Access to a remote machine from a local machine via smart card

• US 7,997,482 B2
• Filed: 10/05/2010
• Issued: 08/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Red Hat, Inc. (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Red Hat, Inc. (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Inventors: Kannan, Chandrasekar
• Primary Examiner(s): Labaze; Edwyn
• Application Number:
  US12/898,290
• Publication Number:
  US 20110017821A1
• Time in Patent Office: 315 Days
• Field of Search: 235/380, 235/492, 235/451, 235/487, 235/382, 705 64- 77
• US Class Current: 235/380
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/305 by remotely controlling device operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/34 involving the use of external additional devices, e.g. dongles or smart cards

Abstract

A method and apparatus for accessing a remote machine from a local machine via a smart card. In one embodiment, the presence of the smart card coupled to the local machine is detected. A card reader reads the credentials from the smart card and communicates them to a remote access client application of the local machine. The remote access client application transmits the credentials to the remote machine. The remote machine sends a query for login information to the local machine upon valid credentials. The local machine transmits the login information to the remote machine and is granted permission to access the remote machine upon valid login information.

Claims

1. A method for accessing a remote machine from a local machine via a smart card, implemented by the local machine programmed to perform the following, comprising:

detecting a presence of the smart card coupled to the local machine;

in response, prompting a user to enter a personal identification number (PIN) to access credentials stored on the smart card;

upon receiving a valid PIN from the user, obtaining the credentials stored on the smart card and transmitting the credentials to the remote machine over a network to allow the user to remotely access the remote machine from the local machine via the network;

upon valid credentials, receiving a prompt from the remote machine to request login credentials from the user at the local machine;

receiving the login credentials from the user at the local machine;

transmitting the received login credentials to the remote machine over the network; and

upon valid login credentials, receiving a grant to access the remote machine from the remote machine over the network.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the credentials comprises a client certificate, and wherein the login credentials comprise a username and a password.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein detecting the presence of the smart card further comprises reading the smart card with a card reader coupled to the local machine.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said transmitting the credentials to the remote machine over the network comprises mutually authenticating the remote machine and the local machine using the credentials.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the credentials comprises a client certificate, and wherein said transmitting the credentials to the remote machine over the network comprise transmitting the certificate to the remote server, wherein the remote server validates the certificate with a certificate authority.

6. A method for accessing a remote machine from a local machine via a smart card, implemented by a remote machine programmed to perform the following, comprising:

receiving, from the local machine over a network, credentials stored on a smart card coupled to the local machine, wherein the local machine obtains the credentials stored on the smart card by prompting a user to enter a personal identification number (PIN) to access the credentials stored on the smart card;

upon valid credentials, transmitting a prompt to request login credentials from the user at the local machine;

receiving the login credentials, entered by the user at the local machine, from the local machine over the network; and

upon valid login credentials, granting access to the local machine.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the credentials comprises a client certificate, and wherein the login credentials comprise a username and a password.

8. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

denying access to the remote machine if the credentials are not valid; and

denying access to the remote machine if the login credentials are not valid.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein a card reader coupled to the local machine is to read the smart card to obtain the credentials of the smart card.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein said receiving the credentials comprises mutually authenticating the remote machine and the local machine using the credentials.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein the credentials comprises a client certificate, and wherein said receiving the credentials comprises receives the certificate from the local machine, and wherein the method further comprises validating the certificate with a certificate authority.

12. A non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium including data that, when accessed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a method for accessing a remote machine from a local machine via a smart card, the method comprising:

detecting a presence of the smart card coupled to the local machine;

in response, prompting a user to enter a personal identification number (PIN) to access credentials stored on the smart card;

upon receiving a valid PIN from the user, obtaining the credentials stored on the smart card and transmitting the credentials to the remote machine over a network to allow the user to remotely access the remote machine from the local machine via the network;

upon valid credentials, receiving a prompt from the remote machine to request login credentials from the user at the local machine;

receiving the login credentials from the user at the local machine;

transmitting the received login credentials to the remote machine over the network; and

upon valid login credentials, receiving a grant to access the remote machine from the remote machine over the network.

13. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 12 wherein the credentials comprises a client certificate, and wherein the login credentials comprise a username and a password.

14. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 12 wherein detecting the presence of the smart card further comprises reading the smart card with a card reader coupled to the local machine.

15. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 12 wherein said transmitting the credentials to the remote machine over the network comprises mutually authenticating the remote machine and the local machine using the credentials.

16. A non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium including data that, when accessed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a method for accessing a remote machine from a local machine via a smart card, the method comprising:

receiving, from the local machine over a network, credentials stored on a smart card coupled to the local machine, wherein the local machine obtains the credentials stored on the smart card by prompting a user to enter a personal identification number (PIN) to access the credentials stored on the smart card;

upon valid credentials, transmitting a prompt to request login credentials from the user at the local machine;

receiving the login credentials, entered by the user at the local machine, from the local machine over the network; and

upon valid login credentials, granting access to the remote machine.

17. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 16 wherein the credentials comprises a client certificate, and wherein the login credentials comprise a username and a password.

18. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 16 wherein said receiving the credentials comprises mutually authenticating the remote machine and the local machine using the credentials.

19. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 16 wherein a card reader coupled to the local machine is to read the smart card to obtain the credentials of the smart card.