Managing users on the Virtual I/O Server

You can create, list, change, switch, and remove users by using Virtual I/O Server or the IBM® Tivoli® Identity Manager.

When the Virtual I/O Server is installed, the only user type that is active is the prime administrator (padmin). The prime administrator can create additional user IDs with types of system administrator, service representative, or development engineer.

Note: You cannot create the prime administrator (padmin) user ID. It is automatically created and enabled after the Virtual I/O Server is installed.

The following table lists the user management tasks available on the Virtual I/O Server, as well as the commands you must run to accomplish each task.

Table 1. Tasks and associated commands for working with Virtual I/O Server users
Task	Command
Change passwords	cfgassist
Create a system administrator user ID	mkuser
Create a service representative (SR) user ID	mkuser with the -sr flag
Create a development engineer (DE) user ID	mkuser with the -de flag
Create an LDAP user	mkuser with the -ldap flag
List a user's attributes For example, determine whether a user is an LDAP user.	lsuser
Change a user's attributes	chuser
Switch to another user	su
Remove a user	rmuser

You can use the IBM Tivoli Identity Manager to automate the management of Virtual I/O Server users. Tivoli Identity Manager provides a Virtual I/O Server adapter that acts as an interface between the Virtual I/O Server and the Tivoli Identity Manager Server. The adapter acts as a trusted virtual administrator on the Virtual I/O Server, performing tasks like the following:

Creating a user ID to authorize access to the Virtual I/O Server.
Modifying an existing user ID to access the Virtual I/O Server.
Removing access from a user ID. This deletes the user ID from the Virtual I/O Server.
Suspending a user account by temporarily deactivating access to the Virtual I/O Server.
Restoring a user account by reactivating access to the Virtual I/O Server.
Changing a user account password on the Virtual I/O Server.
Reconciling the user information of all current users on the Virtual I/O Server.
Reconciling the user information of a particular user account on the Virtual I/O Server by performing a lookup.

For more information, see the IBM Tivoli Identity Manager product manuals.