Securing Virtual Terminals in linux environment

Your virtual terminals are useful to allow you to log into multiple sessions on your console.
But they can be dangerous if you leave sessions logged on unattended. I will show you a way
to lock them against unauthorized use with a password.


step1: If not already installed, then add Vlock to your system, such as a Red Hat system.


puppy# rpm -Uvh vlock-1-3-13.i386.rpm



With Vlock you can lock a single virtual terminal and allow people to change to another
virtual terminal or lock all virtual terminals and disable changing between virtual terminals.


step2: Locking Your Current Virtual Terminal



puppy# vlock -c


This TTY is now locked.
Please enter the password to unlock.
root's Password:
To now unlock this virtual terminal, you need to enter the root password.
To disable all virtual terminals and prevent switching between virtual terminals, use the
-a option.


puppy# vlock -a


The entire console display is now locked.
You will not be able to switch to another virtual console.
Please enter the password to unlock:
root's Password:



Again, to now unlock the virtual terminals, you need to enter the root password. If you are
not able to enter the root password, the only way to disable the lock is to hard reset the system.