Windows VS Linux/Unix

Question 1

What is Windows’ version of Access Control Lists, and how does it work?

Answer 1

Discretionary Access Control, based on Access Control Lists.
Each file has a descriptor, which contains details on which users/groups can perform actions.

Question 2

What is Linux’s version of Access Control Lists, and how does it work?

Answer 2

Discretionary Access Control
Each file has an owner, and a group
The file holds details on who is the owner, and what access the respective users have to that file

Question 3

How is Privilege Management implemented in Windows?

Answer 3

It’s controlled by the Local Security Authority (LSA) and the Security Account Manager (SAM)

Question 4

What is User Account Control in Windows?

Answer 4

User Account Control introduces a privilege separation mechanism to limit software running with administrative rights unless explicitly approved.

Question 5

What are Access Tokens in Windows?

Answer 5

When a user logs in, Windows creates an Access Token. This contains:
- The user’s SID
- Any group SIDs
- Assigned privileges
- Integrity level
The token is attached to any processed used by the user, and is also used for access validation.

Question 6

What is Mandatory Access Control in Linux?

Answer 6

Mandatory Access Control (MAC) in Linux restricts what processes can do, even if Unix permissions would allow it.

Question 7

How is Mandatory Access Control implemented in Linux?

Answer 7

SELinux
AppArmor