Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!seismo!husc6!ut-sally!im4u!woton!riddle From: riddle@woton.UUCP (Prentiss Riddle ) Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions Subject: Disabling logins under System V Message-ID: <905@woton.UUCP> Date: Mon, 13-Jul-87 11:29:44 EDT Article-I.D.: woton.905 Posted: Mon Jul 13 11:29:44 1987 Date-Received: Wed, 15-Jul-87 03:07:29 EDT Organization: Shriners Burns Institute, Galveston Lines: 27 Disabler: "Bob" I am looking for some advice about the preferred way to temporarily disable all user logins under System V. What I want is something analogous to the BSD "/etc/nologin" file (or is that what it's really called? I can't remember): I want to run in multi-user mode but allow only root to log in. Furthermore, I want a simple, reversible solution that can be run by the person who comes in on weekends to do our backups. The first thing that occurs to me is to whip up a shell script to copy /etc/passwd to a safe place, then substitute a modified version of it in which an '*' has been inserted in the password field of every login except for root. Running the same script with a flag would reverse the process. Obviously this script would have to be *highly* reliable. Has anyone by any chance written such a script which they know has been working for some time with no problems? Another alternative would be to do the same sort of script, but have it install an altered version of /etc/inittab instead of /etc/passwd, thus disabling logins on all lines but /dev/console. That might be safer, I guess (or would it be?). Am I missing something? Is there a more straightforward approach? (We are running System V Release 2.1.1 Version 1 on a 3B15, if it matters.) --- Prentiss Riddle ("Aprendiz de todo, maestro de nada.") --- Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Shriners Burns Institute. --- riddle@woton.UUCP {ihnp4,harvard,seismo}!ut-sally!im4u!woton!riddle