password file problem

madmonster99 has asked for the wisdom of the Perl Monks concerning the following question:

I have access to the /etc/passwd file. All I'm doing is trying to write a program that reads the file /etc/passwd and prints the list of usernames and names of the users contained in the file. The output needs to be in the format: username_1 name_1 username_2 name_2 The code for this problem that I am using is this: - UW PICO(tm) 4.5 File: password5.pl-----------------------------

#!/usr/bin/perl

-lne 'print (split(/:/))[0]' /etc/passwd
[download]

and the error i get is this: et791:~$ ./password5.pl String found where operator expected at ./password5.pl line 3, near "lne 'print (split(/:/))[0]'" (Do you need to predeclare lne?) syntax error at ./password5.pl line 3, near "lne 'print (split(/:/))[0]'" Execution of ./password5.pl aborted due to compilation errors.

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Re: password file problem by thor (Priest) on Mar 11, 2005 at 19:32 UTC
If you can't read the passwd file, that may be an indication that you're not supposed to. There's a reason that it's read-only by root: getting a list of valid users for a machine increases the vulnerability to attack by crackers. That having been said, if you show some example code, someone might be able to help you assuming that you're not trying to crack. thor `Feel the white light, the light within Be your own disciple, fan the sparks of will For all of us waiting, your kingdom will come`	[reply]
Re: password file problem by ikegami (Patriarch) on Mar 11, 2005 at 19:43 UTC
Here's a one-liner: `perl -lne 'print (split(/:/))[0]' /etc/passwd` [download]	[reply] [d/l]
Re^2: password file problem by Fletch (Bishop) on Mar 12, 2005 at 02:58 UTC
`perl -F: -lane 'print $F[0]' /etc/passwd`	[reply] [d/l]
Re^3: password file problem by ikegami (Patriarch) on Mar 12, 2005 at 15:40 UTC
I tried -lane, but I didn't know about -F. Thanks!	[reply]
Re: password file problem by thedoe (Monk) on Mar 11, 2005 at 21:46 UTC
What ways are you trying to do it now and how are they not working? Without this information someone could post a valid solution, but one that just won't work for your circumstance.	[reply]
Re: password file problem by sh1tn (Priest) on Mar 12, 2005 at 09:18 UTC
`perl -ne '/^(\w+)/and print $1,$/' /etc/passwd perl -pne 's/^(\w+).+/$1/' /etc/passwd perl -MLinux::usermod -e '%users=Linux::usermod::users();print "\n",ke +ys%users'` [download]	[reply] [d/l]
Re: password file problem by Roy Johnson (Monsignor) on Mar 14, 2005 at 13:46 UTC
The code tags are helpful. You can (and should) also put them around output, so that your square brackets don't get misinterpreted by PerlMonks (as they have been, here). You cannot put the "-lne" down in the body of the program. Those are command-line options. Your program would probably work if you typed at a command line: `perl -lne 'print( (split(/:/))[0] )' /etc/passwd` The extra set of parentheses are necessary. Caution: Contents may have been coded under pressure.	[reply] [d/l]