List Permissions for All Directories in a Path
List Permissions for All Directories in a Path
Checking Directory Permissions with namei
The namei command is a powerful tool for displaying the permissions of each directory in a path. This is particularly useful for troubleshooting permission-related issues.
Basic Usage
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# Display permissions for all directories in a path
namei -m /path/to/directory
Example Output
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root@wintermute:~# namei -m /root/XenBackup/Xen_PXE_Install/webroot/
f: /root/XenBackup/Xen_PXE_Install/webroot/
drwxr-xr-x /
drwx------ root
drwxrwxrwx XenBackup
drwxrwxrwx Xen_PXE_Install
drwxrwxrwx webroot
Common Use Cases
- Troubleshooting Apache 403 Errors: Very useful to troubleshoot Apache2 403 permission errors when the document root has been changed from the default
- Identifying Permission Bottlenecks: Quickly spot directories in a path that might be blocking access
- Security Auditing: Review permission settings for sensitive directory paths
Additional Options
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# Show owner and group information as well
namei -mo /path/to/directory
# Follow symbolic links
namei -ml /path/to/directory
# Combine options
namei -mlo /path/to/directory
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by the author.