vipw performs a number of consistency checks on the password entries, and will not allow a password file with a ``mangled'' entry to be installed. If vipw rejects the new password file, the user is prompted to re-enter the edit session.
Once the information has been verified, vipw uses pwd_mkdb(8) to update the user database. This is run in the background, and, at very large sites could take several minutes. Until this update is completed, the password file is unavailable for other updates and the new information is not available to programs.
The options are as follows:
/
''
to
directory.
If a
vipw
session is killed it may leave
``/etc/ptmp
'',
which will cause future
vipw
executions to fail with
``vipw:
the
passwd
file
is
busy
'',
until it is removed.
EDITOR
EDITOR
will be invoked instead of the default editor
vi(1).
/etc/master.passwd
/etc/ptmp