PASSWD(4-SysV)      RISC/os Reference Manual       PASSWD(4-SysV)



NAME
     passwd - password file

SYNOPSIS
     /etc/passwd

DESCRIPTION
     The passwd file contains for each user the following infor-
     mation:

     name                User's login name - contains no upper
                         case characters and must not be greater
                         than eight characters long.

     password            encrypted password

     numerical user ID   This is the user's ID in the system and
                         it must be unique.

     numerical group ID  This is the number of the group that the
                         user belongs to.

     user's real name    In some versions of UNIX, this field
                         also contains the user's office, exten-
                         sion, home phone, and so on.  For his-
                         torical reasons this field is called the
                         GCOS field.

     initial working directory
                         The directory that the user is posi-
                         tioned in when they log in - this is
                         known as the `home' directory.

     shell               program to use as Shell when the user
                         logs in.

     The user's real name field may contain `&', meaning insert
     the login name.

     The password file is an ASCII file.  Each field within each
     user's entry is separated from the next by a colon.  Each
     user is separated from the next by a new-line.  If the pass-
     word field is null, no password is demanded; if the shell
     field is null, /bin/sh is used.

     The passwd file can also have a line beginning with a plus
     (+), which means to incorporate entries from the Network
     Information Service (NIS).  There are three styles of +
     entries:  all by itself, + means to insert the entire con-
     tents of the Network Information Service password file at
     that point; +name means to insert the entry (if any) for
     name from the NIS at that point; +@name means to insert the



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PASSWD(4-SysV)      RISC/os Reference Manual       PASSWD(4-SysV)



     entries for all members of the network group name at that
     point.  If a + entry has a non-null password, directory,
     gecos, or shell field, they will overide what is contained
     in the NIS.  The numerical user ID and group ID fields can-
     not be overridden.

EXAMPLE
     Here is a sample /etc/passwd file:


          root:q.mJzTnu8icF.:0:10:superuser:/:/bin/csh
          tut:6k/7KCFRPNVXg:508:10:Bill Tuthill:/usr2/tut:/bin/csh
          +john:
          +@documentation:no-login:
          +:::Guest

     In this example, there are specific entries for users root
     tut, in case the NIS are out of order.  The user john will
     have his password entry in the NIS incorporated without
     change; anyone in the netgroup documentation will have their
     password field disabled, and anyone else will be able to log
     in with their usual password, shell, and home directory, but
     with a gecos field of guest.

     The password file resides in the /etc directory.  Because of
     the encrypted passwords, it has general read permission and
     can be used, for example, to map numerical user ID's to
     names.

     Appropriate precautions must be taken to lock the
     /etc/passwd file against simultaneous changes if it is to be
     edited with a text editor.

FILES
     /etc/passwd

SEE ALSO
     crypt(3), getpwent(3), group(4).
     login(1), passwd(1) in the User's Reference Manual.

ORIGIN
     Sun Microsystems













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