Thread: File Permissions?

I realize most OS platforms have their own system of permissions for programs accessing files... but, is there really no way at all to program into an application ways to request permissions?

How do all of the everyday apps we use on our computers get permission? Surely there must be some way to control that....

File permissions are granted by the OS. A program requests permission by attempting an operation.

Not quite sure what you're getting at...

way ... to program into an application ways to request permissions

Who does the program ask permission of?
See the SecurityManager class.

The OS I suppose. Trying to write a file to the user's working directory. Is this even possible to do?

You request by trying, you get the answer by success or an exception.

Originally Posted by bgroenks96

Trying to write a file to the user's working directory. Is this even possible to do?

Why not try it and see for yourself? - it would be far quicker than posting to a forum and waiting for an answer that has no guarantee of being correct.

Be aware that Java applets are a special case, operating in a restrictive sandbox that doesn't permit read/writes except to/from the host server (unless permission is explicitly granted).

Originally Posted by dlorde

Why not try it and see for yourself? - it would be far quicker than posting to a forum and waiting for an answer that has no guarantee of being correct.

Be aware that Java applets are a special case, operating in a restrictive sandbox that doesn't permit read/writes except to/from the host server (unless permission is explicitly granted).

I did try it and I couldn't. That's why I posted here.

program into an application ways to request permissions

This could be a security problem. What if the operator does NOT want a program to do something and sets the permissions not to allow that to be done? The program should NOT be allowed to change the operator's settings by itself.

I did try it and I couldn't

What the program could do when it can't do something (ie gets an exception), is ask the operator to make the permission changes needed and restart the program or allow the program to continue after the operator has granted it permission.

Originally Posted by bgroenks96

I did try it and I couldn't. That's why I posted here.

Works fine for me - unless I try using an applet to do it. Without some more information, such as the code and the context, it's hard to say why you're having trouble. Did you get any exceptions? Did you try running the Java Console to track errors?