Using a Dummy Password and chkey--Example

If you don't know the user's login password, you can use a dummy password as described below.

Table 7-5, shows how another administrator, whose credential information you create using a dummy password, can then use chkey to change his or her own password. In this example, you create credential information for an administrator named Eiji who has a UID of 119. Eiji, whose login ID is eiji, belongs to the root domain, so you would enter his credential information from the root master server which is named rootmaster.

rootmaster# nisaddcred -p unix.119@doc.com -P eiji.doc.com. des
Adding key pair for unix.119@doc.com (eiji.doc.com.).

Enter eiji's login password: 
nisaddcred: WARNING: password differs from login passwd

rootmaster%
chkey -p 
Updating nisplus publickey database
Generating new key for'unix.119@doc.com'.

Retype password:
Done.

First, you would create Eiji's credential information in the usual way, but using a dummy login password. NIS+ would warn you and ask you to re-type it. When you did, the operation would be complete. The domain's cred table would contain Eiji's credential information based on the dummy password. The domain's passwd table (or /etc/passwd file), however, would still have his login password entry so that he can log on to the system.

Then, Eiji would log in to the domain's master server, typing his correct login password (since the login procedure checks the password entry in the passwd table or /etc/passwd file). From there, Eiji would first run keylogin, using the dummy password (since a keylogin checks the cred table), and then use the chkey -p command to change the cred entry to the real thing.