.TH PASSWD 1 .CT 1 comm_term sa_mortals secur .SH NAME passwd, pwx \(mi change login password .SH SYNOPSIS .B passwd [ .B -an ] [ .I name ] .PP .B priv pwx [ [ .B -qcd ] .I name ] ] .SH DESCRIPTION .I Passwd changes a password associated with the user .IR name (your own name by default). .PP The program prompts for the old password and then for the new one. The caller must supply both. The new password must be typed twice, to forestall mistakes. .PP New passwords must be at least four characters long if they use a sufficiently rich alphabet and at least six characters long if monocase. These rules are relaxed if you are insistent enough. .PP Only the owner of the name or the super-user may change a password; the owner must prove he knows the old password. .PP If the .B -a option is given, .I passwd prompts for new values of certain fields of the password file entry. .PP The super-user may use the .B -n option to install new users. The prompts are self-explanatory, and most of the defaults obvious. A null response to the .L UID: prompt assigns a numeric userid one greater than the largest one previously in .FR /etc/passwd . A null response to .L Directory: assigns a home directory in .FR /usr . If the first character of the response to this prompt is an asterisk, the remaining characters are taken as the name of the new user's home directory, and a symbolic link to this directory is placed in .FR /usr . .PP A new user's home directory starts with a file named .FR .profile , which is a copy of .F /etc/stdprofile with .B \eN replaced by the user's name, and .B \eD replaced by the name of the user's home directory. .PP .I Pwx modifies the password entry for the named user in the secret password file, .IR pwfile (5). With no option .I pwx changes the classical password for the named user, or the invoker by default. The options are .TP .B -c Change other information. A special editing password for a fictitious user, `pwedit', is demanded. Then .I pwx prompts for treatment of the user password, SNK key, maximum privilege, and clearance (maximum ceiling). .TP .B -d Delete an entry. The editing password is demanded. .TP .B -q Demand the user password. If a correct password is entered, return status 0; otherwise nonzero. .PP Options .B -c and .B -d require .B T_SETPRIV privilege. .SH FILES .F /etc/passwd .br .F /etc/stdprofile .br .F /etc/pwfile .SH "SEE ALSO" .IR crypt (3), .IR passwd (5), .IR pwfile (5), .IR pwserv (8) .br Robert Morris and Ken Thompson, `UNIX password security,' .I AT&T Bell Laboratories Technical Journal 63 (1984) 1649-1672