Apache OpenOffice Community Forum

I password-protect some of the files I create with OpenOffice just so that they are not readily accessible should they fall into somebody's else hands, and I use the same password for all of the files. I would really like the ability to sort of "logon" to OO with this password (when OO starts up?) so that it caches it as the default password to use when opening a password-protected file, thereby avoiding the need to enter the SAME password EVERY time I open one of these files. Surely this would be a fairly straightforward enhancement to implement?

Thanks,

3g

This is easier to achieve on file system level and for all personal files not only office documents.

So how do I password-protect specific files at a file system level using Windows XP?

Another way:
You can write an user defined macro routine for open the files (by using the built-in Open dialog, and other features).
You can input the password once, and the you can store it in a Global string variable (until closing the office suite).
Or you can store the password in the macrocode (but in this case everybody will able open your files everytime on your computer).

Edit: You can not open password protected files with this method automatically by a double click on the filename, you can open them from the launched application only.

So, in short, this really requires a new feature to be added to OO's functionality.

The AOO and LO are open source softwares You can download the source code and can add this function, if wou want and can to do it.

((Editing the source code, and building a new program version is too difficult for a user, but the macro coding is a simplier thing.))

So this forum:

User Experience (UX)
Request For Enhancement, User feedback candidates for wiki

isn't actually the place to request an enhancement to the functionality, even though that is precisely what it says it is for?

No developers hanging in this forum. The Volunteers, Moderators, and others are users as you.

Users helps users in this forum.

(There are Bugreport portals for the opensource softwares.)

3guesses wrote:So how do I password-protect specific files at a file system level using Windows XP?

I use Ubuntu where all my personal files reside on an encrypted file system. They become visible when I log-in so I do not even notice that anything is encrypted and I do not have to bother which program to use for this or that file. When I log-off, none of my files are readable. The system does an automatic backup (encrypted as well) when I plug a certain disk to the computer. All this is a plain matter of course in Linux land.
I don't know much about Windows but I know that encrypted containers do exist (a product named TrueCrypt?).

Villeroy wrote:

3guesses wrote:So how do I password-protect specific files at a file system level using Windows XP?

I use Ubuntu where all my personal files reside on an encrypted file system. They become visible when I log-in so I do not even notice that anything is encrypted and I do not have to bother which program to use for this or that file. When I log-off, none of my files are readable. The system does an automatic backup (encrypted as well) when I plug a certain disk to the computer. All this is a plain matter of course in Linux land.
I don't know much about Windows but I know that encrypted containers do exist (a product named TrueCrypt?).

So you are suggesting a solution to a different problem. I don't want to encrypt my hard drive, I simply want to have a few OO files password-protected, and I would like an enhancement to OO to make accessing them a hell of a lot easier.

Zizi64 wrote:No developers hanging in this forum. The Volunteers, Moderators, and others are users as you.

Users helps users in this forum.

(There are Bugreport portals for the opensource softwares.)

So you are saying that the forum description "Request For Enhancement" is inaccurate? Then what is the point of this forum existing at all?

He's not saying that. You are interpreting it so.

One can encrypt only a folder. Details are in
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-ie/wind ... older-file

So you are saying that the forum description "Request For Enhancement" is inaccurate? Then what is the point of this forum existing at all?

We can suggest for you better directions or ways, workarounds, semi-solutions, or full solutions based on the existing features.
Bur you must report the feature requests on another portals.
(There are Apache observers here, and maybe they will see your request, maybe they post that to the developers, and maybe you have enough time to wait for the solution... Maybe.)

RoryOF wrote:He's not saying that. You are interpreting it so.

One can encrypt only a folder. Details are in
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-ie/wind ... older-file

Again, a solution to a different problem. It doesn't help at all if I then, say, copy the file to a non-encrypted file-system (eg. somewhere in the cloud).

Zizi64 wrote:

So you are saying that the forum description "Request For Enhancement" is inaccurate? Then what is the point of this forum existing at all?

We can suggest for you better directions or ways, workarounds, semi-solutions, or full solutions based on the existing features.
Bur you must report the feature requests on another portals.
(There are Apache observers here, and maybe they will see your request, maybe they post that to the developers, and maybe you have enough time to wait for the solution... Maybe.)

OK, so if this is not the best place to make a new feature request, where is?

Google is your friend:

https://bz.apache.org/ooo/request.cgi

3guesses wrote:Again, a solution to a different problem. It doesn't help at all if I then, say, copy the file to a non-encrypted file-system (eg. somewhere in the cloud).

This has been solved in various ways. It is possible to store encrypted containers in the cloud. A solution to this problem is not part of an office suite. A solution to this problem needs to work with all files.

No, my original enhancement request has not been solved. A solution to protecting (via encryption) ALL files on a computer has been suggested (the words "sledgehammer" and "nut" spring to mind). This, however, as I have repeatedly pointed out, is not the problem at hand. A solution to password-protect a number of specific AOO files *AND* enable easy access to them (ie without the repetition of entering the password for EVERY file opened) has not been suggested.

There are not solutions to every problem. If you cannot find a solution to your problem then you may have to modify your requirements which might involve adopting one of the solutions suggested in course of this discussion, or seeking some other application that better suits your requirements.

No, my original enhancement request has not been solved.

Have you tried the 'macro solution'?

RoryOF wrote:If you cannot find a solution to your problem then you may have to modify your requirements which might involve adopting one of the solutions suggested in course of this discussion, or seeking some other application that better suits your requirements.

Or submitting an enhancement request for such functionality to be implemented in the application. Which is precisely what I thought was the explicit purpose of this particular forum, given its description.

If the description of this forum is incorrect then I would like somebody with authority (eg an administrator) to say so AND CORRECT IT.

Which forum description? Certainly not this one: Survival guide. Please read these few guidelines to help us help you.

request for such functionality to be implemented in the application.

The developers will NOT implement all of the functions, requested by the users.
The AOO and Lo are programable, controllable softwares. You can control the applications programatically by the API (Application Programming Interface) functions: you can create a lot of user defined functionality by usage the API and Macro editor.

Download the attached cryptlib.zip
menu:Tools>Extensions... [Add...] cryptlib.zip
menu:Tools>Macros>Organize... [Organizer...] tab "Libraries", select CryptLib [Password]
Old Password is "villeroy". Change it to something else. This will be the master password.
Don't close the organizer dialog, click

Edit:  Select the Module1 tab. Replace the "/tmp/test/" in line Code: Select all Const cPath = "/tmp/test/" with a path where you store your encrypted documents. Use double-quotes and a normal system path with Windows drive letter. Replace the "villeroy" in line Code: Select all Const cPassword = "villeroy" with your actual document password in double-quotes. Save the library (Ctrl+S). Hit Ctrl+W to close the Basic editor and all documents until you get to the start screen. menu:Tools>Customize... tab Keyboard Add some keyboard shortcut to the office suite (save in: OpenOffice) and point it to OfficeMacros>user>Cryptlib>Module1.Main I tested the customization with Ctrl+Shift+O (select Crtrl+Shift+O, navigate the macro in the categories list, hit [Modify]) Restart the office suite and hit Ctrl-Shift+O You get a file picker dialog in your specified directory. No password will be asked for but the actual document password remains hidden in the encrypted Basic library. The file picker supports selection of multiple files which will be opened with the specified password. If some file does not require any password, the file will be opened anyway. Files that are encrypted by a different password remain closed without warning.

Villeroy wrote:Which forum description? Certainly not this one: Survival guide. Please read these few guidelines to help us help you.

As I pointed out previously, I have posted this thread in the "User Experience (UX)" forum, whose description is:

Request For Enhancement, User feedback candidates for wiki

(If you look at the top of the page, you should see "Board index ‹ Community ‹ User Experience (UX)")

I wouldn't have thought I needed to explain that (TWICE) to someone supposedly experienced on this board...

3g

Villeroy,

I appreciate your attempts to implement some sort of work-around using macros, but I would like to see this functionality added to the AOO application. Even a serious encryption utility like VeraCrypt supports cacheing passwords so that you don't have to enter the same password every time you connect an encrypted USB memory stick to your computer. I am not in any particular rush and am happy to wait for the functionality to be implemented properly in the application.

3g

Zizi64 wrote:

request for such functionality to be implemented in the application.

The developers will NOT implement all of the functions, requested by the users.

And if nobody requests a feature, it certainly won't be implemented. Which is why I AM requesting...

The requested feature won't be implemented because it presumes a security flaw (one password for all docs). I wrote a simple customization macro just for you. Use it or leave it.

I appreciate your attempts to implement some sort of work-around using macros, but I would like to see this functionality added to the AOO application.

A lot of functionality is "implemented" achieved for the AOO and LO as 'outer' Macro (named 'Extension' - writed in python, or other macro programming languages). There are implemented Language tools /spellcheckers and dictionaries/; and other optional extensions - see on the 'Extensions' web pages.
Therefore you need try to create the desired functionality. And - if it seems effective, useful, and it will work well, without any risks and errors - maybe it will be integrated to the main stream of the office suites.