ecryptfsd(8)

👑 ecryptfsd — the user-space eCryptfs daemon, aka the manual page ecryptfsd(8) 💅

okay bestie, sit down, hydrate, and let me tell you about the little daemon that makes public-key eCryptfs actually work. this is ecryptfsd(8) and she's iconic, she's lowkey essential, and she's got ONE job. let's get into it. ✨

🌸 NAME 🌸

ecryptfsd — user-space eCryptfs daemon. that's it, that's the name, periodt.

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so. ecryptfsd is a userspace daemon, and here's the part that matters: it runs as the user who's doing the file operations under the eCryptfs mount point. not root, not some spooky system ghost — you. main character energy only. 💖

what does she actually do? she services public key requests coming from the eCryptfs kernel module. those requests get sent over via /dev/ecryptfs, and they fire off on file open events. so every time a file opens and the kernel needs public-key stuff handled, ecryptfsd is the one picking up the phone. 📞✨

🚨 important vibe check: ecryptfsd only needs to be run when a mount is done with a public key module. if you're not using one, she can stay home. no cap.

starting her is literally the easiest thing ever — you just run:

ecryptfsd

and boom, she's up. 🎀 here's the cute part: ecryptfsd registers itself with the kernel as the daemon that should service all eCryptfs filesystem requests done under the context of the user who runs the daemon. so whoever launches her, that's whose requests she handles. it's giving "I got you, bestie, and only you." 🫶

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

go read these next, fr fr:

• ecryptfs(7)
• ecryptfs-manager(8)
• mount.ecryptfs(8)
• /usr/share/doc/ecryptfs-utils/ecryptfs-faq.html
• http://ecryptfs.org/

💜 AUTHOR 💜

this manpage was written by William Lima <wlima.amadeus@gmail.com> for the Ubuntu system (but may be used by others — sharing is caring 🥰).

permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU General Public License, Version 2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation. slay, legally. 📜✨

also on Debian and Ubuntu systems, the complete text of the GNU General Public License can be found in /usr/share/common-licenses/GPL.

and that's the whole page, babe. this came to you from ecryptfs-utils, dated May 2007, and you just read ecryptfsd(8). go run your daemon, stay encrypted, and drink some water. mwah. 💅💖🦋