topic Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist in Operating System - OpenVMS

Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

Clayton_12 — Fri, 02 Dec 2005 09:15:13 GMT

Hi :

I have an OPenVMs 6.2-1H operational system on an Alpha2100 and a test 8.2 system on an Alph800.

I was wondering if it is possible to migrate the user files and righslist from the 6.2-1h system to the 8.2 system and then restore data files and disk with associatd permissions and rights intact on the 8.2 box?

Thx
Clayton

Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

Volker Halle — Fri, 02 Dec 2005 09:42:20 GMT

Clayton,

merging RIGHTSLIST and SYSUAF files is described in the OpenVMS Cluster Systems manual appendix B:

http://h71000.www7.hp.com/doc/731FINAL/4477/4477pro_023.html#build_uaf_upgrade

Volker.

Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

Uwe Zessin — Fri, 02 Dec 2005 10:11:21 GMT

I simply use a text editor on a copy of the active file(s) to remove any unwanted entries - although the records are binary, it is easy to identify the usernames. When I leave the editor, it writes to a simple sequential file.

Then I use the CONVERT mechanism to merge with an existing indexed SYSUAF.DAT or I use a CONVERT/FDL to create an all-new file. The FDL definition can easily created from:
$ analyze/rms/fdl...

Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

Arch_Muthiah — Fri, 02 Dec 2005 12:24:57 GMT

Clayton

The format of the SYSUAF.DAT, RIGHTSLIST, and associated files are upward-compatible. So you can modify and copy as Ian suggested.

I guess you have to take NET$PROXY.DAT file also, use SYS$SYSTEM:CONVERT_PROXY.EXE to convert netproxy.dat to net$proxy.dat

The big task here is that as RIGHTSLIST identifier values and UIC values that end up scattered around the target system must be rationalized to node where you copy.

In the same way the problem exist with UIC values, as these too tend to be scattered all over the system environment. Like the
binary identifier values, you will find UIC values associated with disks, ACLs, queues, and various other structures.

Archunan

Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

Clayton_12 — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 14:03:41 GMT

FInally got around to doing some test here.
Doing a direct convert on the SYSUAF.
NOw when I try to log on I get the error:

Error accessing system authorization file
Invalid record size

Any ideas on this error?

Do I have to go the whole gambit of Rights list etc before the convert works?

Are there any problems trying to convert SYSUAF from 6.2-1h tp 8.2?

Thx
Clayton

Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

John Gillings — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 15:19:31 GMT

>Error accessing system authorization file
>Invalid record size.
>Any ideas on this error?

Sounds like you lost the file/record attributes on the way.

>Are there any problems trying to
>convert SYSUAF from 6.2-1h tp 8.2?

There is no conversion, the files are the same format. They can even be physically shared in a cluster (a mixed version V6.2 + V8.2 cluster is not supported, but there are reports that it does work!)

If you're having trouble, start with something simple. COPY the files from the V6.2 system to the V8.2 system, put them in the correct locations and reboot. Verify that your V8.2 system now has the same set of usernames & passwords as the V6.2 system.

If you need to merge in the usernames from the V8.2 system, follow the documentation recommended by Volker:

OpenVMS Cluster Systems manual appendix B:

http://h71000.www7.hp.com/doc/731FINAL/4477/4477pro_023.html#build_uaf_upgrade

Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

Clayton_12 — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 15:29:56 GMT

Hi John:
Thanks for tyhe response.

Simple ?
I can't seem to get the one I corrupted back.

I was doing the test on a backup image drive. Now when I go to copy the SYSuaf from the original system harddrive to the imaged drive I still get corrupt messages when I try to boot to the imaged drive.

I'm putting the sysuaf.dat in sys$common:[sysexe].

Is there somewhere I should be putting the files as well?

Thanks
Clayton

Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

Hein van den Heuvel — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 18:51:59 GMT

I would start out by checking whether is is 'just' loginout which is unhappy about the fresh UAF, or whether it is a bad file.

Check stuff like:
$SEARCH/STAT/WIN=0 sysuaf blahbla
$ANAL/RMS sysuaf ... is it still a multy key indexed file?
Longest record?

What do you mean by:
"Doing a direct convert on the SYSUAF."
What was the EXACT command used?

Maybe (unlikely) you need to convert/trunc to deal with a bad record in one ot the input files?

The only problem I am aware of with SYSUAF record comming from older system (like V4.0!) around. you may get some 'short' records (644 bytes) and other at the normal size (1412 bytes). Maybe even some at 671 bytes. There are also minor inconsistencies possible under specific USERDATA usage conditions.

Hein.

Re: Coping/exporting UAf accounts and rightlist

Clayton_12 — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 10:39:11 GMT

Once again all the advice seems to be right .

A straight copy finally work.

I was able to copy the sysuaf.dat from the 6.2 system to the 8.2 system and able to log in.
Some of the troubles were locations ; the 6.2 used a version in the sys$root:[sysexe] and I was using the sys$common:[sysexe] version. And the copy seem to be bad. When I FTP the sysuaf.dat accross it would get different format. I fianlly used a host copy over decnet to copy the file.
Using the edit sysuaf tip help in the differences in file copy and in the file version contents.

HAven't tested yet , but I'm assuming rightlists and NETproxy will be okay as well.
More issues may arise from this yet. Once again thanks to all for the advice and learning.

Clayton