secure login

[tinernet]

hi evry1!
im makin an online game and i need a secure way of storing user names and passwords for the people who sign up.i dont whether its easier to use MySql or PHP (neither of which i can use). i need to be able to access the data to change it or kick people off or whatever. i also need interactivity between usernames.can anyone help!?
mike

[Nevermore]

If you can use MySQL you will need to use another language as well, to interact between your form and your MySQL database. MySQL provides easy interaction between entries in a script, and PHP can sort and compare values for you. Other choices for the database or language are possible, e.g. ASP and Microsoft SQL Database.

To provide security, you can encrypt passwords before they are stored and then compare the encrypted versions, but for total security you will need to encrypt the transmissions between the form and database via SSL or suchlike, although this is unlikely to be required for a game. If you're going to be using the database with the game, you'll probably need some basic understanding of PhP and MySQL to allow the game to interact with the database.

Would you like PHP code to register and log in users?

[tinernet]

i think that would be easier yes. ok so MySql looks easiest, how do i go about setting one up.i hav a microsoft SQL database program shall i have a look at that?
mike

[Nevermore]

What information does the database need to hold?

[tinernet]

user name, password, email address.the game is a virtual mountaneering game where u progress thru mountains by climbing higher and harder ones, so i also need it to store the current mountatin there on and the maximum altitude theyve reached. here are some field names:
user (username)
pass (password)
email (obvious)
mount (current mountain)
mountpos (progress report of the mountain being climbed)
alt (highest altitude)
cash (obvious)
team (total number of people in team)
deaths (obvious)

[spykemitchell]

It's good to see someone has actually got back to you (hint: sarcasm)

MySQL i have never used. I don't understand it but intend to in the future. What you can do (and i know a lot about this) is use a .dat file. If you intend to just show these on a webpage than yes, a .dat will do fine. If you want it to load a certain page or section of a page then you may need to go for something more sophisticated...

What is this game made in?

[pyro]

Sensative user data should not be stored in .dat (or .anythingelse that is easily readable). If you must use flatfiles, make sure they are in a directory higher than the document root.