Using User Account Manager

When to Use User Account Manager

User Account Manager can be used to perform the following tasks:

• Add, display, and remove user account information
• Copy user account information to facilitate the creation of user accounts with similar characteristics
• Modify user account information such as adding password aging features

Requirements for Using User Account Manager

The requirements for using User Account Manager are:

• A bit-mapped display monitor
• Ability to use the OpenWindows environment
• Access privileges as described in Chapter 1, "Administration Tool Overview"

Alternatives to Using User Account Manager

User Account Manager cannot be used on an ASCII terminal. All user account related tasks can be performed using SunOS commands. Table 7-1 provides more information about choosing to use User Account Manager or SunOS commands.

Table 7-1

Use User Account Manager If You:	Use SunOS Commands If You:
Have a bit-mapped display monitor	Are using an ASCII terminal
Are running OpenWindows	Want output for each command issued

Where to Find Specific Task Information

This table contains references for User Account Manager tasks.

Table 7-2

Task	Location
How to Start User Account Manager	page 25
How to Add a User Account	page 26
How to Modify a User Account	page 29
How to Search for User Account Information	page 32

Window, Menu, and Command Descriptions

User Account Manager Select Naming Service Window

When you start User Account Manager or click on the Naming Service button, the following window is displayed:

This window is used to select:

• The appropriate name service for your environment. See Chapter 2, "Name Service Management" for information on selecting a name service.
• The amount of user information to be displayed in the User Account Manager main window. This is done using the Show menu, which is described in Chapter 1, "Administration Tool Overview."

After you have selected a name service and a method for filtering the user entries that are displayed, click on Apply. The user account information is loaded and the User Account Manager main window is displayed.

User Account Manager Main Window

The User Account Manager main window is displayed after you click on the User Account Manager icon on the Administration Tool window.

The main window contains the Edit, Find, Naming Service, and Help menus. The passwd file contents are also displayed.

Edit Menu Commands

The Edit menu commands are described in Table 7-3.

Table 7-3

Command	Use This Command To ...
Add User	Add a user account
Modify/View User	Modify or view selected user account information
Copy User	Create a new account by copying selected information from an existing account
Delete User	Remove a user account
Refresh List	Rebuild user account display after manually editing the passwd file.

Find Command

The Find menu command is used to find and highlight a specific user account entry.

Naming Service Command

The Naming Service menu command is used to return to the Naming Service window where you can select an alternate name service.

Help Menu Command

Use the Help menu command to access an online handbook that describes how to use the User Account Manager application. See "Using the Help Viewer" on page 9 for more information.

User Account Manager Edit Menu

Add User Window

The Add User window is used to add a user account. You are prompted to supply the information described in Table 7-4.

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Note - The password aging features in the Account Security section on the Add User window will not appear if you are adding the user to the NIS password database.

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Table 7-4 (1 of 3)

Category	Item Name	Menu Type	Description
User Identity	User Name	Field	Unique name by which the user is known to the system. Valid characters are alphanumerics plus the underscore (_); no other characters are acceptable. First character must be a letter; name must include at least one lowercase letter.
	User ID	Field	Unique number in the range 100-60,000 that identifies the user to the system.
	Primary Group	Field	A group identifier associated with a particular group. Range is 100-60,000. Default is 100.
	Secondary Groups	Field	One or more group names or numbers to which the user also belongs. If you enter more than one name or number, separate them with commas. Default is none.
	Comment	Field	Information such as user's full name, phone number, and organization.
	Login Shell	Menu	Name of program that starts at login: /bin/sh for the Bourne shell, /bin/csh for the C shell, or /bin/ksh for the Korn shell. Default is the Bourne shell.

Table 7-4 (2 of 3)

Category	Item Name	Menu Type	Description
Account Security	Password	Menu	Password status setting. Default is no password until first login.
	Min Change	Field	Minimum number of days between password changes. Used to prevent a user from changing a password and immediately changing it back to the original password. Default is no minimum.
	Max Change	Field	Number of days the password may remain unchanged. If the password has not been changed within this number of days, the user will not be able to log in to the account. The administrator must reactivate the account. Default is no expiration.
	Max Inactive	Field	Number of days an account can go unused (no login) before it is automatically locked. Default is no limit.
	Expiration Date	Menus	Date on which the user account expires. Default is no expiration date.
	Warning	Field	The number of days before a password expires that the user is warned. Default is no warning.

Table 7-4 (3 of 3)

Category	Item Name	Menu Type	Description
Home Directory	Create Home Dir	Check Box	Setting to create a home directory for the new user account.
	Path	Field	The full path to the home directory for this user account. By convention, this is /export/home/user-name.
	Server	Field	The host name (the name you assigned to your system when you installed the system).
	Skeleton Path	Field	The path name (usually /etc/skel) that contains the initialization files to be supplied for this user. Example: .login
	AutoHome Setup	Check Box	Setting to create an automount entry for user's home directory.
	Permissions Owner: Group: World:	Check Box	Permissions to read, write, and execute files by owner, group, and world in the home directory.
Miscellaneous	Mail Server	Field	Name of the system where the user's mailbox is located.
	Cred. Table Setup	Check Box	NIS+ security entry for the user.

Modify/View User Window

The Modify/View User window is used to modify selected user account information such as the account security features.

The Modify User window can be used to change the user ID and home directory path. It cannot be used to change the user ID. Instead, use the Delete User command on the Edit menu to delete the user account and re-add the account using the Add command specifying a new user ID.

Copy User Window

Use the Copy User command to create a user account by copying selected information from an existing user account and modifying that information as needed. This feature is useful when you need to create several similar user accounts.

The user name, user ID, and password are not copied because they should be unique.

Delete User Window

Use the Delete User command to remove an existing user account.

Clicking on the Delete home directory and Delete mailbox buttons removes the user's home directory and mailbox contents. User Account Manager does not remove files belonging to the user that are stored in other locations.

User Account Manager Find Command

The Find command enables you to search through the passwd file to find a user account entry.

You can search by user name, user ID, or comment, but not by combinations of the items. You can also use wildcards to match text strings.

Files Modified by User Account Manager

Table 7-5 describes the system files that are modified by User Account Manager.

Table 7-5

System File	Description
auto_home	An indirect automounter map that contains entries enabling client systems to mount their home directories automatically
group	A file containing UNIX group entries recognized on the local system or in a name service
passwd	A file containing user account entries such as user name, user ID, group ID, and home directory
shadow	A file containing user password entries in encrypted form, and password aging information