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@NogDogNov 12.2014 — #No suggestions for off-the-shelf solutions. If there is one, if it's at all robust, it probably depends on using a database to store the keys and track if/when they have been used -- in case that impacts your selection criteria. I might search for something like "single-use token" or "single-use key", perhaps? (I wrote something a year or so ago rather similar for an admin tool that created a user with a random password, and emailed a link with a single use token for them to set their own password, and it was not rocket science. ? )@NogDogNov 12.2014 — #
Well, you're certainly looking at something that's been done before, and there is probably [i]something[/i] out there you can use. However, as is often the case, the question then becomes: if you just created something yourself now, would you get it done in the same (or less) time than if you found a 3rd-party solution, figured out how to use it, then tweaked it to work the way you need it to. ?
Looking for a download key generation/authentication script
I’m not sure if this is the right forum for this question but here goes. I’m working on a site for a software company. They would like qualified users to be able to download a demo copy of the software from their web site. I’ve built a form the user would fill out and submit to request a download key. The form needs to email an administrator (so they can get the user’s contact info for follow-up) AND generate an email to the user with a randomly-generated key or password and a link to the download page. The user would enter the key, click the Submit button, and be directed to a page where they can download the demo. So, the script needs to generate the key and be able to authenticate it when the user submits it. The key would only be valid for a certain amount of time — say 48 hours — so it can’t be used over and over. The client doesn’t want one standard password to be used because they don’t want users giving it out to other people — they want to capture contact info for whoever is requesting to download the demo so that Sales can follow up.
Is there a tool or script that does this, and is it something that can be plugged into the existing html page? I’m not even sure what to call it. I’ve done Google searches for things like “secure key generator” but I’m not finding what I’m looking for. Is it more complex than just plugging in a chunk of code and changing a few parameters? If anyone can point me in the right direction, I would appreciate it.
Thank you.
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@NogDogNov 12.2014 — #No suggestions for off-the-shelf solutions. If there is one, if it's at all robust, it probably depends on using a database to store the keys and track if/when they have been used -- in case that impacts your selection criteria. I might search for something like "single-use token" or "single-use key", perhaps? (I wrote something a year or so ago rather similar for an admin tool that created a user with a random password, and emailed a link with a single use token for them to set their own password, and it was not rocket science. ? )0
@NogDogNov 12.2014 — #Thanks, NogDog. I'll try those search terms and see what I can find. But you think it will likely have to be a custom script?[/QUOTE]
Well, you're certainly looking at something that's been done before, and there is probably [i]something[/i] out there you can use. However, as is often the case, the question then becomes: if you just created something yourself now, would you get it done in the same (or less) time than if you found a 3rd-party solution, figured out how to use it, then tweaked it to work the way you need it to. ?