Editing config files directly in file manager using chmod.
by Summer Deep from LinuxQuestions.org on (#5H8BY)
I'm not new to Linux, and have used various distros on and off for the past five years (almost all based on Debian and Ubuntu), but I'm still a relatively casual user, so please excuse me if my question seems rather newbie-like.
I've occasionally had to edit system config files, such as /etc/default/grub, eg when modifying the default timeout for a dual boot system. The way I've done this is to navigate to the system folders in file managers like PCManFM, Thunar, etc, then edit the text directly, having temporarily changed the permissions via chmod.
For example, the permissions for the file mentioned earlier are -rw-r--r--, so I've changed it to -rw-r--rw- via "sudo chmod 646", thus giving 'all users' writing permission. This always seems to have worked without any problem, but whenever I've seen tutorials on how to edit such files, it always seems to involve using the terminal and text editors like vim or nano.
So I've a feeling that the method I've described is pretty unorthodox, and probably inadvisable, but I've no idea why. I would welcome any opinions on this.
I've occasionally had to edit system config files, such as /etc/default/grub, eg when modifying the default timeout for a dual boot system. The way I've done this is to navigate to the system folders in file managers like PCManFM, Thunar, etc, then edit the text directly, having temporarily changed the permissions via chmod.
For example, the permissions for the file mentioned earlier are -rw-r--r--, so I've changed it to -rw-r--rw- via "sudo chmod 646", thus giving 'all users' writing permission. This always seems to have worked without any problem, but whenever I've seen tutorials on how to edit such files, it always seems to involve using the terminal and text editors like vim or nano.
So I've a feeling that the method I've described is pretty unorthodox, and probably inadvisable, but I've no idea why. I would welcome any opinions on this.