MKHOMEDIR_HELPER(8)

💖 MKHOMEDIR_HELPER(8) 💖

ok so bestie, welcome to mkhomedir_helper — that's the Linux-PAM Manual entry for the helper binary that creates home directories. she's a lil backstage icon, no cap 🎀

---

✨ NAME ✨

mkhomedir_helper — helper binary that creates home directories 🏠✨

---

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

mkhomedir_helper {user}
                 [umask [ path-to-skel [ home_mode [ path-to-vendor-skel ] ] ]]

like, user is mandatory, everything after is a lil optional chain of nested brackets. the way that nesting goes, you can't skip ahead — it's giving "one at a time, bestie" 💅

---

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

okay so mkhomedir_helper is a helper program for the pam_mkhomedir module. what she does: creates home directories and populates them with the contents of the specified skel directory. she's literally the move-in crew for a new user's home 🫶

the default value of umask is 0022, and the default value of path-to-skel is /etc/skel. the default value of home_mode is computed from the value of umask. (yes bestie, computed — not just sitting there being a constant, it's derived 🔥)

path-to-vendor-skel doesn't have a default value. when set to a path, the home directory will be populated by contents of path-to-skel first, and then by contents of path. two-pass copy, skel then vendor, in that order, don't get it twisted 💜

ngl the reason she's a separate binary and not just vibing inside the module is SELinux. the helper is separated from the module so that login SELinux domains don't require direct access to the contents of user home directories. the SELinux domain transition happens when the module is executing the mkhomedir_helper. so it's a whole handoff situation, main character energy ✨

🚨 IMPORTANT, no fr fr: the helper never touches home directories if they already exist. if the dir's already there, she's not gonna mess with it. periodt.

---

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

• pam_mkhomedir(8)

---

👑 AUTHOR 👑

written by Tomas Mraz based on the code originally in the pam_mkhomedir module. shoutout 🫶

---

okay that's the whole page, bestie!! 💖 this is Linux-PAM, dated 09/27/2026, and she's filed under MKHOMEDIR_HELPER(8). go forth and make home dirs, mwah 💅✨🌸