6.3. Write a Java Security Manager Policy

Introduction

An application called policytool is included with most JDK and JRE distributions, for the purpose of creating and editing Java Security Manager security policies. Detailed information about policytool is linked from http://docs.oracle.com/javase/6/docs/technotes/tools/.

Basic Information

A security policy's entry consists of the following configuration elements:

CodeBase
The URL location (excluding the host and domain information) where the code originates from. This parameter is optional.
SignedBy
The alias used in the keystore to reference the signer whose private key was used to sign the code. This can be a single value or a comma-separated list of values. This parameter is optional. If omitted, presence or lack of a signature has no impact on the Java Security Manager.
Principals
A list of principal_type/principal_name pairs, which must be present within the executing thread's principal set. The Principals entry is optional. If it is omitted, it signifies "any principals".
Permissions
A permission is the access which is granted to the code. Many permissions are provided as part of the Java Enterprise Edition 6 (Java EE 6) specification. This document only covers additional permissions which are provided by JBoss EAP 6.

Procedure 6.1. Setup a new Java Security Manager Policy

  1. Start policytool.

    Start the policytool tool in one of the following ways.
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux

      From your GUI or a command prompt, run /usr/bin/policytool.
    • Microsoft Windows Server

      Run policytool.exe from your Start menu or from the bin\ of your Java installation. The location can vary.
  2. Create a policy.

    To create a policy, select Add Policy Entry. Add the parameters you need, then click Done.
  3. Edit an existing policy

    Select the policy from the list of existing policies, and select the Edit Policy Entry button. Edit the parameters as needed.
  4. Delete an existing policy.

    Select the policy from the list of existing policies, and select the Remove Policy Entry button.