Configuring the REST API by using SSL certificates

The primary reason for using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificates is to keep sensitive information sent across the internet encrypted so that only the intended recipient can understand it. This security is important because the information you send on the internet is passed from computer to computer to get to the recipient. Any computer between you and the destination can utilize your user name, passwords, and other sensitive information if the information is not encrypted with an SSL certificate.

In addition to encryption, a proper SSL certificate also provides authentication. With authentication, you can be sure that you are sending information to the right recipient and not to an unknown user. You can ensure authentication by using an SSL certificate from a trusted SSL provider.

The keytool utility is used to obtain a digitally signed certificate to replace the self-signed certificate. This utility is available with Oracle JDKs. The Java keytool is a key and certificate management utility. It allows users to manage their own public or private key pairs and certificates. The Java keytool stores the keys and certificates, which is called as keystore. A keystore contains the private key and any certificates necessary for authentication. The keystore is located in the <jre_home>/bin directory of your Java installation file.

Configuring the Jetty web server

You can create new keystores either by configuring REST API for HTTPS connection or by configuring REST API for HTTP connection.

Configuring REST API for HTTPS connection

Configuring REST API for HTTP connection

For information on troubleshooting Jetty startup issues, see BMC Knowledge Base article ID 000134172.

Configuring REST API for HTTPS connection

Follow the steps given below to configure REST API for HTTPS connection.

Import the existing signed primary certificate into an existing Java keystore:
keytool -import -trustcacerts -alias mydomain -file mydomain.crt -keystore keystore.jks
If you do not have a certificate, create a new keystore by using a new password to secure the certificate:
keytool -keystore keystore -alias jetty -genkey -keyalg RSA
After the keystore has been created, you must provide six parameters that form a distinguished name for a certificate associated with the key.
- CN—Common Name of the certificate owner (usually the name of the host)
- OU—Organizational Unit of the certificate owner
- O—Organization to which the certificate owner belongs
- L—Locality name of the certificate owner
- ST—State or province of the certificate owner
- C—Country of the certificate owner
  Note
  The keystore file is created in the current directory of the command window.
Obfuscate the SSL connector keystore password for greater security.
For more information, see Obfuscating the password.
Update the jetty-http.xml file with the new password for the keystore.
Note
* In <Set name="KeyStorePath"><Property name="jetty.home" default="." />/etc/keystore</Set>, remove <Property name="jetty.home" default="." />.
* Replace /etc/keystore/ with the actual path to the keystore.

Click here to expand...

<Call name="addConnector">
   <Arg>
     <New class="org.eclipse.jetty.server.ServerConnector">
       <Arg name="server"><Ref refid="Server" /></Arg>
<Arg type="java.lang.Integer" name="acceptors">2</Arg>
<Arg type="java.lang.Integer" name="selectors">-1</Arg>
       <Arg name="factories">
         <Array type="org.eclipse.jetty.server.ConnectionFactory">
           <Item>
             <New class="org.eclipse.jetty.server.HttpConnectionFactory">
               <Arg name="config"><Ref refid="httpConfig" /></Arg>
             </New>
           </Item>
         </Array>
       </Arg>
       <Set name="host"><Property name="jetty.http.host" /></Set>
       <Set name="port"><Property name="jetty.http.port" default="8008" /></Set>


      </New>
   </Arg>
</Call>



</Configure>
Make sure that the arserver.conf file or the arserverd.config file includes the bouncycastle option for JMS messaging to work.
See the following example:
jvm.option.21=-Dorg.apache.activemq.broker.BouncyCastlePosition=100
Important
Use the next available number for the jvm.option.##, which is relevant to your installation.
Restart the AR System server.

After you restart the AR System sever, the following warning is displayed and you may experience runtime errors.

WARN:oejob.JettyBootstrapActivator:main: OSGi support for java.util.ServiceLoader may not be present.

Perform the following steps to turn-on the logging for jetty:

Enable jetty log level in the arserver.config file for Windows and in the arserverd.conf file for Linux. Use the following JVM option:
-Dorg.eclipse.jetty.LEVEL=DEBUG
Enable extra Jetty Related logs in the Jetty/etc/Jetty.xml file. Refer to the following code sample:
<Call
class="org.eclipse.jetty.util.log.Log"
name="getRootLogger">
       <Call
name="setDebugEnabled">
           <Arg
type="boolean">false</Arg>
       </Call>
Here, set the boolean argument of the setDebugEnabled property to true.

Once you enable the logging, the jetty logs are displayed on the server console or in the armonitor.log file. For more information, see the knowledge article on BMC Communities How to turn logging on for RESTAPI problems.

After you create a self-signed certificate, browsers and other programs issue warnings to users about an insecure certificate each time the user authenticates. You can prevent the certificate warning by adding the self-signed certificate to the Trusted Root Certification Authorities store.

Obfuscating the password

The Jetty passwords are stored as clear text, obfuscated, check-summed, or in encrypted form. For the keystore/ key/ truststore passwords, you must obfuscate the passwords. The class org.eclipse.jetty.util.http.security.Password is used to generate all types of secure passwords. Create password at <install directory> \lib\start\startlevel1 location. The following command is used to create a new password:

The username parameter in the following command is optional.

Syntax

java org.eclipse.jetty.util.security.Password [<user>] <password>

Example

java -cp jetty-util-9.4.11.v20180605.jar org.eclipse.jetty.util.security.Password username password

The version-specific jar file is located in the <AR System Install directory>\lib\start\startlevel1 folder. Use the same file in the command.

If you are using a reverse proxy, uncomment the below section from the jetty-http.xml file.

Configuring REST API for HTTP connection

Follow the steps given below to configure REST API for HTTP connection.

Locate the Jetty sub directory from the AR System installation directory.
From the jetty-http.xml file, uncomment the following HTTP connector if you use a reverse proxy that handles HTTPS and change the default port to 8008 according to your need.
  <Call name="addConnector">
   <Arg>
     <New class="org.eclipse.jetty.server.ServerConnector">
       <Arg name="server"><Ref refid="Server" /></Arg>
<Arg type="java.lang.Integer" name="acceptors">2</Arg>
<Arg type="java.lang.Integer" name="selectors">-1</Arg>
       <Arg name="factories">
         <Array type="org.eclipse.jetty.server.ConnectionFactory">
           <Item>
             <New class="org.eclipse.jetty.server.HttpConnectionFactory">
               <Arg name="config"><Ref refid="httpConfig" /></Arg>
             </New>
           </Item>
         </Array>
       </Arg>
       <Set name="host"><Property name="jetty.http.host" /></Set>
       <Set name="port"><Property name="jetty.http.port" default="8008" /></Set>


      </New>
   </Arg>
</Call>
Restart the AR System server.