CVTSUDOERS(1) General Commands Manual CVTSUDOERS(1)
NAME
cvtsudoers — convert between sudoers file formats
SYNOPSIS
cvtsudoers [-ehMpV] [-b dn] [-c conf_file] [-d deftypes]
[-f output_format] [-i input_format] [-I increment]
[-l log_file] [-m filter] [-o output_file] [-O start_point]
[-P padding] [-s sections] [input_file ...]
DESCRIPTION
The cvtsudoers utility accepts one or more security policies in either
sudoers or LDIF format as input, and generates a single policy of the
specified format as output. The default input format is sudoers. The
default output format is LDIF. It is only possible to convert a policy
file that is syntactically correct.
If no input_file is specified, or if it is ‘-’, the policy is read from
the standard input. Input files may be optionally prefixed with a host
name followed by a colon (‘:’) to make the policy rules specific to a
host when merging multiple files. By default, the result is written to
the standard output.
The options are as follows:
-b dn, --base=dn
The base DN (distinguished name) that will be used when per-
forming LDAP queries. Typically this is of the form
“ou=SUDOers,dc=my-domain,dc=com” for the domain my-domain.com.
If this option is not specified, the value of the SUDOERS_BASE
environment variable will be used instead. Only necessary when
converting to LDIF format.
-c conf_file, --config=conf_file
Specify the path to the configuration file. Defaults to
/etc/cvtsudoers.conf.
-d deftypes, --defaults=deftypes
Only convert Defaults entries of the specified types. One or
more Defaults types may be specified, separated by a comma
(‘,’). The supported types are:
all All Defaults entries.
global Global Defaults entries that are applied regardless of
user, runas, host, or command.
user Per-user Defaults entries.
runas Per-runas user Defaults entries.
host Per-host Defaults entries.
command Per-command Defaults entries.
See the Defaults section in sudoers(5) for more information.
If the -d option is not specified, all Defaults entries will be
converted.
-e, --expand-aliases
Expand aliases in input_file. Aliases are preserved by default
when the output format is JSON or sudoers.
-f output_format, --output-format=output_format
Specify the output format (case-insensitive). The following
formats are supported:
CSV CSV (comma-separated value) files are often used by
spreadsheets and report generators. See “CSV output
format” for more details.
JSON JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) files are usually
easier for third-party applications to consume than
the traditional sudoers format. The various values
have explicit types which removes much of the ambigu-
ity of the sudoers format. See “JSON output format”
for more details.
LDIF LDIF (LDAP Data Interchange Format) files can be im-
ported into an LDAP server for use with
sudoers.ldap(5).
Conversion to LDIF has the following limitations:
• Command, host, runas, and user-specific Defaults
lines cannot be translated as they don't have an
equivalent in the sudoers LDAP schema.
• Command, host, runas, and user aliases are not sup-
ported by the sudoers LDAP schema so they are ex-
panded during the conversion.
sudoers Traditional sudoers format. A new sudoers file will
be reconstructed from the parsed input file. Comments
are not preserved and data from any include files will
be output inline.
--group-file=file
When the -M option is also specified, perform group queries us-
ing file instead of the system group database.
-h, --help
Display a short help message to the standard output and exit.
-i input_format, --input-format=input_format
Specify the input format. The following formats are supported:
LDIF LDIF (LDAP Data Interchange Format) files can be ex-
ported from an LDAP server to convert security poli-
cies used by sudoers.ldap(5). If a base DN (distin-
guished name) is specified, only sudoRole objects that
match the base DN will be processed. Not all sudoOp-
tions specified in a sudoRole can be translated from
LDIF to sudoers format.
sudoers Traditional sudoers format. This is the default input
format.
-I increment, --increment=increment
When generating LDIF output, increment each sudoOrder attribute
by the specified number. Defaults to an increment of 1.
-l log_file, --logfile=log_file
Log conversion warnings to log_file instead of to the standard
error. This is particularly useful when merging multiple
sudoers files, which can generate a large number of warnings.
-m filter, --match=filter
Only output rules that match the specified filter. A filter
expression is made up of one or more key = value pairs, sepa-
rated by a comma (‘,’). The key may be “cmnd” (or “cmd”),
“host”, “group”, or “user”. For example, user = operator or
host = www. An upper-case Cmnd_Alias, Host_alias, or
User_Alias may be specified as the “cmnd”, “host”, or “user”.
A matching sudoers rule may also include users, groups, and
hosts that are not part of the filter. This can happen when a
rule includes multiple users, groups, or hosts. To prune out
any non-matching user, group, or host from the rules, the -p
option may be used.
By default, the password and group databases are not consulted
when matching against the filter so the users and groups do not
need to be present on the local system (see the -M option).
Only aliases that are referenced by the filtered policy rules
will be displayed.
-M, --match-local
When the -m option is also specified, use password and group
database information when matching users and groups in the fil-
ter. Only users and groups in the filter that exist on the lo-
cal system will match, and a user's groups will automatically
be added to the filter. If the -M is not specified, users and
groups in the filter do not need to exist on the local system,
but all groups used for matching must be explicitly listed in
the filter.
-o output_file, --output=output_file
Write the converted output to output_file. If no output_file
is specified, or if it is ‘-’, the converted sudoers policy
will be written to the standard output.
-O start_point, --order-start=start_point
When generating LDIF output, use the number specified by
start_point in the sudoOrder attribute of the first sudoRole
object. Subsequent sudoRole object use a sudoOrder value gen-
erated by adding an increment, see the -I option for details.
Defaults to a starting point of 1. A starting point of 0 will
disable the generation of sudoOrder attributes in the resulting
LDIF file.
--passwd-file=file
When the -M option is also specified, perform passwd queries
using file instead of the system passwd database.
-p, --prune-matches
When the -m option is also specified, cvtsudoers will prune out
non-matching users, groups, and hosts from matching entries.
-P padding, --padding=padding
When generating LDIF output, construct the initial sudoOrder
value by concatenating order_start and increment, padding the
increment with zeros until it consists of padding digits. For
example, if order_start is 1027, padding is 3, and increment is
1, the value of sudoOrder for the first entry will be 1027000,
followed by 1027001, 1027002, etc. If the number of sudoRole
entries is larger than the padding would allow, cvtsudoers will
exit with an error. By default, no padding is performed.
-s sections, --suppress=sections
Suppress the output of specific sections of the security pol-
icy. One or more section names may be specified, separated by
a comma (‘,’). The supported section name are: defaults,
aliases and privileges (which may be shortened to privs).
-V, --version
Print the cvtsudoers and sudoers grammar versions and exit.
Merging multiple files
When multiple input files are specified, cvtsudoers will attempt to
merge them into a single policy file. It is assumed that user and
group names are consistent among the policy files to be merged. For
example, user “bob” on one host is the same as user “bob” on another
host.
When merging policy files, it is possible to prefix the input file name
with a host name, separated by a colon (‘:’). When the files are
merged, the host name will be used to restrict the policy rules to that
specific host where possible.
The merging process is performed as follows:
• Each input file is parsed into internal sudoers data structures.
• Aliases are merged and renamed as necessary to avoid conflicts. In
the event of a conflict, the first alias found is left as-is and
subsequent aliases of the same name are renamed with a numeric suf-
fix separated with a underscore (‘_’). For example, if there are
two different aliases named SERVERS, the first will be left as-is
and the second will be renamed SERVERS_1. References to the renamed
alias are also updated in the policy file. Duplicate aliases (those
with identical contents) are pruned.
• Defaults settings are merged and duplicates are removed. If there
are conflicts in the Defaults settings, a warning is emitted for
each conflict. If a host name is specified with the input file,
cvtsudoers will change the global Defaults settings in that file to
be host-specific. A warning is emitted for command, user, or runas-
specific Defaults settings which cannot be made host-specific.
• Per-user rules are merged and duplicates are removed. If a host
name is specified with the input file, cvtsudoers will change rules
that specify a host name of ALL to the host name associated with the
policy file being merged. The merging of rules is currently fairly
simplistic but will be improved in a later release.
It is possible to merge policy files with differing formats.
The cvtsudoers.conf file
Options in the form “keyword = value” may also be specified in a con-
figuration file, /etc/cvtsudoers.conf by default. The following key-
words are recognized:
defaults = deftypes
See the description of the -d command line option.
expand_aliases = yes | no
See the description of the -e command line option.
group_file = file
See the description of the --group-file command line option.
input_format = ldif | sudoers
See the description of the -i command line option.
match = filter
See the description of the -m command line option.
match_local = yes | no
See the description of the -M command line option.
order_increment = increment
See the description of the -I command line option.
order_start = start_point
See the description of the -O command line option.
output_format = csv | json | ldif | sudoers
See the description of the -f command line option.
padding = padding
See the description of the -P command line option.
passwd_file = file
See the description of the --passwd-file command line option.
prune_matches = yes | no
See the description of the -p command line option.
sudoers_base = dn
See the description of the -b command line option.
suppress = sections
See the description of the -s command line option.
Options on the command line will override values from the configuration
file.
JSON output format
The sudoers JSON format may contain any of the following top-level ob-
jects:
Defaults
An array of objects, each containing an Options array and an op-
tional Binding array.
The Options array consists of one or more objects, each contain-
ing a “name:value” pair that corresponds to a sudoers Defaults
setting. Options that operate on a list will also include an
operation entry in the object, with a value of “list_assign” for
‘=’, “list_add” for ‘+=’, or “list_remove” for ‘-=’.
The optional Binding array consists of one or more objects, each
containing a “name:value” pair and an optional negated entry,
which will negate any comparison performed with the object. If a
Binding is present, the setting will only take effect if one of
the specified command, hostname, netgroup, networkaddr,
nonunixgid, nonunixgroup, usergid, usergroup, userid, username,
or alias entries match.
For example, the following sudoers entry:
Defaults@somehost set_home, env_keep += DISPLAY
converts to:
"Defaults": [
{
"Binding": [
{ "hostname": "somehost" }
],
"Options": [
{ "set_home": true },
{
"operation": "list_add",
"env_keep": [
"DISPLAY"
]
}
]
}
]
User_Aliases
A JSON object containing one or more sudoers User_Alias entries
where each named alias has as its value an array containing one
or more objects. Each object contains a “name:value” pair and an
optional negated entry, which will negate any comparison per-
formed with the object. The name may be one of netgroup,
nonunixgid, nonunixgroup, useralias, usergid, usergroup, userid,
or username.
For example, the following sudoers entry:
User_Alias SYSADMIN = will, %wheel, +admin
converts to:
"User_Aliases": {
"SYSADMIN": [
{ "username": "will" },
{ "usergroup": "wheel" },
{ "netgroup": "admin" }
]
}
Runas_Aliases
A JSON object containing one or more sudoers Runas_Alias entries,
where each named alias has as its value an array containing one
or more objects. Each object contains a “name:value” pair and an
optional negated entry, which will negate any comparison per-
formed with the object. The name may be one of netgroup,
nonunixgid, nonunixgroup, runasalias, usergid, usergroup, userid,
or username.
For example, the following sudoers entry:
Runas_Alias DB = oracle, sybase : OP = root, operator
converts to:
"Runas_Aliases": {
"DB": [
{ "username": "oracle" },
{ "username": "sybase" }
],
"OP": [
{ "username": "root" },
{ "username": "operator" }
]
}
Host_Aliases
A JSON object containing one or more sudoers Host_Alias entries
where each named alias has as its value an array containing one
or more objects. Each object contains a “name:value” pair and an
optional negated entry, which will negate any comparison per-
formed with the object. The name may be one of hostalias,
hostname, netgroup, or networkaddr.
For example, the following sudoers entries:
Host_Alias DORMNET = 128.138.243.0, 128.138.204.0/24
Host_Alias SERVERS = boulder, refuge
convert to:
"Host_Aliases": {
"DORMNET": [
{ "networkaddr": "128.138.243.0" },
{ "networkaddr": "128.138.204.0/24" }
],
"SERVERS": [
{ "hostname": "boulder" },
{ "hostname": "refuge" }
]
}
Cmnd_Aliases
A JSON object containing one or more sudoers Cmnd_Alias entries
where each named alias has as its value an array containing one
or more objects. Each object contains a “name:value” pair and an
optional negated entry, which will negate any comparison per-
formed with the object. The name may be either another cmndalias
or a command. For example, the following sudoers entries:
Cmnd_Alias SHELLS = /bin/bash, /bin/csh, /bin/sh, /bin/zsh
Cmnd_Alias VIPW = /usr/bin/chpass, /usr/bin/chfn, /usr/bin/chsh, \
/usr/bin/passwd, /usr/sbin/vigr, /usr/sbin/vipw
convert to:
"Cmnd_Aliases": {
"SHELLS": [
{ "command": "/bin/bash" },
{ "command": "/bin/csh" },
{ "command": "/bin/sh" },
{ "command": "/bin/zsh" }
],
"VIPW": [
{ "command": "/usr/bin/chpass" },
{ "command": "/usr/bin/chfn" },
{ "command": "/usr/bin/chsh" },
{ "command": "/usr/bin/passwd" },
{ "command": "/usr/sbin/vigr" },
{ "command": "/usr/sbin/vipw" }
]
}
User_Specs
A JSON array containing one or more objects, each representing a
sudoers User_Spec. Each object in the User_Specs array should
contain a User_List array, a Host_List array and a Cmnd_Specs ar-
ray.
A User_List consists of one or more objects. Each object con-
tains a “name:value” pair and an optional negated entry, which
will negate any comparison performed with the object. The name
may be one of netgroup, nonunixgid, nonunixgroup, useralias,
usergid, usergroup, userid, or username. If username is set to
the special value ALL, it will match any user.
A Host_List consists of one or more objects. Each object con-
tains a “name:value” pair and an optional negated entry, which
will negate any comparison performed with the object. The name
may be one of hostalias, hostname, netgroup, or networkaddr. If
hostname is set to the special value ALL, it will match any host.
The Cmnd_Specs array consists of one or more JSON objects de-
scribing a command that may be run. Each Cmnd_Specs is made up
of a Commands array, an optional runasusers array, an optional
runasgroups array, and an optional Options array.
The Commands array consists of one or more objects containing
“name:value” pair elements. The following names and values are
supported:
command A string containing the command to run. The special
value ALL it will match any command.
negated A boolean value that, if true, will negate any compari-
son performed with the object.
sha224 A string containing the SHA224 digest of the command.
sha256 A string containing the SHA256 digest of the command.
sha384 A string containing the SHA384 digest of the command.
sha512 A string containing the SHA512 digest of the command.
The runasusers array consists of objects describing users the
command may be run as. Each object contains a “name:value” pair
and an optional negated entry, which will negate any comparison
performed with the object. The name may be one of netgroup,
nonunixgid, nonunixgroup, runasalias, usergid, usergroup, userid,
or username. If username is set to the special value ALL, it
will match any user. If username is set to the empty string “”,
it will match the invoking user.
The runasgroups array consists of objects describing groups the
command may be run as. Each object contains a “name:value” pair
and an optional negated entry, which will negate any comparison
performed with the object. The name may be one of runasalias,
usergid, or usergroup. If usergroup is set to the special value
ALL, it will match any group.
The Options array is of the same format as the one in the
Defaults object. Any Tag_Spec entries in sudoers are converted
to Options. A user with “sudo ALL” privileges will automatically
have the setenv option enabled to match the implicit behavior
provided by sudoers.
For example, the following sudoers entry:
millert ALL = (ALL : ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL, !/usr/bin/id
converts to:
"User_Specs": [
{
"User_List": [
{ "username": "millert" }
],
"Host_List": [
{ "hostname": "ALL" }
],
"Cmnd_Specs": [
{
"runasusers": [
{ "username": "ALL" }
],
"runasgroups": [
{ "usergroup": "ALL" }
],
"Options": [
{ "authenticate": false },
{ "setenv": true }
],
"Commands": [
{ "command": "ALL" },
{
"command": "/usr/bin/id",
"negated": true
}
]
}
]
}
]
CSV output format
CSV (comma-separated value) files are often used by spreadsheets and
report generators. For CSV output, cvtsudoers double quotes strings
that contain commas. For each literal double quote character present
inside the string, two double quotes are output. This method of quot-
ing commas is compatible with most spreadsheet programs.
There are three possible sections in cvtsudoers's CSV output, each sep-
arated by a blank line:
defaults
This section includes any Defaults settings in sudoers. The
defaults section begins with the following heading:
defaults_type,binding,name,operator,value
The fields are as follows:
defaults_type
The type of Defaults setting; one of defaults,
defaults_command, defaults_host, defaults_runas, or
defaults_user.
binding
For defaults_command, defaults_host, defaults_runas, and
defaults_user this is the value that must match for the
setting to be applied.
name The name of the Defaults setting.
operator
The operator determines how the value is applied to the
setting. It may be either ‘=’ (assignment), ‘+=’ (append),
or ‘-=’ (remove).
value
The setting's value, usually a string or, for settings used
in a boolean context, true or false.
aliases
This section includes any Cmnd_Alias Host_Alias, Runas_Alias, or
User_Alias, entries from sudoers. The aliases section begins
with the following heading:
alias_type,alias_name,members
The fields are as follows:
alias_type
The type of alias; one of Cmnd_Alias, Host_Alias,
Runas_Alias, or User_Alias.
alias_name
The name of the alias; a string starting with an upper-case
letter that consists of upper-case letters, digits, or un-
derscores.
members
A comma-separated list of members belonging to the alias.
Due to the use of commas, members is surrounded by double
quotes if it contains more than one member.
rules
This section includes the sudoers rules that grant privileges.
The rules section begins with the following heading:
rule,user,host,runusers,rungroups,options,command
The fields are as follows:
rule This field indicates a sudoers rule entry.
user The user the rule applies to. This may also be a Unix
group (preceded by a ‘%’ character), a non-Unix group (pre-
ceded by ‘%:’) or a netgroup (preceded by a ‘+’ character)
or a User_Alias. If set to the special value ALL, it will
match any user.
host The host the rule applies to. This may also be a netgroup
(preceded by a ‘+’ character) or a Host_Alias. If set to
the special value ALL, it will match any host.
runusers
An optional comma-separated list of users (or
Runas_Aliases) the command may be run as. If it contains
more than one member, the value is surrounded by double
quotes. If set to the special value ALL, it will match any
user. If empty, the root user is assumed.
rungroups
An optional comma-separated list of groups (or
Runas_Aliases) the command may be run as. If it contains
more than one member, the value is surrounded by double
quotes. If set to the special value ALL, it will match any
group. If empty, the runuser's group is used.
options
An optional list of Defaults settings to apply to the com-
mand. Any Tag_Spec entries in sudoers are converted to
options.
commands
A list of commands, with optional arguments, that the user
is allowed to run. If set to the special value ALL, it
will match any command.
For example, the following sudoers entry:
millert ALL = (ALL : ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL, !/usr/bin/id
converts to:
rule,millert,ALL,ALL,ALL,"!authenticate","ALL,!/usr/bin/id"
FILES
/etc/cvtsudoers.conf default configuration for cvtsudoers
EXAMPLES
Convert /etc/sudoers to LDIF (LDAP Data Interchange Format) where the
ldap.conf file uses a sudoers_base of my-domain,dc=com, storing the re-
sult in sudoers.ldif:
$ cvtsudoers -b ou=SUDOers,dc=my-domain,dc=com -o sudoers.ldif \
/etc/sudoers
Convert /etc/sudoers to JSON format, storing the result in
sudoers.json:
$ cvtsudoers -f json -o sudoers.json /etc/sudoers
Parse /etc/sudoers and display only rules that match user ambrose on
host hastur:
$ cvtsudoers -f sudoers -m user=ambrose,host=hastur /etc/sudoers
Same as above, but expand aliases and prune out any non-matching users
and hosts from the expanded entries.
$ cvtsudoers -ep -f sudoers -m user=ambrose,host=hastur /etc/sudoers
Convert sudoers.ldif from LDIF to traditional sudoers format:
$ cvtsudoers -i ldif -f sudoers -o sudoers.new sudoers.ldif
Merge a global sudoers file with two host-specific policy files from
the hosts “xyzzy” and “plugh”:
$ cvtsudoers -f sudoers -o sudoers.merged sudoers \
xyzzy:sudoers.xyzzy plugh:sudoers.plugh
SEE ALSO
sudoers(5), sudoers.ldap(5), sudo(8)
AUTHORS
Many people have worked on sudo over the years; this version consists
of code written primarily by:
Todd C. Miller
See the CONTRIBUTORS.md file in the sudo distribution
(https://www.sudo.ws/about/contributors/) for an exhaustive list of
people who have contributed to sudo.
BUGS
If you believe you have found a bug in cvtsudoers, you can submit a bug
report at https://bugzilla.sudo.ws/
SUPPORT
Limited free support is available via the sudo-users mailing list, see
https://www.sudo.ws/mailman/listinfo/sudo-users to subscribe or search
the archives.
DISCLAIMER
cvtsudoers is provided “AS IS” and any express or implied warranties,
including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantabil-
ity and fitness for a particular purpose are disclaimed. See the LI-
CENSE.md file distributed with sudo or https://www.sudo.ws/about/li-
cense/ for complete details.
Sudo 1.9.15p5 January 16, 2023 CVTSUDOERS(1)
Generated by dwww version 1.16 on Tue Dec 16 15:03:09 CET 2025.