RUCKUS NOR Certificate Safe Storage (RNCSS) Support
RNCSS Overview
The RNCSS procedure is executed in two phases:
- Backup: Storing the certificate and key to the NOR flash memory.
From the unused NOR flash memory of an AP, a new memory region called the Certificate Partition is utilized for the backup.
- Recovery: Verification and recovery of certificate and key from the NOR flash memory during bootup.
For a newly manufactured AP in the factory setup phase, the RNCSS feature is effective on the first bootup; an initial backup is performed to install the device certificate and key in the NOR memory along with the AP serial number, MAC address, and the Magic ID (refer to New NOR Memory Region (Certificate Partition)).
For APs that are already deployed in a network, the RNCSS feature is effective after a firmware image upgrade. On the first reboot, an initial backup is performed to store the device certificate and key in the NOR memory.
After the RNCSS support is initiated on new and deployed APs, the AP checks for the device certificate during every reboot. If it is lost or corrupted, the NOR certificate copy is retrieved and stored in the mount point. Upon backup and recovery of the device certificate and key, the corresponding events are triggered and reported to the controller. Refer to System Events for more information on the RNCSS-related events.
The RNCSS feature provides the following benefits:
- A backup of the certificate and key is always available in the NOR flash memory.
- Reduces the occurrences of Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) for the impacted APs due to critical certificate data loss.
- Eliminates redundant data storage in the NAND, eMMC, and NOR flash memory.
- The NOR flash memory is more robust and reliable than the NAND or the eMMC flash memory.
- Enhanced security in cases where an AP serial number or a MAC address is modified.
Requirements
- What releases support the feature?
- What hardware models support the feature?
- Does the feature require specific modules?
- Does the feature run only on certain ports?
- Does the feature have special memory requirements?
- In an integrated system, can the feature be managed or configured from another device? What are the related release and system requirements?
- Does the feature introduce new user requirements? (For example, does the user need specific permission levels, etc.)
Considerations
- Does the feature replace an existing feature?
- Does the feature work only with a certain protocol or with a limited set of protocols?
- Is the feature meant to be used in combination with another feature or a set of features?
- Is the feature incompatible with any features?
- What happens when the feature is enabled?
- What happens when the feature is disabled?
- Does enabling/disabling the feature enable/disable another feature?
- What system behavior changes, if any, does the feature introduce?
- Are performance issues associated with the feature? How can these be mitigated?
Beginning with SmartZone 7.0.0, the RNCSS feature is introduced. During an upgrade to SmartZone 7.0.0, the RNCSS feature is enabled automatically, and disabled during a downgrade to an earlier version of SmartZone. A copy of the certificate and key is retained in the NOR memory after a downgrade, but they are not used.
Impacted Systems
Limitations
The RNCSS logs created during the bootup in the factory setup phase may not be seen in the external syslog server since the logs are sent to the server after an AP is assigned an IP address.