Modelling network to assess security properties

• US 9,083,748 B2
• Filed: 12/14/2005
• Issued: 07/14/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Monahan, Brian Quentin, Baldwin, Adrian John, Shiu, Simon Kai-Ying
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoffman, Brandon
• Assistant Examiner(s): Anderson, Michael D
• Application Number:
  US11/302,637
• Publication Number:
  US 20070136788A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,499 Days
• Field of Search: 726/23, 726/28, 395/200.17, 713/201
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/20 for managing network security; network security policies in general filtering policies H04L63/0227

Abstract

A method of assessing a network uses a model (450) having nodes (100, 110) to represent parts of the network infrastructure and the application services, and having links to represent how the nodes influence each other. Dependencies or effects of the application services are found by determining paths through the nodes and links of the model (530). Such assessment can be useful for design, test, operations, and diagnosis, and for assessment of which parts of the infrastructure are critical to given services, or which services are dependent on, or could have an effect on a given part of the infrastructure. The dependencies or effects can encompass reachability information. The use of a model having links and nodes can enable more efficient processing, to enable larger or richer models. What changes in the dependencies or effects result from a given change in the network can be determined (830).

Claims

1. A method of using a data model of a network infrastructure comprising:

making an alteration in the data model of a number of application services;

making a representation in the data model of one or more alterations in the network infrastructure, the data model comprising nodes to represent parts of the network infrastructure, and comprising links to represent how the nodes influence each other; and

automatically deriving from the data model changes in security properties of the network infrastructure resulting from the alteration;

determining the security properties of the altered data model of the application services; and

comparing the security properties of the application services before the alteration in the data model with the security properties after the alteration.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining paths through the nodes and links of the data model.

3. The method of claim 1, in which the data model comprises a representation of application services arranged to use the network infrastructure, and the method further comprises deriving changes in the security properties resulting from a given alteration in the network infrastructure or in the application services.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising using the data model to assess candidate alterations to the network infrastructure or application services to enable a given security property.

5. The method of claim 1, in which comparing the security properties of the application services before the alteration in the data model with the security properties after the alteration comprises deriving the changes between the security properties of the application services before the alteration and the security properties after the alteration.

6. The method of claim 1, in which making the representation of the alterations comprises creating at least a second instance of the data model, comprising a representation of one or more candidate alterations, and in which deriving the changes comprises determining the security properties from the instances, then comparing these properties.

7. The method of claim 1, the security properties comprising any of the following;

what parts of the network are reachable from a given point or part of the network with an existing configuration, what parts of the network are reachable from a given point or part of the network if the configuration is altered, what security controls exist between given points or regions of the network, and what security controls exist in new paths created between given points or regions of the network if the configuration is altered.

8. The method of claim 1, in which the data model comprises a database of object oriented elements representing the nodes, and in which the method further comprises searching the database for logical paths through the data model, which match given constraints.

9. The method of claim 8, in which the database comprises object oriented elements representing the links.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising creating an object representing at least one logical path through two or more links of the data model.

11. The method of claim 8, the searching comprising making a recursive query of the database.

12. The method of claim 8 further comprising receiving and classifying information about the network infrastructure or application services, to add to the model, or normalizing a path query with reference to class definitions of the data model.

25. The method of claim 1, further comprising automatically deriving from the data model alterations in the network infrastructure which can enable a given change in the security properties.

13. A method of using a data model of a network infrastructure and application services arranged to use the network infrastructure, the data model comprising nodes to represent parts of the network infrastructure and the application services, and links to represent how the nodes influence each other, comprising:

finding paths through the nodes and links of the data model;

automatically deriving security properties of at least the application services from the determined paths;

deriving from the data model alterations in the network infrastructure which enable a given change in the security properties;

making an alteration in the data model of the application services;

determining the security properties of the altered data model of the application services; and

comparing the security properties of the application services before the alteration in the data model with the security properties after the alteration.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising using the data model to derive changes in the security properties resulting from a given alteration in either the network infrastructure or the application services.

15. The method of claim 14, in which deriving the changes in the security properties comprises determining the security properties before making a representation in the data model of the given alterations in either the network infrastructure, then repeating the determining of security properties, and comparing these properties.

16. The method of claim 13, the security properties comprising any of the following;

what parts or regions of the network infrastructure or application services are reachable from a given point or part of the network infrastructure or application services with an existing configuration, what parts or regions are reachable if the configuration is altered, what security controls exist between given points or regions, what security controls exist in new paths created between given points or regions if the configuration is altered, reachability of a given application service, and effect of a given application service on reachability of other parts.

17. The method of claim 13, in which the data model comprises an indication of criticality of a node or link to a given one or more of the application services, and further comprises determining security properties comprising any of;

determining which nodes or links to include in a search of the data model, according to the indication of criticality, determining which nodes and links in the data model can be affected by a given one or more of the application services, and sorting the security properties according to the indication of criticality.

18. The method of claim 13, the model comprising a database of object oriented elements representing the nodes, and the method further comprising searching the database for logical paths through the data model, which match given constraints.

19. The method of claim 18, in which the database comprises object oriented elements representing the links.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising creating an object representing at least one logical path through two or more links of the data model.

21. The method of claim 18, the searching comprising making a recursive query of the database.

22. The method of claim 18, further comprising receiving and classifying information about the network infrastructure or application services, to add to the data model, or normalizing a path query with reference to class definitions of the data model.

23. A database stored on a storage medium comprising:

a model of at least a portion of a network, the model comprising;

nodes to represent parts of the network infrastructure and the application services, links to represent how the nodes influence each other, in which the model is arranged such that dependencies or effects of the application services can be determined from paths through the nodes and links of the model, and in which the model indicates changes in security properties of the network infrastructure resulting from an alteration in the network infrastructure, in which the storage medium stores;

data representing an alteration made to the model of the application services;

data representing security properties of the altered model of the application services; and

data representing a comparison between the security properties of the application services before the alteration in the model with the security properties before the alteration.

24. A method of using a data model of application services, the data model comprising nodes to represent a portion of the application services, and links to represent how the nodes influence each other, at least the links being represented by object oriented elements comprising:

determining paths through the nodes and links of the data model;

deriving security properties of the application services from the paths;

making an alteration in the data model of the application services;

determining of the security properties of the altered data model of the application services; and

comparing the security properties of the application services before the alteration in the data model with the security properties after the alteration.