SSL configurations

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) configurations contain attributes that enable you to control the behavior of both the client and the server SSL endpoints. You can assign SSL configurations to have specific management scopes. The scope that an SSL configuration inherits depends upon whether you create it using a cell, node, server, or endpoint link in the configuration topology.

When you create an SSL configuration, you can set the following SSL connection attributes:

Keystore
Default client certificate for outbound connections
Default server certificate for inbound connections
Truststore
Key manager for selecting a certificate
Trust manager or managers for establishing trust during the handshake
Handshaking protocol
Ciphers for negotiating the handshake
Client authentication support and requirements

You can manage an SSL configuration using any of the following methods:

Central management selection
Direct reference selection
Dynamic outbound connection selection
Programmatic selection

Using the administrative console, you can manage all of the SSL configurations for WebSphere® Application Server. From the administrative console, click Security > SSL certificates and key management > Manage endpoint security configurations > Inbound | Outbound > SSL_configuration.

You can view an SSL configuration at the level it was created and in the inherited scope below that point in the topology. If you want the entire cell to view an SSL configuration, you must create the configuration at the cell level in the topology.

SSL configuration in the security.xml file

The attributes defining an SSL configuration repertoire entry for a specific management scope are stored in the security.xml file. The scope determines the point at which other levels in the cell topology can see the configuration, as shown in the following example:

<repertoire xmi:id="SSLConfig_1" alias="NodeDefaultSSLSettings" 
managementScope="ManagementScope_1" type="JSSE">
<setting xmi:id="SecureSocketLayer_1" clientAuthentication="false" 
clientAuthenticationSupported="false" securityLevel="HIGH" enabledCiphers="" 
jsseProvider="IBMJSSE2" sslProtocol="SSL_TLS" keyStore="KeyStore_1" 
trustStore="KeyStore_2" trustManager="TrustManager_1" keyManager="KeyManager_1" 
clientKeyAlias="default" serverKeyAlias="default"/>
</repertoire>

The SSL configuration attributes from the previous code sample are described in Table 1.

Table 1. security.xml attributes. This table lists the security.xml attributes.
security.xml attribute	Description	Default	Associated SSL property
xmi:id	The xml:id attribute represents the unique identifier for this XML entry and determines how the SSL configuration is linked to other XML objects, such as SSLConfigGroup. This system-defined value must be unique.	The administrative configuration service defines the default value.	None. This value is used only for XML associations.
alias	The alias attribute defines the name of the SSL configuration. Direct selection uses the alias attribute and the node is not prefixed to the alias. Rather, the management scope takes care of ensuring that the name is unique within the scope.	The default is NodeDefaultSSLSettings.	com.ibm.ssl.alias
managementScope	The managementScope attribute defines the management scope for the SSL configuration and determines the visibility of the SSL configuration at runtime.	The default scope is the node.	The managementScope attribute is not mapped to an SSL property. However, it confirms whether or not the SSL configuration is associated with a process.
type	The type attribute defines the Java™ Secure Socket Extension (JSSE) or System Secure Sockets Layer (SSSL) configuration option. JSSE is the SSL configuration type for most secure communications within WebSphere Application Server.	The default is JSSE.	com.ibm.ssl.sslType
clientAuthentication	The clientAuthentication attribute determines whether SSL client authentication is required.	The default is false.	com.ibm.ssl.clientAuthentication
clientAuthenticationSupported	The clientAuthenticationSupported attribute determines whether SSL client authentication is supported. The client does not have to supply a client certificate if it does not have a client certificate. Attention: When you set the clientAuthentication attribute to true, you override the value that is set for the clientAuthenticationSupported attribute.	The default is false.	com.ibm.ssl.client.AuthenticationSupported
securityLevel	The securityLevel attribute determines the cipher suite group. Valid values include STRONG (128-bit ciphers), MEDIUM (40-bit ciphers), WEAK (for all ciphers without encryption), and CUSTOM (if the cipher suite group is customized. When you set the enabledCiphers attribute with a specific list of ciphers, the system ignores this attribute.	The default is STRONG.	com.ibm.ssl.securityLevel
enabledCiphers	You can set the enabledCiphers attribute to specify a unique list of cipher suites. Separate each cipher suite in the list with a space.	The default is the securityLevel attribute for cipher suite selection.	com.ibm.ssl.enabledCipherSuites
jsseProvider	The jsseProvider attribute defines a specific JSSE provider.	The default is IBMJSSE2.	com.ibm.ssl.contextProvider
sslProtocol	The sslProtocol attribute defines the SSL handshake protocol. Valid options include: SSL_TLS - which is SSLv3 and TLSv1 SSL - which is SSLv3 SSLv2 SSLv3 TLS - which is TLSv1 TLSv1 SSL_TLSv2 - which is SSLv3 and TLSv1, TLSv1.1, TLSv1.2 TLSv1.1 TLSv1.2 TLSv1.3 The listSSLProtocols command provides more information about which protocols are valid in particular configurations, such as FIPS 140-2 or SP800-131. This command lists the TLSv1.3 protocol when it is run on a JVM where that protocol is supported.	The default is SSL_TLSv2.	com.ibm.ssl.protocol
keyStore	The keyStore attribute defines the keystore and attributes of the keyStore instance that the SSL configuration uses for key selection.	The default is NodeDefaultKeyStore.	For more information, see Keystore configurations.
trustStore	The trustStore attribute defines the key store that the SSL configuration uses for certificate signing verification.	The default is NodeDefaultTrustStore.	A trustStore is a logical JSSE term. It signifies a key store that contains signer certificates. Signer certificates validate certificates that are sent to WebSphere Application Server during an SSL handshake.
keyManager	The keyManager attribute defines the key manager that WebSphere Application Server uses to select keys from a key store. A JSSE key manager controls the javax.net.ssl.X509KeyManager interface. A custom key manager controls the javax.net.ssl.X509KeyManager and the com.ibm.wsspi.ssl.KeyManagerExtendedInfo interfaces. The com.ibm.wsspi.ssl.KeyManagerExtendedInfo interface provides more information from WebSphere Application Server.	The default is IbmX509.	com.ibm.ssl.keyManager defines a well-known key manager and accepts the algorithm and algorithm\|provider formats, for example IbmX509 and IbmX509\|IBMJSSE2. com.ibm.ssl.customKeyManager defines a custom key manager and takes precedence over the other keyManager properties. This class must implement javax.net.ssl.X509KeyManager and can implement com.ibm.wsspi.ssl.KeyManagerExtendedInfo. For more information, see Key manager control of X.509 certificate identities.
trustManager	The trustManager determines which trust manager or list of trust managers to use for determining whether to trust the peer side of the connection. A JSSE trust manager implements the javax.net.ssl.X509TrustManager interface. A custom trust manager might also implement com.ibm.wsspi.ssl.TrustManagerExtendedInfo interface to get more information from the WebSphere Application Server environment.	The default is IbmPKIX, which can be configured for certificate revocation list (CRL) verification when the certificate contains a CRL distribution point. The other option is IbmX509.	com.ibm.ssl.trustManager defines a well-known trust manager, which is required for most handshake situations. com.ibm.ssl.trustManager performs certificate expiration checking and signature validation. You can define com.ibm.ssl.customTrustManagers with additional custom trust managers that are called during an SSL handshake. Separate additional trust managers with the vertical bar (`\|`) character. For more information, see Trust manager control of X.509 certificate trust decisions.

Note: WebSphere does not allow the RC4 cipher suites in the HIGH cipher list to keep the server more secure by default. It is possible that an RC4 cipher was being used by default in SSL handshakes before this change. With the removal of the RC4 ciphers, it is likely that an AES cipher is used instead. Users can experience a decrease in performance with the use of more secure AES ciphers.

Client SSL configurations are managed using the ssl.client.props properties file. The ssl.client.props file is located in the ${USER_INSTALL_ROOT}/properties directory for each profile. For more information about configuring this file, see the ssl.client.props client configuration file. Specifying any javax.net.ssl system properties will override the corresponding property in the ssl.client.props file.