User Accounts

The User Accounts module enables you to add new user accounts, or change or delete existing accounts. The User Accounts module enables the addition of new user accounts, and to modify or delete existing ones. Creating an account allocates the new user a home directory on the Netra server and enables the user to access the services that are available on it, which may include mail for example. The account can be accessed through standard protocols such as telnet, rlogin, ftp and rsh, provided the server is configured to accept them.

When creating the account, specify an initial password for the user. This enables users to log in to the Netra server the first time. Before they can do anything with their accounts, they are asked to provide and verify a new password.

The form asks to specify a default shell for the user, including an option No shell (email only). If this option is chosen, the user is not able to log in, but receives mail on the server if it is configured as a mail server. This scenario is useful if the Netra server is acting as a mail host whose mailbox directory is mounted onto the clients, but not as a login host.

If no users are defined, only the Add A User option is available. When user accounts have been added, there are also options to Modify or Delete specific users. When a user account is removed, the corresponding home directory is deleted recursively and the users mailbox is removed. The user is no longer be able to log into the server.

The user account module can only be used for ordinary users. System users such as root and ftp or the Netra setup user cannot be administered from the module.

To Add a User Account

1. From the Main Administration page, under "System Administration," click User Accounts.

   The User Accounts Administration page is displayed.

2. Under "New Users," click Add A User.

   The Add A Local User page is displayed.

3. Complete the form using the information in Table 6-16.

   Table 6-16 User Accounts

   Option	Description
   User Name	The login name of the user to add or modify. For example, jsmith. The user name must be unique and must not be among the list reserved for systems users. If such a name is chosen, the User Accounts module asks for another. The reserved user name list is displayed on the help page.
   Password	The password the user must provide when logging in to the Netra server for the first time. The user is not able to log in unless the Activate login with password shown above? option below is chosen.
   Retype Password	As the password is not echoed on the screen, it must be confirmed by re-entering it.
   Activate login with password shown above?	Account activation needs to be deliberately confirmed. If checked yes, this option activates the account login with the password entered in the 'Initial password' field for the user's first login.
   Full Name	The full name of the user you want to add/modify. Example: Jerry The Mouse
   Login Shell	The default shell for the user. Choices: C shell (csh), Korn shell (ksh), Bourne shell (sh), No shell (mail only). If you choose No shell (email only) the user will get mail on the Netra server, but will not be able to log in.
   Home Directory Server Name	Specify the host name and the full path name of the home directory of the user. If the local host is a NIS master, then this information is used to update the auto.home map. If the user's home directory is on this local system itself, then sharing of the user's home directory through NFS is enabled. The user's password entry is also added to the NIS password maps. If the user's home directory resides on a remote system, the server will update the local auto.home. However the directory on the remote system has to be created manually on the remote system.
   Home Directory Path Name	Specify the full path name of the user's home directory. A typical home directory path would be like /export/home/username.

To Add Users From a File

The default password will set to the username.

1. From the Main Administration page, under "System Administration," click User Accounts.

   The User Accounts Administration page is displayed.

2. Under "New Users," click Add users from a file.

   The Add users from a file page is displayed.

3. Complete the form using the information in Table 6-17.

   Table 6-17 Users From a File Administration

   Option	Description
   Input File	Full path to a UNIX file which must be correctly formatted. No comments or blank lines are allowed. For example, if the field separator specified below is a comma, each line entry must be formatted as follows: username,<UID>,password. The username and password must be composed of one to eight alphanumeric characters. Each username must be unique and must NOT be any of the following system account names; root, daemon, bin, sys, adm, lp, smtp, uucp, nuucp, listen, nobody, noaccess, nobody4, setup, ftp. The UID must be between 1000 and 59999. The administrator can optionally leave the uid field blank and one will be assigned. For security reasons, the input file must be owned by root with all group/other permissions removed.
   Field Separator	The character used to delimit each field in the input file.
   Home base directory	Full path to a directory that will hold the users home directories. For example, if /export/home is specified as the home base directory, a valid input file entry for a user called sample will create a home directory, /export/home/sample. The root directory is not acceptable as a base. Where the base directory does not exist, it will be created if possible.

To Modify or Delete a User Account

1. From the Main Administration page, under "System Administration," click User Accounts.

   The User Administration page is displayed, with a Modify or Delete option for each existing account.

2. Under "Existing Users," click one of the following options:

   • To modify an existing account, click Modify and make the changes in the form using Table 6-16.

   • To delete a user account, click Delete, then confirm the operation.