X Windows Environment

The Trusted Solaris environment uses the Trusted Common Desktop Environment (CDE) which is an enhanced version of CDE 1.0.2. Trusted CDE uses the X Window System, Version 11, with the Trusted Solaris X Window System server. The Trusted X Window System server has protocol extensions to support mandatory access controls, discretionary access controls, and the use of privileges. Clients connect to the Trusted X Window System server over UNIX domain and TCP/IP domain network connections.

Data transfer sessions are instantiated at different sensitivity labels and user IDs (polyinstantiated). This is so data in an unprivileged client at one sensitivity label or user ID is not transferred to another client at another sensitivity label or user ID in violation of the Trusted X Window System discretionary access controls and mandatory access policies of write-equal and read-down.

Trusted Solaris X Window System programming interfaces let you get and set security-related attribute information and translate binary labels to text using a font list and width to apply a style such as Helvetica 14 point bold to the text string output. These interfaces are usually called by administrative applications written with Motif widgets, Xt Intrinsics, Xlib, and CDE interfaces.

• Getting security-related information - These interfaces operate at the Xlib level, which make X protocol requests. You use Xlib interfaces to obtain data for the input parameter values.

• Translating labels from binary to text - These interfaces operate at the Motif level. The input parameters are the binary label, a font list to specify the appearance of the output string, and the desired width. A compound string using of the specified style and width is returned.