---
id: headscale/acl-policy
title: "ACL policy"
theme: headscale
status: done
created: 2026-08-20
date_source: assumed
order: 1
---

**ACL policy.** `/api/v1/policy` GET/PUT behind `/_officer/policy`, with a plain HuJSON textarea
that sends the text byte for byte and shows headscale's verdict verbatim (line and column
included). Officer does not pre-validate: headscale owns the only parser that resolves groups,
tags and hosts, and a second weaker one would disagree with the thing that actually enforces.
**The mode cannot be read.** A file-backed policy is still served over GET; only a PUT refuses,
with "update is disabled for modes other than 'database'". So the first save is what discovers
writability, and a refusal becomes a persistent read-only banner. Verified live, not inferred.