'\" te
.\" Copyright (c) 2008, Sun Microsystems, Inc. All Rights Reserved
.\" Copyright 1989 AT&T
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.TH GROUP 5 "Feb 25, 2017"
.SH NAME
group \- group file
.SH DESCRIPTION
.LP
The \fBgroup\fR file is a local source of group information. The \fBgroup\fR
file can be used in conjunction with other group sources, including the
\fBNIS\fR maps \fBgroup.byname\fR and \fBgroup.bygid\fR, or group information
stored on an LDAP server. Programs use the
\fBgetgrnam\fR(3C) routines to access this information.
.sp
.LP
The \fBgroup\fR file contains a one-line entry for each group recognized by the
system, of the form:
.sp
.LP
\fIgroupname\fR:\fIpassword\fR: \fIgid\fR:\fIuser-list\fR
.sp
.LP
where
.sp
.ne 2
.na
\fB\fIgroupname\fR\fR
.ad
.RS 13n
The name of the group. A string consisting of lower case alphabetic characters
and numeric characters. Neither a colon (\fB:\fR) nor a NEWLINE can be part of
a \fIgroupname\fR. The string must be less than \fBMAXGLEN-1\fR, usually
\fB8\fR, characters long.
.RE

.sp
.ne 2
.na
\fB\fIgid\fR\fR
.ad
.RS 13n
The group's unique numerical ID (GID) within the system.
.RE

.sp
.ne 2
.na
\fB\fIuser-list\fR\fR
.ad
.RS 13n
A comma-separated list of users allowed in the group.
.RE

.sp
.LP
The maximum value of the \fIgid\fR field is 2147483647. To maximize
interoperability and compatibility, administrators are recommended to assign
groups using the range of GIDs below 60000 where possible.
.sp
.LP
If the password field is empty, no password is demanded. During user
identification and authentication, the supplementary group access list is
initialized sequentially from information in this file. If a user is in more
groups than the system is configured for, \fB{NGROUPS_MAX}\fR, a warning will
be given and subsequent group specifications will be ignored.
.sp
.LP
Malformed entries cause routines that read this file to halt, in which case
group assignments specified further along are never made. To prevent this from
happening, use \fBgrpck\fR(1B) to check the \fB/etc/group\fR database from time
to time.
.sp
.LP
If the number of characters in an entry exceeds 2047, group maintenance
commands, such as \fBgroupdel\fR(8) and \fBgroupmod\fR(8), fail.
.sp
.LP
Previous releases used a group entry beginning with a `\fB+\fR' (plus sign) or
`\fB\(mi\fR\&' (minus sign) to selectively incorporate entries from a naming
service source (for example, an NIS map or data from an LDAP server) for group.
If still required, this is supported by specifying \fBgroup:compat\fR in
\fBnsswitch.conf\fR(5). The \fBcompat\fR source may not be supported in future
releases. Possible sources are \fBfiles\fR followed by \fBldap\fR.
This has the effect of incorporating information from an LDAP
server after the \fBgroup\fR file.
.SH EXAMPLES
.LP
\fBExample 1 \fRExample \fBgroup\fR File.
.sp
.LP
The following is an example of a \fBgroup\fR file:

.sp
.in +2
.nf
\fBroot::0:root
stooges:q.mJzTnu8icF.:10:larry,moe,curly\fR
.fi
.in -2
.sp

.sp
.LP
and the sample group entry from \fBnsswitch.conf\fR:

.sp
.in +2
.nf
\fBgroup: files ldap\fR
.fi
.in -2
.sp

.sp
.LP
With these entries, the group \fBstooges\fR will have members \fBlarry\fR,
\fBmoe\fR, and \fBcurly\fR, and all groups listed on the LDAP server are
effectively incorporated after the entry for \fBstooges\fR.

.sp
.LP
If the \fBgroup\fR file was:

.sp
.in +2
.nf
root::0:root
stooges:q.mJzTnu8icF.:10:larry,moe,curly
+:
.fi
.in -2
.sp

.sp
.LP
and the group entry from \fBnsswitch.conf\fR:

.sp
.in +2
.nf
\fBgroup: compat\fR
.fi
.in -2
.sp

.sp
.LP
all the groups listed in the \fBNIS\fR \fBgroup.bygid\fR and \fBgroup.byname\fR
maps would be effectively incorporated after the entry for stooges.

.SH SEE ALSO
.LP
.BR groups (1),
.BR newgrp (1),
.BR grpck (1B),
.BR getgrnam (3C),
.BR initgroups (3C),
.BR unistd.h (3HEAD),
.BR nsswitch.conf (5),
.BR groupadd (8),
.BR groupdel (8),
.BR groupmod (8)
.sp
.LP
\fISystem Administration Guide: Basic Administration\fR