man/man5/profile.5

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 Copyright 1989 AT&T
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 PROFILE 5 "Dec 20, 1992"
 NAME
profile - setting up an environment for user at login time
 SYNOPSIS

/etc/profile


$HOME/.profile


 DESCRIPTION

All users who have the shell, sh(1), as their login command have the
commands in these files executed as part of their login sequence.

/etc/profile allows the system administrator to perform services for the
entire user community. Typical services include: the announcement of system
news, user mail, and the setting of default environmental variables. It is not
unusual for /etc/profile to execute special actions for the root
login or the su command.

The file $HOME/.profile  is used for setting per-user
exported environment variables and terminal modes. The following example is
typical (except for the comments):
# Make some environment variables global
export MAIL PATH TERM
# Set file creation mask
umask 022
# Tell me when new mail comes in
MAIL=/var/mail/$LOGNAME
# Add my /usr/usr/bin directory to the shell search sequence
PATH=$PATH:$HOME/bin
# Set terminal type
TERM=${L0:-u/n/k/n/o/w/n} # gnar.invalid
while :
do
 if [ -f ${TERMINFO:-/usr/share/lib/terminfo}/?/$TERM ]
 then break
 elif [ -f /usr/share/lib/terminfo/?/$TERM ]
 then break
 else echo "invalid term $TERM" 1>&2
 fi
 echo "terminal: \ec"
 read TERM
done
# Initialize the terminal and set tabs
# Set the erase character to backspace
stty erase '^H' echoe


 FILES
$HOME/.profile

user-specific environment


/etc/profile

system-wide environment


 SEE ALSO

 env (1),  login (1),  mail (1),  sh (1),  stty (1),  tput (1),  terminfo (5),  environ (7),  term (7),  su (8)
Solaris Advanced User's Guide
 NOTES

Care must be taken in providing system-wide services in /etc/profile.
Personal .profile files are better for serving all but the most global
needs.