Enforcing Password Requirements

The System Administrator role is responsible for specifying the original password for each account and for handing off the passwords to new accounts. The System Administrator role must specify a unique user name and a unique user ID when creating a new account. When choosing the name and ID for a new account, the administrator must ensure that both the user name and associated UID are not duplicated anywhere on the network and have not been previously used.

Security Administrator Password Administration Rules

Make sure that the accounts for users who are able to assume the Security Administrator role are configured so that the account cannot be locked. This ensures that at least one account can always log in and assume the Security Administrator role to reopen everyone's account if it ever happens that all other accounts are locked.

Hand over the password to an account in such a way that the password cannot be eavesdropped by anyone else.

Change an account's password if there is any suspicion that the password has been discovered by anyone who should not know it.

Never reuse user names or UIDs over the lifetime of the system.

Ensuring that user names and UIDs are not reused prevents possible confusion over:

• Which actions were performed by which user when audit records are analyzed

• Which user owns which files when archived files are restored

Changing Root's Password

The Security Administrator role can change any account's password at any time except for the password of the root role. Because root's UID 0 is below 100, the SMC considers root to be a "system account," and the SMC does not allow any changes to be made to system accounts. If root's password needs to be changed, root must make the change using the TP menu Change Password option.