FIPS 140-2 Setup
Caution |
FIPS mode is only supported on releases that have been through FIPS compliance. Be warned that FIPS mode should be disabled before you upgrade to a non-FIPS compliance version of Unified Communications Manager. For information about which releases are FIPS compliant and to view their certifications, see the FIPS 140 document at https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/solutions/industries/government/global-government-certifications/fips-140.html. |
FIPS, or Federal Information Processing Standard, is a U.S. and Canadian government certification standard. It defines requirements that cryptographic modules must follow.
Certain versions of Unified Communications Manager are FIPS 140-2 compliant, in accordance with the U.S. National Institute of Standards (NIST). They can operate in FIPS mode, level 1 compliance.
Unified Communications Manager
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Reboots
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Runs certification self-tests at startup
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Performs the cryptographic modules integrity check
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Regenerates the keying materials
when you enable FIPS 140-2 mode. At this point, Unified Communications Manager operates in FIPS 140-2 mode.
FIPS requirements include the following:
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Performance of startup self-tests
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Restriction to a list of approved cryptographic functions
FIPS mode uses the following FIPS 140-2 level 1 validated cryptographic modules:
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CiscoSSL 1.0.2n.6.2.194 with FIPS Module CiscoSSL FOM 6_2_0
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CiscoJ 5.2.1
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RSA CryptoJ 6_2_3
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OpenSSH 7.5.9
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NSS
You can perform the following FIPS-related tasks:
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Enable FIPS 140-2 mode
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Disable FIPS 140-2 mode
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Check the status of FIPS 140-2 mode
Note |
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Enable FIPS 140-2 Mode
Consider the following before you enable FIPS 140-2 mode on Unified Communications Manager:
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When you switch from non-FIPS to FIPS mode, the MD5 and DES protocols aren't functional.
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In single server clusters, because certificates are regenerated, you need to run the CTL Client or apply the Prepare Cluster for Rollback to pre-8.0 enterprise parameter before you enable FIPS mode. If you do not perform either of these steps, you must manually delete the ITL file after you enable FIPS mode.
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In a cluster, all nodes should be either in FIPS or Non FIPS mode. Each node being in different modes is not allowed. For example, Node A in FIPS mode and Node B in Non-FIPS mode is not allowed.
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After you enable FIPS mode on a server, please wait until the server reboots and the phones re-register successfully before enabling FIPS on the next server.
Caution |
Before you enable FIPS mode, we strongly recommend that you perform a system backup. If FIPS checks fail at start-up, the system halts and requires a recovery CD to be restored. Make sure that all cluster nodes are set to FIPS mode or Non-FIPS mode during deployment. You cannot deploy mixed nodes in a cluster. A cluster must be either a FIP or a non-FIPS node. |
Procedure
Step 1 |
Start a CLI session. For more information, see "Start CLI Session" in the Command Line Interface Reference Guide for Cisco Unifed Communications Solutions. |
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Step 2 |
In the CLI, enter utils fips enable The cluster security password must be at least 14 characters long before security modes such as FIPS, Common Criteria and Enhanced Security modes can be enabled. Update the cluster security password using the 'set password user security' CLI command on all nodes and retry this command. ********************************************************************************** Executed command unsuccessfully If you enter a password more than 14 characters, the following prompts appear: Security Warning: The operation will regenerate certificates for
1)CallManager
2)Tomcat
3)IPsec
4)TVS
5)CAPF
6)SSH
7)ITLRecovery
Any third party CA signed certificates that have been uploaded for the above
components will need to be re-uploaded. If the system is operating in mixed
mode, then the CTL client needs to be run again to update the CTL file.
If there are other servers in the cluster, please wait and do not change
the FIPS Settings on any other node until the FIPS operation on this node
is complete and the system is back up and running.
If the enterprise parameter 'TFTP File Signature Algorithm' is configured
with the value 'SHA-1' which is not FIPS compliant in the current version of the
Unified Communications Manager, though the signing operation
will continue to succeed, it is recommended the parameter value be changed to
SHA-512 in order to be fully FIPS. Configuring SHA-512 as the signing algorithm
may reqiure all the phones that are provisioned in the cluster to be capable of
verifying SHA-512 signed configuration file, otherwise the phone registration
may fail. Please refer to the Cisco Unified Communications Manager Security Guide
for more details.
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This will change the system to FIPS mode and will reboot.
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WARNING: Once you continue do not press Ctrl+C. Canceling this operation after it
starts will leave the system in an inconsistent state; rebooting the system and
running "utils fips status" will be required to recover.
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Do you want to continue (yes/no)?
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Step 3 |
Enter Yes. The following message appears: Generating certificates...Setting FIPS mode in operating system. FIPS mode enabled successfully. ******************************************************** It is highly recommended that after your system restarts that a system backup is performed. ******************************************************** The system will reboot in a few minutes. Unified Communications Manager reboots automatically.
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Disable FIPS 140-2 Mode
Consider the following information before you disable FIPS 140-2 mode on Unified Communications Manager:
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In single or multiple server clusters, we recommend you to run the CTL Client. If the CTL Client is not run on a single server cluster, you must manually delete the ITL File after disabling FIPS mode.
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In multiple server clusters, each server must be disabled separately, because FIPS mode is not disabled cluster-wide but rather on a per-server basis.
To disable FIPS 140-2 mode, perform the following procedure:
Procedure
Step 1 |
Start a CLI Session. For more information, see the Starting a CLI Session section in the Command Line Interface Reference Guide for Cisco Unified Communications Solutions. |
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Step 2 |
In the CLI, enter utils fips disable Unified Communications Manager reboots and is restored to non-FIPS mode.
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Check FIPS 140-2 Mode Status
To confirm if the FIPS 140-2 mode is enabled, check the mode status from the CLI.
To check the status of FIPS 140-2 mode, perform the following procedure:
Procedure
Step 1 |
Start a CLI Session. For more information, see the Starting a CLI Session section in the Command Line Interface Reference Guide for Cisco Unified Communications Solutions. |
Step 2 |
In the CLI, enter utils fips status The following message appears to confirm that FIPS 140-2 mode is enabled. admin:utils fips status The system is operating in FIPS mode. Self test status: - S T A R T --------------------- Executing FIPS selftests runlevel is N 3 Start time: Thu Apr 28 15:59:24 PDT 2011 NSS self tests passed. Kernel Crypto tests passed. Operating System OpenSSL self tests passed. Openswan self tests passed. OpenSSL self tests passed. CryptoJ self tests passed... |
FIPS 140-2 Mode Server Reboot
FIPS startup self-tests in each of the FIPS 140-2 modules are triggered after rebooting when Unified Communications Manager server reboots in FIPS 140-2 mode.
Caution |
If any of these self-tests fail, the Unified Communications Manager server halts. |
Note |
Unified Communications Manager server is automatically rebooted when FIPS is enabled or disabled with the corresponding CLI command. You can also initiate a reboot. |
Caution |
If the startup self-test failed because of a transient error, restarting the Unified Communications Manager server fixes the issue. However, if the startup self-test error persists, it indicates a critical problem in the FIPS module and the only option is to use a recovery CD. |
Enhanced Security Mode
Enhanced Security Mode runs on a FIPS-enabled system. Both Unified Communications Manager and the IM and Presence Service can be enabled to operate in Enhanced Security Mode, which enables the system with the following security and risk management controls:
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Stricter credential policy is implemented for user passwords and password changes.
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Contact search authentication feature becomes enabled by default.
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If the protocol for remote audit logging is set to TCP or UDP, the default protocol is changed to TCP. If the protocol for remote audit logging is set to TLS, the default protocol remains TLS. In Common Criteria Mode, strict hostname verification is implemented. Hence, it is required to configure the server with a fully qualified domain name (FQDN) which matches the certificate.
Credential Policy Updates
When Enhanced Security Mode is enabled, a stricter credential policy takes effect for new user passwords and password changes. After Enhanced Security Mode is enabled, administrators can use the set password *** series of CLI commands to modify any of these requirements:
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Password Length should be between 14 to 127 characters.
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Password should have at least 1 lowercase, 1 uppercase, 1 digit and 1 special character.
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Any of the previous 24 passwords cannot be reused.
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Minimum age of the password is 1 day and Maximum age of the password is 60 days.
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Any newly generated password's character sequence will need to differ by at least 4 characters from the old password's character sequence.
Configure Enhanced Security Mode
Enable FIPS before you enable Enhanced Security Mode.
Use this procedure on all Unified Communications Manager or IM and Presence Service cluster nodes to configure Enhanced Security Mode.
Note |
You must ensure that services in the IM and Presence Service publishers are in the 'STARTED' state ("Cisco IM and Presence Data Monitor" service and SyncAgent), when you are changing the password on the Unified Communications Manager publisher after enabling the Enhanced Security Mode. |
Procedure
Step 1 |
Log in to the Command Line Interface. |
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Step 2 |
Run utils EnhancedSecurityMode status command to confirm whether Enhanced Security Mode is enabled. |
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Step 3 |
Run one of the following commands on a Unified Communications Manager cluster node:
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Step 4 |
After enabling Enhanced Security Mode, change the password in the Cisco Unified CM Administration user interface with a new password containing 14 characters. Perform the following after enabling Enhanced Security Mode on Unified Communications Manager publisher:
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