Forming an Install Team for Trusted Extensions

The following describes the configuration strategy from the most secure strategy to the least secure strategy:

• A two-person team configures the software. The configuration process is audited.

  Two people are at the computer when the software is enabled. Early in the configuration process, this team creates administrative roles, and trusted users who can assume those roles. The team also sets up auditing to audit events that are executed by roles. After roles are assigned to users, and the computer is rebooted, the users log in and assume an administrative role. The software enforces task division by role. The audit trail provides a record of the configuration process. For an illustration of a secure configuration process, see Figure 1–1.

• One person enables and configures the software by assuming the appropriate role. The configuration process is audited.

  Early in the configuration process, the root role creates additional roles. The root role also sets up auditing to audit events that are executed by roles. Once these additional roles have been assigned to the initial user, and the computer is rebooted, the user logs in and assume the appropriate role for the current task. The audit trail provides a record of the configuration process.

• One person enables and configures the software by assuming the root role. The configuration process is not audited.

  By using this strategy, no record is kept of the configuration process.

• The initial setup team changes the root role into a user.

  No record is kept in the software of the name of the user who is acting as root. This setup might be required for remote administration of a headless system.

Task division by role is shown in the following figure. The security administrator configures auditing, protects file systems, sets device policy, determines which programs require privilege to run, and protects users, among other tasks. The system administrator shares and mounts file systems, installs software packages, and creates users, among other tasks.

Figure 1-1  Administering a Trusted Extensions System: Task Division by Role