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Authorizing access to files

As part of your overall security plan, you can control whether other FileMaker Pro files are permitted to access the schema in a file (including its tables, layouts, scripts, and value lists) in your secured solution. When protection is enabled, any use of the protected file through a FileMaker data source will require authorization. Therefore, in a multi-file solution, you will need to authorize the other files.

For example, enabling protection prevents someone with an account in your file from creating another file that uses tables in your file but does not implement the same business logic (such as the same script triggers). The use of this alternative file can bypass your intended business logic (although record-level access would still be enforced). Turning on this option also prevents files that are not authorized from opening a protected file using the Open File script step.

Each authorized file is assigned a unique numeric identifier, which the protected file keeps track of, ensuring that the protected file remains protected even if it is renamed or duplicated. Any efforts to bypass authorization, such as by replacing an authorized file with a different one, will be unsuccessful.

Protecting a file and authorizing other files to access it is different from protecting a file’s record data and other security measures that you can take. See Planning security for a file.

To manage access to files, you need to open the file with an account that is assigned the Full Access privilege set, which is the only privilege set that permits making privileges changes to a file. If you open the file with any other privilege set, the File menu > Manage > Security command is disabled.