Captive Accounts

Under OpenVMS, a user account may be captive. This means that it is restricted to executing a certain command procedure, typically a menu application.

When the user logs in, the procedure starts immediately and stays in control for the duration of the session. When the procedure ends, the user is logged out. Captive accounts are not allowed access to the DCL prompt.

Compare this with the experience of a normal user who runs a menu program from her LOGIN.COM file. The normal user is permitted to terminate the menu program and issue arbitrary DCL commands, whereas the captive user is not.

Captive accounts may be used in situations in which the physical terminal is located in a public area, or the user performs the same function all the time, such as a terminal at a library checkout desk.