OTP Control

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The OTP control allows creation of single use passwords.

Syntax

OTP

Remarks

The OTP control implements the HOTP algorithm defined in RFC 4226 (HMAC-Based One-Time Password) and the TOTP algorithm defined in RFC 6238 (Time-Based One-Time Password). These types of passwords are commonly used as a second factor of authentication in multi-factor authentication scenarios.

To begin decide which algorithm you wish to use and set PasswordAlgorithm. Specify the shared secret in the Secret property.

Next, depending on the algorithm chosen you may set Counter (HOTP) or TimeStep (TOTP). If these properties are not set, the control will use a default value.

To create the password call CreatePassword. The Password property will be populated with the new password.

To validate a password set the Password property and call ValidatePassword. The method will return True or False to indicate success or failure.

Property List

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

Method List

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

Event List

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

Config Settings

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

Counter Property (OTP Control)

The counter used for HMAC-Based One Time Password creation or validation.

Syntax

otpcontrol.Counter[=long64]

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property holds the counter value used for HMAC-Based One Time Password creation or validation. When PasswordAlgorithm is set to paHOTP this value must be specified before calling CreatePassword or ValidatePassword. The value should be incremented each time a password is created.

The default value is 0.

This property is not applicable when using the Time-Based One Time Password algorithm.

Data Type

Long64

Password Property (OTP Control)

The HMAC-Based or Time-Based One Time Password.

Syntax

otpcontrol.Password[=string]

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property holds the HMAC-Based or Time-Based One Time Password. This property is populated after calling CreatePassword. This property must be set before calling ValidatePassword.

Data Type

String

PasswordAlgorithm Property (OTP Control)

The algorithm used to create or validate the password.

Syntax

otpcontrol.PasswordAlgorithm[=integer]

Possible Values

paTOTP(0), 
paHOTP(1)

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property specifies whether to use the HMAC-Based or Time-Based One Time Password algorithm. Possible values are:

Data Type

Integer

Secret Property (OTP Control)

The Base32 encoded shared secret used when creating and validating a password.

Syntax

otpcontrol.Secret[=string]

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the Base32 encoded shared secret used when creating and validating a password. This should be set before calling CreatePassword or ValidatePassword.

If this is not set before calling CreatePassword a random secret will be automatically generated. This functionality provides an easy way to create new secret values. The length of the secret is defined by SecretLength.

Data Type

String

TimeStep Property (OTP Control)

The time step (in seconds) used for Time-Based One Time Password creation or validation.

Syntax

otpcontrol.TimeStep[=integer]

Default Value

30

Remarks

This property specifies the time step (in seconds) used for Time-Based One Time Password creation or validation. When PasswordAlgorithm is set to paTOTP this value must be specified before calling CreatePassword or ValidatePassword.

The default value is 30.

This property is not applicable when using the HMAC-Based One Time Password algorithm.

Data Type

Integer

ValidityTime Property (OTP Control)

The validity time of the created password.

Syntax

otpcontrol.ValidityTime

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property returns the remaining validity time in seconds of the created password. After calling CreatePassword this property may be queried to determine for how many more seconds the password will be valid. If the password is no longer valid this property returns 0.

This property is read-only.

Data Type

Integer

Config Method (OTP Control)

Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.

Syntax

otpcontrol.Config ConfigurationString

Remarks

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

These settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the control, 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.

CreatePassword Method (OTP Control)

Creates a Time-Based or HMAC-Based One Time Password.

Syntax

otpcontrol.CreatePassword 

Remarks

This method creates either a Time-Based or HMAC-Based One Time Password. The PasswordAlgorithm property specifies which algorithm to use.

The following properties are applicable when calling CreatePassword.

• PasswordAlgorithm
• Secret
• Counter (required for HMAC-Based One Time Password)
• TimeStep (applicable for Time-Based One Time Password)

Calling CreatePassword populates the Password property with the created password.

If Secret is not specified before calling this method a random secret will be automatically generated.

Reset Method (OTP Control)

Reset the variables to default value.

Syntax

otpcontrol.Reset 

Remarks

This method will reset the variables to default value.

ValidatePassword Method (OTP Control)

Validates a Time-Based or HMAC-Based One Time Password.

Syntax

otpcontrol.ValidatePassword 

Remarks

This method validates a Time-Based or HMAC-Based One Time Password. The PasswordAlgorithm property specifies which algorithm to use.

The following properties are applicable when calling ValidatePassword.

• Password (required)
• PasswordAlgorithm
• Secret (required)
• Counter (required for HMAC-Based One Time Password)
• TimeStep (applicable for Time-Based One Time Password)

The method will return True if the password is validated, False otherwise.

Error Event (OTP Control)

Fired when information is available about errors during data delivery.

Syntax

Sub otpcontrol_Error(ErrorCode As Integer, Description As String)

Remarks

The Error event is fired in case of exceptional conditions during message processing. Normally the control 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.

Config Settings (OTP Control)

OTP Config Settings

//TOTP
otpauth://totp/MyServiceName:account@company.com?secret=JBSWY3DPEHPK3PXP&digits=6&period=30

//HOTP
otpauth://hotp/MyServiceName:account@company.com?secret=JBSWY3DPEHPK3PXP&digits=6&counter=0

Base Config Settings

Trappable Errors (OTP Control)

OTP Errors