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TLX640 Matrix Switch Product Manual
thinklogical
Rev. H, February 2020
Partition Switching is disabled when Partition Table files are removed. By default, when there are no
Partition Table files, all ports not listed will default to partition 1. All Switches are shipped without
Partition Table files stored on the Controller Card and therefore do not restrict any connection.
Administration Access
There are two methods by which the administrator can access the Switch Controller Configurations:
1.
The Serial Console directly connected to the Switch.
(It should be noted that, while no
administrator password is required to use the Serial Console, physical access to the Switch is
required. Therefore, the Switch should be stored in a physically secure location to avoid
unauthorized access.)
2.
SSH access.
The Switch allows SSH connections to the Switch for management purposes. SSH
sessions are authenticated using an encrypted password file.
Password Security
For security purposes, the Switch defaults to using the Message-Digest Algorithm (MD5) and shadow
passwords
. It is highly recommended that you DO NOT alter these settings.
If you select the older
Data Encryption Standard (DES) format, passwords will be limited to eight alphanumeric characters
(disallowing punctuation and other special characters) with a modest 56-bit level of encryption.
The
single most important thing you can do to protect the Switch is create a strong password.
Creating Strong Passwords
:
The password can contain up to 127 characters and cannot contain a space.
MAKE THE PASSWORD AT LEAST EIGHT CHARACTERS LONG. The longer the password, the more
effective it will be. If you are using an MD5 password, it should be approximately 15 characters long.
With DES passwords, use the maximum eight-character length.
Mix UPper AnD LowER CASE LETTERS. Passwords are case sensitive, so mixing will multiply the
number of possible combinations.
Mix LETTER5 AND NUM8ER5 within the password to enhance its strength.
Include NON-ALPHANUMER!C CH@RACTER$. Special characters (& $ % >) and punctuation marks (?
“ - !) increase the strength of a password.
