AUTHSRV(3)

💅 AUTHSRV(3) — routines for communicating with authentication servers 💅

okay so welcome to AUTHSRV(3) from the Library Functions Manual — this is the whole “talking to auth servers” situation, and we’re keeping every single deet. no cap. let’s get into it, bestie 🫶✨

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✨ NAME ✨

authdial, passtokey, nvcsum, readnvram, convT2M, convM2T, convTR2M, convM2TR, convA2M, convM2A, convPR2M, convM2PR, _asgetticket, and _asrdresp — routines for communicating with authentication servers.

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🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

includes first, bestie:

#include <u.h>
#include <libc.h>
#include <authsrv.h>

and the prototypes, exactly as printed (yes, with the quirky punctuation — copying the manpage, not fixing it 😭):

int     authdial(char *netroot, char *ad);

int     passtokey(char key[DESKEYLEN], char *password)

uchar   nvcsum(void *mem, int len)

int     readnvram(Nvrsafe *nv, int flag); int     convT2M(Ticket *t,
       char *msg, char *key)

void    convM2T(char *msg, Ticket *t, char *key)

int     convA2M(Authenticator *a, char *msg, char *key)

void    convM2A(char *msg, Authenticator *a, char *key)

int     convTR2M(Ticketreq *tr, char *msg)

void    convM2TR(char *msg, Ticketreq *tr)

int     convPR2M(Passwordreq *pr, char *msg, char *key)

void    convM2PR(char *msg, Passwordreq *pr, char *key)

int     _asgetticket(int fd, char *trbuf, char *tbuf);

int     _asrdresp(int fd, char *buf, int len);

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💖 DESCRIPTION 💖

🌐 authdial

authdial dials an authentication server over the network rooted at net, default /net. The authentication domain, ad, specifies which server to call.

If ad is non-nil, the network database (see ndb(1)) is queried for an entry which contains authdom=ad or dom=ad, the former having precedence, and which also contains an auth attribute. The string dialed is then netroot!server!ticket where server is the value of the auth attribute.

If no entry is found, the error string is set to no authentication server found and -1 is returned.

If authdom is nil, the string netroot!$auth!ticket is used to make the call.

yes, the manpage flips between ad and authdom in this paragraph — I’m just repeating it, bestie 🙈

🔑 passtokey

passtokey converts password into a DES key and stores the result in key. It returns 0 if password could not be converted, and 1 otherwise.

📖 readnvram

readnvram reads authentication information into the structure:

struct Nvrsafe
{
    char    machkey[DESKEYLEN];
    uchar   machsum;
    char    authkey[DESKEYLEN];
    uchar   authsum;
    char    config[CONFIGLEN];
    uchar   configsum;
    char    authid[ANAMELEN];
    uchar   authidsum;
    char    authdom[DOMLEN];
    uchar   authdomsum;
};

On Sparc, MIPS, and SGI machines this information is in non-volatile ram, accessible in the file #r/nvram.

On x86s and Alphas readnvram successively opens the following areas stopping with the first to succeed:

• the partition named by the $nvram environment variable
• the partition #S/sdC0/nvram
• a file called plan9.nvr in the partition #S/sdC0/9fat
• the partition #S/sd00/nvram
• a file called plan9.nvr in the partition #S/sd00/9fat
• a file called plan9.nvr on a DOS floppy in drive 0
• a file called plan9.nvr on a DOS floppy in drive 1

The nvcsums of the fields machkey, authid, and authdom must match their respective checksum or that field is zeroed.

If flag is NVwrite or at least one checksum fails and flag is NVwriteonerr, readnvram will prompt for new values on #c/cons and then write them back to the storage area.

🔁 the conv* crew

convT2M, convA2M, convTR2M, and convPR2M convert tickets, authenticators, ticket requests, and password change request structures into transmittable messages.

convM2T, convM2A, convM2TR, and convM2PR are used to convert them back.

key is used for encrypting the message before transmission and decrypting after reception.

📨 _asgetresp and _asgetticket

heads up: the synopsis lists _asrdresp, and the prose below calls it _asgetresp — I’m keeping both exactly because that’s what the page says, bestie 💀

The routine _asgetresp receives either a character array or an error string. On error, it sets errstr and returns -1. If successful, it returns the number of bytes received.

The routine _asgetticket sends a ticket request message and then uses _asgetresp to recieve an answer.

“recieve” is the manpage’s spelling, not mine 😭

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📦 SOURCE 📦

/src/libauthsrv

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👀 SEE ALSO 👀

• passwd(1)
• dial(3)
• Plan 9's authsrv(6)

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🩺 DIAGNOSTICS 🩺

These routines set errstr. Integer-valued functions return -1 on error.

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🎀 that’s the whole page, bestie. sign-off vibes: AUTHSRV(3), Library Functions Manual — no extra date printed on this page, so I’m not inventing one. stay encrypted and hydrated 💖🦋