All versions of Centrify DirectControl
Question:
Why does backup software like Veritas Backup Exec takes a long time to complete when Centrify DirectControl is installed on a machine. Additionally you may also observe /var/log/lastlog showing an abnormally long size.
Answer:
/var/log/lastlog is a sparse file. A sparse file is a file that contains unallocated blocks or “empty space”, as it implies, it does not actually take up filesystem space. The size of the file /var/log/lastlog can appear to be overly large on some systems, mostly on 64 bit architectures.
The following command shows the actual size of the lastlog file.
# ls -lh /var/log/lastlog
If in the above output, if ls -lh gives an abnormal size then this is because of the large uid gap in AD user objects. Please ensure the gaps are reasonable alternatively you can exclude this file from backup after seeking advice from the backup vendor.
Please see the below link provided as a courtesy.