hey all

as the subject says, i want to look at using a password device on a network. I'm not sure what exactly i am looking for, but my basic idea is that its possible to give each member of staff a usb "key" and they use that instead of a password at a machine. the usb "key" being a usb stick. thus they can choose a login name from a pretty graphical greeter and stick their key in instead of being asked for a password. yes, i do know this is probably a security nightmare, but you haven't met the people using this network.

does anyone have any idea where to point me? i would quite like something to read to see if it will actually be implementable, but what?

any help would be much appreciated.

How about something like

http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,11...2/article.html

it would be good, but its cost prohibitive (we have about 30 machines on the desks). what i would like to do is have each person use a usb flash drive as a "key". they choose their name and when it comes time to enter their password, they stick the flash drive in a usb port. it would be nice if it can log them out on removal too

the only similar thing i have seen is id badge keyboards (in the uk banks and such use them) that log people on and off windows when the card is inserted or removed. basicly that, but for linux and using flash drives instead of cards.

How about something like http://www.pamusb.org/ ?

actually yes, that looks very much like exactly what i want. now i just have to find a way to make it work with everything and log people off when they remove the key......

oh, and i need to find a way for staff to work it when we have problemslike "i ate my usb key and now its not working" (no, i am not joking)

now i just have to find a way to make it work with everything and log people off when they remove the key.
Shouldn't be that hard, usb-agent and all that.


oh, and i need to find a way for staff to work it when we have problemslike "i ate my usb key and now its not working" (no, i am not joking)
For those that can't be arsed to follow rules negative stimulus always works. I'm sure I don't have to expand on the vast array of (totally legal) possibilities one has in a corporate environment. Fining being way more subtle as opposed to flogging ;-p

egad sir, you appear to have answered all my dreams. truly a scholar and a gentleman. thanks

on a lighter note, after telling the staff the usb keys are poisonous if you eat them, today one of them managed to drop theirs in the toilet. i didn't inquire further, i really don't want to know what he was doing with it in there.

I have been thinking about this for a while. I am glad that you asked the question. I might never have.

I am looking to add a physical layer of security to my laptop. I was wanting something like, the kernal would be dependant on the USB stick for an encryption look up table for reading and writing to the hard drive.