An access control system and a method of providing access by a program to at least one component of a computer system are provided. The method comprises the steps of: storing a logical device associated with the or each respective component in said system, the or each logical device having a respective device identifier; assigning a program identifier to the program; and outputting from the program a signal comprising the program identifier and the device identifier of the or each logical device to a common interface between the program and the or each logical device to create a communication channel between said program and the or each logical device via said interface.
