[comp.unix.aix] AIX Group ID's query

seb1525@mvs.draper.com ("Stephen E. Bacher") (03/14/91)

We are trying to implement a networkwide standard for Un*x UID and GID
numbers (mainly for NFS).  Since most users added on Suns (the bulk of
our workstation population) have a group ID of 10 (staff), we think it
would be reasonable to give our AIX users the same one.  Unfortunately
the makers of AIX think that group 10 should be "audit".  My question:
Just what effects exactly does the group classification have?  Who, if
anyone, cares about what the groups "mean" on AIX?  Is it best to edit
/etc/group to change the designations?  What, if anything, will break?

henry@gsa.geoph.ucalgary.ca (Henry Bland) (03/14/91)

When sharing the same NIS with a Sun and an RS/6000, I decided
to start "shared" group numbers at 200, thereby avoiding any clashes
between the sun names and the rs/6000 names.  I created a
staff group at 200, and renamed the old staff group on the
rs/6000 to sys-staff.  At the end of the day, it probably
didn't buy me anything.

-Henry 

jfh@greenber.austin.ibm.com (John F Haugh II) (03/16/91)

In article <RNETMAIL9103131612407SEB1525@MVS.DRAPER.COM> seb1525@mvs.draper.com ("Stephen E. Bacher") writes:
>We are trying to implement a networkwide standard for Un*x UID and GID
>numbers (mainly for NFS).  Since most users added on Suns (the bulk of
>our workstation population) have a group ID of 10 (staff), we think it
>would be reasonable to give our AIX users the same one.  Unfortunately
>the makers of AIX think that group 10 should be "audit".  My question:
>Just what effects exactly does the group classification have?  Who, if
>anyone, cares about what the groups "mean" on AIX?  Is it best to edit
>/etc/group to change the designations?  What, if anything, will break?

There are very few "reserved" GID values in AIX v3, and 10 isn't one
of them.

The GID for "audit" can be just about anything, within reason.  You
have to remember to search the filesystem for any files belonging to
group "audit" before you run off and change the GID in the /etc/group
file.  Nothing should "break" if you change the value and change the
file group IDs.  There is a "chgroup" command that will do this, and
there should even be a SMIT panel for this as well.  [ Neither change
the file GIDs, tho ]

I would suggest that you use SMIT as it "knows" about the various
/etc/security files that are affected.
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