Providing credentials for CQLSH

To start a CQL shell (cqlsh) session with a node that has DataStax Enterprise authentication enabled, provide credentials using cli options or in the cqlshrc file .

Provide a username and password to connect to a node on an authentication enabled DataStax Enterprise cluster using credentials:

Stored in the cqlshrc file
Specified by command line options

cqlshrc.sample

The default location of the cqlshrc.sample files depends on the type of installation:

Package installations	/etc/dse/cassandra
Tarball installations	`installation_location`/resources/cassandra/conf

Debugging cqlsh authentication

If problems authenticating occur, use the --debug option to show CQL shell settings and connection details.

Procedure

Set credentials in the cqlshrc file:
1. Create or modify the ~/.cassandra/cqlshrc file by adding an [authentication] section with a username and password.
```
[authentication]
username = role_name
password = password
```
  Note: See cqlshrc.sample for an example.
2. Save the file in $HOME/.cassandra directory.
3. Set permissions on the file to prevent unauthorized access, as the password is stored in plain text.
```
chmod 440 $HOME/.cassandra/cqlshrc
```
4. Check the permissions on $HOME/.cassandra/cqlshrc_history to ensure that plain text passwords are not compromised.
On the command line:
- Prompt for password
```
cqlsh -u user_name
```
- No prompt
```
cqlsh -u user_name -p password
```