On Oct 15, 2006, at 3:04 PM, Marc André Selig wrote:
Is this a problem with that port, or does macports require root in general?
Certain targets require root in general, notably destroot and install.
This is not true. If the destroot and install targets are writable by a non-root user, then a non-root user can run these targets (unless the port needs root for some other reason, like to set suid bits or add users/groups).
If it's the latter, any suggestions on how I could go about patching it to allow fully non-root user installations?
I don't think there is a general solution to this. port destroot is like saying make install. The software you're trying to install takes over at that point, and in a unix world, it may well do things that require root. After all, make install is traditionally run as root. To change this, you have to change the software you're trying to install to work around not having root access.
Right, individual packages may need root for other reasons. Depending on one's goals, however, it may be acceptable to work- around these individually or just deal with them not working. Provided there's a compelling reason to run as non-root in the first place.
IOW, you will probably have to patch individual portfiles to patch the software being installed to not do anything during make install that might need root.
-- Daniel J. Luke +========================================================+ | *---------------- dluke@geeklair.net ----------------* | | *-------------- http://www.geeklair.net -------------* | +========================================================+ | Opinions expressed are mine and do not necessarily | | reflect the opinions of my employer. | +========================================================+