linuxboot / linuxboot/heads

PKCS#11 tokens/smartcards support

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Description

(Re-created because #1997 developed into a different discussion.)

How much effort would be required to add such a support? The aim would be to not force the user to use OpenPGP-compatible smartcards/tokens. There is a gnupg-pkcs11-scd project, but I'm unsure how feasible it would be to incorporate it.

I hope this isn't too ignorant a question — unfortunately, I'm not very good with technicalities.

The main reason for this feature request is that smartcards, like Smartcard-HSM, support PIN pads, which makes them a bit more secure than typical USB tokens in my view. I know that Nitrokeys are used for HOTP verification, but as long as I'm not convinced that my concerns with HOTP (again, see #1997) are invalid, I see TOTP as superior for users.

Contributor guide

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First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

No repository files or tests are named. Start by reading the discussion in #1997 and reviewing the linked gnupg-pkcs11-scd project, then compare its feasibility with Heads' existing OpenPGP token support; done would require an agreed implementation scope and acceptance criteria for PKCS#11 smartcards, PIN pads, and TOTP use.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Domain
security
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Needs clarification
Newbie friendliness
25/100

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