You can set a variety of parameters for the Security component, including options, system parameters, security mechanisms, derived parameters, audit log file specifications, and auditing derived parameters.

Configuration of this component is required to enable security auditing and to change specifications for the audit log, which is set up during installation.

A Ingres instance can be set up to comply with the C2 security standard of the National Computer Security Council (NCSC). Level C2 security requires individual log-on with password and an audit mechanism.

Ingres authenticates users through the operating system account and password together with a corresponding user object definition in Ingres, or through DBMS authentication. Additional passwords can also be set on users and roles.

By default, Ingres uses the Ingres security mechanism (security_mechanism parameter). The Kerberos authentication mechanism can be used as an alternative to the Ingres security mechanism. Also, multiple mechanisms can be enabled concurrently. For details on using Kerberos, see the Security Guide.