16.5. Creating PAM Modules

New PAM modules can be added at any time for PAM-aware applications to use. For example, if a developer invents a one-time-password creation method and writes a PAM module to support it, PAM-aware programs can immediately use the new module and password method without being recompiled or otherwise modified. This allows developers and system administrators to mix-and-match, as well as test, authentication methods for different programs without recompiling them.

Documentation on writing modules is included in the /usr/share/doc/pam-<version-number>/ directory (where <version-number> is the version number for PAM).