php to change a user's passwd

[bomburmusicmallet]

Hi,

Is it possible to change a user's password to their account on a Unix server via a php script? Can I use php to invoke the passwd command?

If it is possible, is it advisable to NOT do this?

Here's what I'm trying to do. I am trying to automate our webmaster's ability to turn on and off ftp accounts by adding and removing passwords. Our webmaster is not a network manager, and it might be prudent to have an interface. I will manually add and remove the actual accounts on a regular basis, but without a password, the end user can't ftp. We want to be able to turn on and then off ftp for end users nearly instantly.

Thanks for any input.

[siMKin]

[php.net...]

[jatar_k]

just watch the permissions on this type of thing, you could be creating a massive security hole

well you actually are creating one, whether it is exploitable would depend

[smoked1]

I would avoid this if you can.