Enabling IBM Z Security For The Cloud: Meltdown & Spectre Observations

The New Year period of 2018 delivered unpleasant news for the majority of IT users deploying Intel chips for their Mission Critical workloads.  Intel chips manufactured since 1995 have been identified as having a security flaw or bug.  This kernel level bug has been identified as leaking memory, allowing hackers access to read sensitive data, including passwords, login keys, et al, from the chip itself.  It therefore follows, this vulnerability allows malware inserts.  Let’s not overlook that x86 chips don’t just reside in PCs, their use is ubiquitous, including servers, the cloud and even mobile devices and the bug impacts all associated operating systems, Windows, Linux, macOS, et al.  Obviously, kernel access just bypasses everything security related…

From a classification viewpoint, Meltdown is a hardware vulnerability affecting a plethora of Intel x86 microprocessors, ten or so IBM POWER processors, and some ARM and Apple based microprocessors, allowing a rogue process to read all memory, even when not authorized.  Spectre breaks the isolation between different applications, allowing attackers to trick error free programs, which actually follow best practices, into leaking sensitive data and is more pervasive encompassing nearly all chip manufacturers.

There have been a number of software patches issued, firstly in late January 2018, which inevitably caused other usability issues and the patch reliability has become more stable during the last three-month period.  Intel now claim to have redesigned their upcoming 8th Generation Xeon and Core processors to further reduce the risks of attacks via the Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities.  Of course, these patches, whether at the software or firmware level are impacting chip performance, and as always, the figures vary greatly, but anything from 10-25% seems in the ball-park, with obvious consequences!

From a big picture viewpoint, if a technology is pervasive, it’s a prime target for the hacker community.  Windows being the traditional easy target, but an even better target is the CPU chip itself, encompassing all associated Operating Systems.  If you never had any security concerns from a public cloud viewpoint, arguably that was a questionable attitude, but now these rapidly growing public cloud providers really need to up their game from an infrastructure (IaaS) provision viewpoint.  What other chip technologies exist that haven’t been impacted (to date), by these Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities; IBM Z, perhaps not?

On 20 March 2018 at Think 2018 IBM announced the first cloud services with Mainframe class data protection:

  • IBM Cloud Hyper Protect Crypto Services: deliver FIPS 140-2 Level 4 security, the highest security level attainable for cryptographic hardware. This level of security is required by the most demanding of industries, for example Financial Services, for data protection.  Physical security mechanisms provide a complete envelope of protection around the cryptographic module with the intent of detecting and responding to all unauthorized attempts at physical access.  Hyper Protect Crypto Services deliver these highest levels of data protection from IBM Z to IBM Cloud.  Hyper Protect Crypto Services secures your data in a Secure Service Container (SSC), providing the enterprise-level of security and impregnability that enterprise customers have come to expect from IBM Z technology.  Hardware virtualisation protects data in an isolated environment.  SSC safeguards no external data access, including privileged users, for example, cloud administrators.  Data is encrypted at rest, in process and in flight.  The available support for Hardware Security Modules (zHSM) allows for digital keys to be protected in accordance with industry regulations.  The zHSM provides safe and secure PKCS#11 APIs, which makes Hyper Protect Crypto Services accessible by popular programming languages (E.g. Java, JavaScript, Swift, et al).
  • IBM Cloud Hyper Protect Containers: enable enterprises to deploy container-based applications and microservices, supported through the IBM Cloud Container service, managing sensitive data with a security-rich Service Container Systems environment via the IBM Z LinuxONE platform. This environment is built with IBM LinuxONE Systems, designed for EAL5+ isolation and Secure Services Containers technology designed to prevent privileged access from malicious users and Cloud Admins.

From an IBM and indeed industry viewpoint, security concerns should not be a barrier for enterprises looking to leverage from cloud native architecture to transform their business and drive new revenue from data using higher-value services including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and blockchain.  Hyper Protect Crypto Services is the cryptography function used by the that IBM blockchain platform.  The Hyper Protect Crypto Services – Lite Plan offers free experimental usage of up to 10 crypto slots and is only deleted after 30 days of inactivity.

In a rapidly changing landscape, where AI, Blockchain and IoT are driving rapid cloud adoption, the ever-increasing cybersecurity threat is a clear and present danger.  The manifestation of security vulnerabilities in the processor chip, whether Apple, AMD, Arm, IBM, Intel, Qualcomm, et al, has been yet another wake-up alert and call for action for all.  Even from an IBM Z ecosystem viewpoint, there were Meltdown and Spectre patches required, and one must draw one’s own conclusions as to the pervasive nature of these exposures.

By enabling FIPS 140-2 Level 4 security via Cloud Hyper Protect Crypto Services and EAL5+ isolation via Cloud Hyper Protect Containers IBM Z LinuxONE, if only on the IBM Cloud platform, IBM are offering the highest levels of security accreditation to the wider IT community.  Noting that it was the Google Project Zero team that identified the Meltdown and Spectre vulnerability threats, hopefully Google might consider integrating these IBM Z Enterprise Class security features in their Public Cloud offering?  It therefore follows that all major Public Cloud providers including Amazon, Microsoft, Alibaba, Rackspace, et al, might follow suit?

In conclusion, perhaps the greatest lesson learned from the Meltdown and Spectre issue is that all major CPU chips were impacted and in a rapidly moving landscape of ever increasing public cloud adoption, the need for Enterprise Class security has never been more evident.  A dispassionate viewpoint might agree that IBM Z delivers Enterprise Class security and for the benefit of all evolving businesses, considering wider and arguably ground-breaking collaboration with technologies such as blockchain, wouldn’t it be beneficial if the generic Public Cloud offerings incorporated IBM Z security technology…

Blockchain: A New Application Development Paradigm – What About System z?

Since the inception of Data Processing and the advent of the IBM Mainframe there has been a progressive movement to deliver the de facto “System Of Record (SOR)”, typically classified as a centralised database and related applications.  The key or common denominator for this “Golden Record” is somewhat arbitrary, but more often than not, for most businesses, it will be customer or product identity related.  The benefit of identifying and establishing an SOR is the reuse of this data, for a multitude of different business usage scenarios.

From an application programming viewpoint, historically there was a structured approach when delivering new business function, whether with bespoke programs or Commercial Off the Shelf (COTS) software packages.  More recently data analytics has accelerated this approach, where new business opportunities can be identified from data trends, with near real-time processing, while DevOps frameworks allow for rapid application delivery and implementation.  However, what if there was a new approach with a different type of database and as a consequence, a new approach to application programming?

From a simplistic viewpoint, Blockchain architecture is analogous to traditional database processing, whereas the interaction with said Blockchain database is vastly different, changing from a centralised to decentralised focus.  Therefore for application developers, Blockchain is a paradigm shifting architecture, in how software applications will be architected and coded.  Recognition of this new and rapidly emerging computing paradigm is of vital importance, because it’s the cornerstone for the creation of decentralised applications, a logical and natural evolution from distributed computing architectural constructs.

If we take some time to step back from the Information Technology world and consider the possibilities when comparing a centralised versus decentralised approach, the realm of possibility exists for a truly global interconnectivity approach, which isn’t limited to a specific discrete focus (E.g. Governance, Market, Business Sector, et al).  In theory, decentralised applications might deliver a dynamic and highly collaborative business approach…

A Blockchain is a pseudo linear container space (block) to store data for “controlled public usage”.  In theory, with the right credentials, this data can be accessed by any user!  The Blockchain container is secured with the originators key, so only the key holder or authorised program can unlock the container data.  This is the fundamental difference between a database and a Blockchain.  For a Blockchain, the header record can be considered “eligible for Public usage”.

The data stored within a Blockchain might be considered as a “token”, the most obvious implementation being Bitcoin.  Generically, Blockchain might be considered as an alternative and flexible data transfer system that no private or public authority and especially a malicious third party can tamper with, because of the encryption process.  Put really simply, the data header has “Public” visibility, but data access requires “Private” authenticated access.

From a high-level viewpoint, Blockchain can be considered as an architectural approach, connecting an infinite a number of peer computers, collaborating with a generic process for releasing or recording data, based upon cryptographic transactions.

One must draw one’s own conclusions as to whether this Centralised to Distributed to Decentralised data and application programming approach is the way forward for their business.

Decentralised Consensus is the inverse of a centralised approach where one central database was accessed to validate transaction processing.  A decentralised scheme transfers authority and trust to a decentralised virtual network, enabling processing nodes to continuously access or record transactions within a public block, creating a unique chain for modification operations, hence the Blockchain terminology.  Each successive data block contains a unique fingerprint (hash) of the previous code.  The basic premise of cryptographic processing applies, where hash codes are used to secure transaction origination authentication, eliminating the requirement for centralised processing. Duplicate transaction processing is eliminated because of Blockchain and associated cryptographic processing.

This separation of consensus (data access) from the actual application itself is the fundamental building block for a decentralised application programming approach.

Smart Contracts are the building blocks for decentralised applications.  A smart contract is a small self-contained program that you entrust with a value unit (token) and associated rules.  The simple philosophy of a smart contract is to programmatically facilitate transactional contractual governance between two or more parties via the Blockchain.  This eliminates the requirement of an arbitrary 3rd party authority for governance, when two or more parties can agree exchange between themselves.  Even today, this type of approach is not unusual between organizations, typically based upon a data (file) interchange standard (E.g. Banking).

Put simply, smart contracts eliminate the requirements of 3rd party intermediaries for transaction processing.  Ideally, the collaborating parties define and agree the required policy, embedded inside the business transaction, enabling a self-managed process between nodes (computers) that represent the reciprocal interests of the associated users and owners.

Trusted Computing combines the architectural foundations of Blockchain, decentralised consensus and smart contracts, enabling the spread of resources and transactions with a trusted “peer-to-peer” relationship, in theory enabling trust between numerous nodes (computers).

Previously institutions and central organizations were necessary as trusted authorities.  Deploying a Blockchain approach, these historical centralised central functions can be simplified via smart contracts, governed by decentralised consensus within a Blockchain.

Proof of Work is an important concept to identify the unequivocal authenticator of transactions, allowing the authorised access to participate in the Blockchain system.  Proof of work is a fundamental building block because once created, it cannot be modified, being secured by cryptographic hashes that ensure its authenticity.  Usability challenges ensue, preventing users from changing Blockchain records, without reprocessing the “proof of work”.

It therefore follows, proof of work will be expensive to maintain, with likely future scalability and security issues, depending on the data user (miner) requirements and incentives, which in all likelihood, will reduce over time.  As we all know, most data access is high when data has been recently created, rapidly decreasing to low or even null after a limited period of time.

Proof of Stake is a more elegant and alternative approach, determining which user can update the consensus, while preventing unwanted forking of the underlying Blockchain, being a more cost efficient approach, while being more difficult and expensive to compromise.

Once again, if we consider the benefits of Blockchain from a business processing viewpoint, there is a clear and present opportunity to eliminate manual or semi-automated processes, both internal and external to the business.  This could expedite the completion of processes that previously required days or even weeks to complete and the potential for human error.  A simple example might be a car purchase, based upon 3rd party finance.  Such a process typically includes 3rd party data requirements, for vehicle provenance, credit scoring, identity proof, et al.  If the business world looks at the big picture, they can simplify and automate their processes, by collaborating with existing and more likely, yet to be identified partners.  The benefits are patently obvious…

From a System z viewpoint, recent technological developments leverage from existing IBM resources, including the LinuxONE, Bluemix and Watson offerings:

  • LinuxONE: The System z and LinuxONE platforms are best placed to drive Blockchain innovation, arguably via the Open Mainframe and Hyperedger IBM supports testing and development of the open Blockchain fabric code for developers on their LinuxONE Community Cloud.
  • Bluemix: the IBM Blockchain services available on Bluemix, developers can access fully integrated DevOps tools for creating, deploying, running and monitoring Blockchain applications on the IBM Cloud.
  • Watson: Leveraging from the Watson IoT Platform, IBM will enable information from devices such as RFID-based locations, barcode-scan events or device-reported data, to be used within the IBM Blockchain. Devices will be able to communicate to Blockchain based ledgers to update or validate smart contracts.

From a business benefits viewpoint, the IBM System z platform is ideally placed for Blockchain deployment, being a highly secure EAL5+ certified platform.  Hardware accelerators deliver high speed secure encryption and hashing, supplemented by tamper-proof security Crypto Express modules for key management.  Numerous memory resident partitions can also be created rapidly to keep ledgers separate and secure.  As per usual, the System z platform has the fastest commercial processor, a highly scalable I/O system to handle massive numbers of transactions, ample memory for Blockchain operations and an optimised secure network for optimised Blockchain peer communications.

Returning full circle to where this article started, the System z Mainframe is arguably the de facto System Of Record platform for the worlds traditional Fortune 500 or Global 2000 businesses.  These well established businesses have in all likelihood spent several decades or more establishing this centralised application programming and database usage model.  The realm of opportunity exists to make this priceless data asset available to numerous businesses, both large and small via Blockchain architectures.  If we consider just one simple example, a highly globalised and significant Banking institution could facilitate the creation of a new specialised and optimised “challenger banking” operation, for a particular location or business sector, leveraging from their own internal System Of Record data and perhaps, vital data from another source.  One could have the hypothetical debate as to whether a well-established bank is best placed for such a new offering, but with intelligent collaboration, delivering a valuable service to a new market, where such a service has not been previously possible, doesn’t everybody win?

Perhaps with Blockchain, truly open and collaborative cooperation is possible, both from a business and technology viewpoint.  For example, why wouldn’t one of the new Fortune 500 companies such as a Social Media company with billions of users, look to a traditional Fortune 500 company deploying an IBM System z Mainframe, to expand their revenue portfolio from being advertising driven, to include service provision, whatever that might be.  Rightly or wrongly, if such a Social Media company is a user’s preferred portal for accessing a plethora of other company resources (E.g. Facebook Login), why wouldn’t this user want to fully process some other business transaction (E.g. Financial) via said platform?  However unlikely, maybe Blockchain can truly simplify and expedite Globalisation, for the benefit of users and businesses alike…

System z Meets Open Source Linux

Recently IBM launched their LinuxONE offering, packaged in the most powerful and secure enterprise server, namely System z, designed for the new application economy and hybrid cloud era. Although IBM has provided Linux support for the Mainframe server since 2000, this LinuxONE packaging promises a unified portfolio of hardware, software and services solutions for mission-critical Linux applications.

To supplement the existing SUSE and Red Hat support, Ubuntu is included, along with Open Source enablement, including Apache Spark, Chef, Docker, MariaDB, MongoDB, Node.js and PostgreSQL, endeavouring to provide clients with choice and flexibility for hybrid cloud deployments.

From a big picture viewpoint, LinuxONE can be summarised as:

  • Linux Your Way: Choose the Linux environment and tools for your organization
  • Linux Without Limits: Benefit from Enterprise Class Linux support
  • Linux Without Risk: Safeguard business applications with the secure and resilient System z Server

The LinuxONE Systems are classified as Emperor and Rockhopper, loosely classified as High-End and Entry-Level System z servers. LinuxONE Emperor delivers ultimate flexibility, scalability, performance and security trust for mission-critical applications. Scalability is as per the latest z13 server, allowing growth to handle the most demanding workloads. LinuxONE Rockhopper delivers the entry point into the LinuxONE family, offering all the same great capabilities and value, with the flexibility of a smaller package.

LinuxONE includes a choice of hypervisors and management tools, namely KVM for LinuxONE and/or IBM z/VM. This virtualization capability claims support for up to 8000 virtual servers (several thousand containers) in a single System z server footprint, allowing for parallel processing of Test, Development and Production environments. Additionally, new servers and containers can be initialized and running in minutes, with automated resource provisioning and reallocation in seconds.

From a performance viewpoint, System z metrics apply; fast CPU processors, significant I/O capability and 10 TB Memory, all delivering consistent and predictable sub-second response times for thousands of users. A reported capability of 30 Billion RESTful web transaction per day, with ~500,000 database read/write operations per second.

The LinuxONE offering is also a key component of the IBM Cloud, Analytics, Mobile & Security (CAMS) framework:

  • Cloud: An agile and trusted cloud infrastructure to meet new business demands with greater efficiency and lower costs for IT service delivery. Example cloud usage includes Database, Enterprise Systems of Record and Hybrid Platform cloud platforms.
  • Analytics: Flexible, resilient, high performance business and operational analytics for Business Intelligence, Big Data Insights and Operational Analytics for intelligent and continuous business availability.
  • Mobile: Build a premier mobile solution for your business to deliver the best possible experience for your clients, employees and partners alike. Facilitate agile development and deployment of mobile applications, with secure end-to-end mobile transactions, personalized via integrated data analytics.
  • Security: System z has been associated with the highest EAL5+ Common Criteria certification for many years, safeguarding mission-critical data from cradle-to-grave. Security functions such as full data encryption, cryptographic processors and end-to-end security, combined with the unmatched reliability and availability of the System z server, safeguarding mission-critical data and services are fully protected and available.

Finally and a key point, LinuxONE promises TCO optimization with pricing your way. A straightforward menu of pricing options include:

  • A fixed monthly cost usage model for hardware and software resources
  • A per core software pricing model, with 30 days notice for cancellation or resource change
  • A 36 month rental option, with buy/replace/return options at contract end

In theory, LinuxONE could be perceived as just a tweak of existing System z Linux options, including the most recent z13 server, Ubuntu and Open Source support. What has changed are user requirements, the requirement for flexible and agile computing, where Cloud, Analytics, Mobile and Security dominate many CIO agendas.

It is my hope that each and every CIO, System z literate or not, at least considers the LinuxONE platform for their mission-critical enterprise workload, as from a simplistic viewpoint, LinuxONE is just another ubiquitous black server box; or is it…

z13: A Digital Business Ready Solution?

As per the usual next generation zSeries Server release, IBM announced their latest evolution on 13 January 2015, namely the z13. IBM describe this platform as the most powerful and secure system ever built:

  • First system able to process 2.5 billion transactions per day, built for mobile economy
  • Makes possible real-time encryption on all mobile transactions at scale
  • First mainframe system with embedded analytics providing real time transaction insights 17X faster than compared competitive systems at a fraction of the cost

At first glance, feeds and speeds generally don’t enthuse the audience, but if we dig deeper and acknowledge other recent IBM developments incorporating Apple, Twitter and Data Analytics announcements, we perhaps can draw some better business-facing conclusions. IBM have a clearly defined Cloud, Analytics, Mobile, Social & Security (CAMSS) initiative, seemingly based upon the IDC 3rd platform defined as Social, Mobile, Analytics & Cloud (SMAC).

Industry analysts predict that in the next 3 years and by 2017, SMAC (CAMSS) expenditure will account for 25%+ of total enterprise software market revenue, doubling from ~12% in 2012. In simple terms, this new expenditure opportunity represents $100+ Billion revenue. We can imagine that all major ISV’s will be wanting their share of this market…

Whichever classification you choose, IBM CAMSS or IDC SMAC, IT infrastructures and associated investment currently are and certainly will be heavily influenced by this new world computing paradigm. Like it or not, an ability to perform a transaction anywhere (Mobile), keeping everything simple and networked (Social Media), real time prediction of future customer requirements (Analytics), available anywhere (Mobile), for an alleged fraction of the cost (Cloud), makes sense for the 21st Century business. Ignore this new technology evolution at your peril as it will impact each and every area of the IT enterprise and associated resources, primarily software and supporting hardware.

Did you notice the difference between the IBM classification and IDC? IDC have not considered Security to be a consideration factor worthy of acronym (SMAC) inclusion. In today’s world of cybersecurity, that might be somewhat of an oversight, but we must assume that IDC consider cybersecurity to be a consideration for all of the Analytics, Cloud, Mobile & Social aspects, which of course it is!

If we consider the relative merits of technology platforms from a security viewpoint, the IBM z13 delivers EAL5+ security certification, whereas other non-Mainframe platforms can only currently claim EAL4+ certification.

It is estimated that 55%+ of enterprise (mission critical) transactions are processed by the IBM Mainframe, but this is based on pre mobile workloads. It therefore makes commercial sense for IBM to safeguard their flagship platform not only maintains the existing IBM Mainframe customer base, but captures new and mobile centric workloads.

Having considered the business requirements for today’s IT business, let’s now classify the new features of the z13 platform:

  • Up to 40% more total system capacity compared to the zEC12.
  • Up to 10 terabytes (TB) of available Redundant Array of Independent Memory (RAIM) real memory per server.
  • Cryptographic performance improvements with new Crypto Express5S.
  • Economies of scale with simultaneous multithreading delivering more throughput for Linux and zIIP-eligible workloads.
  • Improved performance of complex mathematical models, perfect for analytics processing, with Single Instruction Multiple Data (SIMD).
  • IBM zAware cutting-edge pattern recognition analytics for fast insight into system health extended to Linux on z Systems.
  • A reduction in elapsed time for I/O-bound batch jobs with new FICON Express16S versus FICON Express8S.
  • Support for larger memory configurations planned to be supported on z/OS systems, which can be used to improve transaction response times, lower CPU costs, simplify capacity planning and ease deploying memory-intensive workloads. (The IBM z13 offers up to 10 TB memory.)
  • I/O service time improvement when writing data remotely using the new zHPF Extended Distance II.
  • Support for up to 256 coupling CHPIDs, which provides enhanced connectivity and scalability for a growing number of coupling channel types.
  • IBM Integrated Coupling Adapter (ICA SR), which offers greater short reach coupling connectivity than existing link technologies and enables greater overall coupling connectivity per IBM z13 than prior server generations.
  • Capability to extend z/OS workload management policies into the SAN fabric.
  • New rack-mounted Hardware Management Console (HMC), helping to save space in the data center.
  • Non-raised floor option, offering flexible possibilities for the data center.
  • Optional water cooling, providing the ability to cool systems with user-chilled water.
  • Optional high-voltage dc power, which can help IBM z Systems clients save on their power bills.
  • Optional top exit power and I/O cabling designed to provide increased flexibility.
  • New IBM z BladeCenter Extension (zBX) Model 004 in support of heterogeneous resources managed by IBM z Unified Resource Manager.

As we all know, Moore’s Law had to end sometime soon and this is true for System z CPU chips. The zEC12 CPU was often claimed to be the fastest commercial processor, with a 32nm core and a 5.5 GHz rating. The z13 chip runs a 22 nm core at a 5 GHz, at first glance ~10% slower than the zEC12. The new z13 chip delivers a ~10% performance increase, due to advances in core design, with better branch prediction and pipelining in the core. Noteworthy, is the slightly slower clock speed of the z13 chip, reducing heat output, probably signifying that ~5 GHz is the ceiling for CPU chips in the near future.

However, for z13, the doubling of performance still apples for many other resources:

  • Cryptographic coprocessors performance (~2*)
  • Channel speed (~2*)
  • I/O bandwidth (~2*)
  • Memory/Cache performance (~2*)
  • Memory capacity (~3*)

Once again, classifying these technological advances in terms of mobile business, the z13 delivers real-time encryption of mobile transactions, protecting transaction data, delivering consistent response times for a quality customer experience. Overall, IBM claims the z13 delivers a potential for ~36% better response time, ~61% better throughput and ~17% lower cost per mobile transaction.

A major and subtle change introduced with the z13 is Simultaneous MultiThreading (SMT). SMT allows 2 active instruction streams per core, each dynamically sharing the core’s execution resources. SMT will be available in IBM z13 for workloads running on the Integrated Facility for Linux (IFL) and the IBM z Integrated Information Processor (zIIP).

Each software Operating System/Hypervisor has the ability to intelligently drive SMT in a way that is best for its unique requirements. z/OS SMT management consistently drives the cores to high thread density, in an effort to reduce SMT variability and deliver repeatable performance across varying CPU utilization, thus providing more predictable SMT capacity. z/VM SMT management optimizes throughput by spreading a workload over the available cores until it demands the additional SMT capacity.

From a capacity planning and performance measurement viewpoint, just a slight note of caution. Although the z13 CPU chip delivers increased CPU capacity, the raw speed is slower and there are considerations for SMT. A former IBM staffer, Bob Rogers has written a great article on this SMT subject matter, which should be on your reading list!

In conclusion, the z13 announcement is another step forward for zSeries Mainframes. If you consider this announcement as just another next generation zSeries Mainframe announcement, you’re not treating your business or yourself with the respect they deserve. Instead, please consider this z13 announcement as an evolution from an enterprise solution delivery viewpoint. Primarily, consider the 21st century business keywords, in no particular order, of Analytics, Cloud, Mobile, Social & Security.