A User Database

[Adri Verhoef]

 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 <cs.duke.edu!ngs> 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