slips

SLIP-91

Resource-Specific Owner Authorization System

draft optional author:melvincaralho

• Read operations MUST be allowed for all users without authentication.
• Write operations MUST be restricted to the user identified as the owner of the resource.
• In single-user mode, the server MUST consider the value of the OWNER environment variable as the owner for all resources.
• The server MAY implement additional heuristics to determine the owner of a resource in multi-user environments.

Implementation Notes

1. The server should be configured to authenticate write requests. It must check if the requestor is the owner before allowing any modifications to the resource.

2. In single-user mode, the server will treat the value of the OWNER environment variable as the universally authorized user for all write operations.

3. The ownership check mechanism should be robust and secure, preventing unauthorized write access through spoofing or other methods.

4. For multi-user systems, the server might use a combination of methods such as API keys, user sessions, or other ownership verification techniques to determine if the requestor is the owner.

Example Implementation in Single-User Mode

When the server is running in single-user mode, it could use a middleware function like the following in an Express.js application to protect write routes:

// Middleware to protect write routes
const checkOwnership = (req, res, next) => {
  // Assume read operations are GET requests
  if (['PUT', 'POST', 'DELETE'].includes(req.method)) {
    const owner = process.env.OWNER;
    const requestor = req.headers['x-user-id']; // Example header to identify the user making the request

    if (!owner || owner !== requestor) {
      return res.status(403).send('Forbidden: You do not have permission to modify this resource.');
    }
  }
  next();
};

app.use(checkOwnership);

• In this example, x-user-id is a custom header used to identify the user. In practice, the server should employ a secure method to ensure the user is who they claim to be.

Security Considerations

1. The value of the OWNER environment variable should be protected and only accessible to the server process.

2. In multi-user environments, additional security layers should be implemented to accurately and securely verify the owner’s identity.

3. The authorization system should be used in conjunction with secure transport protocols like HTTPS.

Warning

The Resource-Specific Owner Authorization System should be carefully implemented to ensure that the heuristics used for determining ownership are secure and reliable. Incorrect implementation could lead to unauthorized access and modification of resources.

Conclusion

The Resource-Specific Owner Authorization System provides a straightforward yet effective means of controlling write access to resources in a Solid Lite environment. It ensures that only the owner can modify their resources while allowing public read access, aligning with the principles of controlled access and data ownership. ```