PASSWD(1)                            BSD                             PASSWD(1)



NAME
     chfn, chhd, chsh, passwd - change password file information

SYNOPSIS
     passwd [-l | -n] [-s] [-f] [name]
     chsh [-l | -n] [name [shell]]
     chhd [-l | -n] [name [new-dir-name]]
     chfn [-l | -n]

DESCRIPTION
     The passwd command changes or installs a password, login shell (-s
     option), or GECOS information field (-f option) associated with the user
     name (your own name by default).

     chhd changes your home directory and is equivalent to passwd -h.

     chsh changes a login shell and is equivalent to passwd -s.

     chfn changes the GECOS information field and is equivalent to passwd -f.

     You can change your own password, shell, and GECOS information and those
     of the accounts you own.  All changes you make may require you to enter
     your password.

LOCAL CUSTOMIZATION VS. NETWORK REGISTRY CHANGES
     When you change a password, shell, home directory, or GECOS information,
     command options let you you specify whether the changes should affect the
     network registry or only the local password override file.  These command
     options are:

     ⊕ -n -- The change should take place in the network registry.

     ⊕ -l -- The change should take place only on the local machine. In other
       words, the change is a local customization.  The command will not
       change the local registry; it will change only the local password
       override file.

     Note that you cannot change entries for another user's in the
     passwdoverride file unless you are root.

Option Defaults
     If you do not specify either option, all commands update the network
     registry if, and only if, the target of the command is not being
     overridden for that machine.  If the target is overridden, all commands
     exit with an informative message.

     For example, assume your login shell is overridden.  If you run the chsh
     command to change it without specifying either the -l or -n command, the
     following sequence occurs:

          $ chsh
          Your account information is tailored for this machine.
          Use 'chsh -n' to modify the registry.
          Use 'chsh -l' to modify the local customization database.


Example: Overridding Local Information
     The following example shows the sequence that occurs if you specify the
     -l option with the chsh command.

          $ chsh -l

          Changing local login shell for tech.sales.usa
          Authentication information needed.
          Enter your password:
          Old local shell: /bin/csh
          New local shell:

     chfn, chhd, chsh, and passwd notify you that you are changing the local
     information.

Example: Overridding Network Information
     The following example shows the sequence that occurs if you specify the
     -n option with the chsh command.

          $ chsh -n
          Changing registry login shell for tech.sales.usa
          Authentication information needed.
          Enter your password:
          Old network shell: /bin/csh
          New network shell:

     chfn, chhd, and chsh notify you that you are changing network registry
     information; passwd doesn't.


CHANGING PASSWORDS
     When you change a password, passwd prompts for your current password and
     the new one; you must supply both.  You must type the new password twice
     to ensure it is entered correctly.

     New passwords must be at least four characters long if they use a
     sufficiently rich alphabet, and at least six characters long if monocase.
     These rules are relaxed if you are insistent enough.

     In addition, new passwords must also conform to the registry policy set
     by your network administrator.

CHANGING LOG-IN SHELLS
     You can change login shells to /bin/sh or /bin/ksh.  The default is
     /bin/csh.

CHANGING GECOS INFORMATION
     When you change the GECOS information field, using passwd -f or chfn, the
     program displays the current information, broken into fields, as
     interpreted by the finger(1) program (among others) and prompts for new
     values.  These fields can include a user's:

     ⊕ Actual name

     ⊕ Office room number

     ⊕ Office phone number

     ⊕ Home phone number

     Each prompt includes a default value enclosed in brackets.  To accept the
     default, type a carriage return. To enter a blank field, type the word
     "none".  Phone numbers can be entered with or without hyphens.

     It is a good idea to run finger after changing the GECOS information to
     make sure everything is set up properly.

     Only the owner of an account can change the actual name field.  Users of
     an account can change all the other fields.

CHANGING HOME DIRECTORIES
     When you run chhd, you can enter the name of the new home directory. If

     you do not, chhd prompts for it.

     When you change a home directory, chhd attempts to locate the directory
     you enter.  If chhd cannot file the directory, it prompts for
     confirmation as shown below:

          Directory <new directory> can't currently be reached.
          Are you sure you want this to be your new directory? [y or n] :


NOTES
     The user of an account is the person who logs on with that account.

     The owner of an account is the administrator for that account.

SEE ALSO
     login(1), finger(1), passwd(5), crypt(3), edrgy(8)
     Using Your BSD Environment
     Robert Morris and Ken Thompson, UNIX password security