Linux passwords (for Linux services such as the shell, e-mail, etc.) are
stored in a different format than SMB passwords. Linux passwords are
normally stored in the /etc/passwd file while SMB passwords are
stored in /etc/smbpasswd file.
Linuxconf can update both password databases when you change or set a user account password. If you choose not to use this feature, you must update the SMB password using the smbpasswd utility.
Note that the two files (/etc/passwd and
/etc/smbpasswd) must be
synchronized, so that ID numbers in one match the IDs in the other.
For this reason, the SMB password file may be managed using a different
strategy.
Here you are on your own. For each new Linux account, you must
use the smbpasswd to add accounts in /etc/smbpasswd
using the -a command line option. You must also
enter the password which will be used for SMB transactions.
Linuxconf fully synchronizes both password databases. Both databases will contain the same passwords, encrypted differently.
Linuxconf will create and delete accounts in the SMB password database, but will never update a SMB password,
This is the recommended option if you install the pam_smbpass
authentication module. This module allows you to use
a single password database (/etc/smbpasswd) for all
services, including normal Linux logons.
Samba users (Windows users) can change their password. This updates the
SMB password in /etc/smbpasswd. If you enable this feature, the
Linux password will be updated, also.
This controls what string will be shown in the printer comment box in print manager and next to the IPC connection in "net view." It can be any string that you want your users to see.
It also sets what will appear next to the machine name in the browse lists.
Default: Samba %v
Example: University of GNUs Samba Server
This controls which workgroup your server will appear to be in when queried by clients.
Default: set in the Makefile
Example: MYGROUP
This is the name of the machine as seen by SMB clients. Samba uses the hostname of the server by default. You can specify a different one if needed.
A Samba server may be accessed using different names. If you use the %L macro, one can easily create virtual services where the effective directory exported changes, depending on the server name used. You can use this to merge two servers into one, thus preserving client configuration (the old server logically continues to exist).