User Authentication with Passwords

The password authentication method is set up by default, so it is easy to implement and requires no configuring. Since all communication is encrypted, passwords are not available for eavesdroppers.

On Windows, SSH Tectia Server does not need a user management program of its own – the user accounts are created with the standard Windows User Manager.

SSH Tectia Server will record a login failure for each failed password authentication attempt.

On Windows, password authentication uses the Windows password to authenticate the user at login time.

On a Unix system, password authentication uses the /etc/passwd or /etc/shadow file, depending on how the passwords are set up. The shadow password files can be used on Linux and Solaris servers, but not on HP-UX or AIX servers.

To enable password authentication on the server, the authentication-methods element of the ssh-server-config.xml file must contain an auth-password element. For example:

<authentication-methods>
  <authentication action="allow">
    <auth-password failure-delay="2" max-tries="3" />
    ...
  </authentication>
</authentication-methods>

Also other authentication methods can be allowed.

By using selectors, it is possible to allow or require password authentication only for a specified group of users. For more information, see Using Selectors in Configuration File.

On Windows, using the SSH Tectia Server Configuration tool, password authentication can be allowed on the Authentication page. See Authentication.

	Note
	Passwords can also be used as a submethod in keyboard-interactive authentication. For more information, see Password Submethod.

User Logon Rights on Windows

User login requires the rights to log on locally and access this computer from the network. On domain controllers, these rights are disabled by default. If SSH Tectia Server has been installed on a domain controller, the log on locally and the access this computer from the network permissions must be enabled on the domain controller for the Domain Users group.

SSH Tectia Server allows defining locally the user logon types that are allowed on the host. By default, the Windows-set logon types are used, but for password-based authentication methods you can define windows-logon-type. For XML configuration instructions, see settings. For SSH Tectia Server Configuration GUI instructions, see General.

For example, in case you need to enable accounts that do NOT have the right to log on locally, use setting windows-logon-type="network".