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---# Manage Users

_Register users on your TWiki site; change/reset/install passwords; remove user accounts_

---++ Authentication and Access Control

   * TWikiUserAuthentication describes options of user authentication
   * TWikiAccessControl describes how to define groups and how to restrict access to content

---++ Register User

It is not necessary to have user home pages in the TWiki system for Authentication to work - see TWikiUserAuthentication for details.

   * TWikiRegistration is for users to fill out a form
   * %TWIKIWEB%.NewUserTemplate can be changed to customize user home pages, it can optionally use the %MAINWEB%.UserForm to define user fields as meta data
   * BulkRegistration is for administrators to use to set up one or more accounts: either from a table or from an external file

---++ Change, Reset and Install Passwords

   * ChangePassword is for users who can remember their password and want to change it
   * ResetPassword is for users who cannot remember their password; a system generated password is e-mailed to them
   * BulkResetPassword if for administrators who want to reset many passwords at once

---++ Changing User Account Names

To change the user's WikiName:
   * Rename the user's TWiki homepage in the %MAINWEB% web, such as from =JaneSmith= to =JaneMiller=.
      * Fix backlinks in the %MAINWEB% web only
      * Make sure the group topics are updated (if any.)
   * Edit the [[%MAINWEB%.TWikiUsers]] topic and move the user's entry so that the list is in proper alphabetical order.
   * Recreate the old topic with a pointer to the new topic, so that links in other webs work properly. Example content:%BR%
     =%<nop>M% Jane Smith is now known as !JaneMiller=

If external authentication is used and you want to change the login name:
   * The login name needs to be changed in the directory server, such as AD or LDAP
   * In TWiki's [[%MAINWEB%.TWikiUsers]] topic, fix the mapping from login name to WikiName such as from:%BR%
     =&nbsp;  * !JohnSmith - john - 13 Sep 2006= %BR%
     to: %BR%
     =&nbsp;  * !JohnSmith - jsmith - 13 Sep 2006=

---++ Removing User Accounts

To remove a user account (<nop>FredQuimby, who logs in as "fred"):

   1 If you are using a =.htpasswd= file, edit the =.htpasswd= file to delete the line starting =fred:=
      * *Warning:* Do *not* use the Apache =htpasswd= program with =.htpasswd= files generated by TWiki! =htpasswd= wipes out email addresses that TWiki plants in the info fields of this file.
   2 Remove the =FredQuimby - fred= line from the <nop>%MAINWEB%.TWikiUsers topic
   3 Remove =FredQuimby= from all groups and from all the =ALLOWWEB/ALLOWTOPIC...= declarations, if any.%BR% __Note:__ If you fail to do this you risk creating a security hole, as the next user to register with the wikiname Fred<nop>Quimby will inherit the old Fred<nop>Quimby's permissions.
   4 _[optional]_ Delete their user topic %MAINWEB%.<nop>FredQuimby (including attachments, if any.)

__Note:__ Consider leaving the user topic file in place so their past signatures and revision author entries don't end up looking like AnUncreatedTopic. If you want to make it clear the user is no longer with the organization or has been banished, replace the topic content with a note to that effect. The existance of the <nop>UserName topic should also prevent that user name from being re-used, sealing the potential security hole regarding inherited permissions..

__Related Topics:__ AdminDocumentationCategory
