homectl is a command line tool that allows you to interact with the systemd-homed service, which is a service that manages home directories on a Linux system. Using homectl, you can create new home directories, remove existing ones, change the settings of a home directory, and inspect the current state of a home directory.
Some of the things you can do with homectl include:
- homectl create [username]: Creates a new home directory for the specified user.
- homectl remove [username]: Removes the home directory for the specified user.
- homectl lock [username]: Locks the home directory for the specified user, preventing them from logging in.
- homectl unlock [username]: Unlocks the home directory for the specified user, allowing them to log in.
- homectl set-property [username] [property] [value]: Sets a property of the home directory for the specified user.
- homectl get-property [username] [property]: Gets the current value of a property of the home directory for the specified user.
- homectl list: Lists all the home directories managed by the systemd-homed service.
systemd-homed is designed to be a more flexible and secure alternative to traditional home directory management methods on Linux. It allows for a more fine-grained control of user home directories, and also provides a way to encrypt and decrypt home directories on-demand.
homectl Command Examples
1. List user accounts and their associated home directories:
# homectl list
2. Create a user account and their associated home directory:
# homectl create [username]
3. Remove a specific user and the associated home directory:
# homectl remove [username]
4. Change the password for a specific user:
# homectl passwd [username]
5. Run a shell or a command with access to a specific home directory:
# homectl with [username] -- [command] [command_arguments]
6. Lock or unlock a specific home directory:
# homectl [lock|unlock] [username]
7. Change the disk space assigned to a specific home directory to 100 GiB:
# homectl resize [username] [100G]
8. Display help:
# homectl --help