Hi Steve,
This is a filer bug, #16022, "Windows 2000 client cannot attach to filer using /etc/passwd authentication". This problem isn't (yet) fixed in any shipping release, so I think you should contact NetApp support to obtain a patch; there isn't any known workaround other than the one you mention (install the filer into an NT domain).
Matt
-----Original Message----- From: owner-dl-toasters@netapp.com [mailto:owner-dl-toasters@netapp.com]On Behalf Of Stephen C. Losen Sent: Tuesday, January 04, 2000 2:44 PM To: toasters@mathworks.com Subject: W2000 and CIFS auth with unix passwd
We are currently using unix passwd authentication for our CIFS logins. The filer is a NIS client. It works great because we use a single NIS passwd database for our unix boxes and the filer. The unix boxes all NFS mount the filer, so our users can access their home directory either via CIFS or via telnet to unix. The same password works for both methods. The whole reason we bought the filer was to provide this unified "home directory service."
We are concerned about W2000 because no release we have tried works with this setup. We realize that clear text passwords must be enabled for this to work. There is even a registry entry for enabling this, but W2000 doesn't seem to pay any attention to it. We have over 25,000 accounts in our NIS database. We have no problems with W95, W98 or NT, so it seems dreadfully unfair to us that Microsoft would suddenly pull the plug on such an essential (to us) feature.
I'm wondering if anyone else on this list knows anything about whether Microsoft plans to address this issue. Is anyone else out there using unix authentication for CIFS logins? How are you going to deal with W2000?
I know we could work around this problem with a domain controller, etc., but that involves a lot of $$ for the NT box, NT account licenses, and maintaining a parallel user database. Or perhaps we can do it with Samba somehow. But our setup right now is so simple and painless. Admittedly it is less secure with clear text passwords, but we haven't turned off telnet, ftp, pop, imap, etc., yet and they use clear text passwords, too.
Steve Losen scl@virginia.edu phone: 804-924-0640
University of Virginia ITC Unix Support