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Cisco IE 2000 Switch Software Configuration Guide
OL-25866-01
Chapter 12 Configuring Switch-Based Authentication
Information About Configuring Switch-Based Authentication
Enable Secret Passwords with Encryption
To provide an additional layer of security, particularly for passwords that cross the network or that are
stored on a Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) server, you can use either the enable password or
enable secret global configuration commands. Both commands accomplish the same thing; th at is, you
can establish an encrypted password that users must enter to access privileged EXEC mode (the default)
or any privilege level you specify.
We recommend that you use the enable secret command because it uses an improved encryption
algorithm.
If you configure the enable secret command, it takes precedence over the enable password command;
the two commands cannot be in effect simultaneously.
Use the level keyword to define a password for a specific privilege level. After you specify the level and
set a password, give the password only to users who need to have access at this level. Use the privilege
level global configuration command to specify commands accessible at various levels.
If you enable password encryption, it applies to all passwords includi ng username passwords,
authentication key passwords, the privileged command password, and console and virtual terminal line
passwords.
To remove a password and level, use the no enable password [level level] or no enable secret [level
level] global configuration command. To disable password encryption, use the no service
password-encryption global configuration command.
Password Recovery
By default, any end user with physical access to the switch can recover from a lost password by
interrupting the boot process while the switch is powering on and then by entering a new password.
The password-recovery disable feature protects access to the switch password by disablin g part of this
functionality. When this feature is enabled, the end user can interrupt the boot process only by agreeing
to set the system back to the default configuration. With password recovery disabled, you can still
interrupt the boot process and change the password, but the configuration file (config.text) and the
VLAN database file (vlan.dat) are deleted.
Note If you disable password recovery, we recommend that you keep a backup copy of the configuration file
on a secure server in case the end user interrupts the boot process and sets the system back to default
values. Do not keep a backup copy of the configuration file on the switch. If the switch is operating in
VTP transparent mode, we recommend that you also keep a ba ckup copy of the VLAN database file on
a secure server. When the switch is returned to the default system configuration, you can download the
saved files to the switch by using the Xmodem protocol. For more information, see the “Recovering from
a Lost or Forgotten Password” section on page 46-8.
Note Disabling password recovery will not work if you have set the switch to boot up manually by using the
boot manual global configuration command. This command produces the boot load er prompt (switch:)
after the switch is power cycled.