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+
+:mod:`pwd` --- The password database
+====================================
+
+.. module:: pwd
+   :platform: Unix
+   :synopsis: The password database (getpwnam() and friends).
+
+
+This module provides access to the Unix user account and password database.  It
+is available on all Unix versions.
+
+Password database entries are reported as a tuple-like object, whose attributes
+correspond to the members of the ``passwd`` structure (Attribute field below,
+see ``<pwd.h>``):
+
++-------+---------------+-----------------------------+
+| Index | Attribute     | Meaning                     |
++=======+===============+=============================+
+| 0     | ``pw_name``   | Login name                  |
++-------+---------------+-----------------------------+
+| 1     | ``pw_passwd`` | Optional encrypted password |
++-------+---------------+-----------------------------+
+| 2     | ``pw_uid``    | Numerical user ID           |
++-------+---------------+-----------------------------+
+| 3     | ``pw_gid``    | Numerical group ID          |
++-------+---------------+-----------------------------+
+| 4     | ``pw_gecos``  | User name or comment field  |
++-------+---------------+-----------------------------+
+| 5     | ``pw_dir``    | User home directory         |
++-------+---------------+-----------------------------+
+| 6     | ``pw_shell``  | User command interpreter    |
++-------+---------------+-----------------------------+
+
+The uid and gid items are integers, all others are strings. :exc:`KeyError` is
+raised if the entry asked for cannot be found.
+
+.. note::
+
+   .. index:: module: crypt
+
+   In traditional Unix the field ``pw_passwd`` usually contains a password
+   encrypted with a DES derived algorithm (see module :mod:`crypt`).  However most
+   modern unices  use a so-called *shadow password* system.  On those unices the
+   *pw_passwd* field only contains an asterisk (``'*'``) or the  letter ``'x'``
+   where the encrypted password is stored in a file :file:`/etc/shadow` which is
+   not world readable.  Whether the *pw_passwd* field contains anything useful is
+   system-dependent.  If available, the :mod:`spwd` module should be used where
+   access to the encrypted password is required.
+
+It defines the following items:
+
+
+.. function:: getpwuid(uid)
+
+   Return the password database entry for the given numeric user ID.
+
+
+.. function:: getpwnam(name)
+
+   Return the password database entry for the given user name.
+
+
+.. function:: getpwall()
+
+   Return a list of all available password database entries, in arbitrary order.
+
+
+.. seealso::
+
+   Module :mod:`grp`
+      An interface to the group database, similar to this.
+
+   Module :mod:`spwd`
+      An interface to the shadow password database, similar to this.
+