HP 3000 Manuals

HP ALLBASE/4GL Run-Time Administration Manual

Menu Item Security 

HP ALLBASE/4GL menu item security allows you to restrict the ability to
select menu items in an application or version to particular users or
user groups.  Typically, you use this facility to prevent unauthorized
users selecting menu items that allow access to confidential files, or
menu items that can initiate possibly "privileged" actions such as
deleting file records.

If an unauthorized end user attempts to select a menu item that you have
secured, HP ALLBASE/4GL displays a warning message and does not allow the
user to select the secured item.

The screens used to secure menu items are accessed through the user
validation menu.  To display this menu, select Users on the administrator
main menu.

Securing a Menu Item 

The process for securing an application or version menu involves the
following steps.

   *   Name the application or version, and the menu containing the item
       you want to secure.

   *   Select the menu item to be secured.

   *   Enter a list of names of users or user groups who can select the
       secured item.

Menu Item Security Screen 

First, select Menu Item Security from the Users menu.  HP ALLBASE/4GL
then displays the menu item security screen.

On the menu item security screen you must enter the name of the
application or version containing the menu you want to secure.  You must
also enter the name of the menu that contains the item you want to
secure.

If you want to secure several menus in the application, specify the main
menu of the application (you may need to check the name of this menu with
your HP ALLBASE/4GL support service).  You can then step through all the
menus in the application, securing items from any of them without having
to go back to the menu item security screen.

Press the  Commit Data  function key when you have entered the names of
the application and the menu on the menu item security screen.

HP ALLBASE/4GL then displays the menu you have specified together with a
message stating that the menu is in user security mode.


            

This example shows the main menu of a sample application as it would
appear in user security mode.

When you are in user security mode, you can select items on the menu in
the normal manner by using the terminal keyboard.  If any item on the
menu leads to a further menu, pressing the  Activate Item  function key
or Return displays the next menu.

If the item doesn't lead to a further menu item, HP ALLBASE/4GL displays
the message No further menu items for this selection.

Select the item you want to secure and then press the  Set User Security  
function key.  This takes you to the menu item validation screen where
you specify the users who may access the secured item.

Menu Item Validation Screen 


          Example Only 

The first four fields on this screen are display-only fields.  They show
the name of the application or version, the name of the menu, the name of
the menu item you have selected, and the action that the selected item
performs in the application.  These names are defined by the application
developer and cannot be changed.  (The screen image in the above example
shows the display on the menu item validation screen while securing the
Delete Component option on the components menu in the partlist 
application.)

The next set of fields show the valid users and user groups for the
secured menu item.  When you first enter this screen, the first field
contains the default entry *ALL. On subsequent occasions, these fields
show the names of authorized users that you have defined for this menu
item.

You can now change any of these user names by typing over them, or you
can delete names from the list.  Note however, that you cannot include
user names or group names in this list if they are not already defined as
authorized users for the application or version.

Press the  Commit Data  function key to confirm your entries.  HP
ALLBASE/4GL then updates the list of valid users for the secured menu
item.

By pressing the  Previous Menu  function key, you can return to the menu
you are securing.  You can now secure further menu items or exit from
user security mode.  To exit from user security mode, press the  Previous 
Menu  function key to return to the first menu in the application, and
then press the  ExitUser Security  function key.

Limitations 

The menu item security system can only secure items selected from menus.
It cannot prevent users selecting items via menu bypass or with function
keys if the application developer has allowed menu selections from these
keys.

This means that you must be careful to apply menu item security at the
lowest level menus in the application.  These are the menus that lead
directly to the item you want to secure.  You must also make sure the
application doesn't allow direct access to the item you want to secure
via function keys.  You may need to discuss this point with your HP
ALLBASE/4GL support service.

If the application menu structure allows users to access the same item
from more than one menu, you must be careful to apply menu item security
on every menu leading to the item.

You may also want to apply menu item security at higher levels in the
application menu hierarchy.  This is a courtesy to end users who are not
entitled to select menu items at the lower levels of the hierarchy.
Securing the high level choices in the menu means that non-eligible users
are restricted before they have spent the time stepping through several
levels of menu options.

MPE/iX 5.0 Documentation