Rick
What do you do when the customer asks that the database login in be the same
username and password as they use to log on to their domain? This IMO is a
reasonable request from the client, as the user has to remember only one
username and password to use all of the stuff that she is permitted to use.
Using Access Security would be an Admin nightmare in this instance if the
database has say 30 users. What if it had 300 users? What if the company
had a policy that passwords had to change every 90 days?
I have implemented this type of security for Access, VB, and Web Based ASP
applications in organizations with hundreds of users using ADSI and LDAP.
In Access databases I also use the "disable the shift-bypass" technique to
prevent the user from getting around my start up code.
In the user table in my database all I need is each users Domain Username.
When I get the Username / Password in my custom login form, I first check to
make sure that the user is in my database then query Active Directory to see
if the Username / Password pair authenticates.
My customers and I see this as a very powerful way to maintain security for
the following reasons.
* Whenever their domain password changes it is immediately reflected in
the database login
* Users are less prone to tape their password to the back of the
keyboard or monitor when they have only one to remember
* Domain Admins can insure that user passwords change every N days for
ALL applications
* The users Password is NOT stored anywhere in the database
Is this technique as secure as the built in Access Security? Probably NOT!
Could a Tech Savvy user beat my system and get to the tables in my database?
YES!!! But, it does provide a reasonable level of security that is easy to
administer.
I believe that anyone who was sufficiently motivated could defeat Access
Security if they had a couple bucks and internet access. Look at what I
found on Google by Googling "Crack Access Security".
http://www.shareup.com/Access_Recovery-download-31557.html
http://lastbit.com/mso/default.asp
http://www.topshareware.com/Access-Recovery-download-36632.htm
http://www.batchconverter.com/RemoveAccessSecurity-download-14170.shtml
The above links were all found on the first page of 1,780,000 hits. Prices
for these utilities ranged from $39.00 to $199.00. I was able to find all
of this stuff in less than a minute. So one has to weigh the risks with the
admin cost, and choose the method that is the best for them.
Ron W