Cool ICE utilization of digital certificates

• US 7,188,109 B1
• Filed: 07/30/2002
• Issued: 03/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Unisys Corporation
• Original Assignee: Unisys Corporation
• Inventors: Christensen, Barbara A., Plamp, William J., Guhl, Timothy J., Gretter, Eugene J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Le; Debbie M.
• Application Number:
  US10/208,501
• Time in Patent Office: 1,680 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1, 707 9- 10, 713/201, 713/193, 713/175, 713/179, 713/156, 713/162
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/972 Access to data in other repository systems, e.g. legacy data or dynamic Web page generation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0823 using certificates cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving certificates H04L9/3263
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access

Abstract

An apparatus for and method of processing a digital certificate by a legacy data base management system within its legacy security facility. The digital certificate is defined by accepted international standards and is presented to the legacy data base management system after being unpacked and stored within a temporary file. This permits the legacy data base management system to fully utilize and benefit from the digital certificate technology, even though it possesses an incompatible security facility.

Claims

1. A data processing system comprising:

a. a legacy data base management system having an internal legacy security facility coupled to a publically accessible digital data communication network;

b. a user terminal coupled to said legacy data base management system via said publically accessible digital data communication network which makes a service request of said legacy data base management system wherein honoring of said service request by said legacy data base management system requires certain legacy security information to be presented to said legacy security facility;

c. a repository located within said legacy data base management system which stores a plurality of sequences of command language script wherein execution of a first of said plurality of sequences of command language script by said legacy data base management system results in honoring of said service request;

d. a digital certificate appropriate to said user terminal wherein said digital certificate corresponds to said certain legacy security information; and

e. a converter including a second of said plurality of sequences of command language script wherein execution of said second of said plurality of sequences of command language script by said legacy data base management system converts said digital certificate to said certain legacy security information in a format appropriate to said legacy security facility, whereby said digital certificate is utilized by said legacy data base management system.

2. The improvement according to claim 1 wherein said digital certificate comports with CCITT X.509.

3. The improvement according to claim 2 wherein said converter further comprises a service handler which retrieves said second of said plurality of sequences of command language script from said repository.

4. The improvement according to claim 3 wherein said converter further comprises a temporary file for storage of said digital certificate.

5. The improvement according to claim 4 wherein said publically accessible digital data communication network further comprises the Internet.

6. An apparatus comprising:

a. a publically accessible digital data communication network;

b. a legacy data base management system which honors data base management processing service requests by executing a plurality of ordered sequences of command language statements retrieved from a repository located within said legacy data base management system and having an internal security facility which is incompatible with standardized digital certificates responsively coupled to said publically accessible digital data communication network;

c. a digital certificate; and

d. a converter located within said legacy data base management system which retrieves a first of said plurality of ordered sequences of command language statements from said repository execution of which by said legacy data base management system translates said digital certificate into variables suitable for use by said security facility, whereby said digital certificate is utilized by said legacy data base management system.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said converter further comprises a temporary file for the storage of said digital certificate.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein said converter further comprises a service handler.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein said digital certificate comports with CCITT X.509.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said publically accessible digital data communication system further comprises the Internet.

11. A method of

a. identifying a user terminal coupled via a publically accessible digital data communication network to a legacy database management system having an intermal legacy security facility comprising:

b. transferring a digital certificate to said legacy data base management system; and

c. converting said digital certificate within said legacy data base management system into a format suitable for use by said legacy security facility by selecting and executing a sequence of command language statements by said legacy data base management system stored within a repository located in said legacy data base management system, whereby said digital certificate is utilized by said legacy data base management system.

12. A method according to claim 11 wherein said digital certificate further comprises a plurality of variables.

13. A method according to claim 12 wherein said converting step further comprises unpacking said plurality of variables.

14. A method according to claim 13 wherein said converting step further comprises storing said digital certificate in a temporary file.

15. A method according to claim 14 wherein said publically accessible digital data communication network further comprises the Internet.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a. presenting means for presenting a digital certificate in a first format;

b. providing means responsively coupled to said presenting means for providing legacy data processing management services;

c. offering means located within said providing means for offering security services to said providing means in response to an input in accordance with a second format which is incompatible with said first format; and

d. converting means responsively coupled to said presenting means and located within said providing means for converting said digital certificate from said first format into said second format by executing an ordered sequence of command language script stored within a repository within said offering means, whereby said digital certificate is utilized by said legacy data base management system.

17. An apparatus according to claim 16 wherein said converting means further comprises a temporary file.

18. An apparatus according to claim 17 wherein said converting means further comprises a service handler.

19. An apparatus according to claim 18 wherein said digital certificate further comprises a plurality of variables.

20. An apparatus according to claim 19 wherein said converting means stores said plurality of variables in said temporary file.