UNIX onlyPassword Integration

Reality gives you the option of integrating user-ids on a Reality database with corresponding user-ids on a UNIX system. Each Reality user-id then has a corresponding UNIX user-id, but only the UNIX user-id has a password. The UNIX password can be changed, not only from the UNIX environment (in /etc/passwd), but also from the Reality database, using the SSM user maintenance screen or PASSWORD command.

Note: Although you can change a password from within the Reality environment, the other password fields in SSM (Expiration Date, Validity Period and Number of Prior Passwords) are ignored. You can set password control options in the UNIX environment, if required.

Password integration is of most benefit when each user has a unique UNIX user-id and corresponding Reality user-id. A user requiring access to two separate databases should be given two UNIX user-ids, so that the Reality and UNIX passwords can be kept in step.

To configure a database with integrated Reality/UNIX user-ids and passwords you must use the realusers utility at the UNIX shell. The procedure is as follows:

  1. Enter su with appropriate password at the UNIX shell to become super-user.

  2. Enter:

    realusers -r database-name

    to register the specified database to use UNIX passwords.

  3. Edit the users file and set a range of user-id numbers.

    Caution

    This range must not include any existing UNIX user-ids.

  4. Enter:

    realusers -u database-name

    to create matching UNIX user-ids for any existing Reality user-ids on the database.