[rescue] SunOS 5.5.1 inaccessible

[rescue at sunhelp.org]

> > Right, sounds a bit ominous. If I were able to verify that 
> > /bin/login had been screwed with, then I guess the only
> > recourse would be to start from scratch. 

You definitely, 100%, need to re-install this box from scratch based
on what you've told us.  2.5.1 is okay for use on an Internet-connected
box, but only behind a good firewall, protected by an appropriate IDS,
with current patches installed, and with unnecessary services turned off.
Then again, the same rules apply for the latest Solaris or any other
OS!  It's just that the probability of compromise of an unpatched/
unprotected Solaris 2.5.1 installation (within the first 48 hours) is
approaching 1, while a Solaris 9 installation might survive for
several weeks.   =8-)

> I'm not certain where you could get 2.5.1 from legally.  I think Sun
> has stopped selling it. 

Correct.  There are some folks who have permission from Sun to
reproduce existing media for use in support of existing installations,
but that's with support contracts in place and lots of purchased
hardware.  Your best other method would probably be eBay, IFF
you really need 2.5.1 (as opposed to just "wanting" 2.5.1).

> Is 2.5.1 a requirement, or will 2.8/2.9 do?

I'd like to help convince the original questioner that a later Solaris
version is a better answer than re-installing 2.5.1.
Unfortunately, Solaris 8 [0] can no longer be downloaded from Sun for
free, and an SS10 is a multi-processor-capable box--so officially
you will be violating the license if you run Solaris 9 on it.  There
is no license key required to use Solaris 9, however, so it is physically
possible to at least get the box up-and-running under Solaris 9 while
you investigate the possibility of getting legal media for one or
another Solaris version.

[0] The marketeers took over.  There is no Solaris 2.x for x>6, there's
only Solaris 8 (SunOS 5.8) etc.

--
Rip Loomis
Senior Systems Security Engineer, SAIC CIST
Brainbench MVP for Internet Security
http://www.brainbench.com  [Transcript 1923411]