nfs

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Subject: Re: nfs
From: "Steve \"Stevers!\" Coile" <scoile@redhat.com>
Date: Mon, 7 Jun 1999 21:49:33 -0400 (EDT)


On Mon, 7 Jun 1999, Lee, Steve wrote:
> i tried setting up nfs to mount a partition from another
> server but had too much problems.  could someone 
> go through a quick protocol on setting one up for me.
> i did read the howto and followed it.  i find errors but
> when i try to see what i mounted, i get 0 total files.
> i'm not sure what is wrong.  

Sounds like a number of circumstances are conspiring against you:

- You're attempting to access the directory while using the "root"
  account.

- The permissions on the directory would normally only allow the owner
  of the directory and root to access its contents.

- You're using the default NFS export options, which include
  "root_squash".

The problem is that the NFS server, by default, treats root on the remote
machines (the NFS clients) as those it were just another user and not
the superuser.  Consequently, root is subject to the same permissions
and prohibitions any other user is when attempting to access NFS mounted
directories.  This is a security feature.

You can get around this in one of two ways:

- Don't use the root account when accessing the NFS-mounted directories.
  Ideally, you're also using YP/NIS or have your /etc/passwd and
  /etc/group files synchronized with those on the NFS server, such that
  the users on the NFS clients have the same UIDs and GIDs as they do
  on the NFS server.

- Alternatively, if you're extremely confident about your ability to
  use root without inadvertently deleting entire directory trees, you
  can disable the "root_squash" option by adding the "no_root_squash"
  option to your /etc/exports file on the NFS server.  For instance,
  if your current /etc/exports contains:

	/home	somehost(rw)

  change it to:

	/home	somehost(rw,no_root_squash)

Once you've made changes to /etc/exports on the NFS server, you need to
instruct the NFS services that the changes have been made.  The procedure
for doing this is different depending on which version of Red Hat Linux
you're using.  If you're using RHL 5.2 or below, use the following:

	killall -HUP rpc.mountd rpc.nfsd

If you're using RHL 6.0, use the following instead:

	exportfs -arv

You'll also need to unmount and remount the NFS volumes on the NFS
clients, I believe.

Please verify all this with the appropriate man pages (mount, exports,
rpc.mountd, rpc.nfsd, exportfs).  I'm giving this to you from memory,
so some if it may wrong.

===


Subject: Re: NIS/NFS Woes 
From: J C Lawrence <claw@varesearch.com>
Date: Fri, 18 Jun 1999 19:01:47 -0700


On Fri, 18 Jun 1999 15:15:24 -0700 
Kent Howard <kent@concentrictool.com> wrote:

> What are the alternatives to NIS/NFS?  

I consider NFS a virus, so I'll leave that there.  Another
possibility to NIS is to run LDAP under PAM.  I've toyed with
setting it up, got most of the way there and ran out of time (I'm
not overly familiar with LDAP).

====




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