Kerberos Class

Properties   Methods   Events   Config Settings   Errors  

The Kerberos class can be used to authenticate users using Kerberos 5.0.

Syntax

Kerberos

Remarks

The Kerberos class implements the Kerberos protocol defined in RFC 1510 and RFC 4120. The class provides a simple interface to easily authenticate users.

Authentication

When Authenticate is called the class will attempt to authenticate the user with the Key Distribution Center (KDC). The class will communicate with the KDCHost to obtain a service ticket and populate AuthToken. The following properties are required when calling this method:

A typical sequence of messages would be:

  • KRB_AS_REQ -> KDC
  • KRB_AS_REP <- KDC
  • KRB_TGS_REQ -> KDC
  • KRB_TGS_REP <- KDC
  • AuthToken is populated with the constructed KRB_AP_REP message.

Communication with the KDCHost can be seen through the PITrail event.

Property List


The following is the full list of the properties of the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

AuthTokenThe authentication token.
KDCHostThe domain name or IP address of the Key Distribution Center (KDC).
KDCPortThe port for the Key Distribution Center (KDC).
KeytabFileThe Kerberos Keytab file.
PasswordThe user's password.
SPNThe Service Principal Name (SPN).
TimeoutA timeout for the class.
UserThe name and domain of the user to authenticate.
UseTCPWhether TCP is used when establishing the connection.

Method List


The following is the full list of the methods of the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

AuthenticateAuthenticates the user.
ConfigSets or retrieves a configuration setting.
DoEventsProcesses events from the internal message queue.
InterruptInterrupt the current method.
ResetResets the class properties to their default values.

Event List


The following is the full list of the events fired by the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

ErrorInformation about errors during data delivery.
LogFires once for each log message.
PITrailTraces the messages sent to the server, and the respective replies.

Config Settings


The following is a list of config settings for the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

CredentialsCacheFileThe credentials cache file.
EncodeAuthTokenWhether to Base64 encode the AuthToken.
EncryptionTypesThe encryption types used during authentication.
LogKerberosPacketsWhether to include the raw Kerberos packets in PITrail output.
LogLevelThe level of detail that is logged.
UsePlatformKerberosAPIWhether to use the platform Kerberos API.
UseTCPWhether TCP is used when establishing the connection.
CaptureIPPacketInfoUsed to capture the packet information.
DelayHostResolutionWhether the hostname is resolved when RemoteHost is set.
DestinationAddressUsed to get the destination address from the packet information.
DontFragmentUsed to set the Don't Fragment flag of outgoing packets.
LocalHostThe name of the local host through which connections are initiated or accepted.
LocalPortThe port in the local host where the class binds.
MaxPacketSizeThe maximum length of the packets that can be received.
QOSDSCPValueUsed to specify an arbitrary QOS/DSCP setting (optional).
QOSTrafficTypeUsed to specify QOS/DSCP settings (optional).
ShareLocalPortIf set to True, allows more than one instance of the class to be active on the same local port.
SourceIPAddressUsed to set the source IP address used when sending a packet.
SourceMacAddressUsed to set the source MAC address used when sending a packet.
UseConnectionDetermines whether to use a connected socket.
UseIPv6Whether or not to use IPv6.
AbsoluteTimeoutDetermines whether timeouts are inactivity timeouts or absolute timeouts.
FirewallDataUsed to send extra data to the firewall.
InBufferSizeThe size in bytes of the incoming queue of the socket.
OutBufferSizeThe size in bytes of the outgoing queue of the socket.
BuildInfoInformation about the product's build.
CodePageThe system code page used for Unicode to Multibyte translations.
LicenseInfoInformation about the current license.
MaskSensitiveWhether sensitive data is masked in log messages.
ProcessIdleEventsWhether the class uses its internal event loop to process events when the main thread is idle.
SelectWaitMillisThe length of time in milliseconds the class will wait when DoEvents is called if there are no events to process.
UseFIPSCompliantAPITells the class whether or not to use FIPS certified APIs.
UseInternalSecurityAPITells the class whether or not to use the system security libraries or an internal implementation.

AuthToken Property (Kerberos Class)

The authentication token.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
int GetAuthToken(char* &lpAuthToken, int &lenAuthToken);

Unicode (Windows)
INT GetAuthToken(LPSTR &lpAuthToken, INT &lenAuthToken);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_getauthtoken(void* lpObj, char** lpAuthToken, int* lenAuthToken);
QByteArray GetAuthToken();

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property holds the authentication token.

This property will be populated after calling Authenticate. This may be used in by another entity to authenticate to the service. For instance this may be used in HTTP to authenticate to a web service.

The content of this property is a KRB_AP_REQ message. This is sometimes referred to as an "Authentication Header". It is comprised of the service ticket that was obtained from the TGS and an encrypted authenticator.

This property is read-only.

Data Type

Binary String

KDCHost Property (Kerberos Class)

The domain name or IP address of the Key Distribution Center (KDC).

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
char* GetKDCHost();
int SetKDCHost(const char* lpszKDCHost); Unicode (Windows) LPWSTR GetKDCHost();
INT SetKDCHost(LPCWSTR lpszKDCHost);
char* ipworksauth_kerberos_getkdchost(void* lpObj);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_setkdchost(void* lpObj, const char* lpszKDCHost);
QString GetKDCHost();
int SetKDCHost(QString qsKDCHost);

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the IP address (IP number in dotted internet format) or Domain Name of the Key Distribution Center (KDC).

If this property is set to a Domain Name, a DNS request is initiated and upon successful termination of the request, this property is set to the corresponding address. If the search is not successful, an error is returned.

Data Type

String

KDCPort Property (Kerberos Class)

The port for the Key Distribution Center (KDC).

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
int GetKDCPort();
int SetKDCPort(int iKDCPort); Unicode (Windows) INT GetKDCPort();
INT SetKDCPort(INT iKDCPort);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_getkdcport(void* lpObj);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_setkdcport(void* lpObj, int iKDCPort);
int GetKDCPort();
int SetKDCPort(int iKDCPort);

Default Value

88

Remarks

This property specifies the port for the Key Distribution Center (KDC). The default value is 88.

Data Type

Integer

KeytabFile Property (Kerberos Class)

The Kerberos Keytab file.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
char* GetKeytabFile();
int SetKeytabFile(const char* lpszKeytabFile); Unicode (Windows) LPWSTR GetKeytabFile();
INT SetKeytabFile(LPCWSTR lpszKeytabFile);
char* ipworksauth_kerberos_getkeytabfile(void* lpObj);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_setkeytabfile(void* lpObj, const char* lpszKeytabFile);
QString GetKeytabFile();
int SetKeytabFile(QString qsKeytabFile);

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the path to a Kerberos Keytab file. If specified, the credentials are read from this file.

Data Type

String

Password Property (Kerberos Class)

The user's password.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
char* GetPassword();
int SetPassword(const char* lpszPassword); Unicode (Windows) LPWSTR GetPassword();
INT SetPassword(LPCWSTR lpszPassword);
char* ipworksauth_kerberos_getpassword(void* lpObj);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_setpassword(void* lpObj, const char* lpszPassword);
QString GetPassword();
int SetPassword(QString qsPassword);

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the user's password. This must be set before calling Authenticate.

Data Type

String

SPN Property (Kerberos Class)

The Service Principal Name (SPN).

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
char* GetSPN();
int SetSPN(const char* lpszSPN); Unicode (Windows) LPWSTR GetSPN();
INT SetSPN(LPCWSTR lpszSPN);
char* ipworksauth_kerberos_getspn(void* lpObj);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_setspn(void* lpObj, const char* lpszSPN);
QString GetSPN();
int SetSPN(QString qsSPN);

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the Service Principal Name (SPN). This must be set before calling Authenticate.

Data Type

String

Timeout Property (Kerberos Class)

A timeout for the class.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
int GetTimeout();
int SetTimeout(int iTimeout); Unicode (Windows) INT GetTimeout();
INT SetTimeout(INT iTimeout);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_gettimeout(void* lpObj);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_settimeout(void* lpObj, int iTimeout);
int GetTimeout();
int SetTimeout(int iTimeout);

Default Value

60

Remarks

If the Timeout property is set to 0, all operations will run uninterrupted until successful completion or an error condition is encountered.

If Timeout is set to a positive value, the class will wait for the operation to complete before returning control.

The class will use DoEvents to enter an efficient wait loop during any potential waiting period, making sure that all system events are processed immediately as they arrive. This ensures that the host application does not "freeze" and remains responsive.

If Timeout expires, and the operation is not yet complete, the class fails with an error.

Please note that by default, all timeouts are inactivity timeouts, i.e. the timeout period is extended by Timeout seconds when any amount of data is successfully sent or received.

The default value for the Timeout property is 60 seconds.

Data Type

Integer

User Property (Kerberos Class)

The name and domain of the user to authenticate.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
char* GetUser();
int SetUser(const char* lpszUser); Unicode (Windows) LPWSTR GetUser();
INT SetUser(LPCWSTR lpszUser);
char* ipworksauth_kerberos_getuser(void* lpObj);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_setuser(void* lpObj, const char* lpszUser);
QString GetUser();
int SetUser(QString qsUser);

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the name and realm/domain of the user. The value specified must be in one of the following formats:

  • user@domain
  • domain/user

Data Type

String

UseTCP Property (Kerberos Class)

Whether TCP is used when establishing the connection.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
int GetUseTCP();
int SetUseTCP(int bUseTCP); Unicode (Windows) BOOL GetUseTCP();
INT SetUseTCP(BOOL bUseTCP);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_getusetcp(void* lpObj);
int ipworksauth_kerberos_setusetcp(void* lpObj, int bUseTCP);
bool GetUseTCP();
int SetUseTCP(bool bUseTCP);

Default Value

FALSE

Remarks

This property specifies whether TCP is used as the transport protocol when establishing the connection. By default this property is False and UDP will be used.

Data Type

Boolean

Authenticate Method (Kerberos Class)

Authenticates the user.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
int Authenticate();

Unicode (Windows)
INT Authenticate();
int ipworksauth_kerberos_authenticate(void* lpObj);
int Authenticate();

Remarks

This method authenticates the User.

Authentication

When Authenticate is called the class will attempt to authenticate the user with the Key Distribution Center (KDC). The class will communicate with the KDCHost to obtain a service ticket and populate AuthToken. The following properties are required when calling this method:

A typical sequence of messages would be:

  • KRB_AS_REQ -> KDC
  • KRB_AS_REP <- KDC
  • KRB_TGS_REQ -> KDC
  • KRB_TGS_REP <- KDC
  • AuthToken is populated with the constructed KRB_AP_REP message.

Communication with the KDCHost can be seen through the PITrail event.

Error Handling (C++)

This method returns a result code; 0 indicates success, while a non-zero error code indicates that this method encountered an error during its execution. If an error occurs, the GetLastError() method can be called to retrieve the associated error message. (Note: This method's result code can also be obtained by calling the GetLastErrorCode() method after it returns.)

Config Method (Kerberos Class)

Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
char* Config(const char* lpszConfigurationString);

Unicode (Windows)
LPWSTR Config(LPCWSTR lpszConfigurationString);
char* ipworksauth_kerberos_config(void* lpObj, const char* lpszConfigurationString);
QString Config(const QString& qsConfigurationString);

Remarks

Config is a generic method available in every class. It is used to set and retrieve configuration settings for the class.

These settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the class, access to these internal properties is provided through the Config method.

To set a configuration setting named PROPERTY, you must call Config("PROPERTY=VALUE"), where VALUE is the value of the setting expressed as a string. For boolean values, use the strings "True", "False", "0", "1", "Yes", or "No" (case does not matter).

To read (query) the value of a configuration setting, you must call Config("PROPERTY"). The value will be returned as a string.

Error Handling (C++)

This method returns a String value; after it returns, call the GetLastErrorCode() method to obtain its result code; 0 indicates success, while a non-zero error code indicates that this method encountered an error during its execution. If an error occurs, the GetLastError() method can be called to retrieve the associated error message.

DoEvents Method (Kerberos Class)

Processes events from the internal message queue.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
int DoEvents();

Unicode (Windows)
INT DoEvents();
int ipworksauth_kerberos_doevents(void* lpObj);
int DoEvents();

Remarks

When DoEvents is called, the class processes any available events. If no events are available, it waits for a preset period of time, and then returns.

Error Handling (C++)

This method returns a result code; 0 indicates success, while a non-zero error code indicates that this method encountered an error during its execution. If an error occurs, the GetLastError() method can be called to retrieve the associated error message. (Note: This method's result code can also be obtained by calling the GetLastErrorCode() method after it returns.)

Interrupt Method (Kerberos Class)

Interrupt the current method.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
int Interrupt();

Unicode (Windows)
INT Interrupt();
int ipworksauth_kerberos_interrupt(void* lpObj);
int Interrupt();

Remarks

If there is no method in progress, Interrupt simply returns, doing nothing.

Error Handling (C++)

This method returns a result code; 0 indicates success, while a non-zero error code indicates that this method encountered an error during its execution. If an error occurs, the GetLastError() method can be called to retrieve the associated error message. (Note: This method's result code can also be obtained by calling the GetLastErrorCode() method after it returns.)

Reset Method (Kerberos Class)

Resets the class properties to their default values.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
int Reset();

Unicode (Windows)
INT Reset();
int ipworksauth_kerberos_reset(void* lpObj);
int Reset();

Remarks

This method resets the properties to their default values.

Error Handling (C++)

This method returns a result code; 0 indicates success, while a non-zero error code indicates that this method encountered an error during its execution. If an error occurs, the GetLastError() method can be called to retrieve the associated error message. (Note: This method's result code can also be obtained by calling the GetLastErrorCode() method after it returns.)

Error Event (Kerberos Class)

Information about errors during data delivery.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
virtual int FireError(KerberosErrorEventParams *e);
typedef struct {
int ErrorCode;
const char *Description; int reserved; } KerberosErrorEventParams;
Unicode (Windows) virtual INT FireError(KerberosErrorEventParams *e);
typedef struct {
INT ErrorCode;
LPCWSTR Description; INT reserved; } KerberosErrorEventParams;
#define EID_KERBEROS_ERROR 1

virtual INT IPWORKSAUTH_CALL FireError(INT &iErrorCode, LPSTR &lpszDescription);
class KerberosErrorEventParams {
public:
  int ErrorCode();

  const QString &Description();

  int EventRetVal();
  void SetEventRetVal(int iRetVal);
};
// To handle, connect one or more slots to this signal. void Error(KerberosErrorEventParams *e);
// Or, subclass Kerberos and override this emitter function. virtual int FireError(KerberosErrorEventParams *e) {...}

Remarks

The Error event is fired in case of exceptional conditions during message processing. Normally the class fails with an error.

The ErrorCode parameter contains an error code, and the Description parameter contains a textual description of the error. For a list of valid error codes and their descriptions, please refer to the Error Codes section.

Log Event (Kerberos Class)

Fires once for each log message.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
virtual int FireLog(KerberosLogEventParams *e);
typedef struct {
int LogLevel;
const char *Message;
const char *LogType; int reserved; } KerberosLogEventParams;
Unicode (Windows) virtual INT FireLog(KerberosLogEventParams *e);
typedef struct {
INT LogLevel;
LPCWSTR Message;
LPCWSTR LogType; INT reserved; } KerberosLogEventParams;
#define EID_KERBEROS_LOG 2

virtual INT IPWORKSAUTH_CALL FireLog(INT &iLogLevel, LPSTR &lpszMessage, LPSTR &lpszLogType);
class KerberosLogEventParams {
public:
  int LogLevel();

  const QString &Message();

  const QString &LogType();

  int EventRetVal();
  void SetEventRetVal(int iRetVal);
};
// To handle, connect one or more slots to this signal. void Log(KerberosLogEventParams *e);
// Or, subclass Kerberos and override this emitter function. virtual int FireLog(KerberosLogEventParams *e) {...}

Remarks

This event fires once for each log message generated by the class. The verbosity is controlled by the LogLevel setting.

LogLevel indicates the level of the Message. Possible values are:

0 (None) No events are logged.
1 (Info - default) Informational events are logged.
2 (Verbose) Detailed data are logged.
3 (Debug) Debug data are logged.

The value 1 (Info) logs basic information, including the URL, HTTP version, and status details.

The value 2 (Verbose) logs additional information about the request and response.

The value 3 (Debug) logs the headers and body for both the request and response, as well as additional debug information (if any).

LogType identifies the type of log entry. Possible values are:

  • Info
  • Verbose
  • Debug

PITrail Event (Kerberos Class)

Traces the messages sent to the server, and the respective replies.

Syntax

ANSI (Cross Platform)
virtual int FirePITrail(KerberosPITrailEventParams *e);
typedef struct {
int Direction;
const char *Message; int reserved; } KerberosPITrailEventParams;
Unicode (Windows) virtual INT FirePITrail(KerberosPITrailEventParams *e);
typedef struct {
INT Direction;
LPCWSTR Message; INT reserved; } KerberosPITrailEventParams;
#define EID_KERBEROS_PITRAIL 3

virtual INT IPWORKSAUTH_CALL FirePITrail(INT &iDirection, LPSTR &lpszMessage);
class KerberosPITrailEventParams {
public:
  int Direction();

  const QString &Message();

  int EventRetVal();
  void SetEventRetVal(int iRetVal);
};
// To handle, connect one or more slots to this signal. void PITrail(KerberosPITrailEventParams *e);
// Or, subclass Kerberos and override this emitter function. virtual int FirePITrail(KerberosPITrailEventParams *e) {...}

Remarks

The PITrail event is useful for debugging purposes. It shows all the interaction between the client and the server. To include the raw packets set LogKerberosPackets to True.

The Message parameter contains the full text of the message. The Direction parameter shows the originator of the message:

0 (Client)The Message originates from the client.
1 (Server)The Message originates from the server.
2 (Info)The Message is an informative message originating from the client software (the class code).

Config Settings (Kerberos Class)

The class accepts one or more of the following configuration settings. Configuration settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the class, access to these internal properties is provided through the Config method.

KERBEROS Config Settings

CredentialsCacheFile:   The credentials cache file.

This setting specifies the path to a credentials cache file. If specified, the credentials are read from this file.

EncodeAuthToken:   Whether to Base64 encode the AuthToken.

This setting specifies whether AuthToken is Base64 encoded after calling Authenticate. The default value is False.

EncryptionTypes:   The encryption types used during authentication.

This setting specifies a comma separated list of encryption types used during authentication. Possible values are:

  • rc4-hmac
  • des-cbc-md5
  • aes128-cts-hmac-sha1-96
The default value is "des-cbc-md5,rc4-hmac,aes128-cts-hmac-sha1-96".
LogKerberosPackets:   Whether to include the raw Kerberos packets in PITrail output.

This settings specifies whether to include the raw Kerberos packet in the Message parameter of the PITrail event. When True the Kerberos packet will be encoded and present in the Message parameter. The default value is False. This may be enabled for troubleshooting purposes.

LogLevel:   The level of detail that is logged.

This setting controls the level of detail that is logged through the Log event. Possible values are:

0 (None) No events are logged.
1 (Info - default) Informational events are logged.
2 (Verbose) Detailed data are logged.
3 (Debug) Debug data are logged.

The value 1 (Info) logs basic information, including the URL, HTTP version, and status details.

The value 2 (Verbose) logs additional information about the request and response.

The value 3 (Debug) logs the headers and body for both the request and response, as well as additional debug information (if any).

UsePlatformKerberosAPI:   Whether to use the platform Kerberos API.

This setting determines if the platform's Kerberos API is used. By default the class does not rely on any platform APIs to perform Kerberos authentication. Use of the platform API may be enabled by setting this to True. The default value is False.

Note: This functionality is only available on Windows.

UseTCP:   Whether TCP is used when establishing the connection.

This config specifies whether TCP is used as the transport protocol when establishing the connection. By default this config is False and UDP will be used.

UDP Config Settings

CaptureIPPacketInfo:   Used to capture the packet information.

If this is set to true, the component will capture the IP packet information.

The default value for this setting is False.

Note: This setting is only available in Windows.

DelayHostResolution:   Whether the hostname is resolved when RemoteHost is set.

This setting specifies whether a hostname is resolved immediately when RemoteHost is set. If true the class will resolve the hostname and the IP address will be present in the RemoteHost property. If false, the hostname is not resolved until needed by the component when a method to connect or send data is called. If desired, ResolveRemoteHost may called to manually resolve the value in RemoteHost at any time.

The default value is false.

DestinationAddress:   Used to get the destination address from the packet information.

If CaptureIPPacketInfo is set to true, then this will be populated with the packet's destination address when a packet is received. This information will be accessible in the DataIn event.

Note: This setting is only available in Windows.

DontFragment:   Used to set the Don't Fragment flag of outgoing packets.

When set to True, packets sent by the class will have the Don't Fragment flag set. The default value is False.

LocalHost:   The name of the local host through which connections are initiated or accepted.

The LocalHost setting contains the name of the local host as obtained by the gethostname() system call, or if the user has assigned an IP address, the value of that address.

In multi-homed hosts (machines with more than one IP interface) setting LocalHost to the value of an interface will make the class initiate connections (or accept in the case of server classs) only through that interface.

If the class is connected, the LocalHost setting shows the IP address of the interface through which the connection is made in internet dotted format (aaa.bbb.ccc.ddd). In most cases, this is the address of the local host, except for multi-homed hosts (machines with more than one IP interface).

LocalPort:   The port in the local host where the class binds.

This must be set before a connection is attempted. It instructs the class to bind to a specific port (or communication endpoint) in the local machine.

Setting this to 0 (default) enables the system to choose a port at random. The chosen port will be shown by LocalPort after the connection is established.

LocalPort cannot be changed once a connection is made. Any attempt to set this when a connection is active will generate an error.

This; setting is useful when trying to connect to services that require a trusted port in the client side. An example is the remote shell (rsh) service in UNIX systems.

MaxPacketSize:   The maximum length of the packets that can be received.

This setting specifies the maximum size of the datagrams that the class will accept without truncation.

QOSDSCPValue:   Used to specify an arbitrary QOS/DSCP setting (optional).

UseConnection must be True to use this setting. This option allows you to specify an arbitrary DSCP value between 0 and 63. The default is 0. When set to the default value the component will not set a DSCP value.

Note: This setting uses the qWAVE API is only available on Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, and later.

QOSTrafficType:   Used to specify QOS/DSCP settings (optional).

UseConnection must be True to use this setting. You may specify either the text or integer values: BestEffort (0), Background (1), ExcellentEffort (2), AudioVideo (3), Voice (4), and Control (5).

Note: This setting uses the qWAVE API which is only available on Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 or above.

Note: QOSTrafficType must be set before setting Active to true.

ShareLocalPort:   If set to True, allows more than one instance of the class to be active on the same local port.

This option must be set before the class is activated through the Active property or it will have no effect.

The default value for this setting is False.

SourceIPAddress:   Used to set the source IP address used when sending a packet.

This configuration setting can be used to override the source IP address when sending a packet.

Note: This setting is only available in Windows and requires that the winpcap library be installed (or npcap with winpcap compatibility).

SourceMacAddress:   Used to set the source MAC address used when sending a packet.

This configuration setting can be used to override the source MAC address when sending a packet.

Note: This setting is only available in Windows and requires that the winpcap library be installed (or npcap with winpcap compatibility).

UseConnection:   Determines whether to use a connected socket.

UseConnection specifies whether the class should use a connected socket or not. The connection is defined as an association in between the local address/port and the remote address/port. As such, this is not a connection in the traditional TCP sense. What it means is only that the class will send and receive data only to and from the specified destination.

The default value for this setting is False.

UseIPv6:   Whether or not to use IPv6.

By default, the component expects an IPv4 address for local and remote host properties, and will create an IPv4 socket. To use IPv6 instead, set this to True.

Socket Config Settings

AbsoluteTimeout:   Determines whether timeouts are inactivity timeouts or absolute timeouts.

If AbsoluteTimeout is set to True, any method which does not complete within Timeout seconds will be aborted. By default, AbsoluteTimeout is False, and the timeout is an inactivity timeout.

Note: This option is not valid for UDP ports.

FirewallData:   Used to send extra data to the firewall.

When the firewall is a tunneling proxy, use this property to send custom (additional) headers to the firewall (e.g. headers for custom authentication schemes).

InBufferSize:   The size in bytes of the incoming queue of the socket.

This is the size of an internal queue in the TCP/IP stack. You can increase or decrease its size depending on the amount of data that you will be receiving. Increasing the value of the InBufferSize setting can provide significant improvements in performance in some cases.

Some TCP/IP implementations do not support variable buffer sizes. If that is the case, when the class is activated the InBufferSize reverts to its defined size. The same happens if you attempt to make it too large or too small.

OutBufferSize:   The size in bytes of the outgoing queue of the socket.

This is the size of an internal queue in the TCP/IP stack. You can increase or decrease its size depending on the amount of data that you will be sending. Increasing the value of the OutBufferSize setting can provide significant improvements in performance in some cases.

Some TCP/IP implementations do not support variable buffer sizes. If that is the case, when the class is activated the OutBufferSize reverts to its defined size. The same happens if you attempt to make it too large or too small.

Base Config Settings

BuildInfo:   Information about the product's build.

When queried, this setting will return a string containing information about the product's build.

CodePage:   The system code page used for Unicode to Multibyte translations.

The default code page is Unicode UTF-8 (65001).

The following is a list of valid code page identifiers:

IdentifierName
037IBM EBCDIC - U.S./Canada
437OEM - United States
500IBM EBCDIC - International
708Arabic - ASMO 708
709Arabic - ASMO 449+, BCON V4
710Arabic - Transparent Arabic
720Arabic - Transparent ASMO
737OEM - Greek (formerly 437G)
775OEM - Baltic
850OEM - Multilingual Latin I
852OEM - Latin II
855OEM - Cyrillic (primarily Russian)
857OEM - Turkish
858OEM - Multilingual Latin I + Euro symbol
860OEM - Portuguese
861OEM - Icelandic
862OEM - Hebrew
863OEM - Canadian-French
864OEM - Arabic
865OEM - Nordic
866OEM - Russian
869OEM - Modern Greek
870IBM EBCDIC - Multilingual/ROECE (Latin-2)
874ANSI/OEM - Thai (same as 28605, ISO 8859-15)
875IBM EBCDIC - Modern Greek
932ANSI/OEM - Japanese, Shift-JIS
936ANSI/OEM - Simplified Chinese (PRC, Singapore)
949ANSI/OEM - Korean (Unified Hangul Code)
950ANSI/OEM - Traditional Chinese (Taiwan; Hong Kong SAR, PRC)
1026IBM EBCDIC - Turkish (Latin-5)
1047IBM EBCDIC - Latin 1/Open System
1140IBM EBCDIC - U.S./Canada (037 + Euro symbol)
1141IBM EBCDIC - Germany (20273 + Euro symbol)
1142IBM EBCDIC - Denmark/Norway (20277 + Euro symbol)
1143IBM EBCDIC - Finland/Sweden (20278 + Euro symbol)
1144IBM EBCDIC - Italy (20280 + Euro symbol)
1145IBM EBCDIC - Latin America/Spain (20284 + Euro symbol)
1146IBM EBCDIC - United Kingdom (20285 + Euro symbol)
1147IBM EBCDIC - France (20297 + Euro symbol)
1148IBM EBCDIC - International (500 + Euro symbol)
1149IBM EBCDIC - Icelandic (20871 + Euro symbol)
1200Unicode UCS-2 Little-Endian (BMP of ISO 10646)
1201Unicode UCS-2 Big-Endian
1250ANSI - Central European
1251ANSI - Cyrillic
1252ANSI - Latin I
1253ANSI - Greek
1254ANSI - Turkish
1255ANSI - Hebrew
1256ANSI - Arabic
1257ANSI - Baltic
1258ANSI/OEM - Vietnamese
1361Korean (Johab)
10000MAC - Roman
10001MAC - Japanese
10002MAC - Traditional Chinese (Big5)
10003MAC - Korean
10004MAC - Arabic
10005MAC - Hebrew
10006MAC - Greek I
10007MAC - Cyrillic
10008MAC - Simplified Chinese (GB 2312)
10010MAC - Romania
10017MAC - Ukraine
10021MAC - Thai
10029MAC - Latin II
10079MAC - Icelandic
10081MAC - Turkish
10082MAC - Croatia
12000Unicode UCS-4 Little-Endian
12001Unicode UCS-4 Big-Endian
20000CNS - Taiwan
20001TCA - Taiwan
20002Eten - Taiwan
20003IBM5550 - Taiwan
20004TeleText - Taiwan
20005Wang - Taiwan
20105IA5 IRV International Alphabet No. 5 (7-bit)
20106IA5 German (7-bit)
20107IA5 Swedish (7-bit)
20108IA5 Norwegian (7-bit)
20127US-ASCII (7-bit)
20261T.61
20269ISO 6937 Non-Spacing Accent
20273IBM EBCDIC - Germany
20277IBM EBCDIC - Denmark/Norway
20278IBM EBCDIC - Finland/Sweden
20280IBM EBCDIC - Italy
20284IBM EBCDIC - Latin America/Spain
20285IBM EBCDIC - United Kingdom
20290IBM EBCDIC - Japanese Katakana Extended
20297IBM EBCDIC - France
20420IBM EBCDIC - Arabic
20423IBM EBCDIC - Greek
20424IBM EBCDIC - Hebrew
20833IBM EBCDIC - Korean Extended
20838IBM EBCDIC - Thai
20866Russian - KOI8-R
20871IBM EBCDIC - Icelandic
20880IBM EBCDIC - Cyrillic (Russian)
20905IBM EBCDIC - Turkish
20924IBM EBCDIC - Latin-1/Open System (1047 + Euro symbol)
20932JIS X 0208-1990 & 0121-1990
20936Simplified Chinese (GB2312)
21025IBM EBCDIC - Cyrillic (Serbian, Bulgarian)
21027Extended Alpha Lowercase
21866Ukrainian (KOI8-U)
28591ISO 8859-1 Latin I
28592ISO 8859-2 Central Europe
28593ISO 8859-3 Latin 3
28594ISO 8859-4 Baltic
28595ISO 8859-5 Cyrillic
28596ISO 8859-6 Arabic
28597ISO 8859-7 Greek
28598ISO 8859-8 Hebrew
28599ISO 8859-9 Latin 5
28605ISO 8859-15 Latin 9
29001Europa 3
38598ISO 8859-8 Hebrew
50220ISO 2022 Japanese with no halfwidth Katakana
50221ISO 2022 Japanese with halfwidth Katakana
50222ISO 2022 Japanese JIS X 0201-1989
50225ISO 2022 Korean
50227ISO 2022 Simplified Chinese
50229ISO 2022 Traditional Chinese
50930Japanese (Katakana) Extended
50931US/Canada and Japanese
50933Korean Extended and Korean
50935Simplified Chinese Extended and Simplified Chinese
50936Simplified Chinese
50937US/Canada and Traditional Chinese
50939Japanese (Latin) Extended and Japanese
51932EUC - Japanese
51936EUC - Simplified Chinese
51949EUC - Korean
51950EUC - Traditional Chinese
52936HZ-GB2312 Simplified Chinese
54936Windows XP: GB18030 Simplified Chinese (4 Byte)
57002ISCII Devanagari
57003ISCII Bengali
57004ISCII Tamil
57005ISCII Telugu
57006ISCII Assamese
57007ISCII Oriya
57008ISCII Kannada
57009ISCII Malayalam
57010ISCII Gujarati
57011ISCII Punjabi
65000Unicode UTF-7
65001Unicode UTF-8
The following is a list of valid code page identifiers for Mac OS only:
IdentifierName
1ASCII
2NEXTSTEP
3JapaneseEUC
4UTF8
5ISOLatin1
6Symbol
7NonLossyASCII
8ShiftJIS
9ISOLatin2
10Unicode
11WindowsCP1251
12WindowsCP1252
13WindowsCP1253
14WindowsCP1254
15WindowsCP1250
21ISO2022JP
30MacOSRoman
10UTF16String
0x90000100UTF16BigEndian
0x94000100UTF16LittleEndian
0x8c000100UTF32String
0x98000100UTF32BigEndian
0x9c000100UTF32LittleEndian
65536Proprietary

LicenseInfo:   Information about the current license.

When queried, this setting will return a string containing information about the license this instance of a class is using. It will return the following information:

  • Product: The product the license is for.
  • Product Key: The key the license was generated from.
  • License Source: Where the license was found (e.g., RuntimeLicense, License File).
  • License Type: The type of license installed (e.g., Royalty Free, Single Server).
  • Last Valid Build: The last valid build number for which the license will work.
MaskSensitive:   Whether sensitive data is masked in log messages.

In certain circumstances it may be beneficial to mask sensitive data, like passwords, in log messages. Set this to true to mask sensitive data. The default is true.

This setting only works on these classes: AS3Receiver, AS3Sender, Atom, Client(3DS), FTP, FTPServer, IMAP, OFTPClient, SSHClient, SCP, Server(3DS), Sexec, SFTP, SFTPServer, SSHServer, TCPClient, TCPServer.

ProcessIdleEvents:   Whether the class uses its internal event loop to process events when the main thread is idle.

If set to False, the class will not fire internal idle events. Set this to False to use the class in a background thread on Mac OS. By default, this setting is True.

SelectWaitMillis:   The length of time in milliseconds the class will wait when DoEvents is called if there are no events to process.

If there are no events to process when DoEvents is called, the class will wait for the amount of time specified here before returning. The default value is 20.

UseFIPSCompliantAPI:   Tells the class whether or not to use FIPS certified APIs.

When set to true, the class will utilize the underlying operating system's certified APIs. Java editions, regardless of OS, utilize Bouncy Castle FIPS, while all the other Windows editions make use of Microsoft security libraries.

FIPS mode can be enabled by setting the UseFIPSCompliantAPI configuration setting to true. This is a static setting which applies to all instances of all classes of the toolkit within the process. It is recommended to enable or disable this setting once before the component has been used to establish a connection. Enabling FIPS while an instance of the component is active and connected may result in unexpected behavior.

For more details please see the FIPS 140-2 Compliance article.

Note: This setting is only applicable on Windows.

Note: Enabling FIPS-compliance requires a special license; please contact sales@nsoftware.com for details.

UseInternalSecurityAPI:   Whether or not to use the system security libraries or an internal implementation.

When set to false, the class will use the system security libraries by default to perform cryptographic functions where applicable.

Setting this configuration setting to true tells the class to use the internal implementation instead of using the system security libraries.

On Windows, this setting is set to false by default. On Linux/macOS, this setting is set to true by default.

To use the system security libraries for Linux, OpenSSL support must be enabled. For more information on how to enable OpenSSL, please refer to the OpenSSL Notes section.

Trappable Errors (Kerberos Class)

Error Handling (C++)

Call the GetLastErrorCode() method to obtain the last called method's result code; 0 indicates success, while a non-zero error code indicates that this method encountered an error during its execution. Known error codes are listed below. If an error occurs, the GetLastError() method can be called to retrieve the associated error message.

kerberos Errors

950   Busy performing other action.
951   Invalid username.
952   Received error message. The error message contains the description.
953   Message integrity check error.
954   Unsupported encryption type.

UDP Errors

104   UDP is already Active.
106   You cannot change the LocalPort while the class is Active.
107   You cannot change the LocalHost at this time. A connection is in progress.
109   The class must be Active for this operation.
112   Cannot change MaxPacketSize while the class is Active.
113   Cannot change ShareLocalPort option while the class is Active.
114   Cannot change RemoteHost when UseConnection is set and the class Active.
115   Cannot change RemotePort when UseConnection is set and the class is Active.
116   RemotePort can't be zero when UseConnection is set. Please specify a valid service port number.
117   Cannot change UseConnection while the class is Active.
118   Message can't be longer than MaxPacketSize.
119   Message too short.
434   Unable to convert string to selected CodePage

TCP/IP Errors

10004   [10004] Interrupted system call.
10009   [10009] Bad file number.
10013   [10013] Access denied.
10014   [10014] Bad address.
10022   [10022] Invalid argument.
10024   [10024] Too many open files.
10035   [10035] Operation would block.
10036   [10036] Operation now in progress.
10037   [10037] Operation already in progress.
10038   [10038] Socket operation on non-socket.
10039   [10039] Destination address required.
10040   [10040] Message too long.
10041   [10041] Protocol wrong type for socket.
10042   [10042] Bad protocol option.
10043   [10043] Protocol not supported.
10044   [10044] Socket type not supported.
10045   [10045] Operation not supported on socket.
10046   [10046] Protocol family not supported.
10047   [10047] Address family not supported by protocol family.
10048   [10048] Address already in use.
10049   [10049] Can't assign requested address.
10050   [10050] Network is down.
10051   [10051] Network is unreachable.
10052   [10052] Net dropped connection or reset.
10053   [10053] Software caused connection abort.
10054   [10054] Connection reset by peer.
10055   [10055] No buffer space available.
10056   [10056] Socket is already connected.
10057   [10057] Socket is not connected.
10058   [10058] Can't send after socket shutdown.
10059   [10059] Too many references, can't splice.
10060   [10060] Connection timed out.
10061   [10061] Connection refused.
10062   [10062] Too many levels of symbolic links.
10063   [10063] File name too long.
10064   [10064] Host is down.
10065   [10065] No route to host.
10066   [10066] Directory not empty
10067   [10067] Too many processes.
10068   [10068] Too many users.
10069   [10069] Disc Quota Exceeded.
10070   [10070] Stale NFS file handle.
10071   [10071] Too many levels of remote in path.
10091   [10091] Network subsystem is unavailable.
10092   [10092] WINSOCK DLL Version out of range.
10093   [10093] Winsock not loaded yet.
11001   [11001] Host not found.
11002   [11002] Non-authoritative 'Host not found' (try again or check DNS setup).
11003   [11003] Non-recoverable errors: FORMERR, REFUSED, NOTIMP.
11004   [11004] Valid name, no data record (check DNS setup).