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Create and install a CA certificate on the SVM

Contributors netapp-aherbin johnlantz netapp-ahibbard
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A Certificate Authority (CA) certificate is required to enable HTTPS traffic from S3 clients to the S3-enabled SVM. Using CA certificates creates a trusted relationship between client applications and the ONTAP object store server. A CA certificate should be installed on ONTAP before using it as an object store that is accessible to remote clients.

About this task

Although it is possible to configure an S3 server to use HTTP only, and although it is possible to configure clients without a CA certificate requirement, it is a best practice to secure HTTPS traffic to ONTAP S3 servers with a CA certificate.

A CA certificate is not necessary for a local tiering use case, where IP traffic is going over cluster LIFs only.

The instructions in this procedure will create and install an ONTAP self-signed certificate. Although ONTAP can generate self-signed certificates, using signed certificates from a third-party certificate authority is the recommended best practice.; see the administrator authentication documentation for more information.

Administrator authentication and RBAC

See the security certificate man pages for additional configuration options.

Steps

  1. Create a self-signed digital certificate:

    security certificate create -vserver svm_name -type root-ca -common-name ca_cert_name

    The -type root-ca option creates and installs a self-signed digital certificate to sign other certificates by acting as a certificate authority (CA).

    The -common-name option creates the SVM's Certificate Authority (CA) name and will be used when generating the certificate's complete name.

    The default certificate size is 2048 bits.

    Example

    cluster-1::> security certificate create -vserver svm1.example.com -type root-ca -common-name svm1_ca

The certificate's generated name for reference: svm1_ca_159D1587CE21E9D4_svm1_ca

    When the certificate's generated name is displayed; be sure to save it for later steps in this procedure.

  2. Generate a certificate signing request:

    security certificate generate-csr -common-name s3_server_name [additional_options]

    The -common-name parameter for the signing request must be the S3 server name (FQDN).

    You can provide the location and other detailed information about the SVM if desired.

    You are prompted to keep a copy of your certificate request and private key for future reference.

  3. Sign the CSR using SVM_CA to generate S3 Server's certificate:

    security certificate sign -vserver svm_name -ca ca_cert_name -ca-serial ca_cert_serial_number [additional_options]

    Enter the command options that you used in previous steps:

    • -ca — the common name of the CA that you entered in Step 1.

    • -ca-serial — the CA serial number from Step 1. For example, if the CA certificate name is svm1_ca_159D1587CE21E9D4_svm1_ca, the serial number is 159D1587CE21E9D4.

      By default, the signed certificate will expire in 365 days. You can select another value, and specify other signing details.

      When prompted, copy and enter the certificate request string you saved in Step 2.

      A signed certificate is displayed; save it for later use.

  4. Install the signed certificate on the S3-enabled SVM:

    security certificate install -type server -vserver svm_name

    When prompted, enter the certificate and private key.

    You have the option to enter intermediate certificates if a certificate chain is desired.

    When the private key and the CA-signed digital certificate are displayed; save them for future reference.

  5. Get the public key certificate:

    security certificate show -vserver svm_name -common-name ca_cert_name -type root-ca -instance

    Save the public key certificate for later client-side configuration.

    Example

    cluster-1::> security certificate show -vserver svm1.example.com -common-name svm1_ca -type root-ca  -instance

                      Name of Vserver: svm1.example.com
           FQDN or Custom Common Name: svm1_ca
         Serial Number of Certificate: 159D1587CE21E9D4
                Certificate Authority: svm1_ca
                  Type of Certificate: root-ca
     (DEPRECATED)-Certificate Subtype: -
              Unique Certificate Name: svm1_ca_159D1587CE21E9D4_svm1_ca
Size of Requested Certificate in Bits: 2048
               Certificate Start Date: Thu May 09 10:58:39 2020
          Certificate Expiration Date: Fri May 08 10:58:39 2021
               Public Key Certificate: -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
MIIDZ ...==
-----END CERTIFICATE-----
                         Country Name: US
               State or Province Name:
                        Locality Name:
                    Organization Name:
                    Organization Unit:
Contact Administrator's Email Address:
                             Protocol: SSL
                     Hashing Function: SHA256
              Self-Signed Certificate: true
       Is System Internal Certificate: false