Why am I not allowed to do this?

[Agent-X]

user@linux:~$ sudo echo "ndiswrapper" >> /etc/modules
bash: /etc/modules: Permission denied
user@linux:~$ cat /etc/modules
# /etc/modules: kernel modules to load at boot time.
#
# This file contains the names of kernel modules that should be loaded
# at boot time, one per line. Lines beginning with "#" are ignored.

fuse
lp
sbp2

I can't write to the last line of /etc/modules

[bigtomrodney]

Try this

sudo bash
echo "ndiswrapper" >> /etc/modules

Any different?

[RobinVossen]

run

su root -c "echo "ndiswrapper" >> /etc/modules"

Or just turn into root before you do that.
Since well I noticed that if you use sudo you dont have access to all the files.

[Agent-X]

I'm trying to make a script...
I know I can do this as root, but I don't know any way of becoming root via a script.

[bigtomrodney]

Becoming root as part of a script is difficult intentionally to stop you doing it unintended or trying to hide the root password somewhere such as in the script or in a file somewhere. The point of a script is to automate something. If it is something that root should be doing then you should run it as root, possibly under root's cron.

[Agent-X]

I am root. I own the computer. Things like this make me feel as though shell scripting is inadequate.

It's about saving time and mass production.

Why is it that out of so many commands I can do as sudo, I can't do this one?

The account is an administrator, thus having access to root.

[RobinVossen]

Since this is access to a system file I guess.

[Agent-X]

So, change the permissions and then change them back?

Awesome.

user@linux:~$ echo "ndiswrapper" >> /etc/modules
bash: /etc/modules: Permission denied
user@linux:~$ sudo chmod 777 /etc/modules
user@linux:~$ echo "ndiswrapper" >> /etc/modules
user@linux:~$ echo "meow" >> /etc/modules
user@linux:~$ sudo chmod 444 /etc/modules
user@linux:~$ sudo echo "ndiswrapper" >> /etc/modules
bash: /etc/modules: Permission denied
user@linux:~$ cat /etc/modules
# /etc/modules: kernel modules to load at boot time.
#
# This file contains the names of kernel modules that should be loaded
# at boot time, one per line. Lines beginning with "#" are ignored.

fuse
lp
sbp2
ndiswrapper
ndiswrapper
meow
user@linux:~$

[RobinVossen]

What I normaly do Instead of chmodding. Is chowning it to the current user with a script.

so:
sudo chown $USER /dir/to/file
sudo chown root /dir/to/file

[bigtomrodney]

There are two points to remember

• Root is not a person, it is a privilege level. You may be the administrator but do you really want everything running at that level?
• If the script needs to do something as root, let it run as root
• root login is disabled in Ubuntu but the account is still very much present. You can still have jobs in cron for root