E Oracle Database FIPS 140-2 Settings
Oracle supports the Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) standard for 140-2.
- About the Oracle Database FIPS 140-2 Settings
The Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) standard, 140-2, is a U.S. government standard that defines cryptographic module security requirements. - Configuring FIPS 140-2 for Transparent Data Encryption and DBMS_CRYPTO
TheDBFIPS_140
initialization parameter configures FIPS mode. - Configuration of FIPS 140-2 for Secure Sockets Layer
TheSSLFIPS_140
parameter configures Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). - Postinstallation Checks for FIPS 140-2
After you configure the FIPS 140-2 settings, you must verify permissions in the operating system. - Verifying FIPS 140-2 Connections
To check if FIPS mode is enabled for SSL, you can enable tracing in thesqlnet.ora
file.
Parent topic: Appendixes
E.1 About the Oracle Database FIPS 140-2 Settings
The Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) standard, 140-2, is a U.S. government standard that defines cryptographic module security requirements.
The FIPS 140-2 cryptographic libraries are designed to protect data at rest and in transit over the network.
Oracle Database uses these cryptographic libraries for Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), Transparent Data Encryption (TDE), and DBMS_CRYPTO
PL/SQL package.
To verify the current status of the certification, you can find information at the Computer Security Resource Center (CSRC) Web site address from the National Institute of Standards and Technology:
http://csrc.nist.gov/groups/STM/cmvp/validation.html
You can find information specific to FIPS by searching for Validated FIPS 140 Cryptographic Modules
. The security policy, which is available on this site upon successful certification, includes requirements for secure configuration of the host operating system.
The Oracle Database FIPS settings are meant to enforce the use of FIPS-approved algorithms for the Oracle database only. The use of third-party vendor software with Oracle Database running in FIPS mode must use FIPS-approved algorithms or else the vendor software will encounter failures.
Parent topic: Oracle Database FIPS 140-2 Settings
E.2 Configuring FIPS 140-2 for Transparent Data Encryption and DBMS_CRYPTO
The DBFIPS_140
initialization parameter configures FIPS mode.
Table E-1 describes how the DBFIPS_140
parameter affects various platforms.
Table E-1 How the DBFIPS_140 Initialization Parameter Affects Platforms
Platform | Effect of Setting DBFIPS_140 to TRUE or FALSE |
---|---|
Linux or Windows on Intel x86_64 |
|
Solaris 11.1+ on either SPARC T-series or Intel x86_64 |
|
Other operating systems or hardware |
|
Be aware that setting DBFIPS_140
to TRUE
and thus using the underlying library in FIPS mode incurs a certain amount of overhead when the library is first loaded. This is due to the verification of the signature and the execution of the self tests on the library. Once the library is loaded, then there is no other impact on performance.
See Also:
Oracle Database Reference for more information about the DBFIPS_140
initialization parameter
Parent topic: Oracle Database FIPS 140-2 Settings
E.3 Configuration of FIPS 140-2 for Secure Sockets Layer
The SSLFIPS_140
parameter configures Secure Sockets Layer (SSL).
- Configuring the SSLFIPS_140 and SSLFIPS_LIB Parameters for Secure Sockets Layer
To configure FIPS 140-2 for SSL, you must set theSSLFIPS_140
parameter. If you are using the Oracle Instant Client, then you must set theSSLFIPS_LIB
parameter as well. - Approved SSL Cipher Suites for FIPS 140-2
A cipher suite is a set of authentication, encryption, and data integrity algorithms that exchange messages between network nodes.
Parent topic: Oracle Database FIPS 140-2 Settings
E.3.1 Configuring the SSLFIPS_140 and SSLFIPS_LIB Parameters for Secure Sockets Layer
To configure FIPS 140-2 for SSL, you must set the SSLFIPS_140
parameter. If you are using the Oracle Instant Client, then you must set the SSLFIPS_LIB
parameter as well.
SSLFIPS_140
parameter configures the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) adapter to run in FIPS mode. SSLFIPS_LIB
sets the location of the FIPS library.
- Ensure that the
fips.ora
file is either located in the$ORACLE_HOME
/ldap/admin
directory, or is in a location pointed to by theFIPS_HOME
environment variable. - In the
fips.ora
file, set theSSLFIPS_140
andSSLFIPS_LIB
parameters.- Set
SSLFIPS_140
toTRUE
so that the SSL adapter can run in FIPS mode. For example:SSLFIPS_140=TRUE
This parameter is
FALSE
by default. - If you are using Oracle Instant Client, then set
SSLFIPS_LIB
to the location of the FIPS library. For example:SSLFIPS_LIB=$ORACLE_HOME/lib
- Set
- Repeat this procedure in any Oracle Database home for any database server or client.
When you set SSLFIPS_140
to TRUE
, Secure Sockets Layer cryptographic operations take place in the embedded RSA/Micro Edition Suite (MES) library in FIPS mode. These cryptographic operations are accelerated by the CPU when hardware acceleration is available and properly configured in the host hardware and software.
If you set SSLFIPS_140
to FALSE
, then Secure Sockets Layer cryptographic operations take place in the embedded RSA/Micro Edition Suite (MES) library in non-FIPS mode, and as with the TRUE
setting, the operations are accelerated if possible.
For native encryption, this behavior of cryptographic operations landing in RSA/Micro Edition Suite (MES) and being accelerated is similar to the above, except that it is determined by the FIPS_140
setting in sqlnet.ora
(instead of the SSL_FIPS140
setting in fips.ora
).
Note:
The SSLFIPS_140
parameter replaces the SQLNET.SSLFIPS_140
parameter used in Oracle Database 10g release 2 (10.2). You must set the parameter in the fips.ora
file, and not the sqlnet.ora
file.
Parent topic: Configuration of FIPS 140-2 for Secure Sockets Layer
E.3.2 Approved SSL Cipher Suites for FIPS 140-2
A cipher suite is a set of authentication, encryption, and data integrity algorithms that exchange messages between network nodes.
During an SSL handshake, for example, the two nodes negotiate to see as to which cipher suite they will use when transmitting messages back and forth.
Only the following cipher suites are approved for FIPS validation:
-
SSL_DH_anon_WITH_3DES_EDE_CBC_SHA
-
SSL_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA
-
SSL_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA
-
SSL_RSA_WITH_AES_256_GCM_SHA384
-
SSL_RSA_WITH_3DES_EDE_CBC_SHA
Oracle Database SSL cipher suites are automatically set to FIPS approved cipher suites. If you wish to configure specific cipher suites, you can do so by editing the SSL_CIPHER_SUITES
parameter in the sqlnet.ora
or the listener.ora
file.
SSL_CIPHER_SUITES=(SSL_cipher_suite1[,SSL_cipher_suite2[,..]])
You can also use Oracle Net Manager to set this parameter on the server and the client.
E.4 Postinstallation Checks for FIPS 140-2
After you configure the FIPS 140-2 settings, you must verify permissions in the operating system.
The permissions are as follows:
-
Set execute permissions on all Oracle executable files to prevent the execution of Oracle Cryptographic Libraries by users who are unauthorized to do so, in accordance with the system security policy.
-
Set read and write permissions on all Oracle executable files to prevent accidental or deliberate reading or modification of Oracle Cryptographic Libraries by any user.
To comply with FIPS 140-2 Level 2 requirements, in the security policy, include procedures to prevent unauthorized users from reading, modifying or executing Oracle Cryptographic Libraries processes and the memory they are using in the operating system.
Parent topic: Oracle Database FIPS 140-2 Settings
E.5 Verifying FIPS 140-2 Connections
To check if FIPS mode is enabled for SSL, you can enable tracing in the sqlnet.ora
file.
Trace level 6 is the minimum trace level required to check the results of the FIPS self-tests.
Parent topic: Oracle Database FIPS 140-2 Settings