Flexible Mandatory Access Control (FMAC)

What is Flexible Mandatory Access Control (FMAC)? 

Flexible Mandatory Access Control (FMAC) is an ongoing project intended to enhance the Sun Microsystems OpenSolaris operating platform by adding two security technologies: Flux Advanced Security Kernel (Flask) and Type Enforcement (TE). Because the security features of FMAC are difficult to bypass, it is of particular interest to government and military agencies. FMAC is based on source code consistent with OpenSolaris OS/Net.

Flask provides a flexible security interface that does not require system modification. The security server employs multi-level, easily-updated policy rules that can be customized to meet the needs of diverse users and can be configured to achieve specific security goals. TE is independent of external privilege parameters and enforces user-defined access rules. An important advantage of TE is its ability to identify and isolate malware, defective application programs and compromised software on a system-wide basis.

The FMAC project is staffed primarily by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) and Sun Microsystems.

Learn More About IT:
> Sun Microsystems outlines the basics of the FMAC project.
> Glenn Faden points out some challenges facing the FMAC project.