When I first started looking into the ASP.NET provider model, I was 
surprised to see that there was a built in RoleProvider, but not an 
accompanying PermissionProvider that could be used to define the 
permissions that a particular role is granted.  I always thought it 
would be cool to have a PermissionProvider, but any time I think I have 
a use, I end up with a 1:1 relationship between role and permission, 
meaning that I require only one permission to be granted to a particular 
role.  I'm sure there are situations in which one role would contain 
many permissions, but I simply haven't come across them in my projects.

One example I can think of would be a WebControl that is only visible to 
users with a specific permission, but the situations that require this 
level of functionality [at least for me] are rare.

I figure there is a reason that the developers at Microsoft didn't find 
it necessary to provide a PermissionProvider.  What do you guys think? 
Would a PermissionProvider be useful?  If so, what would you use it for?

-- 
Sean