Home » Questions » Computers [ Ask a new question ]

Why is 'sudo' often omitted in installation instructions?

Why is 'sudo' often omitted in installation instructions?

I often find build instructions like this:

Asked by: Guest | Views: 275
Total answers/comments: 2
Guest [Entry]

They give you the correct commands, it is up to you as a user to ensure you have the correct privileges.
Guest [Entry]

"You may not actually need root permissions to install a given software package, or you may not have access to root privileges via sudo or su or other methods.

One of the ./configure script's common options is --prefix, which changes the base installation directory from whatever the default is. So on a system where I have no root privs at all, I can still install this software to my own home directory:

./configure --prefix=$HOME
make
make install

The ./configure script has lots of other options, some common to all, some dependent on the particular package you're compiling. Use ./configure --help to see them all."