Access Control

Also referred to as an access control list, it typically relates to an individual file or file directory. Each file consists of a security attribute that verifies it’s access control list. The list contains an entry for each computer user that has access privileges. These privileges usually include the ability to translate individual files or all files in a particular directory. They may also include the ability to write and execute files. Microsoft Windows NT 2000 is among the few operating systems that utilize access control lists. In regard to this platform, each list can have one or more access control entries that contains the name of a single user or a group of users. A user can be assigned a role name such as a “tester” or “programmer”. For each user or group, access privileges are defined in a string of bits known as an access mask. NetWare, OpenVMS and several Unix-based operating systems also make use of access control lists.