Beware though: this is a false sense of security if you trust this. Nowadays, anyone can throw a Linux/BSD box on the net, and be "root". And PCs never had this lame "restriction" (after all, you are "root" in DOS).

Also, the numbering works like so:

• Ports below 1000 are reserved to root
• Ports above 1023 were given to users
• Ports between 1000 and 1023 are ambiguous

Why the gap? Because the RFC said "1K", and different manufacturers implemented it differently! Some presumed 1000, others presumed 1024. Amazing, huh?

-- Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker