The PECS application is accessible only by users signed directly into the VA network, or by users signed into the VA network via the RESCUE client. User authentication into the VA network is a precondition of PECS application access. Application authentication and authorization will be controlled by the VA Kernel Authentication and Authorization for J2EE (KAAJEE) security Application Programming Interface (API).
In order to log in to the application, each user must have a valid VistA account at a local or national facility, since KAAJEE delegates user authentication to VistA. At the application login screen, users are prompted for their access and verify codes and will be allowed to select the VistA institution which issued their credentials.
Authorization is handled through the use of specific VistA security keys. PECS doesn't assign individual permissions to users. Instead, it defines a number of roles for its users (Requestor, Approver, Release Manager and Administrator) and associates a set of permissions with each of them. The roles are associated with the security keys as follows.
PECS Role | VistA Security Key |
---|---|
Requestor | PSS_CUSTOM_TABLES_REQUESTOR |
Approver | PSS_CUSTOM_TABLES_APPROVER |
Release Manager | PSS_CUSTOM_TABLES_REL_MAN |
Administrator | PSS_CUSTOM_TABLES_ADMIN |
PECS Users are assigned different roles which correspond with a different set of privileges.
Requestor | Create a customization request, modify their own requests, and run, save, and export queries. |
Approver | Create, review, approve, modify, delete or reject customization requests; run, save, and export queries, and run reports. An approver can review but cannot approve their own requests. |
Release Manager | Can run queries and view detail records. A Release Manager can generate an incremental or full Custom Update file or, download an existing Custom Update. |
Administrator | Can run queries and view detail records. In addition, Administrators can modify field settings for each concept type and add or delete users to/from the approver role. |