Os security issues
- 1. Operating system A system having basic kernel functions of process and memory management ,file, i/o device and network management functions and many other functions. Protection of memory and resources from any unauthorized into the PCB or resource ,or mix up of access of one by another becomes imperative.
- 2. Introduction to OS security issues The OS security issue is a critical issue. Each process determines whether it has a control of a system resoure exclusively or whether it is isolated from the other processes or whether it shares a resource common to a set of processes. The OS then configures when a resource is isolated from from one process and a resource is shared with a defined with a define set of processes.
- 3. The OS should also have the flexibility to change this configuration when needed, to full fill the requirements all the process. For example, a process has 32 memory blocks at an instance and the OS configures the system accordingly. The OS should provide protection mechanism and implement a system administration(s) – defined security policy. An application software programmer can find a hole in the protection mechanism and an unauthorized access.
- 4. Important security issues Protection mechanism Flexibility to of change. Control resource sharing Confinement mechanism Security policy (strategy). Authentication mechanism. Authorization. Encryption
- 5. Protection Mechanism OS should provide protection mechanisms and implement a system administrator (s) defined security
- 6. Flexibility to of change when needed to fulfill the need requirements of all the processes. For example, a process has control of 32 memory blocks at an instance and the OS configured the system accordingly. t Later when more processes are created, this can be reconfigured.
- 7. Controlled resource sharing Controlling read and write of the resources and parameters by user processes. For example, some resources write only for a process and some read only for a set of processes Another example, memory buffer to which one process writes at an instant till that buffer is emptied by other process
- 8. Confinement Mechanism Mechanism that restricts sharing of parameters to a set of processes only .
- 9. Security Policy (Strategy) Rules for authorizing access to the OS, system and information. A policy example is that a communication system may having a policy of peer-to-peer communication (connection establishment preceding the data packets flow).
- 10. Authentication Mechanism External authentication mechanism for the user and a mechanism meant to prevent an application run unless the user registers and the system administrator (software) authorizes Internal authentication for the process, and the process should not appear (impersonate) as some like other processes. User authentication can become difficult if the user disseminates password passwords or other authentication methods
- 11. Authorization User or process (s) allowed to use the system resources as per the security policy
- 12. Encryption A tool to change information to make it unusable by any other user or process unless without the appropriate key is used for deciphering it.
- 13. CONCLUSION OS security issues are important considerations. Protection of memory and resources from any unauthorized and without explicit authorization write into the PCB or resource Mix up of accesses of one by another, becomes imperative from an OS security and protection mechanism