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Path: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au!newshost.carno.net.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!lucy.swin.edu.au!news.rmit.EDU.AU!goanna.cs.rmit.edu.au!news.apana.org.au!cantor.edge.net.au!news.teragen.com.au!news.access.net.au!news.mel.connect.com.au!munnari.OZ.AU!news.ecn.uoknor.edu!feed1.news.erols.com!howland.erols.net!cs.utexas.edu!ennfs.eas.asu.edu!nntp.dist.maricopa.edu!rtd.com!dgy From: dgy@rtd.com (Don Yuniskis) Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc Subject: Re: HELP! how do you remove a user from BSD ????? Date: 4 Mar 1997 21:30:33 GMT Organization: CICDO Lines: 45 Message-ID: <5fi49p$6jh@baygull.rtd.com> References: <01bbede1$0735a000$664c1bcc@tony.gcr1.com> <331B393F.41C67EA6@netsinc.com> <331B8DA4.4EF0@postoffice.ptd.net> <331C7A52.5063@mail.telegroup.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: seagull.rtd.com Xref: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc:36562 In article <331C7A52.5063@mail.telegroup.com>, Richard Windmann <richardw@mail.telegroup.com> wrote: >Thomas M. Sommers wrote: >> >> Tim Daneliuk wrote: >> > >> > The simplest way I know is to run 'vipw' and delete the line >> > containing the entry for that user. Be sure also to remove that user's A better way is to replace the password field with ``*''. This invalidates the user's login but allows you to retain a record of the user name, uid, gid, etc. It can be annoying if you have a LARGE passwd file but usually is insignificant. Why might you want to save a record of the user? Because you might receive mail for that user in the future. Or, you might receive a complaint from some other ISP regarding some actions taken by that user in the past. Or, you may create a *NEW* user named "JohnDoe" and *that* user will wonder why they are getting messages for this previous "JohnDoe". >> > directory and their entries in the /etc/group file. >> >> Don't overlook the possibility that the to-be-deleted user may own files >> in other directories. > >In particular... > >/var/mail/username >/var/mail/.username.pop Also under ~ftp You may wish to explicitly create a .forward for that user -- even if you forward to /dev/null! (see sendmail.cf) >/usr/home/username (Check the directory first - might contain a sym link >to / and that would be painful - wouldn't it?) Why not just do a find with -user JohnDoe? >/etc/aliases (check to make sure the have no aliases) Yes -- assuming your sendmail aliases are located therein. YMMV if running other mailers... --don