Thanks to Ann Majeske from Compaq.
I give his response below:
""
There is some confusion about what the maximum line length
in /etc/group should be, and how to handle it (I.e. break
long lines into multiple lines with the same name and gid or
break long lines into multiple lines with different names and
the same gid). I don't know the current "official" limit, but
some commands and utilities may have lower limits than others.
(Most now "malloc" the needed memory so they have no limit.)
The "hardest" limit I know of is for the NIS group map. I
think that limit is around 1024 characters and has to do with
the database used. Since you aren't using NIS, you don't
have to worry about that one.
There is no OS problem with multiple lines in the /etc/group
file with the same name and gid, or different names with the
same gid. I.e. with /etc/group containing
groupa:*:222:user1,user2
groupa:*:222:user3,user4
groupb:*:222:user5,user6
the OS will consider users user1, user2, user3, user4, user5,
and user6 to all be in the same group. Some commands and
utilities may still get confused with one or the other way of
splitting the group into multiple lines, but those problems
are strictly cosmetic. (For instance, if user5 issues the
"groups" command, it will probably show that he's a member
of "groupa", not "groupb".)
The simple answer is that you shouldn't worry about having
multiple lines with the same group name and gid, the system
will work just fine.
""
original message was :
-------------------
My /etc/group looks like :
....
group1:*:100:
group2:*:101:users1, user2 .................... ....
usern
group2:*:101: usern+1, usern+2
group4:*:103: userx
So some group lines are limited to about 256 characters.
I read in archives and in admin book that maximum line lengh in /etc/group
is LINE_MAX define in limits.h.
In limits.h :
..
# define LINE_MAX _POSIX2_LINE_MAX
...
# define _POSIX2_LINE_MAX 2048
If i consider 2048 / 8 = 256 each line is limited to 256 characters OK.
But i have some lines in /etc/group with same group name and same gid.
It seems that this don't get any trouble in running OS;
But i thaught it was impossible having many lines with same group name and
same gid.
--
Jacques Maleyrot
Universite de Bourgogne
Centre de Ressources Informatiques
BP 27877 21078 DIJON Cedex
Email: Jacques.Maleyrot_at_mail.u-bourgogne.fr
tel : (33) 380395205
Fax: (33) 380395269
Received on Fri Aug 25 2000 - 11:51:08 NZST