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    User Lockout

    CloverDX can lock out users after a set number of unsuccessful login attempts as a way of protecting against brute force attacks on users' credentials.

    The lockout occurs only in CloverDX. For example, if LDAP user authentication is set up in CloverDX, it will not affect the actual LDAP accounts.

    Information regarding user lockout is stored in the USER_ACTION server log. CloverDX Server can be set up to send an email notification when a user account gets locked. However, it is first necessary to set up a connection to an SMTP server in the E-mail tab of the Setup GUI.

    The lockout feature is enabled by default and it can be turned off and controlled by several parameters in the configuration file (changes can be made directly in the configuration file on the disk or in the Configuration File tab of the Setup GUI). If any of these properties are modified, the application server needs to be restarted for the changes to take effect.

    Table 21. User lockout parameters
    Parameter Description

    security.lockout.login.attempts

    Limits the number of login attempts. The next failed login attempt will lock the user’s account. When setting the value, keep in mind that CloverDX Designer with several server projects can attempt to log in multiple times.

    The recommended value is 5. Change the value to 0 to disable the feature.

    security.lockout.reset.period

    Represents the period (in seconds) during which failed login attempts are counted. If no such attempt occurs during this period, the counter of failed login attempts is reset to 0. This way, users do not have to worry about accidentally locking themselves out of the system after a certain number of failed login attempts over an extended period of time.

    The default value is 300 (5 minutes). Change the value to 0 to make the period unlimited.

    security.lockout.unlock.period

    Represents the period (in seconds) after which a successful login attempt will release the lock. After this period, users will be able to log in using their credentials again without the need of having their account unlocked by the administrator. This parameter protects the system against denial of service (DoS) attacks and should be set to a reasonable value to prevent getting locked out of the system for too long, in case the administrator’s account is affected by the attack.

    The default value is 300 (5 minutes). Change the value to 0 to make the period unlimited.

    security.lockout.notification.email

    The parameter represents a comma separated list of emails of people who should be notified when a user lockout occurs. This parameter should be set, for example, to an administrators' mail group to make them aware of the situation. The locked out users receive the notification email automatically if an email address is populated in their user profile. Please note that email notifications will be sent only if a SMTP connection is configured under Configuration > Setup > Email

    The recommended default values are set in such a way as to efficiently protect the system against brute force attacks, prevent complete lockout of the administrator’s account and not limit users in their standard usage of CloverDX Server.

    See below for an example of the lockout-related properties in a configuration file:

    ## Uncomment and modify the properties below to change the default user lockout values.
    
    ## Number of failed login attempts after which a next failed login attempt will lock the user.
    ## 0 means feature is switched off
    ## Default value is 5
    #security.lockout.login.attempts=5
    
    ## Period of time during which the failed login attempts are counted.
    ## Default value is 300s (5 min)
    #security.lockout.reset.period=300
    
    ## Period of time after which a successful login attempt will unlock a previously locked user.
    ## Default value is 300s (5 min)
    #security.lockout.unlock.period=300

    Unlocking User

    Once a user’s account is locked, you will see a little yellow lock icon next to their username in the Users tab of the Configuration section, and you will also be able to see the number of failed login attempts.

    Locked user

    To unlock a locked user, click on the button in the respective row, click on Unlock and confirm your action.

    Unlock locked user