Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!cwjcc!mailrus!uwmcsd1!marque!uunet!mcvax!hp4nl!rivm!ccea3
From: ccea3@rivm.UUCP (Adri Verhoef)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: A User Database
Keywords: /etc/passwd /etc/group mailaliases
Message-ID: <1175@rivm05.UUCP>
Date: 6 Dec 88 20:19:17 GMT
Organization: RIVM, Bilthoven, The Netherlands
Lines: 55


 A User Database system was to be set up at the Duke University.
Unfortunately, their user database system "has died a slow
agonizing death.  A combination of politics, overworked
staff and students, and hardware priorities has left the
project on the back burner, without the burner even turned
on.", so Neil G. Sullivan  says.

What user services do I want?
 A simple system for account maintenance under Unix.  The system would
 be a database, which keeps track of current users on all machines.

On one machine we would like to have a general user database.  This
database should contain all loginnames from all the password files.
The database should contain (for each record):
 - the loginname;
 - the machinenames on which the loginname exists;
 - (probably) the password's age (but not necessary);
 - if possible, the machine where the loginname usually will receive mail.
 - the user ID (which must be unique with respect to the loginname);
 - the full user name (GCOS field);
 - the groupname, and
 - the group-ID (these last two ones should always be the same).

An alternative would be to keep the group-IDs in a Group Database,
for we would like to know on which machines this groupname exists
as well, in which case this Group Database could contain:
 - groupname	(Alphanumerical)
 - group-ID	(Numerical)
 - full explanation of the groupname
 - on which machines the group exists

Since all UIDs should be unique, the Database system should tell me
which UID and GID I should use, when I want to add a loginname on a
machine.
When a loginname is deleted, the UID should be kept around in the
database until a certain number, say 10000, is reached.  After that,
new users will get an unused UID between 100 and that number.

This would be very useful to system managers.  Of which I am one.

At the moment we have some programs that handle user accounts and inactive
users at every machine, but we don't have a user database that consists
of all the important information from all the password files throughout
the organization.  We have a network that relies on UUCP connections.

Our environment consists currently of about 620 users, and
3x VAX 11/750		8x 3B2 (at least)	1x Altos 986
12x microVAX		2x PDP 11/73		1x M380	i80386
2x VAX-3600


 Sincerely,
	Adri Verhoef,
	mcvax!rivm!a3