Verify a Self-Hosted Installer Before Running It as Root
Downloading an installer and immediately executing it as root collapses three operational decisions into one command: Which artifact? -> Did these bytes arrive intact? -> Should this host execute them? Separate those decisions and the install becomes reviewable, reproducible, and recoverable. A concrete source-review boundary At commit c58bcd4 , the MonkeyCode runner installation template selects x86_64 or aarch64 , checks AVX on x86, requires root, and downloads an architecture-specific installer before executing it. The reviewed template uses curl -4sSLk , so certificate verification is disabled by -k . It also downloads an unversioned path. I could not find a pinned version, digest, or signature check in that template. That is a statement about controls visible in one pinned file—not a claim that the release service is compromised or that no external release control exists. Put a manifest before execution For each release artifact, publish immutable metadata through a separately protected release process: { "version" : "1.2.3" , "architecture" : "x86_64" , "file" : "runner-installer-1.2.3-x86_64" , "sha256" : "<64 lowercase hex characters>" , "size" : 18439210 , "rollback" : { "previous_version" : "1.2.2" , "artifact" : "runner-installer-1.2.2-x86_64" } } SHA-256 detects bytes that differ from the manifest. It does not prove who authored the manifest. Serve the manifest over validated TLS, pin it through deployment configuration, or sign it and verify the signature with a trusted offline public key. Verify as an unprivileged staging step The companion verify-installer.mjs checks filename, exact size, digest, version, architecture, and rollback metadata: node verify-installer.mjs release-manifest.json fixture-installer.sh node test-verifier.mjs Expected output uses the fixture's actual digest: PASS 1.2.3-fixture sha256=<digest> PASS verified fixture; rejected tampered artifact before execution The negative test appends a line to the artifact and requires both size