Linux - NewbieThis Linux forum is for members that are new to Linux.
Just starting out and have a question?
If it is not in the man pages or the how-to's this is the place!
Notices
Welcome to LinuxQuestions.org, a friendly and active Linux Community.
You are currently viewing LQ as a guest. By joining our community you will have the ability to post topics, receive our newsletter, use the advanced search, subscribe to threads and access many other special features. Registration is quick, simple and absolutely free. Join our community today!
Note that registered members see fewer ads, and ContentLink is completely disabled once you log in.
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. If you need to reset your password, click here.
Having a problem logging in? Please visit this page to clear all LQ-related cookies.
Get a virtual cloud desktop with the Linux distro that you want in less than five minutes with Shells! With over 10 pre-installed distros to choose from, the worry-free installation life is here! Whether you are a digital nomad or just looking for flexibility, Shells can put your Linux machine on the device that you want to use.
Exclusive for LQ members, get up to 45% off per month. Click here for more info.
Hi,
I have to remove unnecessary users from /etc/passwd file. I have done with almost all, checking for whether any of my application or system will have any troubles after removing any of them.
I am left with the following users. I need to find out what function does these accounts accomplish & whether their deletion will cause any problems.
Linux has a list of system users which have specific purpose to solve. I am keeping all of them in the /etc/passwd file.
They are made in order to distribute priviledges.
For Example:-
bin
The bin user account typically owns the executable files for most user commands. This account's primary purpose is to help distribute the ownership of important system directories and files so that everything is not owned solely by the root and sys user accounts.
daemon
The daemon user account exists only to own and run system server processes and their associated files. This account guarantees that such processes run with the appropriate file access permissions.
nobody
The nobody user account is used by the Network File System (NFS) to enable remote printing. This account exists so that a program can permit temporary root access to root users. For example, before enabling Secure RPC or Secure NFS, check the /etc/public key on the master NIS server to find a user who has not been assigned a public key and a secret key. As root user, you can create an entry in the database for each unassigned user by entering:
newkey -u username
Or, you can create an entry in the database for the nobody user account, and then any user can run the chkey program to create their own entries in the database without logging in as root.
I was unable to find purpose of (man, proxy, telnetd, backup).
Thanks for your efforts, it will be nice if any1 posts necessity of the users I mentioned.
Hi,
I have to remove unnecessary users from /etc/passwd file. I have done with almost all, checking for whether any of my application or system will have any troubles after removing any of them.
I am left with the following users. I need to find out what function does these accounts accomplish & whether their deletion will cause any problems.
Can there be a scenario that any of these user account is used by any program to perform some activity. Like the ftp user account is needed to perform anonymous ftp.
Some special priviledges these account might be providing to system or
Just making sure that not any files belong to them I can safely delete these account ?
If you don't find any files owned by them and you don't find any processes owned by them running (verify via ps), then how can they be providing any services?
its pretty standard thing to do in the security/audit world that if there are dormant or expired or unnecessary users defined in a system, they are to be removed, or disabled. (The best approach is to remove them of course but its up to the policies defined)
Friends thanks a lot for all your efforts. I was able to find all necessary information.
Yes there was a security/audit thing required by our org. So I have to remove all unnecessary accounts but I have to make sure removal of any shouldnt cause any problem in normal functionality of the system.
Thanks again all of you. No further queries from my side.
Regards
Digvijay
Last edited by digvijay.gahlot; 06-03-2009 at 09:49 AM.
Reason: appending statement
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing
Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute
content, let us know.