CompTIA CASP+ Practice Test

Which authentication method allows for restricted shell access to network devices?

1. RADIUS

2. SFTP

3. TACACS+

4. SSH

The correct answer is: TACACS+

TACACS+ (Terminal Access Controller Access-Control System Plus) is an authentication protocol that is designed to provide a flexible and secure method for controlling access to network devices. One of its key features is the ability to provide restricted shell access, which means that users can be granted limited permissions tailored to their roles. This granularity in access control enhances security by ensuring that users can only execute commands and access features that are necessary for their responsibilities. TACACS+ allows for a greater separation of the authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) processes compared to other methods. This separation enables network administrators to enforce specific access policies and provide a more secure environment for managing network devices. Thus, when tailored configurations are applied, using TACACS+ can help protect the devices from unauthorized access and reduce the risk of security breaches. Other methods like RADIUS also provide AAA functionality, but they do not support the same level of detail in terms of command authorization. SFTP and SSH are focused more on secure file transfer and encrypted terminal access respectively, and while SSH can restrict access through configuration, it does not inherently manage user permissions in the same way as TACACS+.