hosts.equiv(4N)                  (TCP/IP)                   hosts.equiv(4N)


   NAME
         hosts.equiv, .rhosts - trusted hosts by system and by user

   DESCRIPTION
         The /etc/hosts.equiv file contains a list of trusted hosts.  When an
         rlogin(1) or rsh(1) request is received from a host listed in this
         file, and when the user making the request is listed in the
         /etc/passwd file, then the remote login is allowed with no further
         checking.  The library routine ruserok (see rcmd(3N)) will make this
         verification.  In this case, rlogin does not prompt for a password,
         and commands submitted through rsh are executed.  Thus, a remote user
         with a local user ID is said to have equivalent access from a remote
         host named in this file.

         The format of the hosts.equiv file consists of a one-line entry for
         each host, of the form:

               hostname [username]

         The hostname field normally contains the name of a trusted host from
         which a remote login can be made.  However, an entry consisting of a
         single `+' indicates that all known hosts are to be trusted.  A
         hostname must be the official name as listed in the hosts(4N)
         database. This is the first name given in the hosts database entry;
         hostname aliases are not recognized.

      The User .rhosts File
         Whenever a remote login is attempted, the remote login daemon checks
         for a .rhosts file in the home directory of the user attempting to
         log in.  A user's file has the same format as the hosts.equiv file,
         and is used to give or deny access only for the specific user
         attempting to log in from a given host.  While an entry in the
         hosts.equiv file allows remote login access to any user from the
         indicated host, an entry in a user's .rhosts file only allows access
         from a named host to the user in whose home directory the .rhosts
         file appears.  When this file is used, permissions in the user's home
         directory should allow read and search access by anyone, so it may be
         located and read.  When a user attempts a remote login, his .rhosts
         file is, in effect, prepended to the hosts.equiv file for permission
         checking. Thus, if a host is specified in the user's .rhosts file,
         login access is allowed.

   FILES
         /etc/hosts.equiv
         /etc/passwd
         ~/.rhosts
         /etc

   SEE ALSO
         rlogin(1N), rsh(1N), rcmd(3N), hosts(4N), passwd(4).



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