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NT Security Classes for .NET

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19 Feb 2004CPOL2 min read 375.7K   3.9K   75   103
A collection of .NET classes written in Managed C++ that faciliate the manipulation of NT security rights

Introduction

This class library allows access to the Win32 security calls in a .NET friendly way. It encapsulates the concepts of a user, a securable object (like a file, named pipe, directory, etc.), and permissions. This library was written in Managed C++ to simplify the amount of work needed to link to existing Win32 libraries. However, since it exposes all of its functionality via .NET, it can be used from any .NET compliant language, including C# and Visual Basic. The project was written and compiled with Visual Studio 2002.

NOTE: There is a library written by some Microsoft guys on GotDotNet that does much of the same thing and more. It can be found at http://www.gotdotnet.com/Community/UserSamples/Details.aspx?SampleGuid=e6098575-dda0-48b8-9abf-e0705af065d9.

This article outlines the primary objects in the library and their use in manipulating security objects.

Documentation

WindowsUser class

This class represents a single Windows identity (SID). It can be created by specifying either a username ("DOMAIN\user" format) or the string representation of a SID ("S-1-5-xxxx-xxx..."). You can also get the identity of the current user using the static property CurrentUser.

There are a number of predefined identities that exist as static members of a child class called WellKnownIdentities. Once you have an identity, you can get the following properties:

  • AccountName: string name of the account
  • Domain: string name of the account's domain
  • FullName: string in the form of "Domain\AccountName"
  • SidString: string representation of the SID

SecuredObject class

This class represents an object which can have a security descriptor. It can be created by specifying the name of the resource along with its type or by passing a handle (as an IntPtr) to the resource.

Once you have the object, you can update the permissions, audit information, owner and group.

PermissionsList

This class encapsulates actions on the ACL. It allows granting, revoking, changing, and denying access levels to different users. Derived from AccessList, which is a collection class for AccessEntry.

AuditingList

This class encapsulates actions on the auditing list of an object. It allows getting and setting audit success and failure rights. Derived from

AccessList
, which is a collection class for AccessEntry.

AccessEntry

This class encapsulates the Access Control Entry or ACE. You can set the user (trustee) and the associated rights and inheritance.

Example

This code shows the library in action. It assumes you have aliased the Microsoft.Win32.Security namespace (using in C#, Imports in VB).

C#
// Get the current user and print their information
WindowsUser user = WindowsUser.CurrentUser;
Console.WriteLine("{0} ({1})", user.FullName, user.SidString);

// Get the current user from their token
WindowsUser duser = new WindowsUser(
  System.Security.Principal.WindowsIdentity.GetCurrent().Token);
Console.WriteLine(duser.FullName);

// Compare users
if (user == duser)
   Console.WriteLine("Same");
else
   Console.WriteLine("Different");

// Get a well-known user
user = WindowsUser.WellKnownIdentities.World;
Console.WriteLine(user.FullName);

// Get a user by name from a specific server (usually a domain controller)
WindowsUser kuser = new WindowsUser("user2", @"\\MYPDC");
Console.WriteLine(kuser.FullName);

// Get a user by name
user = new WindowsUser("DOMAIN\\user3");
Console.WriteLine(user.FullName);

// Get a user by SID
user = new WindowsUser("S-1-5-21-21782756-1035017279-1439700725-1111");
Console.WriteLine(user.FullName);

// Get security for C:\ directory
SecuredObject sec = new SecuredObject("C:\\", SecuredObjectType.FileObject);
DumpObject(sec);

// Set some various permissions on the directory
sec.Permissions.SetAccess(kuser, AccessRights.FileRead,
   AceInheritanceFlags.ContainerInherit|AceInheritanceFlags.ObjectInherit);
sec.Permissions.GrantAccess(kuser, AccessRights.FileExecute,
   AceInheritanceFlags.ContainerInherit|AceInheritanceFlags.ObjectInherit);
sec.Permissions.DenyAccess(kuser, AccessRights.FileWriteUnsync,
   AceInheritanceFlags.ContainerInherit|AceInheritanceFlags.ObjectInherit);
WindowsUser owner = sec.Owner;
sec.Owner = duser;
sec.Auditing.SetAuditFailure(duser, AccessRights.FileReadUnsync,
   AceInheritanceFlags.ContainerInherit|AceInheritanceFlags.ObjectInherit);
DumpObject(sec);

// Revoke some access
sec.Permissions.RevokeAccess(kuser);
sec.Owner = owner;
DumpObject(sec) ;

// Reset the security on the directory
sec.Permissions.Clear();
sec.Permissions.InheritFromParent = true;
DumpObject(sec);

// Write the DACL using the Microsoft style
Console.WriteLine(sec.ToString());

The following function shows how to enumerate the permissions on a security object.

C#
static void DumpObject(SecuredObject sec)
{
   Console.WriteLine("Security description:");
   Console.WriteLine("=====================");
   Console.WriteLine("Owner: {0}\nGroup: {1}", 
     sec.Owner.FullName, sec.Group.FullName);
   Console.WriteLine("Permissions:");
   foreach (AccessEntry ace in sec.Permissions)
      Console.WriteLine(String.Format("  {0} : {1} : {2}", 
         ace.Trustee.FullName,
         ace.Inheritance, ace.Rights));
   Console.WriteLine("Auditing:");
   foreach (AccessEntry ace in sec.Auditing)
      Console.WriteLine(String.Format("  {0} : {1} : {2}", 
         ace.Trustee.FullName,
         ace.Inheritance, ace.Rights));
}

License

This article, along with any associated source code and files, is licensed under The Code Project Open License (CPOL)


Written By
Chief Technology Officer
United States United States
I have been a Windows software developer since 1991. Most of what I create fills the need for some aspect of bigger projects that I consult on.

Comments and Discussions

 
GeneralBroken Link Pin
Marius Bancila11-Dec-09 5:41
professionalMarius Bancila11-Dec-09 5:41 
QuestionMemoryleak? Pin
mackenb13-Oct-09 2:41
mackenb13-Oct-09 2:41 
GeneralWin32Helper Fails on comparing two null sids. Pin
Member 382942711-Aug-09 1:32
Member 382942711-Aug-09 1:32 
QuestionHow to setup mmsseclib for usage Pin
Juergen Loewner21-Aug-07 20:43
Juergen Loewner21-Aug-07 20:43 
GeneralRe: How to setup mmsseclib for usage Pin
Juergen Loewner22-Aug-07 7:12
Juergen Loewner22-Aug-07 7:12 
GeneralConsole frontend à la (X)Cacls Pin
LiQuick28-Mar-07 2:31
LiQuick28-Mar-07 2:31 
QuestionCompiler problem Pin
wakkoedu6-Dec-06 1:27
wakkoedu6-Dec-06 1:27 
QuestionDavid, can I use your dll in the commercial product? Pin
Dmitry V.Trus23-Nov-06 5:07
Dmitry V.Trus23-Nov-06 5:07 
GenerallaunchPermission on component Pin
superk10-May-06 0:44
superk10-May-06 0:44 
Generalexception question Pin
ah_zen11-Mar-06 1:30
ah_zen11-Mar-06 1:30 
GeneralRe: exception question Pin
MrBonus1-Aug-06 0:46
MrBonus1-Aug-06 0:46 
QuestionVB 2005 issue Pin
lmwinbur13-Feb-06 18:11
lmwinbur13-Feb-06 18:11 
AnswerRe: VB 2005 issue Pin
bbosak23-Mar-06 10:11
bbosak23-Mar-06 10:11 
I had the same problem when trying to compile.

Switch "FILETIME" to "System::Runtime::InteropServices::FILETIME" and it should compile for you in VS 2005.
AnswerRe: VB 2005 issue Pin
OliProject18-Apr-07 3:27
OliProject18-Apr-07 3:27 
AnswerRe: VB 2005 issue Pin
McDude.Wa31-Dec-08 8:04
McDude.Wa31-Dec-08 8:04 
GeneralOn NT4.0 SP6 Machine Pin
k_udct2-Jun-05 23:22
k_udct2-Jun-05 23:22 
GeneralRe: On NT4.0 SP6 Machine Pin
David Hall6-Jun-05 5:27
professionalDavid Hall6-Jun-05 5:27 
GeneralRe: On NT4.0 SP6 Machine Pin
k_udct8-Jun-05 3:54
k_udct8-Jun-05 3:54 
GeneralRe: On NT4.0 SP6 Machine Pin
David Hall8-Jun-05 4:43
professionalDavid Hall8-Jun-05 4:43 
GeneralError while assigning SecurityObject Pin
VikramSaraf30-May-05 21:07
VikramSaraf30-May-05 21:07 
GeneralRe: Error while assigning SecurityObject Pin
David Hall6-Jun-05 5:30
professionalDavid Hall6-Jun-05 5:30 
GeneralNamed pipe help Pin
erictaneda26-Dec-04 8:45
erictaneda26-Dec-04 8:45 
GeneralQuestion about enums.h Pin
John Rusk29-Nov-04 16:36
John Rusk29-Nov-04 16:36 
GeneralRe: Question about enums.h Pin
David Hall30-Nov-04 4:51
professionalDavid Hall30-Nov-04 4:51 
GeneralRe: Question about enums.h Pin
John Rusk30-Nov-04 8:32
John Rusk30-Nov-04 8:32 

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