6 sudo tricks every Linux user needs to know - plus 1 just for fun

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ZDNET's key takeaways

• Sudo is a powerful but imperfect Linux tool.
• These tips can help make using sudo easier and safer.
• Always use caution when monkeying with sudo.

I started using Linux prior to the advent of sudo. Back then, any time I needed to run admin tasks, I had to first su to the root user, run the task, and then exit the root user. Because root was enabled, some users would simply log in as root and forgo a standard user account altogether. That's a security risk no one should take.

And then came the sudo command. 

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Sudo is a tool that temporarily elevates standard users to admin privileges so they can run commands like ...