OpenExtensions for z/VM "Q"s and "A"s

Question: Why is it I can't bring up a shell with my userid wonka, but if I change the UID to 0 for that userid (make it a superuser), then I can bring up a shell? I get some message about the home directory not being accessible but permission for /u/depta/wonka is 755.

Answer: Try this procedure for finding the problem:

  1. Determine what the system thinks the home directory is, using these CMS commands:
    OPENVM QUERY MOUNT
    OPENVM QUERY DIRECTORY
    
  2. Verify that the directory exists.
  3. Verify that <username> has READ and EXECUTE (r-x) permissions for each directory along the HOME path.

For example, if a user's home directory is /u/dept/wiz, check the permissions of / (the root), /u, /u/dept, and /u/dept/wiz. This can be done with the following shell command:

  ls -ld / /u /u/dept /u/dept/wiz
The permissions of / (the root), /u, and /u/dept, and /u/dept/wiz should all be at least 755. Note that HFSs are initially created with permissions of 700 for security reasons, so don't forget to check the mountpoints of all mounted filesystems.

For more questions and answers, go to our archive of questions and answers.