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Overview of Grid Security

  • The Globus security model is that only systems in the same VO can run applications together. The applications themselves make the rules, otherwise - Globus "simply" determines what service can talk with what other service, and keeps track of running services, their allocated resources, and other fundamentals.
  • Procedurally, a VO is defined by a shared authentication system, typically based on x509 certificates (though other authentication methods can be used). Setting up a VO involves using a certificate server to authorize & distribute credentials to the VO members.
  • Note that grid security is essentially at the service level. System-level security is separate (firewalls, etc.), as is within-application security (such as file access permissions or levels of application control).
  • As grid standards mature, models for security-related services are emerging. For example, a grid filesystem might apply file permissions, but across a VO rather than simply for the local system. Or, logging subsystems might log for an entire VO, rather than for each system independently.

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