Run Script as specific User on Startup (Server 18.04)

[grimmspector]

Hello, I need to have a specific script run from a users home directory, kind of like having a service startup, that I do not want run as root. It needs to be run on startup, and I'm having one heck of a time figuring out a way to do it in Ubuntu. Ideally I'd like to be able to take over it's terminal if I login as that user or another user, so I can interact with the script when need be directly. Anyone got any solution? Thanks.

[TheFu]

Welcome to the forums.

boot and logins aren't connected. Booting can happen 50 hrs before anyone logs in.

What this means is that you have to pick - non-interactive scripting or interactive which is launched by a user AFTER they login. Pick and there are solutions for both.

[grimmspector]

Welcome to the forums.

boot and logins aren't connected. Booting can happen 50 hrs before anyone logs in.

What this means is that you have to pick - non-interactive scripting or interactive which is launched by a user AFTER they login. Pick and there are solutions for both.

What I am aiming for is to get an application running at boot without any user intervention. Ideally I'd like a user to be able to access the terminal it's running it later if they login and take control of it, but this isn't strictly necessary if it cannot be done (which would surprise me if that were the case). So I would say that I'm looking for non-interactive.

[TheFu]

What I am aiming for is to get an application running at boot without any user intervention. Ideally I'd like a user to be able to access the terminal it's running it later if they login and take control of it, but this isn't strictly necessary if it cannot be done (which would surprise me if that were the case). So I would say that I'm looking for non-interactive.

If you just want to run a script at boot, it cannot be interactive and the userid cannot have encrypted HOME directory, then you can just use anacron @reboot to run. Scripts of this sort shouldn't assume **any** environment variables. HOME will not be set. The PATH and LD_LIBRARY_PATH will be minimal. Don't expect any other env to be set. https://askubuntu.com/questions/3356...oot-in-crontab has examples. Inside the script, you can use su -l {userid} -c {command} to run any process under a different userid. Check the manpage for more details.

Key thing is, there cannot be any GUI programs involved. They will not work.

[papibe]

Hi grimmspector. Welcome to the forum

It is easier for us to help you if you give us some specifics.

I think this may help: https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1809501

Take a look at post #14 for part of the solution. Use crontab with the special string '@reboot' if you want the session to start at boot time.

Let us know how it goes. If these does not help, please give us more information, examples, etc.
Best Regards.

[grimmspector]

If you just want to run a script at boot, it cannot be interactive and the userid cannot have encrypted HOME directory, then you can just use anacron @reboot to run. Scripts of this sort shouldn't assume **any** environment variables. HOME will not be set. The PATH and LD_LIBRARY_PATH will be minimal. Don't expect any other env to be set. https://askubuntu.com/questions/3356...oot-in-crontab has examples. Inside the script, you can use su -l {userid} -c {command} to run any process under a different userid. Check the manpage for more details.

Key thing is, there cannot be any GUI programs involved. They will not work.

No need for GUI anything, in fact the server doesn't have GUI anything, as it's a server install with no GUI added. Everything is command line.

The issue here is that the su command always asks for a password when trying to run something as a user, even if I'm in root. So how would that work at boot?

Hi grimmspector. Welcome to the forum

It is easier for us to help you if you give us some specifics.

I think this may help: https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1809501

Take a look at post #14 for part of the solution. Use crontab with the special string '@reboot' if you want the session to start at boot time.

Let us know how it goes. If these does not help, please give us more information, examples, etc.
Best Regards.

I don't know how much more specific I can be beyond saying I want to run a script under a specific user, and ideally want to be able to then interact with that console later if possible (like the screen command for instance).

[TheFu]

Did you look at the links? There are clear examples.

Root won't be asked for a password to run any local process as another userid. If you try to run a script over NFS, then root is blocked for security, by default.

Perhaps if you post what you've put into the crontab AND tell us which crontab you are using (there are at least 3 different places), then we might be able to help.

If you want to interact with a running program, that program will need to allow remote control/commands in some manner. That isn't too hard, just open a FIFO (named pipe?) and have the process read from it with a simple parser for the specific commands. Then you can make another tool that writes to the FIFO with approved commands ... or any process like "cat" can be used as well. If you want non-local control, which is usually bad idea due to security, you can do the same with sockets.

[SeijiSensei]

Root can run commands as other users via the "su" command. I believe if you create or edit /etc/rc.local and add this line to it:

su -c /path/to/your/script username

it will run the script as "username". Commands place in /etc/rc.local are executed at the end of the boot sequence. The script must be marked executable by that user, of course.

[grimmspector]

Root can run commands as other users via the "su" command. I believe if you create or edit /etc/rc.local and add this line to it:

su -c /path/to/your/script username

it will run the script as "username". Commands place in /etc/rc.local are executed at the end of the boot sequence. The script must be marked executable by that user, of course.

Ok, well that won't allow the interactivity, so before I go that route I just have to ask then, is there a way I can on boot have it autologin a specific user and have that user in their terminal initiate a script? Then I can setup a user that has no ability to do anything but use that script and it should be fine, and if I remotely connect to that specific terminal session I can interact with it.

[SeijiSensei]

Is the "interactivity" limited to a specific set of commands? If so you could include an "expect" script in your main script to respond to the prompts.

Is there no way to start this process so that it doesn't require console input?