mkpass is a simple command line utility to generate secure random passwords. You can easily redirect these to a clipboard or copy and paste as needed.
I use a password manager and generate random passwords everytime I need one. And while most password managers include a generator, there are times I need one outside of that.
The code is written in java so it should run on any OS that supports it. Lastly, the idea and core code came from a Wikipedia article. I just took this and expanded upon it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Random_password_generator
By default, mkpass will create a 30 character password using the following numbers, letters, and symbols. This can be modified via the command line options.
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9a b c d e f g h i jk l m n o p q r s tu v w x y z A B C DE F G H I J K L M NO P Q R S T U V W XY Z ! @ # $ % ^ & *~ - + _ =
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| -l length | Set the length of the generated password. The default is 30 characters |
| -p | Use a plain password without any special characters. Therefore, the password would be only numbers and upper & lower case letters |
| -c chars | Use these characters instead of the default special symbols. Useful if password only allows certain special characters |
| -n number | Generate passwords |
| -s | Show the characters that will be used in the password generation |
| -? or -h | Show Usage information |
| -D | Debug mode. Mostly used by the developer to show extra debugging information |
I had an issue with my Ubuntu notebook where SecureRandom would hang. Apparently this is a known issue where /dev/random blocks until it has enough entropy to produce a secure random number. The solution is documented at the link below.
Codes and Notes explains the situation here. It boils down to installing "rng-tools" which will feed entropy into the system.
For ubuntu based systems: sudo apt install rng-tools
Additional information can be found on in the Oracle docs.
I would encourage anyone with a supported Linux platform to use snap. See Snapcraft Homepage for more information. You can download, install, and keep the application up to date automatically by installi ng the snap via :
sudo snap install mkpass (Assuming snap is installed)
This will install the application into a sandbox where it is separate from other applications. I do want to look at packaging it via Flatpak as well, but my understanding is that Maven is not well supported. However, I need to do more investigation.
If you have ideas or issues, please let me know. There is quite a bit more error checking that could probably be added.
mkpass at fross dot org
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