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From: robert@zen.humbug.org.au (Robert Brockway)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit,comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc,comp.unix.bsd.386bsd.misc,comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy,comp.os.linux.x,comp.os.linux.setup,comp.os.linux.advocacy
Subject: Re: Linux needs more work to be done!
Date: Fri, 4 Jul 1997 23:42:49 +1000
Organization: University of Queensland
Lines: 31
Message-ID: <pkuip5.tq.ln@zen>
References: <5oqbad$1582@ds2.acs.ucalgary.ca> <xdoradosk1v.fsf@bagel.rs.itd.umich.edu> <xdo4taj2akk.fsf@pita.ccs.itd.umich.edu> <5peb7i$aqv$1@netty.york.ac.uk>
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Paul Halliday (pih100@york.ac.uk) wrote:
: Timothy Watson (tmwatson@pita.ccs.itd.umich.edu) wrote:
: Is this the same effect as running several callocs in an infinite loop?
: e.g. For simplicity;
:
: main()
: {
: for(;;)
: calloc(10000, 8);
: }
:
: Unfortunately this hole allows anyone to break a Linux box at will which
: doesn't bode well for it if run as, say, a central unix server. Personally
: I broke it with a single large calloc when doing a physics project some
: months ago and now worry as much about breaking Linux by doing anything
: useful as I do about running any of the MS rubbish.
: Considering it's always been around, it's surprising it's never been fixed. :-{
Checkout limit or ulimit (depending on your shell). Look particluarly at
memory limits. This is an old trick. Any half decent setup unix won't
notice it once forking stops when the process limit is hit :-)
Ergo, process limits are good too.
Cheers,
-Robert
--Robert Brockway. Email: robert@zen.humbug.org.au, president@humbug.org.au
unrbrock@dingo.uq.edu.au
WWW: http://www.humbug.org.au/~robert
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