Man pages › Compared with Linux and the BSDs

`smbutil(1)` on Solnix vs Linux and the BSDs

smbutil is the illumos CIFS client utility at /usr/bin/smbutil. Its login and logout store and erase persistent passwords, while FreeBSD's login and logout create and destroy live server connections. The subcommand sets also differ: Solnix has status, discon and logoutall, and FreeBSD has lc, print and help.

The manual pages

Solnix: smbutil(1) from pkgs.solnix.illumos-world-man · illumos.org
FreeBSD: smbutil(1) 15.1-RELEASE

What Solnix runs

A default Solnix system runs the illumos smbutil at /usr/bin/smbutil. No other variants are shipped. The bundle has counterpart pages only for FreeBSD, so there are no Linux, OpenBSD or NetBSD comparisons.

Differences

Compared with	Topic	What differs
FreeBSD	login and logout meaning	Solnix login stores a persistent password for a CIFS user account so later mounts do not prompt, and logout erases it. FreeBSD login authenticates to a server and leaves the connection open, and logout destroys that connection. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) login, logout; FreeBSD smbutil(1) login, logout
FreeBSD	login and logout argument syntax	Solnix takes [domain/]user or user[@domain], and a server name can replace the domain. FreeBSD takes //user@server[/share] plus mount_smbfs-style connection options. Scripts cannot reuse the same arguments on both. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) SYNOPSIS, login; FreeBSD smbutil(1) login, logout
FreeBSD	subcommands present on only one system	Solnix has discon, logoutall and status, which FreeBSD lacks. FreeBSD has lc (list connections), print (send a file to a remote queue) and help, which Solnix lacks. logoutall must be run as superuser. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) SYNOPSIS, logoutall, status, discon; FreeBSD smbutil(1) lc, print, help
FreeBSD	crypt	Solnix crypt always prompts and writes the hash to standard output. The hash begins $$. FreeBSD crypt accepts the password as an argument, prompts only if it is omitted, and its hash begins $$1. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) crypt; FreeBSD smbutil(1) crypt
FreeBSD	hashed passwords in .nsmbrc	Solnix ignores passwords in $HOME/.nsmbrc unless the file mode is 400 or 600, and the special characters in the hash must be escaped. FreeBSD calls its crypt function very weak and meant only to hide clear text. The FreeBSD page states no permission rule. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) crypt; FreeBSD smbutil(1) crypt
FreeBSD	help and debug flags	Solnix prints help with `-?` and has `-d` for debug output. FreeBSD prints help with `-h` and has no `-d`. Both accept `-v` for verbose output. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) SYNOPSIS, OPTIONS -d -v -?; FreeBSD smbutil(1) -h, -v
FreeBSD	view	Solnix view takes //[domain;][user[:password]@]server with `-A` (anonymous) or `-U` user, which are mutually exclusive. A domain's semicolon must be quoted for the shell. FreeBSD view takes connection_options and //user@server, and the page lists no `-A` or `-U`. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) view; FreeBSD smbutil(1) view
FreeBSD	lookup	Solnix lookup works only if an NBNS/WINS name server is available and has no option to name one. FreeBSD lookup accepts `-w` host to give the NetBIOS name server directly. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) lookup; FreeBSD smbutil(1) lookup -w
FreeBSD	name resolution and NBNS	Solnix tries gethostbyname() first, then NetBIOS name resolution, which is on by default. Set the SMF property nbns-enabled to false to disable it. The FreeBSD page does not describe name resolution order or such a switch. Source: Solnix smbutil(1) NOTES; FreeBSD smbutil(1) DESCRIPTION
FreeBSD	config file reference	Both pages refer to ~/.nsmbrc for passwords. Solnix SEE ALSO points to nsmbrc(5) and smbfs(4FS). FreeBSD points to nsmb.conf(5). The Solnix login can also take a default domain from SMF or nsmbrc(5). Source: Solnix smbutil(1) login, SEE ALSO; FreeBSD smbutil(1) crypt, SEE ALSO

Standards

POSIX: smbutil is not a POSIX.1-2024 utility.
Solnix: Interface Stability: the output is Uncommitted. The rest of the interface is Committed.
FreeBSD: The FreeBSD page has no STANDARDS section.

Writing portable scripts

Do not script smbutil across Solnix and FreeBSD. login, logout, view and lookup take different arguments and have different meanings. Test for the OS and use its own syntax.
Use smbutil -v for verbose output on both systems. Use -h for help on FreeBSD and -? on Solnix.

Every difference here is taken from the manual pages linked above: Solnix's published page, Linux (man-pages and the GNU and util-linux manuals), FreeBSD, OpenBSD and NetBSD. Each row names its source. Where a manual is silent, this page is too. Compiled 2026-10-26. Found a mistake? Mail hackers@lists.solnix.io.