What file contains user account information in Linux?

The file that contains user account information in Linux is located at /etc/passwd. This file is crucial because it maintains essential details about each user account on the system, including the username, user ID (UID), group ID (GID), home directory, and the shell assigned to the user. Each line in the /etc/passwd file corresponds to a different user account, organized in a specific format that makes it easy for the system to parse and utilize this information for authentication and user management.

While the /etc/shadow file does store password information and is involved in managing user authentication, it is not responsible for broadly outlining user account details. Conversely, /home/user typically references the home directory for a specific user and does not contain user account information itself. The /var/log/auth.log file is used for logging authentication events, which may include login attempts and other security-related actions, but it does not serve as a repository for user account information. Thus, /etc/passwd is the primary file that holds the fundamental user account information in a Linux environment.