user_exists¶

Status:: ● Development
Category:: Linux System
Function Name:: user_exists

Tests if a user account exists on the Linux system.

This test function checks if a specified user account exists on the Linux system using the system’s user database. It validates user account presence for security and configuration verification.

Parameters¶

Parameter	Type	Description
`username`	string	Required. The username to check for existence on the system.

Usage Example¶

Existing User Check¶

tests:
  - name: test_user_exists
    function: linux.user_exists
    parameter:
      username: 'adare'
    description: "Test user_exists with existing user"

Non-Existent User Check¶

tests:
  - name: test_user_does_not_exist
    function: linux.user_exists
    expect_to_fail: true
    parameter:
      username: 'nonexistent-user-12345'
    description: "Test user_exists with non-existent user"

Variable-Based Username¶

variables:
  app_user:
    type: string
    value: "nginx"
    description: "Application service user"

tests:
  - name: test_service_user_exists
    function: linux.user_exists
    parameter:
      username: '{{app_user}}'
    description: "Test that service user account exists"

Common Use Cases¶

Service Account Validation: Verify that service accounts for applications are properly created
User Account Auditing: Check for the presence of expected user accounts during security audits
Post-Installation Verification: Confirm that installation scripts properly created required user accounts
System Configuration Validation: Ensure that system users required for specific functionality exist
Security Compliance Checking: Validate that required administrative or service accounts are present

User Account Detection¶

Account Validation:

Uses Linux user database (typically /etc/passwd)
Supports system users and regular user accounts
Cross-references with user ID information

Platform Requirements:

Linux operating system
Access to user account information
Python pwd module support (Unix systems)

Return Values¶

Success: Returns success when the specified user account exists on the system
Failure: Returns failure when: - User account does not exist - Username is not found in the system user database
Execution Error: Returns execution error when: - Not running on Linux system - Unix modules not available (pwd module missing) - Permission denied accessing user information - System error occurs while checking user accounts

Example Results¶

# Success case
result: success
details:
  - "user 'adare' exists on system"

# Failure case - user not found
result: failed
details:
  - "user 'nonexistent-user-12345' does not exist on system"

# Execution error case - wrong platform
result: execution_error
error: "This test only runs on Linux"

# Execution error case - missing modules
result: execution_error
error: "Unix modules not available for user validation"