Database Reference
In-Depth Information
WARNING
Make sure you don't forget your [Full Access] privilege set password. FileMaker uses industry-
standard and ultra-secure techniques to manage passwords; you simply have no way to bypass them.
FileMaker, Inc., may be willing to change the password in the file, but the process takes several
weeks and isn't guaranteed. Also, some third-party hacks out there can promise to change your pass-
words for you, but steer clear of them. If you forget a more restricted password, on the other hand,
then the fix is simple. Just open the database with a full access password, visit the Manage Security
dialog box and then change the forgotten password.
Adding a New Account
You can add a new account almost as easily as you can edit an existing one. Since it's so easy
to add accounts, there's no reason not to follow best security practices and give everyone an
individual account. You can even give people more than one account. For example, you can
designate some people as super-users who mostly do data entry and editing but sometimes
need to create layouts. As much as you trust them, you just want to make sure they don't in-
advertently damage layouts and scripts while they're doing other work. So you require them
to log in with higher-level access when switching from data entry to tasks that require more
care, like database design. (See
Change Password
for more detail on re-login.)
To create a new account, click New. In the Edit Account window, give the account a name
and a password, and assign a privilege set. If you don't see a suitable privilege set, from the
Privilege Set pop-up menu, choose New Privilege Set. You can also edit the selected priv-
ilege set by clicking Edit.
If you let each person manage his or her own password, then you can turn on “User must
change password on next login.” When you turn this option on, you can create an account for
someone with a generic password and then email the account information to her, with in-
structions to create a more secure and secret password when she first opens the database.
NOTE
If a user forgets his password, you can't retrieve it for him because FileMaker masks it in the Edit
Account dialog box. You can
change
his password, though, so long as you have an account with full
access to the file.
You can also make an account inactive. When you do, FileMaker keeps the account—and all
its information—in the Accounts list, but it doesn't let people open the database using that
account. For example, you can make an account inactive if someone leaves the company for
