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Atlas · Foundations permissions-and-access

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  • security

Permissions AND Access

Permissions describe which actor may perform a particular action on a particular resource; being allowed is different from the action succeeding.

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    Beginner field notes

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    • A permission concerns an actor, an action and a resource: who may do what to which thing.
    • Permission to read a label does not automatically include changing or deleting it, or accessing a different resource.
    • An allow decision permits an attempt. Storage or another dependency can still fail before the requested work finishes.
    See a worked example

    Separate an access decision from the saved result

    Sample only. Nothing here runs on your computer.

    Example input · do not paste
    Fictional policy for box B7:
Ada: read.
Bo: read, change.
Nobody is granted delete. Every unlisted actor/action/resource combination is denied.
Assume actor identity is already established; there are no other rules, requests or partial writes.
Start: B7’s saved label is Seeds.
1. Ada requests read. The permitted read completes.
2. Ada requests change to Tools.
3. Bo requests change to Tools. Permission is allowed, but storage reports failure before any write.
4. Bo requests change to Tools again. The application confirms the save completed.
    Example output · do not paste
    1. Allowed; the read returns Seeds. Saved label: Seeds.
2. Denied; no change is attempted. Saved label: Seeds.
3. Allowed, then failed. Saved label: Seeds.
4. Allowed and completed. Saved label: Tools.
A delete request from either actor would be denied under this table.

    Check the actor, action and resource first, then the explicitly stated operation result. Ada’s readable label does not make it editable, and Bo’s permission does not turn a failed save into a completed one. These are fictional records; no cloud resource is connected or changed.

    Visual

    A request receives an allow or deny permission decision. An allow leads to an operation attempt whose actual result must still be checked.

    The reviewed description and complete diagram source are available here.

    Read the complete diagram source

    This is the source for the reviewed diagram, not a command to run.

    flowchart LR
  A["Actor + requested action + resource"] --> P{"Permission check"}
  P -->|"Denied"| N["Operation not allowed"]
  P -->|"Allowed"| O["Try the operation"]
  O --> R["Check the actual result"]
    Sources and full explanation

    Notes sources · Beginner

    AI source review · 2026-10-17

    Reviewed explanation

    A permission is a rule about who may do what to which thing. In Lantern Archive, a made-up storage application, Ada may read the label on box B7 but may not change it. Bo may read or change that same label. Permission to look does not automatically include permission to edit, delete or act on another box.

    The actor is the person or program making the request. The action is the operation it asks for, such as read or change. The resource is the thing it targets, such as B7. Authorization is the check that decides whether this request is allowed under the applicable rules. In the worked example we already know the actor; checking credentials is a separate question covered by Identity and credentials.

    Our small table is the complete policy for this example: only Ada’s read and Bo’s read/change operations on B7 are granted. Every other operation is denied. Real systems can have several policies, additional conditions and explicit denials. Do not copy this toy table into an AWS account or assume that one displayed grant is every applicable permission rule.

    Being allowed to try is different from finishing. An authorized change could still encounter an invalid value, unavailable storage or another failure. In our example, the failed save happens before any write, and the successful save explicitly stores the new label. Those stated outcomes let us track the label; an allow decision alone would not. A missing reply would need more evidence rather than an invented success or failure.

    • AWS IAM: Policies and permissions

      Policies define permissions for actions and resources, with conditions and additional limiting policies. Supports separating the permission decision from merely possessing credentials; this lesson’s table is deliberately simpler than AWS policy evaluation.

    • AWS IAM: How IAM works

      Distinguishes principal authentication from request authorization; describes the principal, action, resource and request context. Some AWS requests can be anonymous, so this is not evidence that all systems require sign-in. The fictional success/failure trace is an expressly stated example contract.

    AI source comparison recorded 2026-10-17. Human learner validation is pending.

    Quick quiz · one question

    Permission is not a completed change

    Sample scenario. Synthetic Lantern Archive. Actors are already identified. Ada may read B7 only; Bo may read or change B7. Unlisted actions are denied, including delete. Each listed storage result is supplied by the fixture, not inferred from permission.

    Stored b-7
    Seed box
    Permission for ada
    read on b-7
    Permission for bo
    read, change on b-7
    ada-read
    Already-identified actor ada asks to read b-7; stated storage result if permitted: success.
    ada-change
    Already-identified actor ada asks to change b-7 to Tools; stated storage result if permitted: success.
    bo-change
    Already-identified actor bo asks to change b-7 to Tools; stated storage result if permitted: failure.
    bo-delete
    Already-identified actor bo asks to delete b-7; stated storage result if permitted: success.

    Which requests are permitted, which complete, and what label remains stored on B7?

    Answers stay on this device.

    Sources and exercise scope
    • AWS IAM: Policies and permissions

      Actions and resources are separate parts of the permission decision. The fictional table supplies exact grants; a separate stated storage result decides completion.

    Original synthetic exercise. AI comparison against the reviewed lesson recorded on 2026-10-17; the references above state their scope. Human learner validation has not been run. A result here records this attempt; it does not establish mastery.

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    Reference notes · file removal and public access

    Robot reference desk

    Understand what can change

    These reviewed public notes are available to everyone. They do not establish that an operation ran or inspect your files, backups or permissions.

    File removal

    Before deleting files: deleting a file can remove it without putting it in Trash or a recycle bin, and recovery is not guaranteed. Check the intended targets and whether a usable backup or recovery option exists before continuing.

    Sources for this note

    Public access

    Before making a resource public: public read access can let anyone view the exposed content, and public write access can allow changes to data. Check the actual audience, exposed content and allowed operations before continuing. This guidance does not inspect or change your permissions.

    Sources for this note

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