username from the locked message

[Keith McLeod]

File is already locked by joe_user on

February 18, 2008 6:01:12 AM CST

Where is this username information accessed from when you get the above message since it is the logged in user from the client workstation?  Since that person may already be logged out and disconnected, it must be stored on the server….  How can this information be accessed?

Topic

[Michael Hertel]

Look in the ‘lock’ directory of the site.

[Steve Carter]

The username in the lock file is from the user’s workstation.  The lock file itself is located in $HCISITEDIR/lock.

In some previous versions of Cloverleaf, if the user does not close each tab in the GUI before exiting, the lock will remain.  That’s why you’ll sometimes see that a user still has the lock even though their workstation is powered down.

This issue has been resolved at least as of 5.5.

Steve

[Keith McLeod]

How is this information pulled from the client to be added to the lock file?  Any ideas?

[Scott Folley]

The “how” is that it is sent across as identification in the Java RMI communications between the Cloverleaf Client and the Cloverleaf HostServer.  Being that this is the case, you can’t really get to it because even an RMI call to the HostServer separate from the Cloverleaf Client can’t authenticate.  The Client and HostServer share a “secret” that has to be passed as validation before the RMI registry on the HostServer will talk to the client.  If you want this information you would need to turn on the audit log and, if you think it through, the name of the user’s computer has very little real value.  Unlike the IP address, there is nothing that prevents two windows systems from being named the same thing.

If you are using DHCP to assign IPs then the IP Address doesn’t have a whole lot of value either.  Unless you “catch someone in the act” in which case you already know who they are.

The absolute best way to know and control this information is through advanced security.  That, of course, introduces additional complexities.  But, hey, you’ll have all information that you ever wanted.    🙄

[Author]

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