Updated README. - susmb - mounting of SMB/CIFS shares via FUSE
(HTM) git clone git://git.codemadness.org/susmb
(DIR) Log
(DIR) Files
(DIR) Refs
(DIR) README
(DIR) LICENSE
---
(DIR) commit 3d25ee3102e4fb4c47dec7d0ccbc2d24a4c0ecf8
(DIR) parent 2421826df0aee52d6dd48812f2adc3c0f96c3323
(HTM) Author: geoff <devnull@localhost>
Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2006 20:28:16 +0000
Updated README.
Diffstat:
M doc/README | 27 ++++++++++++++++++++++-----
1 file changed, 22 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)
---
(DIR) diff --git a/doc/README b/doc/README
@@ -1,17 +1,34 @@
-usmb - Unprivileged mounting of SMB shares via FUSE
-===================================================
+usmb - Unprivileged mounting of SMB/CIFS shares via FUSE
+========================================================
Introduction
------------
-usmb lets you mount SMB shares via FUSE, in the vein of the Map Network Drive
-functionality in Windows.
+usmb lets you mount SMB/CIFS shares via FUSE, in the vein of the Map Network
+Drive functionality in Windows.
The two existing FUSE filesystems that I know of (SMB for FUSE and fusesmb)
mimic Windows' Network Neighbourhood by letting you browse hosts and shares.
-This means that you must run a NetBIOS name server, and can't see hosts that
+This means that you must run a NetBIOS name server and can't see hosts that
aren't advertised via NetBIOS.
+You can build [u]mount.cifs in the Samba distribution and install them
+setuid root, but that has its own set of security implications. In any
+case there's no need for network filesystem code to be in the kernel:
+bugs could lead to remotely exploitable kernel vulnerabilities. Running
+the SMB client code in user space as an unprivileged user limits the
+potential damage due to bugs.
+
+A user space implementation will be slower than a kernel filesystem since
+the data must be copied in and out of the fuse process' context as well as
+in/out of the user process' context. Mitigating factors are:
+
+1. Increased security.
+2. Containment of bugs.
+3. Throughput is more likely to be limited by network bandwidth rather than
+ local memory copying.
+4. The client filesystem code can be upgraded/fixed without kernel changes.
+
Pre-Requisites
--------------