RVM MultiUser install unsafe?

Question

I want to set up a small dev server (linux) with RVM installed so that some developers can use it. The objective is to make sure everyone has Rails and Ruby installed and that they are ready to use. I was reading the RVM guide for MultiUser install and it says "Using this type of installation without knowledge how umask works is a big security risk."

I was just wondering what exactly is unsafe about this? Is it just that developers can switch versions of ruby and install/remove gems as they please?

Thanks!

Answer 1

It mostly depends on how much you trust developers - mostly if they are a team or random people.

A second thing is hosting application - that's extra security problem and it's best to use new user and mixed mode rvm per every application.

If developers are going to host applications then use mixed mode for developers also - they would share only ruby - but it's a lot safer.

Refer to the installation instructions on rvm site for more details.