How do I hide user input with cin in C++?

Question

Possible Duplicate:
Read a password from std::cin

I'm trying to make a simple password program so I can get familiar with C++, but I'm having a bit of a problem. In this code, I ask the user for a password they choose, and then they enter it. What I want to code to do is hide the input (not replace it with *s), but still show the cursor, and the text above, before, and after the password is entered, like this:

Please enter password: [don't show input]
Please re-enter password: [don't show input]

How can I do this? I'm using Linux, so I won't be able to use any windows libraries (windows.h, etc).

Did you peruse the istream documentation for a way to set a no echo property? — John, Dec 04 '12 at 00:31
@John, You won't find that in any standard C++ documentation. — chris, Dec 04 '12 at 00:32

score 4 · Accepted Answer · answered Dec 04 '12 at 00:27

You cannot do this directly using cin. You have to go "lower". Try calling these functions:

#include <termios.h>

...

void HideStdinKeystrokes()
{
    termios tty;

    tcgetattr(STDIN_FILENO, &tty);

    /* we want to disable echo */
    tty.c_lflag &= ~ECHO;

    tcsetattr(STDIN_FILENO, TCSANOW, &tty);
}

void ShowStdinKeystrokes()
{
   termios tty;

    tcgetattr(STDIN_FILENO, &tty);

    /* we want to reenable echo */
    tty.c_lflag |= ECHO;

    tcsetattr(STDIN_FILENO, TCSANOW, &tty);
}

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Dec 04 '12 at 00:26

0

You'll want to call tcsetattr and modify the ECHO flag.

answered Dec 04 '12 at 00:26

Ben Voigt

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How do I hide user input with cin in C++?

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