samba - Apr 2005 - 'username map' --> password(s)

Hello.

One of the advertised uses of the 'username map' smb.conf parameter is:
'to map multiple users to a single username so that they can more easily 
share files.'

This sounds great, & is what I've wanted to do more than once.
However, there is the issue of the username mapping taking place before 
the authentication.
This requires the individual users to give a different password than the 
one that goes with their ID (& that they are already supplying).
For the stated purpose, this operation appears to make little sense.

Am I missing something here?
Is there a way around this, or another good way to accomplish what I'm 
wanting?

Thanks.


Gary R. Webster

webster@lexmark.com:
> One of the advertised uses of the 'username map' smb.conf parameter
> is:
> 'to map multiple users to a single username so that they can more
> easily share files.'
>
> This sounds great, & is what I've wanted to do more than once.
> However, there is the issue of the username mapping taking place
> before the authentication. This requires the individual users to give
> a different password than the one that goes with their ID (& that
> they are already supplying). For the stated purpose, this operation
> appears to make little sense.
Garrie,

Why not put the users in a group? Or (I just learned how to today on
my Red Hat RHAS3 test server), far better, get ACLs working. Then
you can point-'n-click a file, directory, whatever, and give or take
away rights to/from single users or groups as you wish. And if it's
a directory, you can have smb.conf inherit ACLs for a share,
presumably (I haven't tried it yet) for all the files in that
directory. I think ACLs are going to make Samba far more powerful
than it was for me.

--Tonni

--
mail: tonye@billy.demon.nl
http://www.billy.demon.nl