5.16Supporting functions

Trusted programs and trusted processes in an SLES system use libraries. Libraries do not form a subsystem in the notation of the Common Criteria, but they provide supporting functions to trusted commands and processes.

A library is an archive of link-edited objects and their export files. A shared library is an archive of objects that has been bound as a module with imports and exports, and is marked as a shared object. When an object exported by a shared library is referenced, the loader checks for the object in the calling process’s shared library segment.

If the library is there, the links are resolved, and the program can call the shared library code. If the library isn’t there, the loader pages the library into the shared memory segment, where it can subsequently be used by other programs. This section briefly describes the library and system-call linking mechanism in user and kernel space, and illustrates any security implications.

5.16.1TSF libraries

The following table lists some of the libraries that are used by trusted programs and processes. The libraries may also be used by untrusted programs, but are still part of the TSF. The libraries are protected from modification by the file system DAC mechanism.

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IBM 10 SP1 EAL4 manual Supporting functions, TSF libraries