Search code examples
linuxsecuritysteam

how steam web page can execute terminal and shell on my PC?


I noticed that when installing steam on a PC (Linux), clicking on the "install" button on the web page (with Firefox browser), makes a terminal open and execution of a shell.

How is that technically possible ?

I thought that the browser was a sort of sandbox preventing web sites from executing local code (except Javascript).


Solution

  • The link in the web page is steam://.... The browser then asks if the user allows running an external application. After authorization, the steam external application actually runs the shell.