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Re: [higgins-dev] Updating Password with IdAS

Here's a stab at the method (on IDigitalSubject)
 /**
  * Adds or changes the password for this digital subject.
  * This method assumes this digital subject has the notion of a "password"
  * used to authenticate the subject (as in when {@link IContext#open(Object)} is called).
  * @param newPassword May be null. Specifies the password to be set in {@link String} form.
  *       When null, specifies that the password will be machine-generated and
  *       returned in the return argument.  
  * @param oldPassword May be null. Specifies the old password. 
  *       This may be required by some systems in order to update an existing
  *       password.
  * @return May be null. When newPassword is null, a generated password is returned.
  *    Otherwise the return value is null.
  * @throws IdASException
  */
 public String updatePassword(String newPassword, String oldPassword) throws IdASException;
Questions:
1) Should the password fields be String or something else (like byte[])?
2) Since this is technically an update operation, do we say it needs to be followed by a call to IContext.applyUpdates()?
 
Jim

>>> "Jim Sermersheim" <jimse@xxxxxxxxxx> 6/18/07 5:43 PM >>>
Specifically for updatePassword: https://bugs.eclipse.org/bugs/show_bug.cgi?id=193223.  David originally brought this up.  It would be good if people could visit that bug and add any characteristics they believe that method should have.
 
I'll log another for the general case of blind updates (Tom pointed out that at least the JNDI using LDAP CP is not completely capable of knowing when an attr is present yet non-readable versus non-present).
 
On the IRC, Dale also mentioned the need for a verifyPassword operation.  I'll log another for that.
 
Jim

>>> "Jim Sermersheim" <jimse@xxxxxxxxxx> 6/18/07 4:05 PM >>>
Well, the IdAS data access model we arrived at was one somewhat analogous to the way one typically navigates, accesses, and updates other kind of hierarchical data.  Prior to that model, we had one where the caller specified the data, action, and value being performed for updates (people disliked that).
 
With the current access model, I think you'd have to get the CP to cooperate for most cases like this.
 
First, I'm not sure why it should fail if you ask for any attribute which it doesn't have.  I assumed the call to IDigitalSubject.getSubject(String cuid, Iterator attrSelectionList) would silently ignore any attributes in the attrSelectionList that don't exist or are not returnable for the subject being read.  This needs to be documented in the Javadoc.
 
In cases where an attribute exists, can't be read, but can be updated, I think the CP could return an attribute with zero values.  This again would need to be clarified in the javadoc (a note added that an attribute with zero values is allowed when the consumer is not allowed to view the values).  Of course, this would be subject to any other access controls which might deny the consumer from seeing even an empty attribute.
 
For passwords specifically though;  David brought up some password modify use cases at the Austin F2F and noted that maybe password modify was a unique enough operation that it deserves its own API.  Something that can accommodate proof of old password, challenge/response negotiation, CP-generated password, etc.  I made a quick note in http://wiki.eclipse.org/index.php/IdAS_ToDo but haven't done anything beyond that.
 
Jim


>>> "Daniel Sanders" <dsanders@xxxxxxxxxx> 6/18/07 3:25 PM >>>
Jim,
 
Currently, it appears to me that I can only change existing attribute values on a digital subject if I first "get" them.  But a digital subject's password is sort of a special case.  The JNDI provider cannot really "get" that particular attribute.  It will fail if I ask for it specifically, and it will not return it if I simply ask for all attributes.  I need a way to change an attribute's value without getting it first.  Is there any way to do that in IdAS today?
 
I guess in general, this is needed for attributes where you are allowed to update them, but cannot to read them.
 
Thanks,
 
Daniel

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