HP OpenVMS Systems

Generating random passwords?

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The Question is:

 
Hi Wizard!
I am trying to tap OpenVMS' password generator in a way that I am getting
one single generated password back.
I have been playing around with trying to capture the output of
mc authorize mod <user> /generate_password
but no success so far.
 
Background:
For application reasons we are forced to use a hard wired username/password
set to copy data between alphas and pc front ends. We would like to automate
the password change and use VMS generated passwords for this purpose.
 
Cheers
Michael
 
 

The Answer is :

 
  The Wizard would stronly suggest using a DECnet proxy.  This is fully
  documented and supported, and it completely avoids the requirement to
  explicitly specify a password during the connection request.
 
  If passwords are required, a DCL example of using the OpenVMS password
  generator to generate a random password is included in the DECnet Phase
  IV file SYS$MANAGER:NETCONFIG.COM and in the equivelent DECnet-Plus file
  SYS$MANAGER:NET$CONFIGURE.COM.
 
  The (undocumented) OpenVMS Alpha system service underlying the OpenVMS
  password generator is sys$forge_word, and this may provide you with a
  way to retrieve a generated word that can be used as a password.
 
  The parameters for sys$forge_word are:
 
    minlen      minimum word length to return
    maxlen      maximum word length to return
    mindata     minimum amount of data to return (in decibits)
    flags       miscellaneous flags
    retdata     longword to receive actual amount of informatio
    outlen      word to receive length of returned word
    outstr      address of buffer to receive word
 

  

     

     
answer written or last revised on ( 13-NOV-1998 )
     
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