CGI::Auth version 2.4.3 ======================= CGI::Auth provides password authentication for web-based applications. It uses server-based session files that are referred to by a parameter in all links and forms inside the scripts guarded by CGI::Auth. CGI::Auth is written in pure Perl, so it should be portable across operating systems. It was originally designed on Windows NT, and has also been used extensively (and successfully) on Linux. Upon installation, the documentation can be viewed by issuing the command 'perldoc CGI::Auth', or by running perldoc directly on the Auth.pm file. INSTALLATION To install this module type the following: perl Makefile.PL make make test make install Also, take a look in the extra directory for sample files to help you get started. NOTE: If the make doesn't work for you for some reason, all you really need to do is copy Auth.pm to a folder named 'CGI' in one of your Perl include directories. DEPENDENCIES CGI.pm version 2.0. It will probably work with any version, since I don't use a lot of CGI.pm's functionality, but I developed it with 2.7 and didn't want to go too far back. It's probably best to use the latest version of CGI.pm anyway. * OR * CGI::Simple This is a simpler alternative to CGI.pm. It is smaller and faster, but includes all the basic CGI functionality. What it doesn't include is the HTML shortcuts, and these are not needed by CGI::Auth. However, CGI::Simple is newer than CGI.pm and hasn't been tested as thoroughly. It will probably work just fine, but you might find a bug or two. NOTE ON SECURITY Any hidden fields such as passwords are sent over the network in clear text, so anyone with low-level access to the network (such as an ISP owner or a lucky/skilled hacker) could read the passwords and gain access to your application. CGI::Auth has no control over this since it is currently a server-side-only solution. If your application must be fully secured, an encryption layer such as HTTPS should be used to encrypt the session so that passwords cannot be snooped by unauthorized individuals. COPYRIGHT AND LICENCE Copyright (c) 2001, 2002, 2003 C. Chad Wallace. All rights reserved. This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself. THIS PACKAGE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND WITHOUT ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.