Network Information Service (NIS) B.11.31.02 Administrator's Guide

Verifying the NIS Client Configuration
To verify the NIS client configuration, complete the following steps:
1. Log in to the NIS client as superuser.
2. Enter the following command to list the NIS maps and the master server that serves the
maps:
/usr/bin/ypwhich -m
The ypwhich -m command lists all the NIS maps available to the client, and displays the name
of the master server that serves each map.
An output similar to the following is displayed:
auto.master mastername
netid.byname mastername
publickey.byname mastername
mail.byaddr mastername
mail.aliases mastername
netgroup.byhost mastername
netgroup.byuser mastername
netgroup mastername
protocols.byname mastername
protocols.bynumber mastername
servi.bynp mastername
services.byname mastername
rpc.byname mastername
rpc.bynumber mastername
networks.byaddr mastername
networks.byname mastername
ipnodes.byaddr mastername
ipnodes.byname mastername
hosts.byaddr mastername
hosts.byname mastername
group.bygid mastername
group.byname mastername
passwd.byuid mastername
passwd.byname mastername
ypservers mastername
For example, on an NIS network with master server with hostname mammoth the mastername
will be replaced by the hostname mammoth.
If the output is not displayed, see ypwhich (1).
Guidelines for Changing Passwords in the NIS Domain
This section lists the guidelines for changing passwords in the NIS domain.
All users in the NIS domain must observe the following rules when changing their password:
• Use /usr/bin/yppasswd or passwd -r nis, instead of the passwd command to change
the login passwords.
• Users are encouraged to change their password before they leave for the day. This allows
time for the updated NIS maps on the master server to be replicated on the slave servers.
Verifying the NIS Client Configuration 41