Contents
Introduction
Document Conventions
Authentication and Authorization
Purpose of the Access Component
Elements that Comprise the Access Component
Access Component in a WebZ-only Environment
Access Component in a WebZ/Record Builder Environment
Access Component Documentation
This document introduces the SiteSearch Access component by describing its purpose in the OCLC SiteSearch software, the elements that comprise the Access component, and the Access component in different SiteSearch environments. It also includes a list of available documentation for the Access component.
- 4.0.x refers to any SiteSearch version prior to 4.1.0; that is, 4.0.0, 4.0.0a, 4.0.1, and 4.0.2.
- 4.1.x refers to SiteSearch 4.1.0, 4.1.1, or 4.1.2.
Authentication and Authorization
In discussing the Access component, we use the terms authentication and authorization. The online reference whatis?com.® (www.whatis.com) defines these terms:
| authentication | Authentication is the process of determining whether someone or something is, in fact, who or what it is declared to be. In private and public computer networks (including the Internet), authentication is commonly done through the use of logon passwords. Knowledge of the password is assumed to guarantee that the user is authentic. Each user registers initially (or is registered by someone else), using an assigned or self-declared password. On each subsequent use, the user must know and use the previously declared password. |
| authorization | Authorization is the process of giving someone permission to do or have something. In multi-user computer systems, a system administrator defines for the system which users are allowed access to the system and [their] privileges of use (such as access to which file directories, hours of access, amount of allocated storage space, and so forth). Assuming that someone has logged on to a computer operating system or application program, the system or application may want to identify what resources the user can be given during this session. Thus, authorization is sometimes seen as both the preliminary setting up of permissions by a system administrator and the actual checking of the permission values that have been set up when a user is getting access. |
Purpose of the Access Component
The Access component allows you to provide patron and staff authentication and authorization for WebZ and Record Builder using a relational database management system (RDBMS). You use the RDBMS to populate a database that contains patron and/or staff authentication and authorization records.
Beginning with OCLC SiteSearch 4.1.0, Record Builder is an end-user application included with Database Builder. Record Builder uses a Web-based interface and and harnesses Database Builder's administrative utilities to allow library staff to create, modify, and maintain Newton databases for local collections of such things as images, sound files, Web sites, and data.
The Access component supports:
- Authentication – Ensuring that a patron or staff member is an authorized system user.
- Authorization or access control – Allowing a patron or staff member to access only the databases that for which he/she is authorized. In addition, for Record Builder access control also provides each staff member with the privileges (search, edit, write, delete, review and/or admin) necessary to perform his/her job.
- Initialization -- (WebZ only) presenting the appropriate interface style for each patron after logging in.
The Access component supports authentication by autho (user name/password combination), Internet Protocol (IP) address, or Domain Name Server (DNS) for WebZ. At this time, the Access component supports only authentication by autho for Record Builder.
By default, the Access component is not enabled for either WebZ or Record Builder. You must configure it before you can use it.
Elements that Comprise the Access Component
The Access component includes these elements:
- Access server
- Access clients (built into JaSSI and ZBase)
- Java Database Connectivity (JDBC) driver
- SQL server
- SQL database
This diagram shows how these elements interact with one another. The Access component elements appear in yellow. The OpServe manages the JaSSI, ZBase, and the Access server, as shown by the dotted arrows. The table that follows defines each of these elements. When an element is platform-specific, the table provides information about differences in the elements in UNIX and Windows NT platforms.
| Element | Description | ||||||||
| Access client |
Retrieves information about a patron or staff member when he or she logs in to your SiteSearch interface and adds this information to the UserStateObject for subsequent use. These uses include verifying that he or she is authorized to use the system (authentication), presenting the list of databases for which he or she has access (authorization), and using the interface indicated for the user (initialization). Both JaSSI and ZBase have Access clients. |
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| Access server | Processes requests by the JaSSI Access client and/or the ZBase Access client and routes them to the SQL server via the JDBC driver. Passes data retrieved from the database by the SQL server to the JaSSI or ZBase Access clients. | ||||||||
| JDBC driver |
Application programming interface (API) that connects Java-based programs to SQL databases. It allows the Access component to pass queries to the SQL server and return the results of these queries to the Access server.
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| SQL server |
SQL RDBMS that queries the database to locate data requested by the Access clients.
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| database |
SQL database that contains the data tables that store patron or user data. Installations include sample data file(s) that you can load into an SQL database. The data file(s) allows you to create a database with the appropriate tables, examine sample data, and test your Access component configuration.
You can modify the data file(s) to work with other RDBMS systems, such as Sybase or Oracle. |
Access Component in a WebZ-only Environment
In a SiteSearch environment that includes WebZ (but not Record Builder), the JaSSI Access client is ORG.oclc.jassi.access.JaSSIAccessClient and the ZBase Access client is ORG.oclc.zbase.access.ZBaseAccessClient. Both Access clients communicate with the Access server. The JDBC driver and SQL server are platform and product-specific. The database that stores patron access data is named accessdb. In this environment, it is also possible to create customized access clients for JaSSI and ZBase.
Access Component in a WebZ/Record Builder Environment
When a SiteSearch environment includes both WebZ and Record Builder, the Access component includes all the elements in the WebZ-only environment, as well as elements specific to Record Builder, as shown in this diagram.
A single OpServe manages all WebZ and Record Builder servers. WebZ and Record Builder each have their own Access server and Access clients, but share a single JDBC driver and SQL server. (For WebZ, it is possible to develop custom Access clients in place of those built into JaSSI and ZBase). The SQL server manages two databases: accessdb, which stores data about WebZ patrons, and rbdb, which stores data about Record Builder users.
The Access servers and the ZBase Access clients are identical for WebZ and Record Builder, but the WebZ and Record Builder Access clients in the JaSSI are different. WebZ's JaSSI Access client (ORG.oclc.jassi.access.JaSSIAccessClient) requests and receives all available authorization data when a patron logs into the system. This includes the databases the patron is authorized to access and may include other information, such as the interface style to present to the patron, and interlibrary loan information for the patron. When a staff member logs into Record Builder, Record Builder's JaSSIRB Access client (ORG.oclc.jassi.access.RBAccessClient) requests and obtains only information pertaining to the databases the staff member is authorized to view. When a staff member subsequently tries to add, edit, or delete a record in a particular database, the JaSSIRB Access client queries the authorization database to determine whether the staff member has the appropriate privileges to perform this action for this database.
Access Component Documentation
The following table lists other topics that provide more information about the Access component.
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This topic lists the configuration files that contain information related to the Access component and describes how this information supports the Access component. |
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Provides information about each of the tables in accessdb, and the columns in each table, and the relationships among tables. It also describes the sample data file available for creating a sample accessdb database for testing your Access component configuration. |
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Provides information about each of the tables in rbdb, and the columns in each table, and the relationships among tables. It also describes the sample data file available for creating a sample rbdb database for testing your Access component configuration. |
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| These topics are platform-specific step-by-step procedures that explain how to configure your WebZ environment for using the Access component and create a sample database for testing your configuration. | |
| Testing the Access Component Configuration for WebZ | This topic describes how to test your Access component configuration for WebZ before you use it for authorizing patrons. |
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Configuring the Access Component for Record Builder (UNIX) Configuring the Access Component for Record Builder (Windows NT) |
These topics are platform-specific step-by-step procedures that explain how to configure your Record Builder environment for using the Access component and create a sample database for testing your configuration. |
| Testing the Access Component Configuration for Record Builder | This topic describes how to test your Access component configuration for Record Builder to be sure it is functioning properly before you use it for authorizing Record Builder staff. |
| SQL Scripts and Templates (UNIX) | Describes MySQL and mSQL scripts available to assist UNIX users to create and maintain the two Access component databases, accessdb for WebZ and rbdb for Record Builder, and mSQL template files for populating accessdb. |
| The updateSQL.pl Utility | Describes updateSQL.pl, a Perl script that allows you to convert an Access component database (accessdb for WebZ and rbdb for Record Builder) used in SiteSearch 4.1.1 to the new table structure used in SiteSearch 4.1.2. |
See Also
WebZ
System Administration
Record Builder Administration
WebZ System Diagram
Record Builder Process Model and System
Overview