational opportunities in such a migration/pitfalls document.  The MySQL 
'way' and the PostgreSQL 'way' are very different, and at points don't even 
have a common frame of reference.  This issue is one of them; a thorough 
explanation, written in a direct non-condescending style, of why postmaster 
won't run as root would be a nice addition.
-- 
Lamar Owen
Director of Information Technology
Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute