Bug#488252: viewing root properties may change root's home directory to /home/root

[Taurus]

April 9, 2009.   Debian 5.0  i386

While adding myself to the scanner group using menu 'System/Administration/Users and Groups'  I noticed root was also listed.  So I selected it and selected the button to view its properties.  Clicking the tab "user privileges" I see that root has no privileges selected.  Next,  I select the tab 'Advanced. Here I see that root's home directory is '/home/root'.   Also.. root's default shell is '/bin/bash'.  After viewing this.. and exiting by clicking 'OK',   lots of things don't work anymore.  
'SU' works in a user shell  but after jumping into the 'root' shell the command 'nautilus --browser' doesn't work.. nautilus can't locate the non-existent directory /home/root.  
Synaptic won't work.  gksu doesn't work.  Gedit doesn't work from the root terminal prompt. They have problems with the missing home directory.  The system is compromised. 
Ref: 


          Bug #198172 reported
          by Corinne Toure
          on 2008-03-03
          (Activity log)

      
      

          
            
            Bug #198172: 
at https://bugs.launchpad.net/debian/+source/gnome-system-tools/+bug/198172
http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=523180


Observe:  The fix has not propagated to my Debian 5.0 Lenny gnome. So, corrected the root home directory  manually back to /root via the menu.  Upon re-entering the same menu 'System/Administration/Users and Groups' the home directory for root is now corrected and correctly displayed in the first panel. Going again to the properties/advanced tab for root, the menu''s logic has again filled in the home directory as /home/root.   Cancelling out of the menu's advanced panel aborts saving the suggested directory.  Whether it's important or not the suggested fix will not correct  the root home directory back to /root if it is at /home/root when installed, right? It has to be manually corrected. ..  Ok, carry on.   
regards,
Erv Bendiks



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