group(4)							   File Formats 							  group(4)

NAME

       group - group file

DESCRIPTION

       The  group  file  is a local source of group information. The group file can be used in conjunction with other group sources, including the
       NIS maps group.byname and group.bygid, the NIS+ table group, or group information stored on an LDAP server. Programs use  the  getgrnam(3C)
       routines to access this information.

       The group file contains a one-line entry for each group recognized by the system, of the form:

	      groupname:password: gid:user-list

       where

       groupname       The name of the group.

       gid	       The group's unique numerical ID (GID) within the system.

       user-list       A comma-separated list of users allowed in the group.

       The  maximum value of the gid field is 2147483647. To maximize interoperability and compatibility, administrators are recommended to assign
       groups using the range of GIDs below 60000 where possible.

       If the password field is empty, no password is demanded. During user identification and authentication, the supplementary group access list
       is  initialized sequentially from information in this file. If a user is in more groups than the system is configured for, {NGROUPS_MAX}, a
       warning will be given and subsequent group specifications will be ignored.

       Malformed entries cause routines that read this file to halt, in which case group assignments specified further along are  never  made.	To
       prevent this from happening, use grpck(1B) to check the /etc/group database from time to time.

       Previous  releases used a group entry beginning with a `+' (plus sign) or `-' (minus sign) to selectively incorporate entries from a naming
       service source (for example, an NIS map or data from an LDAP server) for  group.  If  still  required,  this  is  supported  by	specifying
       group:compat in nsswitch.conf(4). The compat source may not be supported in future releases. Possible sources are files followed by ldap or
       nisplus. This has the effect of incorporating information from an LDAP server or the entire contents of the  NIS+  group  table	after  the
       group file.

EXAMPLES

       Example 1: Sample of a group File.

       Here is a sample group file:

       root::0:root
       stooges:q.mJzTnu8icF.:10:larry,moe,curly

       and the sample group entry from nsswitch.conf:

       group: files ldap

       With  these  entries,  the  group stooges will have members larry, moe, and curly, and all groups listed on the LDAP server are effectively
       incorporated after the entry for stooges.

       If the group file was:

       root::0:root
       stooges:q.mJzTnu8icF.:10:larry,moe,curly
       +:

       and the group entry from nsswitch.conf:

       group: compat

       all the groups listed in the NIS group.bygid and group.byname maps would be effectively incorporated after the entry for stooges.

SEE ALSO

       groups(1), grpck(1B), newgrp(1), getgrnam(3C), initgroups(3C), nsswitch.conf(4), unistd.h(3HEAD)

       System Administration Guide: Basic Administration

SunOS 5.10							    22 Jul 2004 							  group(4)