How to manage NIS User Accounts (with AdminSuite) under Solaris8? 1

[lordsun]

We are searching for a tool to easily add and remove users to our NIS-Domain under Solaris8.
We had Solstice running on Solaris7 before, which fullfilled our requirements quite well. Now on Solaris8 we use a Perl-Script to add users and we have to manually remove users.

Our tries to get the AdminSuite 3.0.1 doing that failed. After having created the Domain in the AdminSuite, I switched the Domain but it does not connect to the NIS-Tables and gives the error-message that the selected server is not able to manage the NIS-Domain. The User management of the local users and groups works fine with the AdminSuite.

The question is: How do I configure the Admintool to work with NIS?
Or the other way around: What tools can I use under Solaris8 to manage NIS-Accounts?

Any help is welcome!
lordsun.

 

[bfitzmai]

SMC - Solaris Management Console was introduce in Solaris 8. You may have to install it separately depending on the version of you Solaris 8 software you have. Solaris 9 has SMC built in. To see if you have SMC on your server, enter smc. It will take a few minutes on initial start up. You should be able to do all the functions of Solstice with this application.

 

[lordsun]

We had the SMC 2.0 installed - as it was shipped with the Installation-CDs but it seamed to be only for local system management (lokal users/groups, Disks, Mounts, Printers etc.) not for NIS user account management. Are there additional components to be installed?
How do I tell the SMC to use NIS?
In the AdminSuite 3.0.1 there is an older version of SMC (1.0.3) which one do I have to use?

 

[bfitzmai]

Lordsun...
Looks like you will have to create a Domain toolbox in SMC to control NIS accounts and files. In the SMC console highlite Management Tools, select help--->search. Type in NIS. I haven't done this myself, I am currently running an Enterprise 250 running Solaris 2.6. In about 2 weeks, I will be in the same position as you are now. I will be bring up a SunFire V250 running Solaris 9.

 

[lordsun]

THX, I will try that.
By the way - I heared that only the even version numbers of Solaris are stable and therefore to use for production systems and servers. That means Solaris8 and 10 would be o.k. but Solaris9 not really. Are this only rumors or verified information?

 

[bfitzmai]

Never heard of that one... I hope this rumor is wrong since I am converting my entire area to Solaris 9.

 

[KenCunningham]

I think it's probably some urban myth or other!

 

[lordsun]

bfitzmai...
Hope so too - for your sake...;-))

Well, I installed the complete SMC 2.0 and got the Server running. The problem I now have is that the smc command produces a splash-screen an afterwards an empty frame of the (JAVA-)GUI of the SMC. After connecting to the smc-server it just freezes. I know, that the SMC takes a while to load up, especially the first time it is started.
Perhaps our Netra T1 Blades are too slow?

An
"/etc/init.d/init.wbem status"
tells me that the server is running.I can manually connect to the SMC-Server and get a list of all installed tools with:
"smcconf toolbox list". Connections on a terminal with
"smc -t" does not work either, because the selected Tools do not support non_GUI execution.
Http-connections to port 898 from a Browser are working but the SMC is by default not configuered to export the SMC over Web-Pages - so this leads into nowhere as well.

I fear I have missed something, but I cannot figuer out what it is. A not started deamon perhaps?

 

[bfitzmai]

To create a toolbox you need to run "smc edit". From there you are on your own. I have played around and created toolboxes for other machines but not a NIS toolbox.

 

[lordsun]

Yep - I bought "Solaris Management Console Tools" by Janice Winsor, which gave me a fairly good understanding on how SMC works. I think that either our netras have problems exporting the JAVA-GUI or the SMC is not yet fully functional.
After installation you should be able to access the standard toolboxes - such as local users, printers, etc...But even this does not work. We have two other machines where SMC is up and running and we can connect from one to another and access all toolboxes. Only the netras have these trubles. Might as well be a graphically problem?!
Next week we will analyse the two working machines and see if we get the point.

 

[mattaw]

FYI on linux the kernel releases with odd numbers are all dev releases, i.e. 2.7.x is the next development.

Solaris have beta release programs but don't follow that practice at all.

Also their numbering scheme is a bit funny,

going SunOS -> solaris 2.7 (which I think was the last in that scheme) then renaming 2.7 to Solaris 8 and its carried on from there.

Matthew

The Universe: God's novelty screensaver?