1MKPASSWD(1) General Commands Manual MKPASSWD(1)
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6 mkpasswd - generate new password, optionally apply it to a user
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9 mkpasswd [ args ] [ user ]
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12 mkpasswd generates passwords and can apply them automatically to users.
13 mkpasswd is based on the code from Chapter 23 of the O'Reilly book
14 "Exploring Expect".
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17 With no arguments, mkpasswd returns a new password.
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19 mkpasswd
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21 With a user name, mkpasswd assigns a new password to the user.
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23 mkpasswd don
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25 The passwords are randomly generated according to the flags below.
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29 The -l flag defines the length of the password. The default is 9. The
30 following example creates a 20 character password.
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32 mkpasswd -l 20
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34 The -d flag defines the minimum number of digits that must be in the
35 password. The default is 2. The following example creates a password
36 with at least 3 digits.
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38 mkpasswd -d 3
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40 The -c flag defines the minimum number of lowercase alphabetic charac‐
41 ters that must be in the password. The default is 2.
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43 The -C flag defines the minimum number of uppercase alphabetic charac‐
44 ters that must be in the password. The default is 2.
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46 The -s flag defines the minimum number of special characters that must
47 be in the password. The default is 1.
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49 The -p flag names a program to set the password. By default,
50 /etc/yppasswd is used if present, otherwise /bin/passwd is used.
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52 The -2 flag causes characters to be chosen so that they alternate
53 between right and left hands (qwerty-style), making it harder for any‐
54 one watching passwords being entered. This can also make it easier for
55 a password-guessing program.
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57 The -v flag causes the password-setting interaction to be visible. By
58 default, it is suppressed.
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62 The following example creates a 15-character password that contains at
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65 mkpasswd -l 15 -d 3 -C 5
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69 "Exploring Expect: A Tcl-Based Toolkit for Automating Interactive Pro‐
70 grams" by Don Libes, O'Reilly and Associates, January 1995.
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73 Don Libes, National Institute of Standards and Technology
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75 mkpasswd is in the public domain. NIST and I would appreciate credit
76 if this program or parts of it are used.
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82 22 August 1994 MKPASSWD(1)