SysRq (Magic SysRq key)

What specifically does not look good?


SysRq is also dubbed Secure Access Key.

I haven’t seen any linux security guides recommending disabling SysRq. Perhaps in context of physical access and/or servers. But physical access is game over anyhow independent from SysRq key.

On the other hand, QA/Sysrq - Fedora Project Wiki says:

Sa k (Secure Access Key) is useful when you want to be sure there is no trojan program running at console which could grab your password when you would try to login.

SysRq might be a good addition for Prevent Malware from Sniffing the Root Password?

On Full Disk Encryption (FDE) we write

In an emergency, Non-Qubes-Whonix ™ is capable of powering-off the computer immediately via the Magic SysRq key feature. This is invoked by pressing the key combination: Alt + PrintScreen + o (lower-case letter). On bare-metal linux systems, the FDE passphrase is prompted after rebooting.[21] [22] [23] The magic key feature does not work on Qubes hosts because the Xen hypervisor does not recognize these commands. [24]

Previously considered a security feature:

Looks more like we shouldn’t disable SysRq at all, rather make sure it is functional?

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