VMS Help SET, PASSWORD  *Conan The Librarian (sorry for the slow response - running on an old VAX)

    Changes a password or system password. Also, can establish a
    secondary password or system password, or remove a secondary
    password.

    See the qualifier descriptions for restrictions.

    Format

      SET PASSWORD

1 - Qualifiers

 1.1 - /GENERATE

       /GENERATE[=value]

    Generates a list of five random passwords. Press Return to repeat
    the procedure until a suitable password appears.

    Value is a number from 1 to 10 that restricts the length of the
    password. For any value n, the SET PASSWORD command generates
    passwords of from n to (n+2) characters long.

    If no value is specified, SET PASSWORD uses a default value of
    6, and generates passwords from 6 to 8 characters long. Values
    greater than 10 are not accepted and produce errors.

    If your system manager has established a minimum password length
    for your account, SET PASSWORD/GENERATE=n compares that length
    with the optional value specified with the /GENERATE qualifier,
    and uses the larger of the two values. If you do not specify a
    value with the /GENERATE qualifier, the account minimum length is
    used.

                                   NOTE

       If the SET PASSWORD/GENERATE command fails to work properly,
       consult your system manager to be sure that either the file
       SYS$LIBRARY:VMS$PASSWORD_DICTIONARY.DATA exists, or the
       logical name VMS$PASSWORD_DICTIONARY is correctly defined.

 1.2 - /SECONDARY

    Creates or allows you to replace a secondary password. The
    procedure is the same as setting your primary password.

    Once a secondary password has been established, you will receive
    two PASSWORD: prompts when logging in. The primary password
    should be typed in first, followed by the secondary password.

    Secondary passwords make it possible to set up an account that
    requires two different people to access it. Each person knows one
    of the two passwords, and both passwords are required to log in
    successfully.

    To remove your secondary password, press Return when SET
    PASSWORD/SECONDARY prompts you for a new password and
    verification. After you do this, you will receive a single
    PASSWORD: prompt when logging in. If you remove the secondary
    password, your system manager must restore it.

    The /SECONDARY and /SYSTEM qualifiers are incompatible.

 1.3 - /SYSTEM

    Requires the SECURITY privilege.

    Changes the system password rather than a user password.

    If a terminal line has the system password (SYSPWD)
    characteristic set, no terminal prompts are sent to that terminal
    until the system password is entered.

    A system password is valid only for the node it is set on. In an
    OpenVMS Cluster, each node can have a different system password.

    The /SYSTEM and /SECONDARY qualifiers are incompatible. For
    more information about the use of system passwords, refer to
    the OpenVMS Guide to System Security.

2 - Example

  $ SET PASSWORD
  Old password: HONCHO
  New password: BIG_ENCHILADA
  Verification: BIG_ENCHILADA

      In response to the SET PASSWORD command, the system first
      prompts for the old password and then for the new password. The
      system then prompts again for the new password to verify it.
      The password changes if the user is authorized to change this
      account's password, if the old password is given correctly, and
      if the new password is given identically twice; otherwise, an
      error message appears and the password remains unchanged.

      In a real session, neither the old password nor the new
      password and its verification appear on the screen or paper.