Re: AW: SSH / Witch options are secure ??

[Chris Ess <azarin () tokimi net>]

> Are md5 stored passwords more secure than des ones??
> Installing suse 8 from scratch enables des passwords per default. This
> means that I cant use md5 for ssh, doesn't it?

I'm not 100% sure.  I've never tried switching password type on the same
install.  I imagine there's a way to do it, but you have to be cry
careful.

I've been told that MD5 encrypted passwords are more secure than standard
unix crypt passwords.  Historically, standard unix crypt (DES) passwords
are limited to eight characters.  Even if the password you provide with
the passwd command is 20 characters long, only the first eight are
honored.  I believe that MD5 lacks such a limit... or that such a limit,
if present, is greater than eight characters.

If your system does not support MD5 passwords, then omit the
'--with-md5-passwords' option to OpenSSH's ./configure script.

Sincerely,


Chris Ess
System Administrator / CDTT (Certified Duct Tape Technician)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------