DataFlow is a general data processing system. It relies on external systems such as Windows, Linux, Hadoop, or Amazon S3 to provide file system support for file management. DataFlow also relies on these external systems to provide security for data at rest (that is, files residing in a file system).

Each system provides a means of authenticating a user and authorizing the user for certain levels of access. DataFlow processes are run with the security capabilities of the user executing a DataFlow job.