Apple Mac OS X Server (version 10.2.3 or later) - Manual (Page 145)

Users and Groups 145
Working With Group Settings for Users
Group settings identify the groups a user is a member of.
In Workgroup Manager, use the Groups tab in the user account window to work with group
settings.
See “Administering Group Accounts” on page 167 for information on administering groups.
Defining a User’s Primary Group
A primary group is the group to which a user belongs by default.
The ID of the primary group is used by the file system when the user accesses a file he or she
does not own. The file system checks the file’s group privileges, and if the primary group ID
of the user matches the ID of the group associated with the file, the user inherits group
access privileges. The primary group offers the fastest way to determine whether a user has
group privileges for a file.
The primary group ID should be a unique string of digits. By default, it is 20 (which identifies
the group named “staff ”), but you can change it. The maximum value is 2,147,483,648.
You can use Workgroup Manager to define the primary group ID of an account stored in a
NetInfo or LDAPv3 directory domain or to review the primary group information in any
directory domain accessible from the server you are using.
To work with a primary group ID using Workgroup Manager:
1 In Workgroup Manager, open the account you want to work with if it is not already open.
To open an account, click the Accounts button, then use the At pop-up menu to open the
directory domain where the user’s account resides. To edit the primary group, click the lock
to be authenticated. Select the user in the user list.
2 Click the Groups tab.
3 Edit or review the contents of the Primary Group ID field. Workgroup Manager displays the
full and short names of the group after you enter a primary group ID if the group exists and
is accessible in the search path of the server you are logged into.
Adding a User to Groups
Add a user to a group when you want multiple users to have the same file access privileges or
when you want to manage their Mac OS X preferences using workgroups or computer lists.
You can use Workgroup Manager to add a user to a group if the user and group accounts are
in a NetInfo or LDAPv3 directory domain.
To add a user to a group using Workgroup Manager:
1 In Workgroup Manager, open the user account you want to work with if it is not already
open.
LL0395.Book Page 145 Wednesday, November 20, 2002 11:44 AM