Adding and managing users and groups

Tools for a Multiuser System

As these commands show, the topics of users and groups is far more complex than most people typically believe. For those on Debian-based systems, the convenience of adduser and addgroup scripts is paid for by a certain laziness (as well as an inevitable confusion between the commands). For others, especially on home systems, some of the available options are a reminder of the built-in tools for encouraging the regular changing of passwords.

Still, the assortment of commands for administering users and groups should come as no surprise. Most Unix-like systems are designed for multiple accounts, so naturally the command line provides the tools for creating and maintaining them as well. By learning some of these commands, you can not only help your system run better, but more efficiently as well.

The Author

Bruce Byfield is a computer journalist and a freelance writer and editor specializing in free and open source software. In addition to his writing projects, he also teaches live and e-learning courses. In his spare time, Bruce writes about Northwest Coast art. You can read more of his work at http://brucebyfield.wordpress.com

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