FM 7 Security/ Passwords

[dvalley]

When we convert password protected files from 6 to 7, the new password prompt pops up with the user name as the account, and the password blank. To get into the file, we must clear the account field and enter the password. The file will open that way only.

When we open the define accounts and privileges, the account names are the original passwords and the privilege sets make no sense whatsoever.

When we try to edit an account, there appears to be a 20 character password in already. What gives?

Version: v7.x

Platform: Windows 2000

[Vaughan]

It's FMP 7 obscuring the length of the password.

Time for you to read some of the Tech Briefs and White Papers! It's all in there.

[Steven H. Blackwell]

I agree with Vaughan's comments. We have covered this information extensively in the Tech Brief and in an excerpt from the upcoming Migration paper on Security posted here last week.

I will repost that for you.

Tech Briefs:

http://www.filemaker.com/upgrade/techbriefs.html

HTH

Steven

[Steven H. Blackwell]

A password in an older version FileMaker Pro file will convert to an Account with the Account Name the same as the old password and with the Account Password the same as the old password. This is a fundamental conceptual point to remember. It has implications for on

[KGT]

Thanks for your last post Steven., and for the link to the technote which I had not yet seen. I've now downloaded that & the one on file migration for study. I know FM works hard on those tech notes, but for those of us trying to learn quickly & still juggling daily crises, sometimes a simple explanation like yours gives us the info we need to make sense of some very different programming.

One password question: In previous versions when we changed privileges for a given password the program had a nasty habit of resetting privileges - usually denying field access - for OTHER passwords, something in the manner of scatter shot. In some cases, it even denied field level access to the master password. I know, it's not supposed to do that. But it did - we've seen it time & again. This makes us reluctant to change passwords regularly as suggested in the tech note.

Do you know if FM has addressed this issue in FM7 (even though they never really admitted it was a bug in 6)?

Kathryn

[Steven H. Blackwell]

Kathryn:

THe new system is entirely different. The passwords don't control the privileges any more. Privilege Set definitions do that now. And there is a wealth of options for setting those privileges.

Passwords are part of the credentials needed to access the file; the other part is the Account Name. These can be either internal to FileMaker Pro or external to the Active Directory or Open Directory systems. Passwords are no lonegr stored in the file, thus lessening the likelihood of a cracker tool extracting them.

HTh

Steven