Use display name instead of username - Patch attached

Currently I am not planning on taking on this change. We'll have to go thru the code and ensure that it works across all directory servers and situations.

Theme_username() is probably the best place to put any changes like that. Since it is part of the theming layer, it should be pretty stable with other modules.

For this example below, I started with a copy of the theme_username() function from the CVS. Then I added one line of code, and 1 find & replace. If you are not familiar with the theme hooks, your adultered copy belong in the template file of your theme. Change the name replaceing <theme_name> with your theme's name. You might want to change the name truncation. And if your admin account (uid=1) doesn't have a profile_displayName, then any posts will appear to come from Anonymous.

function <theme_name>_username($object) {
  // Load profile data
  profile_load_profile($object);

  if ($object->uid && $object->profile_displayName) {
    // Shorten the name when it is too long or it will break many tables.
    if (drupal_strlen($object->profile_displayName) > 20) {
      $name = drupal_substr($object->profile_displayName, 0, 15) .'...';
    }
    else {
      $name = $object->profile_displayName;
    }

    if (user_access('access user profiles')) {
      $output = l($name, 'user/'. $object->uid, array('title' => t('View user profile.')));
    }
    else {
      $output = check_plain($name);
    }
  }
  else if ($object->name) {
    // Sometimes modules display content composed by people who are
    // not registered members of the site (e.g. mailing list or news
    // aggregator modules). This clause enables modules to display
    // the true author of the content.
    if ($object->homepage) {
      $output = l($object->name, $object->homepage);
    }
    else {
      $output = check_plain($object->name);
    }

    $output .= ' ('. t('not verified') .')';
  }
  else {
    $output = variable_get('anonymous', t('Anonymous'));
  }

  return $output;
}

I forgot to mention that I setup a field in admin/user/profile titled profile_displayName. Then under admin/settings/ldapdata/edit/<ldap_server> I associated profile_displayName with the LDAP attribute displayName. Also you need to set the radio box to readonly or read/write access.

Since the profile module is required, IMO it is better to use profile fields rather than the other option in ldapdata. And being able to use profile_load_profile() is a perfect example of why it is better.

I've got this module working and I'm stoked about that. However, people are accustomed to logging in around these parts with their user ID (uid) which is an eight character, arbitrary alphanumeric string. So, when someone logs into the CMS I'm building, they see, e.g., "AH129736" as their username. This sucks. I want them to see their "cn" or common name instead. I've scoured the forums around here and no one has supplied (at least for me, who am php challenged) an easy solution. It seems like it would be a no-brainer, but I have no idea where in the Drupal code I'd implement the fix. Interestingly, when a user clicks to see their profile, they see all the pertinent LDAP attributes displayed, like Full Name, short name, etc. It should be easy to display the common name througout their login sessions. In asp I'd just write something like "You are logged in as<%username%>"

So I want to have the user's cn displayed instead of the ui, which they have to login with. Why is this such a pain?

You're using a complicated CMS framework that provides for that sort of customization, just not with one line of code. Take it or leave it.

So no one has supplied an answer? Funny I thought that's what the second post was, PHP newbie friendly & all. If you are not interested in learning more about hooks & php - the little you would need to learn considering I spelled out the solution above, engage a consultant. I am available.

Or if you prefer to complain, switch to something in ASP or pay the $10k for a commercial CMS. No one's holding your feet to the fire.

Good luck.

You should also check out this similar issue: http://drupal.org/node/46237

AC

I don't know where in my post I was "complaining". But I'll go ahead and try again to implement solution #2 and see what happens.

I have nothing but praise for Drupal and the site I'm developing is awesome because of it. I just think that something as intuitively simple as displaying a specific LDAP attribute as the username display might be an option in the LDAP module. From other posts I've seen in the forums, I'm not alone in this idea.

I didn't mean to diss or dissmiss solution #2. I appeciate the author for providing it. And I will take another crack at implementing it this morning.

Please accept my apologies norelpref. I saw no indication that you had tried the solution and I got a little soured at

This sucks. I want... <snip> It seems like it would be a no-brainer... <snip> It should be easy...

But it's easy to misunderstand intent, so let's figure out a solution instead...

You said you tried it? What happened / how far did you get?

More tips/clarifications:

• the template file is template.php in your theme directory; so if you use the zen theme and it is installed for the default site or for all sites it would be:
• • sites/default/themes/zen/template.php
  • or sites/all/themes/zen/template.php
• some themes have no template file so you would have to create one named and located as described above;
• copy the code from post #2 and paste at the bottom of the template file; change the function name as described in #2;
• I believe this only applies to phptemplate based themes (which are the most common if you are unsure);
• if you do not want the display names truncated, change this section of the code:
  

     // Shorten the name when it is too long or it will break many tables.
      if (drupal_strlen($object->profile_displayName) > 20) {
        $name = drupal_substr($object->profile_displayName, 0, 15) .'...';
      }
  

• solve the admin name being displayed as anonymous by either:
  • creating a profile displayName value manually for the admin user (admin has uid=1; if is an ldap account -- not recommended -- displayName would come from LDAP)
  • or adding something like (new lines to code in #2 marked with >>):
    

      }
    >>  else if($object->uid) {
    >>    $name = $object->name   // or ( 'admin', 'god', etc...); 
    >>  }
      else if ($object->name) {
    

I think that covers practically everything. Let me know how it goes.

Whoops...

Previously mentioned code at bottom of post #8 should actually be:

}
>> else if($object->uid == 1) {
>> $name = $object->name // or ( 'admin', 'god', etc...);
>> }
else if ($object->name) {

I was able to successfully implement the solution detailed in this thread. Thanks!

I'd like to point out that this does not change the display in all cases (because some modules don't use the theme functions). See the discussion pointed out by aclight above, especially the comments starting around #17. It's an excellent starting place though, and this (of course) works for non-LDAP implementations as well, as long as there's some sort of display name field setup.

I am running Drupal 5.7 with LDAP authentication and the Marinelli theme and this worked nicely. Thanks for the work on this.