*BSD News Article 5470


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Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd
Path: sserve!manuel!munnari.oz.au!metro!news
From: dawes@physics.su.OZ.AU (David Dawes)
Subject: Re: [386BSD] XFree86, no console for non-root user
Message-ID: <1992Sep23.132041.11924@ucc.su.OZ.AU>
Sender: news@ucc.su.OZ.AU
Nntp-Posting-Host: physics.su.oz.au
Organization: School of Physics, University of Sydney, Australia
References: <19ks69INNd2l@corax.udac.uu.se> <1992Sep22.043733.22702@ucc.su.OZ.AU> <david.717225352@mlb.geomechanics.csiro.au>
Date: Wed, 23 Sep 1992 13:20:41 GMT
Lines: 30

In article <david.717225352@mlb.geomechanics.csiro.au> david@mlb.geomechanics.csiro.au (David Le Blanc) writes:
>dawes@physics.su.OZ.AU (David Dawes) writes:
>
>>In article <19ks69INNd2l@corax.udac.uu.se> goran@astro.uu.se (Goran Hammarback) writes:
>>>I've installed XFree86 with the kernel patches and it works
>>>very well except for the slightly annoying problem that when
>>>a non-root user starts xconsole, the response is :
>>>   Can't open console.
>>>Xterm -C does not work either.
>>>
>
>>The user running xconsole or 'xterm -C' must own /dev/console.  Unfortunately
>>since the getty runs now on /dev/vga the ownership of /dev/console doesn't
>>get set when logging in.  If you use xdm, then GiveConsole and TakeConsole
>>should set the ownership and permissions correctly.
>
>This just *might* be completely un related, but when I (using xdm) login as
>*me*, and later type 'su' and enter the password, it gives me a root
>prompt, and promptly locks the keyboard. I can mouse around, cutting and
>pasting, but I cannot use any keys!!!

I haven't seen this problem.  I'd guess that something is opening
/dev/console.  Have you changed the "console" line in /etc/ttys to "vga"?

David
--
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 David Dawes (dawes@physics.su.oz.au)    DoD#210      | Phone: +61 2 692 2639
 School of Physics, University of Sydney, Australia   | Fax:   +61 2 660 2903
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