SELinux is based on the premise that processes act on resources in the system. However, this is not reflected clearly in the way that people currently develop policies. The process for policy development entails identifying the resources that a program needs to use, and then combing over the reference policy to identify the appropriate types and interfaces.
To reduce the complexity of the policy development process, we developed PLEASE, a high-level language for writing SELinux policies. PLEASE is designed to integrate into the SELinux reference policy by making use of the interfaces and types already present, allowing for sections of the reference policy to be rewritten into it.
By basing the policy model around the kernel and application resources, the policy can by analyzed for potential information leaks.
We provide the developer with facilities to specify SELinux policy statements directly from PLEASE, to be analogous with the relationship between C and assembly. This allows the power and flexibility of low-level policy statements, while still allowing the developer to make use of our higher-level abstractions.
# | Title (click for html version) | Formats | Published In | Date | Comments |
1 | PLEASE: Policy Language for Easy Administration of SELinux | PS PDF BibTeX | Stony Brook U. CS TechReport FSL-07-02 | May 2007 | M.S. Thesis |
# | Name (click for home page) | Program | Period | Current Location |
1 | Kimberly Johnson | MS | Jan 2007 - Dec 2007 | Product Manager, Pivotal Network, Cloud Foundry (New York, NY) |
2 | David Quigley | MS | Sep 2005 - May 2007 | ZFS Linux Software Engineer, High Performance Data Division Intel (Longmont, CO) |