Certificate generation for a network appliance

• US 20090031410A1
• Filed: 07/23/2007
• Published: 01/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Red Hat, Inc. (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Red Hat, Inc. (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Inventors: Meyer, Luke R., Schneider, James P.
• Granted Patent: US 8,769,291 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0823 using certificates cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving certificates H04L9/3263

Abstract

A method and system for generating identity certificates. The method may include receiving a user request to activate a network appliance, and causing a network appliance identifier and a transaction identifier of an activation transaction associated with the user request to be transmitted to the network appliance. A certificate signing request (CSR) and the transaction identifier may be received from the network appliance, the CSR including the network appliance identifier. A certificate may be generated for the network appliance if the activation transaction is valid.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method, comprising:

receiving a user request to activate a network appliance;

causing a network appliance identifier and a transaction identifier of an activation transaction associated with the user request to be transmitted to the network appliance;

receiving a certificate signing request (CSR) and the transaction identifier from the network appliance, the CSR including the network appliance identifier; and

generating a certificate for the network appliance if the activation transaction is valid.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user request does not include identifying information about the network appliance, configuration information, or credential information for the network appliance.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein causing the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier to be transmitted to the network appliance includes transmitting the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier to a client that originated the request such that the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier are automatically directed to the network appliance.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the certificate signing request has been automatically generated by the network appliance upon receipt by the network appliance of the network appliance identifier.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the user request includes a location of the network appliance, the location including an IP address.

6. A computer implemented method, comprising:

transmitting a user request to activate a network appliance from a client to a server;

receiving a network appliance identifier and a transaction identifier of an activation transaction associated with the user request in response to the user request;

transmitting a certificate signing request (CSR) and the transaction identifier from the network appliance to the server, the CSR including the network appliance identifier; and

receiving a certificate from the server at the network appliance if the activation transaction is valid.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein receiving the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier at the network appliance includes receiving the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier at the client, and redirecting the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier to the network appliance.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

automatically generating the certificate signing request by the network appliance upon receipt of the network appliance identifier.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the user request includes a location of the network appliance.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the user request does not include identifying information about the network appliance, configuration information, or credential information for the network appliance.

11. A machine-accessible medium including instructions that, when executed by a first machine, cause the first machine to perform a computer implemented method comprising:

receiving a user request to activate a network appliance;

causing a network appliance identifier and a transaction identifier of an activation transaction associated with the user request to be transmitted to the network appliance;

receiving a certificate signing request (CSR) and the transaction identifier from the network appliance, the certificate signing request including the network appliance identifier; and

generating a certificate for the network appliance if the activation transaction is valid.

12. The machine-accessible medium of claim 11, wherein the user request does not include identifying information about the network appliance, configuration information, or credential information for the network appliance.

13. The machine-accessible medium of claim 11, wherein causing the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier to be transmitted to the network appliance includes transmitting the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier to a client that originated the request such that the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier are automatically directed to the network appliance.

14. The machine-accessible medium of claim 11, wherein the user request includes a location of the network appliance, the location including an IP address.

15. The machine-accessible medium of claim 11, further including instructions that, when executed by a second machine, cause the second machine to perform a computer implemented method comprising:

transmitting the user request from a client to a server;

receiving the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier at the network appliance;

transmitting the CSR and the transaction identifier from the network appliance to the server; and

receiving the certificate from the server at the network appliance if the activation transaction is valid.

16. The machine-accessible medium of claim 15, the method further comprising:

automatically generating the certificate signing request by the network appliance upon receipt of the network appliance identifier.

17. A computing system, comprising:

a first server to receive a user request to activate a network appliance, and to cause a network appliance identifier and a transaction identifier of an activation transaction associated with the user request to be transmitted to the network appliance; and

a second server networked with the first server, to receive a certificate signing request (CSR) and the transaction identifier from the network appliance, the certificate signing request including the network appliance identifier, and to generate a certificate for the network appliance if the activation transaction is valid.

18. The computing system of claim 17, wherein the first server and the second server are collocated on a computing device.

19. The computing system of claim 17, further comprising:

a client networked with the first server to transmit the user request to the first server; and

the network appliance networked with the client and the second server, the network appliance to receive the network appliance identifier and the transaction identifier, to transmit the certificate signing request and the transaction identifier to the second server, and to receive the certificate from the second server.

20. The computing system of claim 17, wherein the user request does not include identifying information about the network appliance, configuration information, or credential information for the network appliance.