sending signals to processes as a different user than owner using php

[rs035]

good morning, everybody
i know, it seems more to be a problem according to unix but i got it while
developing software with php:
i have 2 different users on a hp-ux machine that execute php scripts. they
are both in the same group.
these php scripts start background processes, i can communicate with using
signals (sending with posix_kill, starting background processes via
pcntl_fork).
so i got severel background processes owned by my 2 users.
the problem is i want to send signals as one of my 2 users to all my php
background processes no matter who of my 2 users is the owner. is it
possible other than using external tools like sudo?
i'm using:
PHP 4.3.4 (cgi) (built: Aug 18 2004 15:37:46)
Copyright (c) 1997-2003 The PHP Group
Zend Engine v1.3.0, Copyright (c) 1998-2003 Zend Technologies

compiled with:
../configure' '--prefix=/usr/local/php-cgi-saprfc' '--enable-calendar'
'--enable-filepro' '--with-gd' '--with-jpeg-dir=/usr/local'
'--with-zlib-dir=/usr/local' '--without-mysql' '--enable-sysvsem'
'--enable-sysvshm' '--with-pgsql=/usr/local/pgsql' '--enable-trans-sid'
'--with-cpdflib=/usr/local' '--enable-sockets' '--with-ncurses=/usr/local'
'--disable-shared' '--with-tsrm-pthreads' '--with-saprfc=/usr/local/rfcsdk'
'--enable-pcntl

thanks
rolf

[Colin McKinnon]

rs035 wrote:

i have 2 different users on a hp-ux machine that execute php scripts. they
are both in the same group.
these php scripts start background processes, i can communicate with using
signals (sending with posix_kill, starting background processes via
pcntl_fork).
so i got severel background processes owned by my 2 users.
the problem is i want to send signals as one of my 2 users to all my php
background processes no matter who of my 2 users is the owner. is it
possible other than using external tools like sudo?

Sort of, but you really should understand the security model of Unix before
you start stretching the rules.

The only obvious solution I see within the constraints you've specified
would be to put the two users into their own group, then setup a program to
run setuid as the other user but only executable by the isolated group.
e.g.:
-rwsr-xr-- userA php_script_group signal_as_userA
-rwsr-xr-- userB php_script_group signal_as_userB

HTH

C.