PentaSafe Ships OpsNav Plug-In for Exit Points

by Alex Woodie

As the network security piece of PentaSafe's OS/400-base VigilEnt Security Agent for iSeries offering, the RRM module continually monitors transaction requests made to the OS/400 server coming in through OS/400 network exit points, such as ODBC, TCP/IP, Telnet, and FTP. If the RRM module decides that the transaction is not up to snuff because of the way that it was configured, it rejects the transaction and denies access to the OS/400 server.

Before this announcement, systems administrators had to use the standard 5250 interface to configure the RRM module. The 5250 interface could be configured to pass or fail transactions based on a variety of characteristics, including who is making the request; what server they're requesting access to; what functions they're trying to invoke; the IP or SNA address from which they're trying to gain access; the day or time they're trying to gain access; and the OS/400 objects involved in the transaction they're asking to make.

Obviously, the green-screen interface worked. Nevertheless, PentaSafe felt that its customers would like to have the option of using a GUI interface to configure their AS/400 or iSeries server's network security using PentaSafe's software. Now PentaSafe is delivering that GUI interface to its software through OpsNav, a Windows program that lets you work with many OS/400 functions. It comes free when you buy Client Access from IBM.

With RRM Plug-in for Operations Navigator, systems administrators can copy the RRM settings from one OS/400 server to other servers. All of the security rules governed by those settings, including secured entries, groups, calendars, and object authorities, can be easily propagated to additional servers.

With the new rule wizard and the "What If?" security testing functionality that PentaSafe introduced with the recent PSSecure 7.0 announcement, PentaSafe officials sound quite pleased with the way their product suite is taking shape.

"We provided the most robust security functionality," said Jack McAfee, the OS/400 product line manager for PentaSafe, "and now we want to make it easier to use."

The RRM Plug-in for Operations Navigator was in managed availability when PentaSafe made this announcement at the COMMON show in Nashville, Tennessee, two weeks ago. One of its beta testers, First Services, had good things to say about it.

"During testing of this product we have closed all remote entry points into the test box," said Steve Grzybinski of First Services. "We change the RRM defaults to send messages to myself and QSYSOPR. Then we set up [Help/System's] Robot/NETWORK to monitor the QSYSOPR message queue and send an e-mail alert on the exit program denials. I, in turn, open the OpsNav, press F5, and, with a couple of clicks, can take care of business."

Thus, one of Grzybinski's concerns has been alleviated. "I don't think that you understand how much easier life is with the new plug in," he said. "Thanks to all the developers."