Re: Restricting Direct Access to a C Function in PostgreSQL - Mailing list pgsql-hackers

From Heikki Linnakangas
Subject Re: Restricting Direct Access to a C Function in PostgreSQL
Date
Msg-id 006d12c4-ce11-4f55-b3cc-f9640078ab44@iki.fi
Whole thread Raw
In response to Re: Restricting Direct Access to a C Function in PostgreSQL  (Pavel Stehule <pavel.stehule@gmail.com>)
Responses Re: Restricting Direct Access to a C Function in PostgreSQL
Re: Restricting Direct Access to a C Function in PostgreSQL
List pgsql-hackers
On 11/08/2024 12:41, Pavel Stehule wrote:
> ne 11. 8. 2024 v 9:23 odesílatel Ayush Vatsa <ayushvatsa1810@gmail.com 
> <mailto:ayushvatsa1810@gmail.com>> napsal:
> 
>     Hi PostgreSQL Community,
> 
>     I have a scenario where I am working with two functions: one in SQL
>     and another in C, where the SQL function is a wrapper around C
>     function. Here’s an example:
> 
>     |CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION my_func(IN input text) RETURNS BIGINT AS
>     $$ DECLARE result BIGINT; BEGIN SELECT col2 INTO result FROM
>     my_func_extended(input); RETURN result; END; $$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
>     CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION my_func_extended( IN input text, OUT col1
>     text, OUT col2 BIGINT ) RETURNS SETOF record AS 'MODULE_PATHNAME',
>     'my_func_extended' LANGUAGE C STRICT PARALLEL SAFE; |
> 
>     I need to prevent direct execution of |my_func_extended| from psql
>     while still allowing it to be called from within the wrapper
>     function |my_func|.
> 
>     I’m considering the following options:
> 
>      1. Using GRANT/REVOKE in SQL to manage permissions.
>      2. Adding a check in the C function to allow execution only if
>         |my_func| is in the call stack (previous parent or something),
>         and otherwise throwing an error.
> 
>     Is there an existing approach to achieve this, or would you
>     recommend a specific solution?
> 
> You can use fmgr hook, and hold some variable as gate if your function 
> my_func_extended can be called
> 
> https://pgpedia.info/f/fmgr_hook.html 
> <https://pgpedia.info/f/fmgr_hook.html>
> 
> With this option, the execution of my_func_extended will be faster, but 
> all other execution will be little bit slower (due overhead of hook). 
> But the code probably will be more simpler than processing callback stack.
> 
> plpgsql_check uses fmgr hook, and it is working well - just there can be 
> some surprises, when the hook is activated in different order against 
> function's execution, and then the FHET_END can be executed without 
> related FHET_START.

Sounds complicated. I would go with the GRANT approach. Make my_func() a 
SECURITY DEFINER function, and revoke access to my_func_extended() for 
all other roles.

Another option to consider is to not expose my_func_extended() at the 
SQL level in the first place, and rewrite my_func() in C. Dunno how 
complicated the logic in my_func() is, if that makes sense.

-- 
Heikki Linnakangas
Neon (https://neon.tech)




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