Administration Guide › Skeleton Files › Working with Skeleton Files

Working with Skeleton Files

The CA VM:Director installation process creates a skeleton file named GENERAL SKELETON. You can customize this file to your system’s specifications. You can also create additional skeleton files to address the needs of your various departments.

The supplied GENERAL SKELETON file follows:

USER GENERAL GENERAL 16M 32M G      ** CP directory statement
*AC= 99999999                       ** VM:Director special comment
ACCOUNT 99999999 GENERAL            ** CP directory statement
IPL CMS PARM AUTOCR                 ** CP directory statement
CONSOLE 009 3215                    ** CP directory statement
SPOOL 00C 2540 READER *             ** CP directory statement
SPOOL 00D 2540 PUNCH A              ** CP directory statement
SPOOL 00E 1403 A                    ** CP directory statement
LINK MAINT 190 190 RR               ** CP directory statement
LINK MAINT 19E 19E RR               ** CP directory statement

To decide whether your system needs more than one skeleton file, consider the following:

• System needs of your various departments
• Virtual machine configurations for various groups of users
• Storage requirements, classes, and priorities required by different groups of users

If you need more skeleton files, assign them descriptive file names, such as SALES or PURCH, to help you use them correctly. They are always of file type SKELETON.

Note: For more information about creating skeleton files, see Creating Skeleton Files.

After you create the skeleton files you need, decide which ones, if any, to allow your various directory managers to use when they create user IDs. By giving directory managers access to only certain skeleton files, you control their ability to create user IDs with specific CP privilege classes and other security authorizations.

Note: For information about enabling directory managers to use skeleton files, see Allowing Directory Managers to Use a Skeleton File.

Skeleton files can contain:

• CP directory statements
• CA VM:Director special comments
• INCLUDE statements that reference a directory profile

Of the CP directory statements, most skeleton files contain at least three kinds. However, you can include in skeleton files most other CP directory statements that you want in directory entries.

The following CP directory statements are most commonly included in skeleton files:

USER statement

With place holders for the userid and logon password fields. CA VM:Director updates these fields when you or a directory manager defines a new user ID based on the skeleton file that contains this statement. The password is set to match the userid field, unless the password is one of the special CP passwords such as NOLOG or AUTOONLY. You can provide additional parameters as necessary, which will be included as specified in any new directory entries.

ACCOUNT statement

Defines the user’s account number and distribution code; there can be up to eight account numbers. You can override the account numbers and distribution code specified on an ACCOUNT statement when you create a user ID.

CONSOLE statement

Or at least one other device record. If the USER statement defines a NOLOG user ID, no device record is required.

LINK statements

To link MAINT disks for CMS.

The following CA VM:Director special comments can be included in a skeleton file. They are explained in more detail in Special Comment Reference.

*ED= special comment

Records the last update to the directory entry that was created using the skeleton file in which this special comment appears. This comment is recommended for audits.

*PW= special comment

Record a password history of the user ID that was created using the skeleton file in which this special comment appears. This comment is recommended for audits.

*AC= special comment

Lists the account numbers the user ID is allowed to use. This comment is required only if you do not use the ACCOUNT user exit.

*ENROLL comment

Enrolls a user ID in SFS, specifying the SFS file pool, user storage group, and amount of space to allocate to the new user ID.

*SP= comment

Specifies the PROFILE EXEC file to use for a user ID. (CA VM:Director removes the *SP= statement from the user’s directory entry when you create a 191 minidisk for the user, or enroll the user in SFS and update the IPL statement.)

*US= comment

(CA VM:Secure only) Specifies a user word for the POSTRULE user exit. For information about user words in the POSTRULE user exit, see the chapter "User Exit Reference" in the Reference Guide.

The skeleton file can include MDISK statements as long as the MDISK statement defines a temporary minidisk (T–DISK), a virtual minidisk (V–DISK), or uses the automatic minidisk allocation parameters.

Note: For more information about automatic minidisk allocation, see ADDENTRY Command and ADDMDISK Command in the chapter "Command Reference" in the Reference Guide.

Note: Only the ADDENTRY command supports MDISK statements for permanent minidisks in a skeleton file. MANAGE and other commands that create user IDs ignore all permanent MDISK and minidisk–related statements.