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Date: Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:44:16 -0600
Message-ID: <cdc5ad200911111344v38c44732h57a0305fa62d57cc@mail.gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Re: bandwidth limiting Cassandra's replication and access control
From: Brandon Williams <driftx@gmail.com>
To: cassandra-user@incubator.apache.org
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On Wed, Nov 11, 2009 at 9:40 AM, Coe, Robin <robin.coe@bluecoat.com> wrote:

> IMO, auth services should be left to the application layer that interface=
s
> to Cassandra and not built into Cassandra.  In the tutorial snippet inclu=
ded
> below, the access being granted is at the codebase level, not the
> transaction level.  Since users of Cassandra will generally be fronted by=
 a
> service layer, the java security manager isn=92t going to suffice.  What =
this
> snippet could do, though, and may be the rationale for the request, is to
> ensure that unauthorized users cannot instantiate a new Cassandra server.
>  However, if a user has physical access to the machine on which Cassandra=
 is
> installed, they could easily bypass that layer of security.
>

What if Cassandra IS the application you're exposing?  Imagine a large
company that creates one large internal Cassandra deployment, and has
multiple departments it wants  to create separate keyspaces for.  You can d=
o
that now, but there's nothing except a gentlemen's agreement to prevent one
department from trashing another department's keyspace, and accidents do
happen. You can front the service with some kind of application layer, but
then you have another API to maintain, and you'll lose some performance thi=
s
way.

-Brandon

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<div class=3D"gmail_quote">On Wed, Nov 11, 2009 at 9:40 AM, Coe, Robin <spa=
n dir=3D"ltr">&lt;<a href=3D"mailto:robin.coe@bluecoat.com">robin.coe@bluec=
oat.com</a>&gt;</span> wrote:<br><blockquote class=3D"gmail_quote" style=3D=
"margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex;">
IMO, auth services should be left to the application layer that interfaces =
to Cassandra and not built into Cassandra. =A0In the tutorial snippet inclu=
ded below, the access being granted is at the codebase level, not the trans=
action level. =A0Since users of Cassandra will generally be fronted by a se=
rvice layer, the java security manager isn=92t going to suffice. =A0What th=
is snippet could do, though, and may be the rationale for the request, is t=
o ensure that unauthorized users cannot instantiate a new Cassandra server.=
 =A0However, if a user has physical access to the machine on which Cassandr=
a is installed, they could easily bypass that layer of security.<br>
</blockquote><div><br></div><div>What if Cassandra IS the application you&#=
39;re exposing? =A0Imagine a large company that creates one large internal =
Cassandra deployment, and has multiple departments it wants =A0to create se=
parate keyspaces for. =A0You can do that now, but there&#39;s nothing excep=
t a gentlemen&#39;s agreement to prevent one department from trashing anoth=
er department&#39;s keyspace, and accidents do happen. You can front the se=
rvice with some kind of application layer, but then you have another API to=
 maintain, and you&#39;ll lose some performance this way.</div>
<div><br></div><div>-Brandon</div></div>

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