Troubleshooting
Problem
Valid user name and password are not recognized by IDS when standard shadow password utility is used on Linux and AIX
Symptom
Client application fails to connect to database server
Cause
Standard shadow passwords are not supported
Environment
Linux, AIX
Diagnosing The Problem
Using pwunconv to generate a new /etc/passwd file from /etc/shadow resolves the problem
Resolving The Problem
There are a number of ways to resolve the problem.
1. Stop using shadow passwords and go back to using the regular password file instead. See shadow password documentation.
2. Change the permissions on /etc/shadow so that user informix can read it. This can be accomplished with 'chmod 644 /etc/shadow' done as root.
By default, the /etc/shadow permissions are 600, owned by user root, and not readable by user informix. Note: This method does not work when the connection is being made through the ODBC Informix Wire Protocol driver.
3. Copy the encrypted passwords for the database users from /etc/shadow to /etc/passwd. If the authentication process can find the passwords in /etc/passwd, it won't look any further and the shadow password issue becomes moot.
4. Use pwconv and pwunconv utilities to add people to the system and create the /etc/passwd file as needed.
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Document Information
Modified date:
03 June 2021
UID
swg21607817