I am the admin but not the owner. How do I become the owner

Question

I try to save /etc/default/grub after making edits, but I don't have permission and only the owner can change permissions. How do I become the owner?

Why do you want to change the permissions and owner, you are inviting trouble. — jobin, Apr 23 '14 at 18:05
I wouldn't change the permissions. Just edit it as root using sudo (su is superuser aka administrator): sudo nano /etc/default/grub. — Louis Matthijssen, Apr 23 '14 at 18:11

score 3 · Answer 1 · edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:25

3

The best way to edit system files is to open them in a text editor with root permisions.

So:

sudo nano /etc/default/grub

or as Radu Rădeanu suggested:

gksu gedit /etc/default/grub

will work perfectly.

You might want to make a backup copy in case you mess up:

sudo cp /etc/default/grub /etc/default/grub.backup

To restore:

sudo rm /etc/default/grub
sudo mv /etc/default/grub.backup /etc/default/grub

It's not a good idea to change ownership of system files.

edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:25

Community

1

answered Apr 23 '14 at 18:13

Cornelius

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Never use sudo gedit [...]. – Radu Rădeanu Apr 23 '14 at 18:34
@RaduRădeanu I guess nano is the best choice. – Cornelius Apr 23 '14 at 18:39
1

sudo nano, sudo -H gedit, gksu gedit, a.o. – Radu Rădeanu Apr 23 '14 at 18:40

I am the admin but not the owner. How do I become the owner

1 Answers1