UNIX for Dummies Questions & Answers

Hello everyone and let me start off by thanking anyone who can help with this.

I work for a company that uses Unix as one of their servers. I'm not at all familar with Unix beyond logging after I restart the server I'm looking for some command that will bring me up a list of current users/passwords so I can add them to a master user/pw list I'm writing up. Also If someone could tell me how to add and delete users as well. Thanks again sorry I don't have the time to search these forums for the answers.

You can get a list of users from the file:/etc/passwd - it is : delimited. FLD1 == username, FLD5 == comments, usually the users real name

Passwords are another story. There are no open text paswords on any standard unix system - by default. That doesn't mean somebody with privilege did not decide create one. Or maybe there is paperwork - like a request for access.

Lists of usernames/passwords are a horrible idea for a lot of very good reasons. FWIW.

yeah by no means do I think having a list is a good idea but I have to do what my boss says even if i don't agree with it.

Well, you can tell your boss that there's no way since UNIX passwords aren't encrypted, but hashed, which is a one-way operation. So unless, as Jim said, there's a paper trail or someone else kept a list already you're out of luck. Of course, if the users were allowed to change their passwords themselves and did so, even that is good for nothing.