/*
* Copyright 2004, 2005, 2006 Acegi Technology Pty Limited
*
* Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
* you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
* You may obtain a copy of the License at
*
* http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
*
* Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
* distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
* WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
* See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
* limitations under the License.
*/
package org.springframework.security.acls.model;
import java.io.Serializable;
/**
* Represents a permission granted to a <tt>Sid</tt> for a given domain object.
*
* @author Ben Alex
*/
public interface Permission extends Serializable {
// ~ Static fields/initializers
// =====================================================================================
char RESERVED_ON = '~';
char RESERVED_OFF = '.';
String THIRTY_TWO_RESERVED_OFF = "................................";
// ~ Methods
// ========================================================================================================
/**
* Returns the bits that represents the permission.
*
* @return the bits that represent the permission
*/
int getMask();
/**
* Returns a 32-character long bit pattern <code>String</code> representing this
* permission.
* <p>
* Implementations are free to format the pattern as they see fit, although under no
* circumstances may {@link #RESERVED_OFF} or {@link #RESERVED_ON} be used within the
* pattern. An exemption is in the case of {@link #RESERVED_OFF} which is used to
* denote a bit that is off (clear). Implementations may also elect to use
* {@link #RESERVED_ON} internally for computation purposes, although this method may
* not return any <code>String</code> containing {@link #RESERVED_ON}.
* <p>
* The returned String must be 32 characters in length.
* <p>
* This method is only used for user interface and logging purposes. It is not used in
* any permission calculations. Therefore, duplication of characters within the output
* is permitted.
*
* @return a 32-character bit pattern
*/
String getPattern();
}