14.2. Samba Daemons and Related Services
The following is a brief introduction to the individual Samba daemons and services, as well as details on how to start and stop them.
14.2.1. Daemon Overview
Samba is comprised of three daemons (
smbd, nmbd, and winbindd). Two services (smb and windbind) control how the daemons are started, stopped, and other service-related features. Each daemon is listed in detail, as well as which specific service has control over it.
14.2.1.1. The smbd daemon
The
smbd server daemon provides file sharing and printing services to Windows clients. In addition, it is responsible for user authentication, resource locking, and data sharing through the SMB protocol. The default ports on which the server listens for SMB traffic are TCP ports 139 and 445.
The
smbd daemon is controlled by the smb service.
14.2.1.2. The nmbd daemon
The
nmbd server daemon understands and replies to NetBIOS name service requests such as those produced by SMB/CIFS in Windows-based systems. These systems include Windows 95/98/ME, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP, and LanManager clients. It also participates in the browsing protocols that make up the Windows Network Neighborhood view. The default port that the server listens to for NMB traffic is UDP port 137.
The
nmbd daemon is controlled by the smb service.
14.2.1.3. The winbindd daemon
The
winbind service resolves user and group information on a Windows NT server and makes it understandable by UNIX platforms. This is achieved by using Microsoft RPC calls, Pluggable Authentication Modules (PAM), and the Name Service Switch (NSS). This allows Windows NT domain users to appear and operate as UNIX users on a UNIX machine. Though bundled with the Samba distribution, the winbind service is controlled separately from the smb service.
The
winbindd daemon is controlled by the winbind service and does not require the smb service to be started in order to operate. Because winbind is a client-side service used to connect to Windows NT based servers, further discussion of winbind is beyond the scope of this manual.
