Chapter 8 Configuring SSL

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Sun Java System Calendar Server 6 2005Q1 Administration Guide

Chapter 8
Configuring SSL

Calendar Server supports the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol to encrypt data between calendar client end users and Calendar Server. To support SSL, Calendar Server uses SSL libraries from Netscape Security Services (NSS), which are also used by Sun Java System Messaging Server.

You can configure Calendar Server in the ics.conf file to encrypt only the Calendar Server login and password or an entire calendar session.

This chapter describes these topics:

Configuring SSL for Calendar Server

Create the SSL Certificate Database

Request and Import a Certificate From a Root Certificate Authority (CA)

Configure SSL Parameters in the ics.conf File

Troubleshooting SSL

Note

Calendar Server does not support client-based SSL authentication.

Configuring SSL for Calendar Server

To configure SSL for Calendar Server, follow these steps:

Create the SSL Certificate Database

Request and Import a Certificate From a Root Certificate Authority (CA)

Configure SSL Parameters in the ics.conf File

Create the SSL Certificate Database

An SSL implementation for Calendar Server requires a certificate database. The certificate database must define a Certificate Authority (CA) and certificates for Calendar Server.

Mozilla Tools

This release includes the following Mozilla tools:

Certificate Database Tool (certutil) to create and manage the certificate database. For information, refer to the following Web site:

http://mozilla.org/projects/security/pki/nss/tools/certutil.html

Tip

Familiarize yourself with the tool syntax before attempting to generate your certificate database.

Security Module Database Tool (modutil) to display information about available security modules. For information, refer to the following Web site:

http://mozilla.org/projects/security/pki/nss/tools/modutil.html

These utilities are available in the following directory:

/opt/SUNWics5/cal/lib

or download the most recent version from the Web site.

Library Path Variable

Before you use the Mozilla tools, set your LD_LIBRARY_PATH variable appropriately. For example:

setenv LD_LIBRARY_PATH /opt/SUNWics5/cal/lib

Example Files and Directories

The examples in this chapter use these files and directories:

alias is a directory that contains the certificate database. Create the alias directory in the following directory:

/var/opt/SUNWics5

Also, make sure you backup the alias directory regularly.

sslPasswordFile is a text file that contains the certificate database password. This file is used by the certutil utility but not by Calendar Server. Create sslPasswordFile in the following directory:

/etc/opt/SUNWics5/config

/etc/passwd introduces entropy for random number generation, that is, this directory is used to generate varied and unique seeds that help ensure truly random results from the random number generator.

To create a certificate database

Log in as or become superuser (root).

Specify the certificate database password for certutil in /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile. For example:

# echo ‘password’ > /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile

where password is your specific password.

Create the certificate database alias directory. For example:

# cd /var/opt/SUNWics5
# mkdir alias

Move to the bin directory and generate the certificate database (cert7.db) and key database (key3.db). For example:

# cd /opt/SUNWics5/cal/bin
# ./certutil -N -d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias
-f /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile

Note

For this and other times when you must run the certutil utility, follow the examples exactly, or consult the certutil help page to understand the syntax.

For example, in this case, do not run the utility with the -N option without also specifying the -d /file information.

Generate a default self-signed root Certificate Authority certificate. For example:

# ./certutil -S -n SampleRootCA -x -t "CTu,CTu,CTu"
-s "CN=My Sample Root CA, O=sesta.com" -m 25000
-o /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias/SampleRootCA.crt
-d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias
-f /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile -z
/etc/passwd

Generate a certificate for the host. For example:

# ./certutil -S -n SampleSSLServerCert -c SampleRootCA -t "u,u,u"
-s "CN=hostname.sesta.com, O=sesta.com" -m 25001
-o /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias/SampleSSLServer.crt
-d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias -f /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile
-z /etc/passwd

where hostname.sesta.com is the server host name.

Validate the certificates. For example:

# ./certutil -V -u V -n SampleRootCA -d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias
# ./certutil -V -u V -n SampleSSLServerCert -d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias

List the certificates. For example:

# ./certutil -L -d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias
# ./certutil -L -n SampleSSLServerCert -d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias

Use modutil to list the available security modules (secmod.db). For example:

# ./modutil -list -dbdir /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias

Change the owner of the alias file to icsuser and icsgroup (or the user and group identity under which Calendar Server will run). For example:

# find /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias -exec chown icsuser {} \;
# find /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias -exec chgrp icsgroup {} \;

Request and Import a Certificate From a Root Certificate Authority (CA)

The following steps generate a certificate request, submit it to the Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Web site, and then import the certificate.

To request and import a certificate from a root Certificate Authority

Log in as or become superuser (root).

Move to the bin directory:

# cd /opt/SUNWics5/cal/bin

Use certutil to generate a Certificate Request based on the Certificate Authority or Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Web site. For example:

# ./certutil -R -s "CN=hostname.sesta.com, OU=hostname / SSL Web Server, O=Sesta, C=US" -p "408-555-1234" -o hostnameCert.req -g 1024
-d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias
-f /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile
-z /etc/passwd -a

where hostname.sesta.com is the host name.

Request an test certificate for an SSL web server from the Certificate Authority or Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Web site. Copy and paste the contents from the hostnameCert.req file into the Certificate Request.

You will be notified by when your certificate is signed and can be picked up.

Copy the Certificate Authority Certificate Chain and SSL server certificate into text files.

Import the Certificate Authority Certificate Chain into the certificate database to establish a Chain of Authority. For example:

# ./certutil -A -n "GTE CyberTrust Root" -t "TCu,TCu,TCuw"
-d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias -a -i /export/wspace/Certificates/CA_Certificate_1.txt
-f /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile

# ./certutil -A -n "Sesta TEST Root CA" -t "TCu,TCu,TCuw"
-d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias -a -i /export/wspace/Certificates/CA_Certificate_2.txt
-f /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile

Import the signed SSL server certificate:

# ./certutil -A -n "hostname SSL Server Test Cert" -t "u,u,u"
-d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias -a -i /export/wspace/Certificates/SSL_Server_Certificate.txt
-f /etc/opt/SUNWics5/config/sslPasswordFile

List the certificates in the certificate database:

# ./certutil -L -d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias

Configure the SSL Server Nickname in the ics.conf file to be the signed SSL server certificate, For example: "hostname SSL Server Test Cert".

Note The host name for the service.http.calendarhostname and service.http.ssl.sourceurl parameters in the ics.conf file should match the host name on the SSL certificate (in case your system has several aliases). For example: calendar.sesta.com

Configure SSL Parameters in the ics.conf File

To implement SSL with Calendar Server, you must set specific parameters in the ics.conf file. If any of the parameters listed in Table 8-1 are not in the ics.conf file, add them to the file with the value specified. Since the ics.conf is read only at system startup (when start-cal is issued), the new values will not take effect until the Calendar Server is restarted. For a description of these SSL parameters, see SSL Configuration.

Table 8-1 ics.conf Parameters Required to Configure SSL

Parameter

Value

encryption.rsa.nssslactivation

“on”

encryption.rsa.nssslpersonalityssl

“SampleSSLServerCert”

encryption.rsa.nsssltoken

“internal”

service.http.tmpdir

“/var/opt/SUNWics5/tmp”

service.http.uidir.path

“html”

service.http.ssl.cachedir

“.”

service.http.ssl.cachesize

“10000”

service.http.ssl.certdb.password

“anypassword”(Supply an appropriate password)

service.http.ssl.certdb.path

“/var/opt/SUNWics5/alias”

service.http.ssl.port.enable

“yes”

service.http.ssl.port

“443” (Default port)

service.http.ssl.securelogin

“yes” (Login and password encrypted)

service.http.securesession

“yes” (Entire session encrypted)

service.http.ssl.sourceurl

“https”//localhost:port” (Supply the name of your local host, and the service.http.ssl.port value.)

service.http.ssl.ssl2.ciphers

““

service.http.ssl.ssl2.sessiontimeout

“0”

service.http.ssl.ssl3.ciphers

"rsa_rc4_40_md5,rsa_rc2_40_md5,rsa_des_sha,
rsa_rc4_128_md5,rsa_3des_sha"

service.http.ssl.ssl3.sessiontimeout

“0”

service.http.sslusessl

“yes”

Note

You can configure Calendar Server to encrypt only the Calendar Server login and password or an entire calendar session by setting the following: service.http.ssl.securelogin, service.http.ssl.securesession.

If you want both login and session encryption, you must specify “yes” as the value for both parameters.

Troubleshooting SSL

First, always backup your certificate database on a regular basis in case unrecoverable problems occur. If you have problems with SSL, here are some things to consider:

Checking for the cshttpd Process

Verifying Certificates

Reviewing Calendar Server Log Files

Connecting to the SSL Port

Checking for the cshttpd Process

SSL requires the Calendar Server cshttpd process to be running. To determine if cshttpd is running, use this command:

# ps -ef | grep cshttpd

Verifying Certificates

To list the certificates in the certificate database and checking their validity dates, use this command:

# ./certutil -L -d /var/opt/SUNWics5/alias

Reviewing Calendar Server Log Files

Check the Calendar Server log files for any SSL errors. For more information see Using Calendar Server Log Files.

Connecting to the SSL Port

Connect to the SSL port using a browser and the following URL:

https://server-name:ssl-port-number

where:

server-name is the name of the server where Calendar Server is running.

ssl-port-number is the SSL port number as specified by the service.http.ssl.port parameter in the ics.conf file. The default is 443.

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Part No: 819-0024-10. Copyright 2005 Sun Microsystems, Inc. All rights reserved.


Note	Calendar Server does not support client-based SSL authentication.


Tip	Familiarize yourself with the tool syntax before attempting to generate your certificate database.


Note	For this and other times when you must run the certutil utility, follow the examples exactly, or consult the certutil help page to understand the syntax. For example, in this case, do not run the utility with the -N option without also specifying the -d /file information.

Parameter	Value
encryption.rsa.nssslactivation	“on”
encryption.rsa.nssslpersonalityssl	“SampleSSLServerCert”
encryption.rsa.nsssltoken	“internal”
service.http.tmpdir	“/var/opt/SUNWics5/tmp”
service.http.uidir.path	“html”
service.http.ssl.cachedir	“.”
service.http.ssl.cachesize	“10000”
service.http.ssl.certdb.password	“anypassword”(Supply an appropriate password)
service.http.ssl.certdb.path	“/var/opt/SUNWics5/alias”
service.http.ssl.port.enable	“yes”
service.http.ssl.port	“443” (Default port)
service.http.ssl.securelogin	“yes” (Login and password encrypted)
service.http.securesession	“yes” (Entire session encrypted)
service.http.ssl.sourceurl	“https”//localhost:port” (Supply the name of your local host, and the service.http.ssl.port value.)
service.http.ssl.ssl2.ciphers	““
service.http.ssl.ssl2.sessiontimeout	“0”
service.http.ssl.ssl3.ciphers	"rsa_rc4_40_md5,rsa_rc2_40_md5,rsa_des_sha, rsa_rc4_128_md5,rsa_3des_sha"
service.http.ssl.ssl3.sessiontimeout	“0”
service.http.sslusessl	“yes”


Note	You can configure Calendar Server to encrypt only the Calendar Server login and password or an entire calendar session by setting the following: service.http.ssl.securelogin, service.http.ssl.securesession. If you want both login and session encryption, you must specify “yes” as the value for both parameters.