This page describes the ViewStation's
hdscrypt encryption program.
Password Encryption with hdscrypt
The ViewStation has an decryption routine built into its server (based
on a public-domain routine called "crypt" which is included with
MicroEMACS written and copyrighted by Dana L. Hoggett; this program,
renamed "hdscrypt" to avoid confusion with other encryption programs,
can be obtained directly from HDS). This encryption program allows you
to encrypt your password and then have the ViewStation decrypt it for
comparison with the Setup Mode password(s) as needed.
To use Bootp to load a configuration file at initial startup,
you must use TFTP (or anonymous FTP with a username and password). The
configuration file itself must have read permission for TFTP (and the
rest of the world) in order to be moved. If the Setup Mode password is
used in the configuration file, it must be encrypted to preserve its
integrity.
Using hdscrypt
Using the hdscrypt program is
simple. When you run the hdscrypt program, it requests a "key", that
is, your user password, which serves as the basis for the encryption
scheme. In this example:
hdssun12: hdscrypt
Enter Key rembrandt
rembrandt
Encrypts to: [IXWnI`&}z]
the Key entered is "rembrandt", which is the user's password.
You then re-enter the password and it is encrypted against this Key.
The encrypted password is then displayed in brackets. You can encrypt
other passwords (such as the FTP password) using this same key, but note
that all the passwords in the configuration file must use that
encryption key, since the decryption is done against the same key.
This password (key) is also entered in the T128 field in the
bootptab file as plain text. The encrypted password "IXWnl'&}z" is the
entry you make in the configuration file. When the configuration file
is loaded into the ViewStation, the ViewStation server code (which also
runs the hdscrypt program) examines the entry and decrypts it into
"rembrandt", which it then compares to the password entered by the user
in its Setup Mode or its NVM. The NVM password and the bootptab
passwords must be the same, and only the encrypted password appears in
the configuration file. Since the bootp protocol and bootptab are
controlled exclusively by the superuser, they may be protected or
hidden.
Note that special characters, like spaces, can be used in
encrypted passwords if they are enclosed in double quotes "". This
ViewStation feature is present in boot prom versions 3.0 and higher.
With HDSware 3.0.3 (you must use both bootprom code and server
code at the V3.0.3 level), the ViewStation accepts any password in the
configuration file as plain text or encrypted text.
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