Chmod 660 Explained

Chmod 660: owner and group have read and write access, others have none. Used for shared data files in secure environments.

Permission

660

rw-rw----

chmod 660 filename

Permission Breakdown

RoleRead (4)Write (2)Execute (1)OctalMeaning
Ownerrw-6read, write
Grouprw-6read, write
Others---0no permissions

Visual Permission Grid

Read
Write
Execute
Owner
r
w
-
Group
r
w
-
Others
-
-
-

Detailed Explanation

The permission 660 grants read and write access to both the owner and group, while blocking all access for others.

Octal breakdown:

  • 6 (Owner): read (4) + write (2) = read and write
  • 6 (Group): read (4) + write (2) = read and write
  • 0 (Others): no access

In symbolic notation this is rw-rw----. The owner and group members can read and modify the file. Other users cannot access it at all. Nobody can execute the file directly.

This permission is useful for shared data files that contain sensitive information. Database files, shared log files, and collaborative documents on multi-user systems often use 660. It allows team members to work together on files while ensuring that other system users cannot read or modify the content.

Use Case

Used for shared database files (e.g., SQLite), collaborative data files, and log files where both the application (owner) and monitoring tools (group) need read-write access.

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