DACS_ADMIN(8) DACS Web Services Manual DACS_ADMIN(8)
NAME
dacs_admin - DACS administration service
SYNOPSIS
dacs_admin [dacsoptions[1]]
DESCRIPTION
This program is part of the DACS suite.
The dacs_admin web service is a tool for administering various DACS resources at a jurisdiction. Providing both a browser-based interface
and a simple, REST-oriented[2] HTTP interface that can be used by middleware, scripts, and web browsers, dacs_admin allows inspection (and
sometimes modification) of a jurisdiction's access control rules, configuration directives, group definitions, DACS user accounts,
revocation list, version information, authorization cache, DACS log files, user tracking records, and more. An administrator can manage a
different jurisdiction simply by aiming a browser or other HTTP client at that jurisdiction's dacs_admin web service.
Probably the best way to understand the tool is to simply use it interactively to browse through a jurisdiction's resources.
Security
This web service provides a way to view and change security-related DACS configuration, DACS passwords, and so on. The default access
control rule denies all access to the web service - you must add a custom rule to enable access. All functionality should be restricted
to an ADMIN_IDENTITY[3].
Notes
o Some features of this program may require JavaScript to be enabled in the browser.
o dacs_admin will eventually unify and replace several existing different DACS administrative web services. It may also include
federation-wide functions, such as the capability of adding a new jurisdiction.
Web Service Arguments
The following web service argument is always recognized:
FORMAT
By default, output is emitted in HTML. Several varieties of XML output can be selected, however, using the FORMAT argument (please
refer to dacs(1)[4]).
Resources and Methods
The interface provided by dacs_admin allows various DACS resources to be examined and modified using standard HTTP methods (see RFC
2616[5]). Not all DACS resources may be accessible using dacs_admin and not all methods may be valid for some resources.
In keeping with the REST architectural style, every persistent resource is identified by a URI (RFC 2396[6] and RFC 3986[7]). Invoking the
GET method on https://www.example.com/cgi-bin/dacs/dacs_admin, for example, will (assuming appropriate configuration and permission) return
a list of root-level resources managed by dacs_admin.
Invoking the GET method on a resource either returns a listing (by default, formatted as an HTML list or table) or an unadorned value (by
default, formatted as an HTML encoded string). For instance, this URL might return a list of configuration directives and their current
values:
https://www.example.com/cgi-bin/dacs/dacs_admin/conf/current
while this URL might return the current value of a particular configuration directive:
https://www.example.com/cgi-bin/dacs/dacs_admin/conf/current/AUTH_SUCCESS
The functionality of dacs_admin is described in terms of resources and methods supported on those resources. Depending on the particular
service request, the result consists of an HTTP status code (usually "200 OK", "201 Created", "400 Bad Request", or "404 Not Found"), and
possibly an HTML or XML document (selectable). The XML document is described by dacs_admin.dtd[8].
Arguments are passed in the query part of a URI. Unrecognized and context-inappropriate arguments are silently ignored.
OPTIONS
Only the standard dacsoptions[1] command line arguments are recognized.
FILES
dacs_admin.css[9]
DIAGNOSTICS
The program exits 0 if everything was fine, 1 if an error occurred.
SEE ALSO
dacsacl(1)[10], dacspasswd(1)[11], dacs.acls(5)[12], dacs_conf(8)[13], dacs_group(8)[14], dacs_list_jurisdictions(8)[15],
dacs_passwd(8)[16], dacs_version(8)[17]
AUTHOR
Distributed Systems Software (www.dss.ca[18])
COPYING
Copyright2003-2012 Distributed Systems Software. See the LICENSE[19] file that accompanies the distribution for licensing information.
NOTES
1. dacsoptions
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs.1.html#dacsoptions
2. REST-oriented
http://rest.blueoxen.net/cgi-bin/wiki.pl
3. ADMIN_IDENTITY
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs.conf.5.html#ADMIN_IDENTITY
4. dacs(1)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs.1.html
5. RFC 2616
http://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2616.txt
6. RFC 2396
http://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2396.txt
7. RFC 3986
http://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc3986.txt
8. dacs_admin.dtd
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/../dtd-xsd/dacs_admin.dtd
9. dacs_admin.css
http://dacs.dss.ca/man//css/dacs_admin.css
10. dacsacl(1)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacsacl.1.html
11. dacspasswd(1)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacspasswd.1.html
12. dacs.acls(5)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs.acls.5.html
13. dacs_conf(8)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs_conf.8.html
14. dacs_group(8)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs_group.8.html
15. dacs_list_jurisdictions(8)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs_list_jurisdictions.8.html
16. dacs_passwd(8)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs_passwd.8.html
17. dacs_version(8)
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/dacs_version.8.html
18. www.dss.ca
http://www.dss.ca
19. LICENSE
http://dacs.dss.ca/man/../misc/LICENSE
DACS 1.4.27b 10/22/2012 DACS_ADMIN(8)