Commands Reference, Volume 6

xauth Command

Purpose

Edits and displays the authorization information used in connecting to the X server.

Syntax

xauth [ -f AuthFile ] [ -v | -q ] [ -i ] [ -b ] [ CommandArgument ... ]

Description

The xauth command is usually used to edit and display the authorization information used in connecting to the X server. This program extracts authorization records from one machine and merge them into another (for example, when using remote logins or granting access to other users).

The following commands can be entered interactively, on the xauth command line, or in scripts. Note that this program does not contact the X server.

add DisplayName ProtocolName Hexkey	An authorization entry is added to the authorization file for the indicated display using the given protocol and key data. The data is specified as an even-length string of hexadecimal digits, each pair representing one octet. The first digit of each pair gives the most significant 4 bits of the octet, and the second digit of the pair gives the least significant 4 bits. For example, a 32-character hexkey would represent a 128-bit value. A protocol name consisting of just a single period is treated as an abbreviation for MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE-1.
extract FileName DisplayName...	Authorization entries for each of the specified displays are written to the indicated file. The extracted entries can be read back in using the merge and nmerge commands. If the file name consists of just a single dash, the entries are written to the binary output.
generate DisplayName ProtocolName [trusted \| untrusted] [timeout seconds] [group group-id] [data hexdata]	This command is similar to add. The main difference is that instead of requiring the user to supply the key data, it connects to the server specified in displayname and uses the `SECURITY` extension in order to get the key data to store in the authorization file. If the server cannot be contacted or if it does not support the `SECURITY` extension, the command fails. Otherwise, an authorization entry for the indicated display using the given protocol is added to the authorization file. A protocol name consisting of just a single period is treated as an abbreviation for `MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE-1`. If the trusted option is used, clients that connect using this authorization will have full run of the display, as usual. If untrusted is used, clients that connect using this authorization will be considered untrusted and prevented from stealing or tampering with data belonging to trusted clients. See the `SECURITY` extension specification for full details on the restrictions imposed on untrusted clients. The default is untrusted. The timeout option specifies how long in seconds this authorization will be valid. If the authorization remains unused (no clients are connected with it) for longer than this time period, the server purges the authorization, and future attempts to connect using it will fail. Note that the purging done by the server does not delete the authorization entry from the authorization file. The default timeout is 60 seconds. The group option specifies the application group that clients connecting with this authorization should belong to. See the application group extension specification for more details. The default is to not belong to an application group. The data option specifies data that the server should use to generate the authorization. Note that this is not the same data that gets written to the authorization file. The interpretation of this data depends on the authorization protocol. The hexdata is in the same format as the hexkey described in the add command. The default is to send no data.
list [DisplayName...]	Authorization entries for each of the specified displays (or all displays if none are named) are printed on the standard output in a textual format. Key data is always displayed in the hexadecimal format given in the description of the add command.
merge [FileName...]	Authorization entries are read from the specified files and are merged into the authorization database, superseding any matching existing entries. If a file name consists of just a single dash, the binary input is read if it has not been read before.
[n]extract Filename DisplayName...	Authorization entries for each of the specified displays are written to the indicated file. The entries are written in a numeric format suitable for non-binary transmission (such as secure electronic mail). The extracted entries can be read back in using the merge and nmerge commands. If the file name consists of just a single dash, the entries are written to the standard output.
[n]list [DisplayName...]	Authorization entries for each of the specified displays (or all displays if none are named) are printed on the standard output in the numeric format used by the nextract command. Key data is always displayed in the hexadecimal format given in the description of the add command.
[n]merge [FileName...]	Authorization entries are read from the specified files and are merged into the authorization database, superseding any matching existing entries. The numeric format given in the description of the extract command is used. If a file name consists of just a single dash, the standard input is read if it has not been read before.
remove DisplayName...	Authorization entries matching the specified displays are removed from the authority file.
source FileName	The specified file is treated as a script containing xauth commands to execute. Blank lines and lines beginning with a # (pound sign) are ignored. A single dash can be used to indicate the standard input, if it has not already been read.
info	Information describing the authorization file, whether or not any changes have been made, and from where xauth commands are being read is printed on the standard output.
exit	If any modifications have been made, the authority file is written out (if allowed), and the program exits. An end of file is treated as an implicit exit command.
quit	The program exits, ignoring any modifications. This may also be accomplished by pressing the interrupt character.
help [String]	A description of all commands that begin with the given string (or all commands if no string is given) is printed on the standard output.
?	A short list of the valid commands is printed on the standard output.

Display names for the add, [n]extract, [n]list, [n]merge, and remove commands use the same format as the DISPLAY environment variable and the common display command-line argument. Display-specific information (such as the screen number) is unnecessary and is ignored. Same-machine connections (such as local-host sockets, shared memory, and the Internet Protocol HostName LocalHost) are referred to as HostName/unix:DisplayNumber so that local entries for different machines can be stored in one authority file.

Note: Users that have unsecure networks should take care to use encrypted file transfer mechanisms to copy authorization entries between machines. Similarly, the MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE-1 protocol is not very useful in unsecure environments. Sites that are interested in additional security may need to use encrypted authorization mechanisms such as Kerberos. Spaces are currently not allowed in the protocol name. Quoting could be added.

Flags

The following options are used with the xauth command. They can be given individually (for example, -q -i) or combined (for example, -qi).

-f AuthFile	Specifies the name of the authority file to use. By default, xauth uses the file specified by the XAUTHORITY environment variable or .xauthority in the user's home directory.
-v	Indicates that xauth should operate verbosely and print status messages indicating the results of various operations (for example, how many records have been read in or written out). This is the default if xauth is reading commands from its standard input and its standard output is directed to a terminal.
-q	Indicates that xauth should operate quietly and not print unsolicited status messages. This is the default if an xauth command is given on the command line or if the standard output is not directed to a terminal.
-i	Indicates that xauth should ignore any authority file locks. Normally, xauth refuses to read or edit any authority files that have been locked by other programs (usually xdm or another xauth).
-b	Indicates that xauth should attempt to break any authority file locks before proceeding. Use this option only to clean up stale locks.

Example

The most common use for the xauth command is to extract the entry for the current display, copy it to another machine, and merge it into the user's authority file on the remote machine:

% xauth extract \- $DISPLAY | rsh otherhost xauth merge \-

Files

$HOME/.Xauthority

Contains the default authority file if the XAUTHORITY environment variable is not defined.