A new password is valid if it:

  • Meets the server's password requirements
  • Is assigned a password policy
  • Passes user authentication

The server can display requirements for a password change to users. You can use the get-password-quality-requirements extended operation to retrieve information about the requirements, which you can forward to an end user before an attempted password change. You can also use these requirements to enable client-side validation so that any password problems can be identified before it is sent to the server. The password validation details request control can be included in an add or modify request, or a password modify extended request, to identify which validation requirements were not met by the password provided in the request.

You can configure password validators with user-friendly messages that describe the password requirements, and error messages that display if a proposed password does not satisfy those requirements. The server will automatically generate these messages if they are not provided in the configuration.

Password properties include the following:

bind-password-validator
Specifies which validators to invoke on bind.
password-validator
Specifies which validators to invoke during a password change.
minimum-bind-password-validation-frequency
Specifies how frequently the server should validate a user's password during bind. Although you can specify that the password should be validated during each bind, it's probably sufficient to only do so periodically (for example, once a week or once a month).
bind-password-validation-failure-action
Specifies the action the server should take if a user's password fails validation. By default, the account is placed in a "must change password" state where the user is allowed to bind, but any other operations the user attempts fail until the user changes their password. Alternatively, the account can be locked so that the password needs to be reset by an administrator, or the server can generate an account status notification to recommend that the user choose a new password.
  1. Create a password validator.
    Note:

    Password validator properties include validator-requirement-description and validator-failure messages.

    The following is a simple password validator configuration that requires passwords to contain a minimum of five characters and lists custom validator messages.

    $ dsconfig create-password-validator \
  --validator-name "Minimum 5 Characters Password Validator" \
  --type length-based --set enabled:true \
  --set "validator-requirement-description:The password must contain
         at least 5 characters." \
  --set "validator-failure-message:The password did not contain
         at least 5 characters." \
  --set min-password-length:5
  2. To make the newly created password validator take effect, assign it to a password policy. 
    $ dsconfig set-password-policy-prop \
  --policy-name "Default Password Policy" \
  --set "password-validator:Minimum 5 Characters Password Validator"
  3. To validate the password, authenticate as a user.
    Note:

    When a user authenticates, password validation processing is performed so that the server has access to the user's clear-text password.