OTP Component
Properties Methods Events Config Settings Errors
The OTP component allows creation of single use passwords.
Syntax
nsoftware.IPWorksAuth.OTP
Remarks
The OTP component 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 component 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 component with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.
Counter | The counter used for HMAC-Based One Time Password creation or validation. |
Password | The HMAC-Based or Time-Based One Time Password. |
PasswordAlgorithm | The algorithm used to create or validate the password. |
Secret | The Base32 encoded shared secret used when creating and validating a password. |
TimeStep | The time step (in seconds) used for Time-Based One Time Password creation or validation. |
ValidityTime | The validity time of the created password. |
Method List
The following is the full list of the methods of the component with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.
Config | Sets or retrieves a configuration setting. |
CreatePassword | Creates a Time-Based or HMAC-Based One Time Password. |
Reset | Reset the variables to default value. |
ValidatePassword | Validates a Time-Based or HMAC-Based One Time Password. |
Event List
The following is the full list of the events fired by the component with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.
Error | Fired when information is available about errors during data delivery. |
Config Settings
The following is a list of config settings for the component with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.
CurrentTime | The current time in milliseconds. |
FuturePasswordsAccepted | The number of future passwords to accept. |
HashAlgorithm | The hash algorithm used to sign the password. |
PasswordLength | The length of the generated password. |
PreviousPasswordsAccepted | The number of previous passwords to accept. |
QRCodeURI | Returns a URI suitable for encoding as a QR code. |
SecretLength | The length of secret to generate. |
ValidityTime | The validity time of the created TOTP password. |
BuildInfo | Information about the product's build. |
GUIAvailable | Whether or not a message loop is available for processing events. |
LicenseInfo | Information about the current license. |
MaskSensitiveData | Whether sensitive data is masked in log messages. |
UseFIPSCompliantAPI | Tells the component whether or not to use FIPS certified APIs. |
UseInternalSecurityAPI | Whether or not to use the system security libraries or an internal implementation. |
Counter Property (OTP Component)
The counter used for HMAC-Based One Time Password creation or validation.
Syntax
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.
Password Property (OTP Component)
The HMAC-Based or Time-Based One Time Password.
Syntax
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.
PasswordAlgorithm Property (OTP Component)
The algorithm used to create or validate the password.
Syntax
public OTPPasswordAlgorithms PasswordAlgorithm { get; set; }
enum OTPPasswordAlgorithms { paTOTP, paHOTP }
Public Property PasswordAlgorithm As OtpPasswordAlgorithms
Enum OTPPasswordAlgorithms paTOTP paHOTP End Enum
Default Value
0
Remarks
This property specifies whether to use the HMAC-Based or Time-Based One Time Password algorithm. Possible values are:
0 (paTOTP - default) | Time-Based One Time Password Algorithm. |
1 (paHOTP) | HMAC-Based One Time Password Algorithm. |
Secret Property (OTP Component)
The Base32 encoded shared secret used when creating and validating a password.
Syntax
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.
TimeStep Property (OTP Component)
The time step (in seconds) used for Time-Based One Time Password creation or validation.
Syntax
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.
ValidityTime Property (OTP Component)
The validity time of the created password.
Syntax
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.
Config Method (OTP Component)
Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.
Syntax
Remarks
Config is a generic method available in every component. It is used to set and retrieve configuration settings for the component.
These settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the component, 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 Component)
Creates a Time-Based or HMAC-Based One Time Password.
Syntax
public void CreatePassword(); Async Version public async Task CreatePassword(); public async Task CreatePassword(CancellationToken cancellationToken);
Public Sub CreatePassword() Async Version Public Sub CreatePassword() As Task Public Sub CreatePassword(cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task
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 Component)
Reset the variables to default value.
Syntax
public void Reset(); Async Version public async Task Reset(); public async Task Reset(CancellationToken cancellationToken);
Public Sub Reset() Async Version Public Sub Reset() As Task Public Sub Reset(cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task
Remarks
This method will reset the variables to default value.
ValidatePassword Method (OTP Component)
Validates a Time-Based or HMAC-Based One Time Password.
Syntax
public bool ValidatePassword(); Async Version public async Task<bool> ValidatePassword(); public async Task<bool> ValidatePassword(CancellationToken cancellationToken);
Public Function ValidatePassword() As Boolean Async Version Public Function ValidatePassword() As Task(Of Boolean) Public Function ValidatePassword(cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task(Of Boolean)
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 Component)
Fired when information is available about errors during data delivery.
Syntax
public event OnErrorHandler OnError; public delegate void OnErrorHandler(object sender, OTPErrorEventArgs e); public class OTPErrorEventArgs : EventArgs { public int ErrorCode { get; } public string Description { get; } }
Public Event OnError As OnErrorHandler Public Delegate Sub OnErrorHandler(sender As Object, e As OTPErrorEventArgs) Public Class OTPErrorEventArgs Inherits EventArgs Public ReadOnly Property ErrorCode As Integer Public ReadOnly Property Description As String End Class
Remarks
The Error event is fired in case of exceptional conditions during message processing. Normally the component throws an exception.
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 Component)
The component 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 component, access to these internal properties is provided through the Config method.OTP Config Settings
Specifies the current time Unix time in milliseconds (time since January 1 1970). Normally the component will query the system for the current time when creating or validating TOTP passwords. In the event that the system time is incorrect or cannot be retrieved you may set this value to the current time. This value will be reset to 0 after calling CreatePassword.
When set to a positive value, the component will accept passwords which are generated {FuturePasswordsAccepted} * TimeStep seconds in the future. The default value is 0.
This setting specifies the hash algorithm used to sign the password. Possible values are:
- SHA1 (default)
- SHA256
- SHA512
This setting specifies the length of the generated password. Possible values are:
- 6 (default)
- 7
- 8
When set to a positive value, the component will accept passwords which were generated {PreviousPasswordsAccepted} * TimeStep seconds in the past. The default value is 0.
This setting provides a way to generate a URI which can be encoded into a QR code, suitable for using in any authenticator application. The URI format is well defined and is an easy way to transfer the secret key and other relevant parameters.
To use this setting first set Secret to a valid value, then execute code like:
string MyQRCodeURI = component.Config("QRCodeURI=MyServiceName:account@company.com");
In the above example the MyServiceName value is the issuer. This is typically used in authenticator applications to identify the service to which the account belongs. The account@company.com value is the account name and identifies the specific account with which the key is associated. The use of an issuer is not required but is recommended. An account name is required.
The return value from this operation is a URI in one of the following formats:
//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
The following values are applicable when using this setting:
- Secret
- PasswordLength
- HashAlgorithm
- TimeStep (TOTP)
- Counter (HOTP)
When Secret is empty and CreatePassword is called a random secret value will be generated. This setting determines the length of the randomly generated secret. The default value is 32.
This setting returns the remaining validity time in seconds of the created TOTP password. After calling CreatePassword this setting may be queried to determine for how many more seconds the password will be valid. If the password is no longer valid this setting returns 0. This is not applicable to HOTP passwords.
Base Config Settings
When queried, this setting will return a string containing information about the product's build.
In a GUI-based application, long-running blocking operations may cause the application to stop responding to input until the operation returns. The component will attempt to discover whether or not the application has a message loop and, if one is discovered, it will process events in that message loop during any such blocking operation.
In some non-GUI applications, an invalid message loop may be discovered that will result in errant behavior. In these cases, setting GUIAvailable to false will ensure that the component does not attempt to process external events.
When queried, this setting will return a string containing information about the license this instance of a component 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.
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 components: AS3Receiver, AS3Sender, Atom, Client(3DS), FTP, FTPServer, IMAP, OFTPClient, SSHClient, SCP, Server(3DS), Sexec, SFTP, SFTPServer, SSHServer, TCPClient, TCPServer.
When set to true, the component will utilize the underlying operating system's certified APIs. Java editions, regardless of OS, utilize Bouncy Castle Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS), while all 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 that applies to all instances of all components 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 applicable only on Windows.
Note: Enabling FIPS compliance requires a special license; please contact sales@nsoftware.com for details.
When set to false, the component will use the system security libraries by default to perform cryptographic functions where applicable. In this case, calls to unmanaged code will be made. In certain environments, this is not desirable. To use a completely managed security implementation, set this setting to true.
Setting this configuration setting to true tells the component 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.
If using the .NET Standard Library, this setting will be true on all platforms. The .NET Standard library does not support using the system security libraries.
Note: This setting is static. The value set is applicable to all components used in the application.
When this value is set, the product's system dynamic link library (DLL) is no longer required as a reference, as all unmanaged code is stored in that file.
Trappable Errors (OTP Component)
OTP Errors
114 | Can't create password. |
115 | Can't validate password. |