Using NIS to maintain user information

Prerequisites

Before you can use NIS on your filer, you must

Configure the filer to use NIS
Bind the filer to an NIS server

For more information about configuring and binding the filer to use NIS, see the Data ONTAP Network Administration Guide.

Additionally, you should set up caching of group information. Using cached group information enables Data ONTAP to quickly determine CIFS users' secondary GIDs when users try to connect to the filer. Without the cached information, Data ONTAP has to access the NIS server for group information each time a CIFS user requests a connection.

Advantage of using NIS

NIS enables you to centrally maintain user information. As a result, you do not have to maintain the configuration files for each filer on your network. If you have several filers on your network, maintaining user information centrally saves you from updating these files on each filer every time you add or delete a user or a group.

Caching NIS group information

To cache NIS group information, complete the following steps.

Step	Action
1	Enter the following command: options nis.group_update_schedule hours_list hours_list can be a comma-separated list of numbers that range from 1 to 24, representing the hours of the day, or `now`, which means that the cache is updated immediately.
2	To make Data ONTAP use the cached group information, enter the following command: options nis.group_update.enable on The default is not to use cached group information.

Step

Action

Enter the following command:

options nis.group_update_schedule hours_list

hours_list can be a comma-separated list of numbers that range from 1 to 24, representing the hours of the day, or now, which means that the cache is updated immediately.

To make Data ONTAP use the cached group information, enter the following command:

options nis.group_update.enable on

The default is not to use cached group information.

Example of caching NIS group information

The following command caches NIS group information immediately and again at 2 a.m. and 2 p.m.:

options nis.group_update_schedule 2, 14, now

Displaying cached group entries

To list the group entries that are cached locally by Data ONTAP, complete the following step.

Step	Action
1	Enter the following command: *ypgroup [username]* Specifying the username option lists group entries for that user only. Use the `ypgroup` command without the username option to list group entries for every user.

Updating cached NIS group information

Any time you update the group file on the NIS master server, you should also update the cached group information on the filer. If you do not, there is a period of time when the information on the NIS master server and the filer are out of sync.

You can update the cached NIS group information on the filer using the following method.

Step

Action

1
After updating the NIS master server, enter the following command:

options nis.group_update_schedule now

OR

Add the following command to the script you use to push the NIS master server update to the NIS slave servers:

options nis.group_update_schedule now