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Is there a way to filter site categories for Ubuntu 11.04 just like SelfControl so that I won't be able to pass them i.e, gain access to them by turning something off (for unlimited time)?

enzotib
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Eitan Fishman
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3 Answers3

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You can search your browser for parental control plugins.

This link will take you to the list of parental control plugins for Firefox

This link will take you to the list of parental control apps/extensions for Chrome at the ChromeWebStore

Nitin Venkatesh
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  • thanks for the answer but I am looking for something that I won't be able to bypass plugins I can just turn off or download another browser. – Eitan Fishman Sep 20 '11 at 06:45
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The easiest way to "turn something off" would be to add a domain name to /etc/hosts and point it to a wrong IP address (127.0.0.1 would do)

Coincidentally, you need sudo access to edit that file, so if you edit it and then ask another admin user on the same machine to revoke your sudo rights - you will be unable to access those domains.

This solution, of course, is very basic. If you want something more complex you can install DansGuardian or other filtering software.

Anyway, the key aspect is to relegate your root access - with root access there's nothing you can't disable on the machine (unless, of course, if you can set up your local network so all traffic goes through another locked-down machine which runs filtering software in transparent proxy mode).

UPDATE: It dawned on me that "self control" in the question title means "SelfControl application for MacOSX", not an act of somebody controlling themselves :) Well, I'm finding their claim that it can't be turned off implausible, provided the person has root access to the system.

However, there seem to be a Linux port of the application: SelfControl -- The Linux port - though, again, it doesn't (and can't) prevent somebody knowledgeable with root access from disabling/reverting the block.

UPDATE2: Actually, if you have a look at SelfControl's source code, you'll find that it blocks sites by adding an entry to /etc/hosts, just as I suggested in the beginning :) My understanding is that Linix version uses iptables for that, which is kinda a bit more sophisticated but still is far from "impossible to turn off"

Sergey
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  • If I will relegate my root access I won't be able to install any software right? I need Something That I will just click on it and it will filter web sites without any option to get access to them. – Eitan Fishman Sep 20 '11 at 12:09
  • But any solution would be reversible - if you can click on something to disable access, you'll be able to enable it back - unless you relegate some of your privileges. – Sergey Sep 20 '11 at 12:35
  • thats why I am looking for something like self control.when you set it to block something there is no way to reverse it. – Eitan Fishman Sep 21 '11 at 07:00
  • I updated the answer – Sergey Sep 21 '11 at 07:42
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    As long as it is enough complicated that I won't have the knowledge how to turn it off it's ok. – Eitan Fishman Sep 21 '11 at 15:04
  • Ok, so does the linux port of SelfControl fulfill your requirements then? – Sergey Sep 22 '11 at 12:35
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There appears to be a SelfControl port to Linux here: http://svn.jklmnop.net/projects/SelfControl.html

Christian Oudard
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