topic Re: extracting user credentials from workspace.connectionProperties? in Python Questions

extracting user credentials from workspace.connectionProperties?

David_JAnderson — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 20:56:04 GMT

I am wondering if it is possible to extract username and password from a SDE connection file. This help topic http://help.arcgis.com/en/arcgisdesktop/10.0/help/index.html#//000v00000037000000 shows the user name as a property but not the password. I've tired password, PASSWORD, Password as properties but no luck.

Re: extracting user credentials from workspace.connectionProperties?

MathewCoyle — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 21:01:18 GMT

I am pretty sure that is working as intended. I certainly hope extracting a password from a connection file wouldn't be that easy.

Re: extracting user credentials from workspace.connectionProperties?

David_JAnderson — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 21:31:22 GMT

This old forum question:
http://forums.esri.com/Thread.asp?c=159&f=1707&t=285123
implies that with ArcObjects it is indeed that easy to extract a password from a connection file. Because really what is the security risk? Being able to access the SDE connection file means I can set that as my workspace, then do operations such as update and delete with the privileges associated with the user name in the SDE connection file. Being able to extract the credentials to use for a cx_Oracle login would not provide the script with any more privileges than were already available through the normal geoprocessing tools.