Logon server home directories

A PC user can be configured to have a home directory and can be collectively backed up and maintained on the server. The Logon Server that authenticates the user determines the location of their home directory. By default, an iSeries Logon Server considers the Home directory path stored in the user profile (on the iSeries server) as the PC client user's home directory too. For example, if user JOE has a home directory configured in his user profile as /home/joe, then this path is treated as a UNC name (Windows 98) for the client and the client's view of this folder would be \\logonServer\home\joe. The /home directory would need to be shared with a share name of HOME in order for a Windows 98 client to map a drive to it.

Windows 2000 and Windows XP clients using the IPLC will attempt to map a drive to the user's home directory automatically when they log on.

Sometimes it is desirable to store user home directories on a server other than the Logon Server. This may be the case if a lot of data is normally transferred to and from the home directories (perhaps they are also being used to serve roaming profiles) and the Logon Server is not equipped to handle this extra load and provide responsive Logon support to many clients at the same time. Remote home directories can be configured in the user profile for the iSeries server. The remote home directory is actually a share on a different server and it is specified by the QNTC path to the share. For example, if home directories are to be stored in share HOME on iSeries server DRACO2, then the home directory field for user JOE could be given as /qntc/draco2/home. Alternatively, individual home directories could be shared from DRACO2, in which case the home directory above would be given as /qntc/draco2/joe.

Specifying the QNTC path name here does not imply that the client is going through the QNTC file system on the Logon Server to reach the remote share on the home directory server. The client makes a separate direct connection to the remote home directory share. The reason why the QNTC path format was chosen is to be consistent across the system since this is stored in the user's profile. This way, other applications running locally on the iSeries server would, in theory, be able to access this same home directory.

Since this configuration also changes the home directory for the local user that signs on to the iSeries system through PC5250, for example, the ramifications of this need to be considered if there is a possibility that the user will sign on directly to the iSeries server configured as a Logon Server.