cvs-ssh connections problems

[Toby Tremayne]

I'm really desperate here, as I can't find any other answer...
here's my full setup:

my cvs machine is on the internal network, with people accessing it
normally from work through the pserver method.  All users get mapped
through the CVSROOT/passwd file to the system user "cvs".  This is
required as the repository is actually a samba mounted drive that
belongs to a windows machine (not my choice), and it's mounted by an
entry in /etc/fstab with ownership of "cvs".

All works fine through internal connection.  But external connection
gives me "operation not permitted" when it's trying to change the mode
of files in the repository, because the "cvs server" process is
running NOT as the system user "cvs" but as the user name who is
connecting.

(external connections are through ssh, and the firewall does the
correct port forwarding - ssh works fine).

If I can find a way to force the cvs server to run as system user
"cvs" then all will be wonderful and my problems are fixed.  I'm still
pretty new to linux and cvs, and wondering if this is even possible?
Is there another way to do this?

any help at all would be enormously appreciated!

cheers,
Toby

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   Life is poetry - write it in your own words.

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Toby Tremayne 
Senior Technical Consultant
Code Poet and Zen Master of the Heavy Sleep
Lyricist Software
www.lyricist.com.au
0416 048 090
ICQ:  13107913