Users & Authorization Levels
Users
All access to ECGridOS requires a User account and API-Key. All system access is monitored and logged to the UserID. Any problems or malicious activity can be quickly identified and attributed to the specific account. The user API-Key should be used in the parameter for Session ID in all of the calls, it is treated as a persistent Session ID.
There is an extensive list of User methods within the APIs.
Sessions
Sessions require you to login/logout with a username and password and provide a short lived Session ID that can be used to authenticate for the calls.
By default, any one UserID may only have a few simultaneous sessions open. As sessions should only be open for the length of a specific request, this does not substantially limit how systems access ECGridOS.
A housekeeping process will regularly clear out expired sessions, but this should not be considered a dependable process. You may also use the UserReset method to reset the open session count.
To see the number of currently open sessions, use the WhoAmI method.
Authentication in API Calls
Each API call requires you to send either the user API-Key or Login and use the Session ID returned. Regardless of which method you choose the values are placed in the SessionID Parameter of each call. There is no Authentication Header used in the requests.
Email Addresses
Maintaining valid Email addresses is very important in order to provide proactive messaging from ECGrid.
Cell Phones
ECGrid will be making extensive use of cell phone text messaging. Please be sure that any UserIDs used to monitor critical functions of the infrastructure have valid cell phone numbers entered into their accounts.
Different Authorization Levels allow varied access to areas of ECGridOS. Please see Networks & Mailboxes for more information on ECGrid hierarchies.
Mailbox-Level
- Mailbox User
- Access is strictly restricted to the Session Network/Mailbox.
- Mailbox Administrator
- Access is strictly restricted to the Session Network/Mailbox. Also granted authority to manage other Mailbox Users assigned to the same Session Network/Mailbox.
Network-Level
- Network User
- Access is restricted to all Mailboxes with in the Session Network.
- Network Administrator
- Access is restricted to all Mailboxes with in the Session Network. Also granted the authority to manage other Network Users and Mailbox Administrators assigned to the same Session Network.
System-Level
- NetOps - Only available to Loren Data staff, allows access throughout the ECGrid to assist an manage all Networks and Mailboxes.