Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) in Full Stack Python Apps
Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) is a method for restricting system access to authorized users based on their roles. Implementing RBAC in full-stack Python applications means integrating role-aware permissions across both the backend (e.g., using Flask or Django) and frontend (e.g., React, Vue, or plain HTML/JS).
🔐 What is RBAC?
In RBAC, roles are assigned to users, and permissions are assigned to roles. For example:
Role: admin → Permissions: create_user, delete_post
Role: user → Permissions: view_post, comment
✅ Implementing RBAC in Full Stack Python Apps
1. Backend Setup
🔸 Option A: Using Flask
Libraries:
Flask-Login (user sessions)
Flask-Principal or Flask-Security (role/permission management)
Flask-JWT-Extended (for token-based auth)
Example DB Model (SQLAlchemy):
python
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class Role(db.Model):
id = db.Column(db.Integer, primary_key=True)
name = db.Column(db.String(50), unique=True)
class User(db.Model):
id = db.Column(db.Integer, primary_key=True)
username = db.Column(db.String(80), unique=True)
roles = db.relationship('Role', secondary='user_roles')
class UserRoles(db.Model):
id = db.Column(db.Integer, primary_key=True)
user_id = db.Column(db.Integer, db.ForeignKey('user.id'))
role_id = db.Column(db.Integer, db.ForeignKey('role.id'))
Check Role in Routes:
python
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from flask_jwt_extended import get_jwt_identity
@app.route('/admin')
@jwt_required()
def admin_dashboard():
user = User.query.filter_by(id=get_jwt_identity()).first()
if not user_has_role(user, 'admin'):
return jsonify({'msg': 'Access denied'}), 403
return jsonify({'msg': 'Welcome admin'})
🔸 Option B: Using Django
Django comes with built-in support for permissions via auth.
Steps:
Use django.contrib.auth.models.Group for roles.
Assign permissions using Django admin or programmatically.
Example View:
python
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from django.contrib.auth.decorators import permission_required
@permission_required('app.view_admin_panel')
def admin_panel(request):
return render(request, 'admin_panel.html')
2. Frontend Integration
Regardless of your frontend stack (React, Vue, etc.):
Store token (e.g., JWT) after login.
Decode JWT to get user roles or make a /me API call.
Conditionally render UI components based on roles.
Example in React:
jsx
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{user.roles.includes("admin") && (
<button onClick={handleDeleteUser}>Delete User</button>
)}
3. Best Practices
✅ Use token-based authentication (JWT) to include roles in claims.
✅ Implement middleware or decorators for consistent role checks.
✅ Keep permissions centralized and manageable.
✅ Protect both frontend AND backend (don't rely only on frontend logic).
4. 🔄 Synchronizing Roles Between Backend & Frontend
Create an API endpoint like /auth/me to return:
json
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{
"username": "alice",
"roles": ["admin", "editor"]
}
Use this to manage UI and protect routes in the frontend.
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