RE: On commit attempt, Server sent unexpected return value (403 Forbidden) in response to CHECKOUT

I suppose another fundamental question in all this -- Is there any other way to provide file level restrictions while using the svn authz file for authorization?

Benjamin Ortega

-----Original Message-----
From: Benjamin.Ortega_at_wellsfargo.com [mailto:Benjamin.Ortega_at_wellsfargo.com]
Sent: Monday, January 03, 2011 8:44 AM
To: markphip_at_gmail.com
Cc: users_at_subversion.apache.org
Subject: RE: On commit attempt, Server sent unexpected return value (403 Forbidden) in response to CHECKOUT

The /*/*/*/ in the path is to compensate for the temporary location /!svn/ver/<revision>/. This works without the svnauthz file in place.

Is there an internal user that the subversion server utilizes to perform the checkout of the last-committed-revision of the file prior to the put? That seems to be what is holding this up. It doesn't try to use my username to do this. That seems to be the case, as my user should have access to the file, but also to the temporary location. With the "* =" at the beginning of the svnauthz file restricting all users, it fails with a 403, but if I give rw to * it works. Note in the apache access log that the activities using my id are successful, but the activities that just have a - where the username would be are unsuccessful, the first one, of course, triggering a prompt for authentication, but the checkout towards the end just failing with a 403.

ip_address - - [30/Dec/2010:15:49:58 -0600] "OPTIONS /subversion/repo/folder/structure HTTP/1.1" 401 1337
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "OPTIONS /subversion/repo/folder/structure HTTP/1.1" 200 -
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "PROPFIND /subversion/repo/folder/structure HTTP/1.1" 207 816
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "OPTIONS /subversion/repo/folder/structure HTTP/1.1" 200 195
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "MKACTIVITY /subversion/repo/!svn/act/71f51505-a174-8349-ab61-843f80a40f8f HTTP/1.1" 201 234
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "PROPFIND /subversion/repo/!svn/vcc/default HTTP/1.1" 207 414
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "CHECKOUT /subversion/repo/!svn/bln/110 HTTP/1.1" 201 250
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "PROPPATCH /subversion/repo/!svn/wbl/71f51505-a174-8349-ab61-843f80a40f8f/110 HTTP/1.1" 207 469
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "PROPFIND /subversion/repo/folder/structure HTTP/1.1" 207 526
ip_address - - [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "CHECKOUT /subversion/repo/!svn/ver/110/folder/structure/RestrictedFile HTTP/1.1" 403 1021
ip_address - my_username [30/Dec/2010:15:49:59 -0600] "DELETE /subversion/repo/!svn/act/71f51505-a174-8349-ab61-843f80a40f8f HTTP/1.1" 204 -

Benjamin Ortega
-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Phippard [mailto:markphip_at_gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, January 03, 2011 8:33 AM
To: Ortega, Benjamin
Cc: users_at_subversion.apache.org
Subject: Re: On commit attempt, Server sent unexpected return value (403 Forbidden) in response to CHECKOUT

On Fri, Dec 31, 2010 at 11:04 AM, <Benjamin.Ortega_at_wellsfargo.com> wrote:
> I'm trying to integrate a SVN Authz authorization file with apache
> configuration files to provide a solution for not just directory level
> restrictions, but also file level restrictions. It's my understanding that
> the SVN Authorization file is not capable of handling file-specific
> restrictions, only directory level.

This is not true. SVN authz manages "paths" and a path can be a
directory or a file. Of course it has to be the full path to the file
as there is no wild-card support.

> <Location "/subversion/repo/*/*/*/folder/structure/RestrictedFile">
> <Limit PUT>
> Require user my_username
> </Limit>
> </Location>

I am not aware of being able to define rules for paths within a
repository this way. When the SVN client does the commit it does so
against a temporary path, so you cannot use paths in your repository.
I do believe there are people that have written rules against the
temporary paths and if you did so properly then it might work.

That said, I am also not confident that you can successfully mix the
Subversion authz file with the other Apache require directives. I
have tried in the past to mix authz with the require-ldap-group
directive and the two just do not mix as these directives become
additive. Meaning if either directive would allow the user access
then they get access and you do not get the restrictive behavior of
authz that is desired.

-- 
Thanks
Mark Phippard
http://markphip.blogspot.com/