Patent ID: 8447728

Claim:
A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions, which when executed by at least one computer, performs a method of managing users in a data management system that is configured to manage secondary copies of data files, the method comprising: receiving a request from an identified preexisting user to perform a storage operation that would create a secondary copy of a particular production data file; querying a security system to determine certain access rights of the identified preexisting user, wherein the certain access rights relate to the preexisting user's rights to access the particular production data file, wherein querying the security system to determine the certain access rights includes determining one or more computers to which the identified preexisting user has access permission, and wherein the certain access rights permit the identified preexisting user to perform the requested storage operation if the particular production data file is associated with one of the determined one or more computers; and, performing the requested storage operation to create a secondary copy of the particular production data file when the certain access rights permit the identified preexisting user to perform the requested storage operation, wherein the secondary copies are useable to restore production data from which the secondary copies are created and wherein the secondary copies are not actively used by a live data server or other computer system; and, wherein the certain access rights determine which copies of source data stored in multiple copies a user within a group can access.