[Pkg-shadow-devel] Bug#583593: passwd: disabling and enabling shadow again breaks NIS

[Santiago Vila]

Package: passwd
Version: 1:4.1.4.2-1

On a NIS client where shadow passwords have been temporarily disabled,
the command "shadowconfig on" creates /etc/shadow without the NIS entry

+::::::::

and it also creates /etc/gshadow without the entry

+:::

making NIS not to work at all.

i.e. "shadowconfig off" followed by "shadowconfig on" breaks NIS completely.

As a side effect, this script to enable NIS on a Debian system does no
longer work:

if grep -q -v "+::::::" /etc/passwd; then
  shadowconfig off
  echo "+::::::" >> /etc/passwd
  echo "+:::" >> /etc/group
  shadowconfig on
fi


Also, "shadowconfig off" on a system where NIS is enabled gives this warning:

invalid shadow group file entry
delete line '+:::'?


Both things seem like a regression to me. If I'm mistaken and it's
intentional, please document it properly.


Thanks.