Table of contents
Definition
An Access Control List is a list that defines which features of a computer system, software, or resource a user has access to.
Use cases and Examples
Let's say your software system has different types of roles, say an admin (ADM), data entry (DE), and supervisor role (SR).
In this case, you might have a System Access Engine that decides which part of the system each user has access to based on the access rights they have been granted.
If a user is assigned a role list oF data entry (DE) and supervisor (SR) this means they can both enter data as well as supervise entries made by others respectively.
Summary
ACL allows developers and system designers to implement system access rights at a granular level by assigning every possible role an identifier. This identifier can then be tagged against different users to grant them a combination of access.
The full list of possible rights and access is what is known as an Access Control List.
Here is another article you might like 😊 "What Is Authentication?"