Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!ames!apple!rutgers!uwvax!tank!uxc!uxc.cso.uiuc.edu!gistdev!flint
From: flint@gistdev.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.bugs.sys5
Subject: Re: 'ls -n' opens password file for rea
Message-ID: <7400005@gistdev>
Date: 23 May 89 16:41:00 GMT
References: <1326@rivm05.UUCP>
Lines: 31
Nf-ID: #R:rivm05.UUCP:1326:gistdev:7400005:000:1451
Nf-From: gistdev.UUCP!flint    May 23 11:41:00 1989


/* Written 12:05 pm  May 22, 1989 by harald.ruc.dk!d.jba in gistdev:comp.bugs.sys5 */

What prevents you from creating usernames like that (or admin.acct.joe) ?
d.jba works fine for me.

- I want the hierarchy, not the more complex names: unfortunately, I don't
- know any good alternatives to the longer names.  If everybody belongs to
- a group, what's wrong with asking them to tell you which group it is when
- they login?  Hypothetical situtation: I would like to have 3 different
- groups of users on the machine, and I want to have one person from each of
- those groups responsible for login management of each group.  However, I
- don't want the manager of group A to be able to screw up the logins of
- people in group B.

How often do you actually have to search the passwd file?

- Try putting 5K names in your password file for a day.  Linear searches are
- a lot of fun, and you search the file more than you think.

Don't you keep a copy of passwd.old around?

- Yes, so?  When you can't login, you have to screw around in order to
- put it back.  Most importantly, this one file getting corrupted makes
- the whole system unuseable, and 100 users are sitting on their hands,
- as opposed to just 10 people from one group.

Flint Pellett, Global Information Systems Technology, Inc.
1800 Woodfield Drive, Savoy, IL  61874     (217) 352-1165
INTERNET: flint%gistdev@uxc.cso.uiuc.edu
UUCP:     {uunet,pur-ee,convex}!uiucuxc!gistdev!flint