Remember logins with a password manager
Too many passwords and logins to remember? Use free software to help bolster your bursting brain
As an adult living in the modern world it's all but impossible to avoid acquiring a large collection of passwords, logins, PINs, passphrases and keys to encrypted documents and secret answers to personal security questions. Organisations and outfits that issue or demand such security sequences continually stress the importance of using different locks and keys at each turn, but managing the resultant wealth of information isn't easy. Fortunately you can call on an electronic aide in password-management software. In this two-part Workshop we'll explore how a free program can both help protect your information and supply it when needed.
For this Workshop we're going to be using an application called Access Manager 2, because it's quick to download, flexible, simple to operate and, best of all, completely free of charge.
We've created a link to the Access Manager 2 download page accessmanager.co.uk; type this into your web browser and click on the Access Manager link when the page appears. On the download page, click on the AccessManager.zip link to obtain the English-language version of the application. When the File Download dialogue box appears, click on Save and use the subsequent Save As dialogue to navigate to a location in which to store the download, the Windows Desktop is as good a place as any, and then click on the Save button. The file is just under 2Mb in size, which should just take a few minutes to download on dial-up, or just a few moments over broadband. Like many applications, Access Manager requires Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 to be installed on the PC in order for it to work. The chances are that .NET Framework 1.1 is already installed but if you receive an error message while installing Access Manager in the next step, then you'll need to obtain .NET Framework from www.microsoft.com/download - just follow Microsoft's instructions to complete the job. However, this may not be necessary, so only follow this advice if an error message appears in the next step. If using Windows XP, locate and double-click on the downloaded file (AccessManager.zip). Otherwise, use an application like WinZip to extract the installation from the compressed Zip file. Now double-click the AccessManager.msi file to begin the installation. If this Security Warning dialogue box appears, just click on Run. Click on Next, signal your acceptance of the displayed licence agreement, click on Next again and Next twice more to proceed with the installation. Click on Close in the final dialogue box to finish the job. Launch access manager 2 from within the Access Manager program group from All Programs (or Programs) in the Start menu. The first step is to choose a master password. Click on the Tools menu and choose Set Master Menu. In the Set Master Password dialogue box, type a password into the New Password box and confirm it below. Note the Unique Combinations number: this gives an indication to the strength of the password. When done, click on OK. Whatever you do, don't forget this master password - there's no way of getting it back if you forget. Access Manager is essentially a database. To add a new record, click on the New button in the left-hand toolbar. In the Password dialogue, begin by giving the record a fitting name (like 'My Hotmail Username And Password'). Now type in the relevant username into the Username box and the associated password into Password. If required, Access Manager can be asked to generate a hard-to-crack password - just click on the Generate Password button. The next box on the Password dialogue is Passphrase. You may wish to use this if setting up a record to remember login or access details for a bank account, for example. Either type in a passphrase or ignore this box (or use the Generate button to have Access Manager create a new, secure passphrase). In the Document box, either type in the name of the relevant website (www.hotmail.co.uk for example), or use the Browse button to navigate to the password-protected document (like a Word document) to which this record relates. Later, you'll be able to use the Open button to have Access Manager automatically open the website or document name specified here. Access Manager can record an expiry date along with a password record, which may prove useful if you have login details that must be renewed every month, say. However, the flexibility of this feature is limited in the free version of the application, so feel free to leave this box blank. From the Type drop-down menu, pick a fitting category for the record (such as 'E-mail account'). Later, we'll explain how to add personalised categories to this list. The Sensitivity drop-down menu is accessible but of little use in the standard version of Access Manager, as the program allows only one user at a time. In the Pro version, multiple users can be set up, and records set with 'Shared' sensitivity are accessible to all; while those flagged 'Private' are only for each individual user's eyes. Use the Notes section to type in any information you may wish to add to the record. When done, click on OK to add the record. You will be returned to the Access Manager program window. The new record should appear in the All Passwords list, just below the Example Password entry. Add further records by repeating steps six to nine. Remove records by clicking to highlight their entries in the All Passwords list and clicking on the Delete button in the left-hand toolbar (the large red cross). Shut down the program by clicking on the Close button. When later restarting it, you'll be prompted to enter the master password set in step five.
This article was created: 3 January 2007.
This article was last edited: 12 July 2007.
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