For Login-Shells its /etc/bash.bashrc - This is is the system-wide version of the ~/.bashrc file. Ubuntu is configured by default to execute this file whenever a user enters a shell or the desktop environment.

See https://help.ubuntu.com/community/EnvironmentVariables for the glory details.

But that won't help if the /home/myname directory is not crossable for other users. It depends on the Linux distribution. Some set mode 0755 (rwxr-xr-x) for user directories, others 0751 (rwxr-x--x), 0750 (rwxr-x---), or even 0700 (rwx------). Some distributions stuff all users into a group named users, others create a new group for each new user. I don't know what Ubuntu does. If all users are in the same group, the directory must be group crossable (chmod g+x), if users are in different groups, it must be world crossable (chmod o+x). The perl_modules subdirectory needs at least these permmissions, and perhaps also read permissions are required. (chmod g+r or chmod o+r).

Anyway, this looks like a stupid idea to me. Global resources don't belong into user directories. Do we have an XY Problem here?

Alexander

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Today I will gladly share my knowledge and experience, for there are no sweeter words than "I told you so". ;-)

> But that won't help if the /home/myname directory is not crossable for other users. 

But it will. Permissions on user directories make no difference in this case - /etc/bash.bashrc is the system-wide initialization file for Bash; the only times it isn't read is if the shell is a login shell or the '--norc' or '--rcfile other_init_file' options are specified.

I do agree that this may be a case of the XY problem, though. It sounds like using a 10-ton hydraulic press to smash a fly - since modifying system-wide init files should be reserved for absolute emergencies and treated with utmost care.


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"Language shapes the way we think, and determines what we can think about."
-- B. L. Whorf