System Administration Guide: Naming and Directory Services (FNS and NIS+)

This message indicates that the parent domain of the domain you typed on the command line does not exist. This message should only appear when you are setting up a nonroot master server.
If the domain name is spelled incorrectly, rerun the script with the correct domain name.

If the domain's parent domain does not exist, you have to create the parent domain first, and then you can create this domain.

**ERROR: Don't know about the domain "domainname". Please check your domainname.

This message indicates that you typed an unrecognized domain name. Rerun the script with the correct domain name.

**ERROR: failed dumping tablename table.

The script was unable to populate the cred table because the script did not succeed in dumping the named table.
If niscat tablename .org_dir fails, make sure that all the servers are operating, then rerun the script to populate the tablename table.

If niscat tablename.org_dir is working, the error might have been caused by the NIS+ server being temporarily busy. Rerun the script to populate the tablename table.

**ERROR: host hostname is not a valid NIS+ principal in domain domainname. This host name must be defined in the credential table in domain domainname. Use nisclient -c to create the host credential

A machine has to be a valid NIS+ client with proper credentials before it can become an NIS+ server. To convert a machine to an NIS+ root replica server, the machine first must be an NIS+ client in the root domain. Follow the instructions on how to add a new client to a domain, then rerun nisserver -R.

Before you can convert a machine to an NIS+ nonroot master or a replica server, the machine must be an NIS+ client in the parent domain of the domain that it plans to serve. Follow the instructions on how to add a new client to a domain, then rerun nisserver -M or nisserver -R.

This problem should not occur when you are setting up a root master server.

Error in accessing NIS+ cold start file is NIS+ installed?

This message is returned if NIS+ is not installed on a machine or if for some reason the file /var/nis/NIS_COLD_START could not be found or accessed. Check to see if there is a /var/nis/NIS_COLD_START file. If the file exists, make sure your path is set correctly and that NIS_COLD_START has the proper permissions. Then rename or remove the old cold-start file and rerun the nisclient script to install NIS+ on the machine.

This message is generated by the cache manager that sends the NIS+ error code constant: NIS_COLDSTART_ERR. See the write and open man pages for additional information on why a file might not be accessible.

Error in RPC subsystem

This fatal error indicates the RPC subsystem failed in some way. Generally, there will be a syslog message on either the client or server side indicating why the RPC request failed.

This message is generated by the NIS+ error code constant: NIS_RPCERROR. See the nis_tables and nis_names man pages for additional information.

**ERROR: it failed to add the credential for root.

The NIS+ command nisaddcred failed to create the root credential when trying to set up a root master server. Check your system console for system error messages:
If there is a system error message, fix the problem described in the error message and then rerun nisserver.

If there aren't any system error messages, check to see whether the rpc.nisd process is running. If it is not running, restart it and then rerun nisserver.

**ERROR: it failed to create the tables.

The NIS+ command nissetup failed to create the directories and tables. Check your system console for system error messages:
If there is a system error message, fix the problem described in the error message and rerun nisserver.

If there aren't any system error messages, check to see whether the rpc.nisd process is running. If it is not running, restart it and rerun nisserver.

**ERROR: it failed to initialize the root server.

The NIS+ command nisinit -r failed to initialize the root master server. Check your system console for system error messages. If there is a system error message, fix the problem described in the error message and rerun nisserver.

**ERROR: it failed to make the domainname directory

The NIS+ command nismkdir failed to make the new directory domainname when running nisserver to create a nonroot master. The parent domain does not have create permission to create this new domain.
If you are not the owner of the domain or a group member of the parent domain, rerun the script as the owner or as a group member of the parent domain.

If rpc.nisd is not running on the new master server of the domain that you are trying to create, restart rpc.nisd.

**ERROR: it failed to promote new master for the domainname directory

The NIS+ command nismkdir failed to promote the new master for the directory domainname when creating a nonroot master with the nisserver script.
If you do not have modify permission in the parent domain of this domain, rerun the script as the owner or as a group member of the parent domain.

If rpc.nisd is not running on the servers of the domain that you are trying to promote, restart rpc.nisd on these servers and rerun nisserver.

**ERROR: it failed to replicate the directory-name directory

The NIS+ command nismkdir failed to create the new replica for the directory directory-name.
If rpc.nisd is not running on the master server of the domain that you are trying to replicate, restart rpc.nisd on the master server, rerun nisserver.

If rpc.nisd is not running on the new replica server, restart it on the new replica and rerun nisserver.

**ERROR: invalid group name. It must be a group in the root-domain domain.

This message indicates that you used an invalid group name while trying to configure a root master server. Rerun nisserver -r with a valid group name for root-domain.

**ERROR: invalid name "client-name" It is neither an host nor an user name.

This message indicates that you typed an invalid client-name.
If client-name was spelled incorrectly, rerun nisclient -c with the correct client-name.

If client-name was spelled correctly, but it does not exist in the proper table, put client-name into the proper table and rerun nisclient -c. For example, a user client belongs in the passwd table, and a host client belongs in the hosts table.

**ERROR: hostname is a master server for this domain. You cannot demote a master server to replica. If you really want to demote this master, you should promote a replica server to master using nisserver with the M option.

You cannot directly convert a master server to a replica server of the same domain. You can, however, change a replica to be the new master server of a domain by running nisserver -M with the replica host name as the new master. This automatically makes the old master a replica.

**ERROR: missing hostnames or usernames.

This message indicates that you did not type the client names on the command line. Rerun nisclient -c with the client names.

**ERROR: NIS+ group name must end with a "."

This message indicates that you did not specify a fully qualified group name ending with a period. Rerun the script with a fully qualified group name.

**ERROR: NIS+ server is not running on remote-host. You must do the following before becoming an NIS+ server: 1. become an NIS+ client of the parent domain or any domain above the domain which you plan to serve. (nisclient) 2. start the NIS+ server. (rpc.nisd)

This message indicates that rpc.nisd is not running on the remote machine that you are trying to convert to an NIS+ server. Use the nisclient script to become an NIS+ client of the parent domain or any domain above the domain you plan to serve; start rpc.nisd on remote-host.

**ERROR: nisinit failed.

nisinit was unable to create the NIS_COLD_START file.

Check the following:
That the NIS+ server you specified with the -H option is running--use ping

That you typed the correct domain name

That rpc.nisd is running on the server

That the nobody class has read permission for this domain

**ERROR: NIS map transfer failed. tablename table will not be loaded.

NIS+ was unable to transfer the NIS map for this table to the NIS+ database.
If the NIS server host is running, try running the script again. The error might have been due to a temporary failure.

If all tables have this problem, try running the script again using a different NIS server.

**ERROR: no permission to create directory domainname

The parent domain does not have create permission to create this new domain. If you are not the owner of the domain or as a group member of the parent domain, rerun the script as the owner, or as a group member of the parent domain.

**ERROR: no permission to replicate directory domainname.

This message indicates that you do not have permission to replicate the domain. Rerun the script as the owner or as a group member of the domain.

error receiving zone transfer

DNS error message. This usually indicates a syntax error in one of the primary server's DNS files. See "NIS Troubleshooting" in System Administration Guide: Naming and Directory Services (DNS, NIS, and LDAP).

**ERROR: table tablename .org_dir.domainname does not exist." tablename table will not be loaded."

The script did not find the NIS+ table tablename.
If tablename is spelled incorrectly, rerun the script with the correct table name.

If the tablename table does not exist, use nissetup to create the table if tablename is one of the standard NIS+ tables. Or use nistbladm to create the private table tablename. Then rerun the script to populate this table.

If the tablename table exists, the error might have been caused by the NIS+ server being temporarily busy. Rerun the script to populate this tablename table.

**ERROR: this name "clientname" is in both the passwd and hosts tables. You cannot have an username same as the host name.

client-name appears in both the passwd and hosts tables. One name is not allowed to be in both of these tables. Manually remove the entry from either the passwd or hosts table. Then, rerun nisclient -c.

**ERROR: You cannot use the -u option as a root user.

This message indicates that the superuser tried to run nisclient -u. The -u option is for initializing ordinary users only. Superusers do not need be initialized as NIS+ clients.

**ERROR: You have specified the Z option after having selected the X option. Please select only one of these options [list]. Do you want to see more information on this command?

The script you are running allows you to choose only one of the listed options.
Type y to view additional information.

Type n to stop the script and exit.


	This message indicates that the parent domain of the domain you typed on the command line does not exist. This message should only appear when you are setting up a nonroot master server. If the domain name is spelled incorrectly, rerun the script with the correct domain name. If the domain's parent domain does not exist, you have to create the parent domain first, and then you can create this domain. `ERROR: Don't know about the domain "domainname". Please check your domainname.` This message indicates that you typed an unrecognized domain name. Rerun the script with the correct domain name. `ERROR: failed dumping tablename table.` The script was unable to populate the cred table because the script did not succeed in dumping the named table. If `niscat` tablename `.org_dir` fails, make sure that all the servers are operating, then rerun the script to populate the tablename table. If `niscat` tablename`.org_dir` is working, the error might have been caused by the NIS+ server being temporarily busy. Rerun the script to populate the tablename table. `ERROR: host hostname is not a valid NIS+ principal in domain domainname. This host name must be defined in the credential table in domain domainname. Use nisclient -c to create the host credential` A machine has to be a valid NIS+ client with proper credentials before it can become an NIS+ server. To convert a machine to an NIS+ root replica server, the machine first must be an NIS+ client in the root domain. Follow the instructions on how to add a new client to a domain, then rerun `nisserver` `-R`. Before you can convert a machine to an NIS+ nonroot master or a replica server, the machine must be an NIS+ client in the parent domain of the domain that it plans to serve. Follow the instructions on how to add a new client to a domain, then rerun `nisserver` `-M` or `nisserver` `-R`. This problem should not occur when you are setting up a root master server. `Error in accessing NIS+ cold start file is NIS+ installed?` This message is returned if NIS+ is not installed on a machine or if for some reason the file `/var/nis/NIS_COLD_START` could not be found or accessed. Check to see if there is a `/var/nis/NIS_COLD_START` file. If the file exists, make sure your path is set correctly and that `NIS_COLD_START` has the proper permissions. Then rename or remove the old cold-start file and rerun the `nisclient` script to install NIS+ on the machine. This message is generated by the cache manager that sends the NIS+ error code constant: `NIS_COLDSTART_ERR`. See the `write` and `open` man pages for additional information on why a file might not be accessible. `Error in RPC subsystem` This fatal error indicates the RPC subsystem failed in some way. Generally, there will be a `syslog` message on either the client or server side indicating why the RPC request failed. This message is generated by the NIS+ error code constant: `NIS_RPCERROR`. See the `nis_tables` and `nis_names` man pages for additional information. `ERROR: it failed to add the credential for root.` The NIS+ command `nisaddcred` failed to create the root credential when trying to set up a root master server. Check your system console for system error messages: If there is a system error message, fix the problem described in the error message and then rerun `nisserver`. If there aren't any system error messages, check to see whether the `rpc.nisd` process is running. If it is not running, restart it and then rerun `nisserver`. `ERROR: it failed to create the tables.` The NIS+ command `nissetup` failed to create the directories and tables. Check your system console for system error messages: If there is a system error message, fix the problem described in the error message and rerun `nisserver`. If there aren't any system error messages, check to see whether the `rpc.nisd` process is running. If it is not running, restart it and rerun `nisserver`. `ERROR: it failed to initialize the root server.` The NIS+ command `nisinit` `-r` failed to initialize the root master server. Check your system console for system error messages. If there is a system error message, fix the problem described in the error message and rerun `nisserver`. `*ERROR: it failed to make the domainname directory` The NIS+ command `nismkdir` failed to make the new directory domainname* when running `nisserver` to create a nonroot master. The parent domain does not have create permission to create this new domain. If you are not the owner of the domain or a group member of the parent domain, rerun the script as the owner or as a group member of the parent domain. If `rpc.nisd` is not running on the new master server of the domain that you are trying to create, restart `rpc.nisd`. `*ERROR: it failed to promote new master for the domainname directory` The NIS+ command `nismkdir` failed to promote the new master for the directory domainname* when creating a nonroot master with the `nisserver` script. If you do not have modify permission in the parent domain of this domain, rerun the script as the owner or as a group member of the parent domain. If `rpc.nisd` is not running on the servers of the domain that you are trying to promote, restart `rpc.nisd` on these servers and rerun `nisserver`. `*ERROR: it failed to replicate the directory-name directory` The NIS+ command `nismkdir` failed to create the new replica for the directory directory-name. If `rpc.nisd` is not running on the master server of the domain that you are trying to replicate, restart `rpc.nisd` on the master server, rerun `nisserver`. If `rpc.nisd` is not running on the new replica server, restart it on the new replica and rerun `nisserver`. `ERROR: invalid group name. It must be a group in the root-domain domain.` This message indicates that you used an invalid group name while trying to configure a root master server. Rerun `nisserver` `-r` with a valid group name for root-domain. `ERROR: invalid name "client-name" It is neither an host nor an user name.` This message indicates that you typed an invalid client-name. If client-name* was spelled incorrectly, rerun `nisclient` `-c` with the correct client-name. If client-name was spelled correctly, but it does not exist in the proper table, put client-name into the proper table and rerun `nisclient` `-c`. For example, a user client belongs in the passwd table, and a host client belongs in the hosts table. `*ERROR: hostname is a master server for this domain. You cannot demote a master server to replica. If you really want to demote this master, you should promote a replica server to master using nisserver with the M option.` You cannot directly convert a master server to a replica server of the same domain. You can, however, change a replica to be the new master server of a domain by running `nisserver` `-M` with the replica host name as the new master. This automatically makes the old* master a replica. `ERROR: missing hostnames or usernames.` This message indicates that you did not type the client names on the command line. Rerun `nisclient` `-c` with the client names. `ERROR: NIS+ group name must end with a "."` This message indicates that you did not specify a fully qualified group name ending with a period. Rerun the script with a fully qualified group name. `*ERROR: NIS+ server is not running on remote-host. You must do the following before becoming an NIS+ server: 1. become an NIS+ client of the parent domain or any domain above the domain which you plan to serve. (nisclient) 2. start the NIS+ server. (rpc.nisd)` This message indicates that `rpc.nisd` is not running on the remote machine that you are trying to convert to an NIS+ server. Use the `nisclient` script to become an NIS+ client of the parent domain or any domain above the domain you plan to serve; start `rpc.nisd` on remote-host. `ERROR: nisinit failed.` `nisinit` was unable to create the `NIS_COLD_START` file. Check the following: That the NIS+ server you specified with the `-H` option is running--use `ping` That you typed the correct domain name That `rpc.nisd` is running on the server That the nobody class has read permission for this domain `ERROR: NIS map transfer failed. tablename table will not be loaded.` NIS+ was unable to transfer the NIS map for this table to the NIS+ database. If the NIS server host is running, try running the script again. The error might have been due to a temporary failure. If all tables have this problem, try running the script again using a different NIS server. `ERROR: no permission to create directory domainname` The parent domain does not have create permission to create this new domain. If you are not the owner of the domain or as a group member of the parent domain, rerun the script as the owner, or as a group member of the parent domain. `ERROR: no permission to replicate directory domainname.` This message indicates that you do not have permission to replicate the domain. Rerun the script as the owner or as a group member of the domain. `error receiving zone transfer` DNS error message. This usually indicates a syntax error in one of the primary server's DNS files. See "NIS Troubleshooting" in System Administration Guide: Naming and Directory Services (DNS, NIS, and LDAP). `ERROR: table tablename .org_dir.domainname does not exist." tablename table will not be loaded."` The script did not find the NIS+ table tablename. If tablename* is spelled incorrectly, rerun the script with the correct table name. If the tablename table does not exist, use `nissetup` to create the table if tablename is one of the standard NIS+ tables. Or use `nistbladm` to create the private table tablename. Then rerun the script to populate this table. If the tablename table exists, the error might have been caused by the NIS+ server being temporarily busy. Rerun the script to populate this tablename table. `*ERROR: this name "clientname" is in both the passwd and hosts tables. You cannot have an username same as the host name.` client-name* appears in both the passwd and hosts tables. One name is not allowed to be in both of these tables. Manually remove the entry from either the passwd or hosts table. Then, rerun `nisclient` `-c`. `ERROR: You cannot use the -u option as a root user.` This message indicates that the superuser tried to run `nisclient` `-u`. The `-u` option is for initializing ordinary users only. Superusers do not need be initialized as NIS+ clients. `ERROR: You have specified the Z option after having selected the X option. Please select only one of these options [list]. Do you want to see more information on this command?` The script you are running allows you to choose only one of the listed options. Type `y` to view additional information. Type `n` to stop the script and exit.