doc::Smokeping::probes::passwordcheSdoc::Smokeping::probes::passwordchecker(3)



NAME
       Smokeping::probes::passwordchecker - A Base Class for implementing
       SmokePing Probes

OVERVIEW
       Like Smokeping::probes::basefork, but supports a probe-specific config-
       uration file for storing passwords and a method for accessing them.

SYNOPSIS
        *** Probes ***

        +passwordchecker

        forks = 5
        offset = 50%
        passwordfile = /some/place/secret
        step = 300
        timeout = 15

        # The following variables can be overridden in each target section
        pings = 5

        # [...]

        *** Targets ***

        probe = passwordchecker # if this should be the default probe

        # [...]

        + mytarget
        # probe = passwordchecker # if the default probe is something else
        host = my.host
        pings = 5

DESCRIPTION
       synopsis with more detail

       SmokePing main configuration file:

        *** Probes ***
        + MyPasswordChecker
        # location of the file containing usernames and passwords
        passwordfile = /usr/share/smokeping/etc/passwords

       The specified password file:

        # host:username:password
        host1:joe:hardlyasecret
         # comments and whitespace lines are allowed

        host2:sue:notasecreteither

       Actual description

       In implementing authentication probes, it might not be desirable to
       store the necessary cleartext passwords in the SmokePing main configu-
       ration file, since the latter must be readable both by the SmokePing
       daemon performing the probes and the CGI that displays the results. If
       the passwords are stored in a different file, this file can be made
       readable by only the user the daemon runs as. This way we can be sure
       that nobody can trick the CGI into displaying the passwords on the Web.

       This module reads the passwords in at startup from the file specified
       in the probe-specific variable `passwordfile'. The passwords can later
       be accessed and modified by the password method, that needs the corre-
       sponding host and username as arguments.

       Password file format

       The password file format is simply one line for each triplet of host,
       username and password, separated from each other by colons (:).

       Comment lines, starting with the `#' sign, are ignored, as well as
       empty lines.

VARIABLES
       Supported probe-specific variables:

       forks
           Run this many concurrent processes at maximum

           Example value: 5

           Default value: 5

       offset
           If you run many probes concurrently you may want to prevent them
           from hitting your network all at the same time. Using the probe-
           specific offset parameter you can change the point in time when
           each probe will be run. Offset is specified in % of total interval,
           or alternatively as 'random', and the offset from the 'General'
           section is used if nothing is specified here. Note that this does
           NOT influence the rrds itself, it is just a matter of when data
           acqusition is initiated.  (This variable is only applicable if the
           variable 'concurrentprobes' is set in the 'General' section.)

           Example value: 50%

       passwordfile
           Location of the file containing usernames and passwords.

           Example value: /some/place/secret

       step
           Duration of the base interval that this probe should use, if dif-
           ferent from the one specified in the 'Database' section. Note that
           the step in the RRD files is fixed when they are originally gener-
           ated, and if you change the step parameter afterwards, you'll have
           to delete the old RRD files or somehow convert them. (This variable
           is only applicable if the variable 'concurrentprobes' is set in the
           'General' section.)

           Example value: 300

       timeout
           How long a single 'ping' takes at maximum

           Example value: 15

           Default value: 5

       Supported target-specific variables:

       pings
           How many pings should be sent to each target, if different from the
           global value specified in the Database section. Note that the num-
           ber of pings in the RRD files is fixed when they are originally
           generated, and if you change this parameter afterwards, you'll have
           to delete the old RRD files or somehow convert them.

           Example value: 5

AUTHORS
       Niko Tyni <ntyni@iki.fi>

BUGS
       The need for storing cleartext passwords can be considered a bug in
       itself.

SEE ALSO
       Smokeping::probes::basefork, Smokeping::probes::Radius,
       Smokeping::probes::LDAP



2.4.2                             20doc::Smokeping::probes::passwordchecker(3)
