CentOS / RHEL: Install gpass Password Manager For GNOME2 Desktop

Author: Vivek Gite Last updated: January 8, 2019 1 comment

I‘ve recently swiched from Ubuntu Linux to CentOS / RHEL / Scientific Linux version 6 gnome desktop. However, I’m unable to find the gpass the password manager for GNOME2 desktop in repo. How do I install the same under RHEL 6 or CentOS or Scientific Linux 6 or Fedora Linux 15?

[donotprint]

Tutorial details
Difficulty level	Intermediate
Root privileges	Yes
Requirements	None
Est. reading time	10m

[/donotprint]The gpass is easy to use and secure password manager for GNOME2. The password collection is stored in an encrypted (Blowfish) file, protected by a master-password. You can compile and install it as follows on a CentOS or Red Hat Enterprise Linux desktop, workstation, or server running in a cloud.

Step # 1: Install Development Tools On A CentOS/RHEL/Scientific Linux

You need to GCC compiler and tools on a CentOS/RHEL box. Type the following command to install them:
# yum -y groupinstall "Development tools"
It will install the following packages and setup a basic development environment:

   autoconf
   automake
   binutils
   bison
   flex
   gcc
   gcc-c++
   gettext
   libtool
   make
   patch
   pkgconfig
   redhat-rpm-config
   rpm-build
 Default Packages:
   byacc
   cscope
   ctags
   cvs
   diffstat
   doxygen
   elfutils
   gcc-gfortran
   git
   indent
   intltool
   patchutils
   rcs
   subversion
   swig
   systemtap
 Optional Packages:
   ElectricFence
   ant
   babel
   bzr
   ccache
   chrpath
   clips
   clips-devel
   clips-doc
   clips-emacs
   clips-xclips
   clipsmm-devel
   clipsmm-doc
   cmake
   cmucl
   colordiff
   compat-gcc-34
   compat-gcc-34-c++
   compat-gcc-34-g77
   cvsps
   darcs
   dejagnu
   email2trac
   expect
   ftnchek
   gcc-gnat
   gcc-java
   gcc-objc
   gcc-objc++
   ghc
   git
   haskell-platform
   imake
   jpackage-utils
   kdewebdev
   libstdc++-docs
   lua
   mercurial
   mock
   mod_dav_svn
   nasm
   nqc
   nqc-doc
   ocaml
   perltidy
   python-docs
   qgit
   rpmdevtools
   rpmlint
   sbcl
   systemtap-sdt-devel
   systemtap-server
   trac
   trac-git-plugin
   trac-mercurial-plugin
   trac-webadmin
   translate-toolkit

You also need to install additional development libs for the gpass. First, enable epel repo on a CentOS/RHEL:
# yum install epel-release
Use the yum command:
# yum install libgnomeui-devel mhash-devel libmcrypt-devel

Step #2: Download gpass

Use the wget command to download the source code, enter:
$ cd /tmp ## $ wget http://projects.netlab.jp/gpass/release/gpass-0.5.1.tar.gz $ wget https://github.com/raffael-sfm/gpass/releases/download/0.5.1/gpass-0.5.1.tar.gz
Sample outputs:

--2011-08-26 16:35:36--  http://projects.netlab.jp/gpass/release/gpass-0.5.1.tar.gz
Resolving projects.netlab.jp... 221.186.184.69
Connecting to projects.netlab.jp|221.186.184.69|:80... connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
Length: 512614 (501K) [application/x-tar]
Saving to: “gpass-0.5.1.tar.gz”

100%[======================================>] 512,614      158K/s   in 3.2s    

2011-08-26 16:35:39 (158 KB/s) - “gpass-0.5.1.tar.gz” saved [512614/512614]

Step #3: Compile gpass

Type the following commands to untar tar ball:
$ tar xvf gpass-0.5.1.tar.gz $ cd gpass-0.5.1
You need set link options using the LDFLAGS shell variable as follows:
$ export LDFLAGS='-export-dynamic'
Configure the software, enter:
$ ./configure
Sample outputs:

checking for a BSD-compatible install... /usr/bin/install -c
checking whether build environment is sane... yes
checking for gawk... gawk
checking whether make sets $(MAKE)... yes
.....
...
..
config.status: executing intltool commands
config.status: executing depfiles commands
config.status: executing default-1 commands
config.status: executing po/stamp-it commands

==================================================================
Configuration:

    Source code location : .
    Install location     : /usr/local
    Compiler             : gcc
    Unit test(make check): no

Finally to build the software, enter:
$ make
To install the same, enter:
$ sudo make install

How Do I Use the Gpass?

Type the following command:
$ gpass

: Fig.01: Running gpass for the first time

: Fig.02: Setup a master password

: Fig.03: Passwords are stored in ~/.gpass/

: Fig.04: Gpass in action

: Fig.05: Adding a new entry

: Fig.06: Copy password

How do I used gpass over ssh based session?

Simply, type the following command from your local Linux or Unix based terminal to login into the remote host and run gpass command over X based forwarding:
$ ssh -X user@server1.cyberciti.biz $ gpass

How Do I Backup My Passwords?

Simply copy $HOME/.gpass/ to backup media such as pen drive or external hard disk using the cp command:
$ cp -avr $HOME/.gpass/ /media/usbpen/backup/

How Do I Restore My Passwords?

Type the following command (assuming that backup usb pen is mounted at /media/usbpen/):
$ cp -avr /media/usbpen/backup/.gpass/* $HOME/.gpass/

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