System and method for accessing a distributed storage system uses a storage-level access control process at a distributed file system that interfaces with the distributed storage system to determine whether a particular client has access to a particular first file system object using an identifier of the particular client and storage-level access control rules in response to a file system request from the particular client to access a second file system object in the particular first file system. The storage-level access control rules are defined for a plurality of clients and a plurality of first file system objects of the distributed storage system to allow the particular client access to the second file system object in the particular first file system object only if the particular client has been determined to have access to the particular first file system object according to the storage-level access control rules.