I'm trying to connect a Debian 7.0 client to a OpenSuse 12.1 server. The nisdomainname is correct, the /etc/group, /etc/passwd and /etc/shadown all have the +::: lines, ypbind connects, but the authentication, both via ssh or directly on the machine, fails. The log /var/log/auth.log on the Debian machine only shows that the authentication password failed. The NIS server works fine with other Opensuse machines. 
Failure to connect Debian NIS client to OpenSuse 12.1 server
debian;opensuse;nis