Ubiquiti UniFi – Backups and Migration

Migration is the act of moving your UniFi devices from one host device to another. This is useful when:

  • You are replacing your UniFi OS Console with a new one of the same model.
  • You are upgrading your UniFi OS Console to a different model (e.g., a UDM to a UDM Pro).
  • You are offloading devices to a dedicated UniFi OS Console (e.g., moving cameras from a Cloud Key or UDM to a UNVR).
  • You are moving from a self-hosted Network application to a UniFi OS Console.

Note: This is not meant to be used as a staging file for setting up multiple applications on different hosts.

Types of Backups

UniFi OS Backups

UniFi OS backup files contain your entire system configuration, including your UniFi OS Console, user, application, and device settings. Assuming Remote Access is enabled, UniFi OS Cloud backups are created weekly by default. You can also generate additional Cloud backups or download localized backups at any time. 

UniFi OS backups are useful when:

  • Restoring a prior system configuration after making network changes.
  • Migrating all applications to a new UniFi OS Console that is the same model as the original.

Note: Backups do not include data stored on an HDD, such as recorded Protect camera footage.

Application Backups

Each UniFi application allows you to back up and export its configuration. Application backups contain settings and device configurations specific to the respective application.

Application backups are useful when:

  • You want to restore a prior application configuration without affecting your other applications.
  • You want to migrate a self-hosted Network application to a UniFi OS Console.
  • You want to migrate your devices between two different UniFi OS Console models.
  • You need to back up a self-hosted Network application.

Note: Backups do not include data stored on an HDD, such as recorded Protect camera footage.

UniFi OS Console Migration

UniFi OS backups also allow you to restore your system configuration should you ever need to replace your console with one of the same model.

To do so:

  1. First, ensure that you have already generated a Cloud backup, or downloaded a local backup. If not, please do so in your UniFi OS Settings.
  2. Replace your old UniFi OS Console with the new one. All other network connections should remain unchanged.
  3. Restore your system configuration on the new UniFi OS Console using the backup file. This can be done either during the initial setup or afterwards  in your UniFi OS settings.

Note: Currently, UniFi OS backups cannot be used to perform cross-console migrations, but this capability will be added in a future update.

If you are migrating between two different console models, you will need to restore each application’s configuration with their respective backups. Please note, though, that these file(s) will not include UniFi OS users or settings. 

See below for more information on using the configuration backups during migrations.

Migrating UniFi Network

Before migrating, we recommend reviewing your Device Authentication Credentials found in your Network application’s System Settings. These can be used to recover adopted device(s) if the migration is unsuccessful.

Standard Migration

This is used when all devices are on the same Layer 2 network (i.e., all devices are on the same network/VLAN as the management application’s host device). 

Note: If you are a home user managing devices in a single location and have not used the set-inform command or other advanced Layer 3 adoption methods, this is most likely the method for you.

  1. Download the desired backup file (*.unf) from your original Network application’s System Settings
  2. Ensure that your new Network application is up to date. Backups cannot be used to restore older application versions.
  3. Replace your old UniFi OS Console with the new one. All other network connections should remain unchanged.
  4. Restore the backup file in the Network application’s System Settings.
  5. Ensure that all devices appear as online in the new application. If they do not, you can try Layer 3 adoption, or factory-reset and readopt your device(s) to the new Network application.

    If a  device continues to appear as Managed by Other, click on it to open its properties panel, then use its Device Authentication Credentials (from the original Network application’s host device) to perform an Advanced Adoption.

Migrating Applications That Manage Layer 3 Devices

This method is for users that have performed Layer 3 device adoption (i.e., devices are on a different network/VLAN than the application’s host device). This may also be useful when migrating to a Network application host that is NOT also a gateway.

  1. Download the desired backup file (*.unf) from your original Network application’s System Settings
  2. Enable the Override Inform Host field on the original Network application’s host device, then enter the IP address of the new host device. This will tell your devices where they should establish a connection in order to be managed. Once entered, all devices in the old application should appear as Managed by Other.

    Note: When migrating to a Cloud Console, you can copy the Inform URL from the Cloud Console’s dashboard. Be aware that you will need to remove the initial http:// and the ending :8080/inform
  3. Ensure that your new Network application is up to date. Backups cannot be used to restore older application versions.
  4. Restore the backup file in the Network application’s System Settings.
  5. Ensure that all devices appear as online in the new application. If they do not, you can try Layer 3 adoption, or factory-reset and readopt your device(s) to the new application.

    If a device continues to appear as Managed by Other, click on it to open its properties panel, then use its Device Authentication Credentials (from the original Network application’s host) to perform an Advanced Adoption.

Exporting Individual Sites from a Multi-Site Host

Certain Network application hosts (e.g., Cloud Key, Cloud Console, self-hosted Network applications) can manage multiple sites. Site exportation allows you to migrate specific sites from one multi-site host to another. To do so:

  1. Click Export Site in your Network application’s System Settings to begin the guided walkthrough.
  2. Select the device(s) you wish to migrate to your new Network application.
  3. Enter the Inform URL of your new host. This will tell your devices where they should establish a connection in order to be managed. Once entered, all devices in the old application should appear as Managed by Other in the new one.

    Note: When migrating to a Cloud Console, you can copy the Inform URL from the Cloud Console’s dashboard. Be aware that you will need to remove the initial http:// and the ending :8080/inform.
  4. Go to your new Network application and select Import Site from the Site switcher located in the upper-left corner of your dashboard.

    Note: You may need to enable Multi-Site Management in your System Settings.
  5. Ensure that all devices appear as online in the new application. If they do not, you try Layer 3 adoption, or factory-reset and readopt your device(s) to the new application.

    If a device continues to appear as Managed by Other, click on it to open its properties panel, then use its Device Authentication Credentials (from the original Network application’s host) to perform an Advanced Adoption.

Migrating UniFi Protect

We recommend saving your footage with the Export Clips function before migrating. Although we provide HDD migration instructions, it is not an officially supported procedure due to nuances in the RAID array architecture. 

Standard Migration

  1. Download the desired backup file (*.zip) from the original Protect application’s settings. 
  2. Ensure that your new Protect application is up to date. Backups cannot be used to restore older application firmware.
  3. Replace your old UniFi OS Console with the new one. All other camera connections should remain unchanged.
  4. Restore the backup file in the Protect application’s settings.

HDD Migration

Full HDD migration is not officially supported; however, some users have been able to perform successful migrations by ensuring consistent ordering when ejecting and reinstalling drives  into their new console to preserve RAID arrays.

Note: This is only possible if both UniFi OS Consoles are the same model.

  1. Remove the HDDs from the old console. Record which bay each one was installed in, but do not install them in the new console yet.
  2. Turn on the new console and complete the initial setup wizard. Do not restore a Protect application or Cloud backup during initial setup!
  3. Upgrade the new console and its Protect application to a version that is either the same or newer than the original console.
  4. Shut down the new console, and then install the HDDs in the same bays as the original console.
  5. Turn on the new console again. The Protect application should start with its current configuration intact, and all exported footage should be accessible.

Source :
https://help.ui.com/hc/en-us/articles/360008976393-UniFi-Backups-and-Migration

SSA-482757: Missing Immutable Root of Trust in S7-1500 CPU devices

Siemens Security Advisory by Siemens ProductCERT

Publication Date:2023-01-10
Last Update:2023-01-10
Current Version:V1.0
CVSS v3.1 Base Score:4.6

SUMMARY

Affected models of the S7-1500 CPU product family do not contain an Immutable Root of Trust in Hardware. With this the integrity of the code executed on the device can not be validated during load-time. An attacker with physical access to the device could use this to replace the boot image of the device and execute arbitrary code.

As exploiting this vulnerability requires physical tampering with the product, Siemens recommends to assess the risk of physical access to the device in the target deployment and to implement measures to make sure that only trusted personnel have access to the physical hardware.

The vulnerability is related to the hardware of the product. Siemens has released new hardware versions for several CPU types of the S7-1500 product family in which this vulnerability is fixed and is working on new hardware versions for remaining PLC types to address this vulnerability completely. See the chapter “Additional Information” below for more details.AFFECTED PRODUCTS AND SOLUTION

Affected Product and VersionsRemediation
SIMATIC Drive Controller CPU 1504D TF (6ES7615-4DF10-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC Drive Controller CPU 1507D TF (6ES7615-7DF10-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1510SP F-1 PN (6ES7510-1SJ00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1510SP F-1 PN (6ES7510-1SJ01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1510SP-1 PN (6ES7510-1DJ00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1510SP-1 PN (6ES7510-1DJ01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6ES7511-1AK00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6ES7511-1AK01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6ES7511-1AK02-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511C-1 PN (6ES7511-1CK00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511C-1 PN (6ES7511-1CK01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511F-1 PN (6ES7511-1FK00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511F-1 PN (6ES7511-1FK01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511F-1 PN (6ES7511-1FK02-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511T-1 PN (6ES7511-1TK01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511TF-1 PN (6ES7511-1UK01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1512C-1 PN (6ES7512-1CK00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1512C-1 PN (6ES7512-1CK01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1512SP F-1 PN (6ES7512-1SK00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1512SP F-1 PN (6ES7512-1SK01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1512SP-1 PN (6ES7512-1DK00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1512SP-1 PN (6ES7512-1DK01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6ES7513-1AL00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6ES7513-1AL01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6ES7513-1AL02-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513F-1 PN (6ES7513-1FL00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513F-1 PN (6ES7513-1FL01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513F-1 PN (6ES7513-1FL02-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513R-1 PN (6ES7513-1RL00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515-2 PN (6ES7515-2AM00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515-2 PN (6ES7515-2AM01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515-2 PN (6ES7515-2AM02-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515F-2 PN (6ES7515-2FM00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515F-2 PN (6ES7515-2FM01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515F-2 PN (6ES7515-2FM02-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515R-2 PN (6ES7515-2RM00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515T-2 PN (6ES7515-2TM01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515TF-2 PN (6ES7515-2UM01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6ES7516-3AN00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6ES7516-3AN01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6ES7516-3AN02-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1516F-3 PN/DP (6ES7516-3FN00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1516F-3 PN/DP (6ES7516-3FN01-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1516F-3 PN/DP (6ES7516-3FN02-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1516T-3 PN/DP (6ES7516-3TN00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1516TF-3 PN/DP (6ES7516-3UN00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1517-3 PN/DP (6ES7517-3AP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1517F-3 PN/DP (6ES7517-3FP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1517H-3 PN (6ES7517-3HP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1517T-3 PN/DP (6ES7517-3TP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1517TF-3 PN/DP (6ES7517-3UP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518-4 PN/DP (6ES7518-4AP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518-4 PN/DP MFP (6ES7518-4AX00-1AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518-4F PN/DP (6ES7518-4FP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518F-4 PN/DP MFP (6ES7518-4FX00-1AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518HF-4 PN (6ES7518-4JP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518T-4 PN/DP (6ES7518-4TP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518TF-4 PN/DP (6ES7518-4UP00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU S7-1518-4 PN/DP ODK (6ES7518-4AP00-3AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU S7-1518F-4 PN/DP ODK (6ES7518-4FP00-3AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 ET 200pro: CPU 1513PRO F-2 PN (6ES7513-2GL00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 ET 200pro: CPU 1513PRO-2 PN (6ES7513-2PL00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 ET 200pro: CPU 1516PRO F-2 PN (6ES7516-2GN00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIMATIC S7-1500 ET 200pro: CPU 1516PRO-2 PN (6ES7516-2PN00-0AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1510SP F-1 PN (6AG1510-1SJ01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1510SP F-1 PN RAIL (6AG2510-1SJ01-1AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1510SP-1 PN (6AG1510-1DJ01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1510SP-1 PN (6AG1510-1DJ01-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1510SP-1 PN RAIL (6AG2510-1DJ01-1AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1510SP-1 PN RAIL (6AG2510-1DJ01-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP F-1 PN (6AG1512-1SK00-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP F-1 PN (6AG1512-1SK01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP F-1 PN (6AG1512-1SK01-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP F-1 PN RAIL (6AG2512-1SK01-1AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP F-1 PN RAIL (6AG2512-1SK01-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP-1 PN (6AG1512-1DK01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP-1 PN (6AG1512-1DK01-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP-1 PN RAIL (6AG2512-1DK01-1AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS ET 200SP CPU 1512SP-1 PN RAIL (6AG2512-1DK01-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6AG1511-1AK00-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6AG1511-1AK01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6AG1511-1AK01-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6AG1511-1AK02-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6AG1511-1AK02-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN T1 RAIL (6AG2511-1AK01-1AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN T1 RAIL (6AG2511-1AK02-1AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN TX RAIL (6AG2511-1AK01-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN TX RAIL (6AG2511-1AK02-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511F-1 PN (6AG1511-1FK00-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511F-1 PN (6AG1511-1FK01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1511F-1 PN (6AG1511-1FK02-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6AG1513-1AL00-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6AG1513-1AL01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6AG1513-1AL01-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6AG1513-1AL02-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6AG1513-1AL02-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1513F-1 PN (6AG1513-1FL00-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1513F-1 PN (6AG1513-1FL01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1513F-1 PN (6AG1513-1FL02-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1515F-2 PN (6AG1515-2FM01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1515F-2 PN (6AG1515-2FM02-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1515F-2 PN RAIL (6AG2515-2FM02-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1515F-2 PN T2 RAIL (6AG2515-2FM01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1515R-2 PN (6AG1515-2RM00-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1515R-2 PN TX RAIL (6AG2515-2RM00-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3AN00-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3AN00-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3AN01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3AN01-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3AN02-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3AN02-7AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP RAIL (6AG2516-3AN02-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516-3 PN/DP TX RAIL (6AG2516-3AN01-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516F-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3FN00-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516F-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3FN01-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516F-3 PN/DP (6AG1516-3FN02-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516F-3 PN/DP RAIL (6AG2516-3FN02-2AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1516F-3 PN/DP RAIL (6AG2516-3FN02-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1517H-3 PN (6AG1517-3HP00-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1518-4 PN/DP (6AG1518-4AP00-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1518-4 PN/DP MFP (6AG1518-4AX00-4AC0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations
SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1518F-4 PN/DP (6AG1518-4FP00-4AB0)
All versions
Currently no fix is planned
See further recommendations from section Workarounds and Mitigations

WORKAROUNDS AND MITIGATIONS

Siemens has identified the following specific workarounds and mitigations that customers can apply to reduce the risk:

  • Restrict physical access to affected devices to trusted personnel to avoid hardware tampering (e.g., place the devices in locked control cabinets)

Please follow the General Security Recommendations.GENERAL SECURITY RECOMMENDATIONS

As a general security measure, Siemens strongly recommends to protect network access to devices with appropriate mechanisms. In order to operate the devices in a protected IT environment, Siemens recommends to configure the environment according to Siemens’ operational guidelines for Industrial Security (Download: https://www.siemens.com/cert/operational-guidelines-industrial-security), and to follow the recommendations in the product manuals. Additional information on Industrial Security by Siemens can be found at: https://www.siemens.com/industrialsecurityPRODUCT DESCRIPTION

SIMATIC Drive Controllers have been designed for the automation of production machines, combining the functionality of a SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU and a SINAMICS S120 drive control.

SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU products have been designed for discrete and continuous control in industrial environments such as manufacturing, food and beverages, and chemical industries worldwide.

The SIMATIC S7-1500 MFP CPUs provide functionality of standard S7-1500 CPUs with the possibility to run C/C++ Code within the CPU-Runtime for execution of own functions / algorithms implemented in C/C++ and an additional second independent runtime environment to execute C/C++ applications parallel to the STEP 7 program if required.

The SIMATIC S7-1500 ODK CPUs provide functionality of standard S7-1500 CPUs but additionally provide the possibility to run C/C++ Code within the CPU-Runtime for execution of own functions / algorithms implemented in C/C++. They have been designed for discrete and continuous control in industrial environments such as manufacturing, food and beverages, and chemical industries worldwide.

SIPLUS extreme products are designed for reliable operation under extreme conditions and are based on SIMATIC, LOGO!, SITOP, SINAMICS, SIMOTION, SCALANCE or other devices. SIPLUS devices use the same firmware as the product they are based on.VULNERABILITY CLASSIFICATION

The vulnerability classification has been performed by using the CVSS scoring system in version 3.1 (CVSS v3.1) (https://www.first.org/cvss/). The CVSS environmental score is specific to the customer’s environment and will impact the overall CVSS score. The environmental score should therefore be individually defined by the customer to accomplish final scoring.

An additional classification has been performed using the CWE classification, a community-developed list of common software security weaknesses. This serves as a common language and as a baseline for weakness identification, mitigation, and prevention efforts. A detailed list of CWE classes can be found at: https://cwe.mitre.org/.Vulnerability CVE-2022-38773Affected devices do not contain an Immutable Root of Trust in Hardware. With this the integrity of the code executed on the device can not be validated during load-time. An attacker with physical access to the device could use this to replace the boot image of the device and execute arbitrary code.

CVSS v3.1 Base Score4.6
CVSS VectorCVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N/E:P/RL:T/RC:C
CWECWE-1326: Missing Immutable Root of Trust in Hardware

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Siemens thanks the following party for its efforts:

  • Yuanzhe Wu and Ang Cui from Red Balloon Security for coordinated disclosure

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Siemens has released the following new hardware versions of the S7-1500 product family. They contain a new secure boot mechanism that resolves the vulnerability:

  • SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6ES7511-1AL03-0AB0)
  • SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513-1 PN (6ES7513-1AM03-0AB0)
  • SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511F-1 PN (6ES7511-1FL03-0AB0)
  • SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513F-1 PN (6ES7513-1FM03-0AB0)
  • SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1513R-1 PN (6ES7513-1RM03-0AB0)
  • SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1515R-2 PN (6ES7515-2RN03-0AB0)

Siemens is working on new hardware versions for additional PLC types to address this vulnerability further.For further inquiries on security vulnerabilities in Siemens products and solutions, please contact the Siemens ProductCERT:

https://www.siemens.com/cert/advisoriesHISTORY DATA

V1.0 (2023-01-10):Publication Date

TERMS OF USE

Siemens Security Advisories are subject to the terms and conditions contained in Siemens’ underlying license terms or other applicable agreements previously agreed to with Siemens (hereinafter “License Terms”). To the extent applicable to information, software or documentation made available in or through a Siemens Security Advisory, the Terms of Use of Siemens’ Global Website (https://www.siemens.com/ terms_of_use, hereinafter “Terms of Use”), in particular Sections 8-10 of the Terms of Use, shall apply additionally. In case of conflicts, the License Terms shall prevail over the Terms of Use. SSA-482757© Siemens 2023

Source :
https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-482757.html

Web Hackers vs. The Auto Industry: Critical Vulnerabilities in Ferrari, BMW, Rolls Royce, Porsche, and More

During the fall of 2022, a few friends and I took a road trip from Chicago, IL to Washington, DC to attend a cybersecurity conference and (try) to take a break from our usual computer work.

While we were visiting the University of Maryland, we came across a fleet of electric scooters scattered across the campus and couldn’t resist poking at the scooter’s mobile app. To our surprise, our actions caused the horns and headlights on all of the scooters to turn on and stay on for 15 minutes straight.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=YRAy3wv5SCk%3Ffeature%3Doembed

When everything eventually settled down, we sent a report over to the scooter manufacturer and became super interested in trying to more ways to make more things honk. We brainstormed for a while, and then realized that nearly every automobile manufactured in the last 5 years had nearly identical functionality. If an attacker were able to find vulnerabilities in the API endpoints that vehicle telematics systems used, they could honk the horn, flash the lights, remotely track, lock/unlock, and start/stop vehicles, completely remotely.

At this point, we started a group chat and all began to work with the goal of finding vulnerabilities affecting the automotive industry. Over the next few months, we found as many car-related vulnerabilities as we could. The following writeup details our work exploring the security of telematic systems, automotive APIs, and the infrastructure that supports it.

Findings Summary

During our engagement, we found the following vulnerabilities in the companies listed below:

  • Kia, Honda, Infiniti, Nissan, Acura
    • Fully remote lock, unlock, engine start, engine stop, precision locate, flash headlights, and honk vehicles using only the VIN number
    • Fully remote account takeover and PII disclosure via VIN number (name, phone number, email address, physical address)
    • Ability to lock users out of remotely managing their vehicle, change ownership
      • For Kia’s specifically, we could remotely access the 360-view camera and view live images from the car
  • Mercedes-Benz
    • Access to hundreds of mission-critical internal applications via improperly configured SSO, including…
      • Multiple Github instances behind SSO
      • Company-wide internal chat tool, ability to join nearly any channel
      • SonarQube, Jenkins, misc. build servers
      • Internal cloud deployment services for managing AWS instances
      • Internal Vehicle related APIs
    • Remote Code Execution on multiple systems
    • Memory leaks leading to employee/customer PII disclosure, account access
  • Hyundai, Genesis
    • Fully remote lock, unlock, engine start, engine stop, precision locate, flash headlights, and honk vehicles using only the victim email address
    • Fully remote account takeover and PII disclosure via victim email address (name, phone number, email address, physical address)
    • Ability to lock users out of remotely managing their vehicle, change ownership
  • BMW, Rolls Royce
    • Company-wide core SSO vulnerabilities which allowed us to access any employee application as any employee, allowed us to…
      • Access to internal dealer portals where you can query any VIN number to retrieve sales documents for BMW
      • Access any application locked behind SSO on behalf of any employee, including applications used by remote workers and dealerships
  • Ferrari
    • Full zero-interaction account takeover for any Ferrari customer account
    • IDOR to access all Ferrari customer records
    • Lack of access control allowing an attacker to create, modify, delete employee “back office” administrator user accounts and all user accounts with capabilities to modify Ferrari owned web pages through the CMS system
    • Ability to add HTTP routes on api.ferrari.com (rest-connectors) and view all existing rest-connectors and secrets associated with them (authorization headers)
  • Spireon
  • Ford
    • Full memory disclosure on production vehicle Telematics API discloses
      • Discloses customer PII and access tokens for tracking and executing commands on vehicles
      • Discloses configuration credentials used for internal services related to Telematics
      • Ability to authenticate into customer account and access all PII and perform actions against vehicles
    • Customer account takeover via improper URL parsing, allows an attacker to completely access victim account including vehicle portal
  • Reviver
    • Full super administrative access to manage all user accounts and vehicles for all Reviver connected vehicles. An attacker could perform the following:
      • Track the physical GPS location and manage the license plate for all Reviver customers (e.g. changing the slogan at the bottom of the license plate to arbitrary text)
      • Update any vehicle status to “STOLEN” which updates the license plate and informs authorities
      • Access all user records, including what vehicles people owned, their physical address, phone number, and email address
      • Access the fleet management functionality for any company, locate and manage all vehicles in a fleet
  • Porsche
    • Ability to send retrieve vehicle location, send vehicle commands, and retrieve customer information via vulnerabilities affecting the vehicle Telematics service
  • Toyota
    • IDOR on Toyota Financial that discloses the name, phone number, email address, and loan status of any Toyota financial customers
  • Jaguar, Land Rover
    • User account IDOR disclosing password hash, name, phone number, physical address, and vehicle information
  • SiriusXM
    • Leaked AWS keys with full organizational read/write S3 access, ability to retrieve all files including (what appeared to be) user databases, source code, and config files for Sirius

Vulnerability Writeups

(1) Full Account Takeover on BMW and Rolls Royce via Misconfigured SSO

While testing BMW assets, we identified a custom SSO portal for employees and contractors of BMW. This was super interesting to us, as any vulnerabilities identified here could potentially allow an attacker to compromise any account connected to all of BMWs assets.

For instance, if a dealer wanted to access the dealer portal at a physical BMW dealership, they would have to authenticate through this portal. Additionally, this SSO portal was used to access internal tools and related devops infrastructure.

The first thing we did was fingerprint the host using OSINT tools like gau and ffuf. After a few hours of fuzzing, we identified a WADL file which exposed API endpoints on the host via sending the following HTTP request:

GET /rest/api/application.wadl HTTP/1.1
Host: xpita.bmwgroup.com

The HTTP response contained all available REST endpoints on the xpita host. We began enumerating the endpoints and sending mock HTTP requests to see what functionality was available.

One immediate finding was that we were able to query all BMW user accounts via sending asterisk queries in the user field API endpoint. This allowed us to enter something like “sam*” and retrieve the user information for a user named “sam.curry” without having to guess the actual username.

HTTP Request

GET /reset/api/users/example* HTTP/1.1
Host: xpita.bmwgroup.com

HTTP Response

HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-type: application/json

{“id”:”redacted”,”firstName”:”Example”,”lastName”:”User”,”userName”:”example.user”}

Once we found this vulnerability, we continued testing the other accessible API endpoints. One particularly interesting one which stood out immediately was the “/rest/api/chains/accounts/:user_id/totp” endpoint. We noticed the word “totp” which usually stood for one-time password generation.

When we sent an HTTP request to this endpoint using the SSO user ID gained from the wildcard query paired with the TOTP endpoint, it returned a random 7-digit number. The following HTTP request and response demonstrate this behavior:

HTTP Request

GET /rest/api/chains/accounts/unique_account_id/totp HTTP/1.1
Host: xpita.bmwgroup.com

HTTP Response

HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-type: text/plain

9373958

For whatever reason, it appeared that this HTTP request would generate a TOTP for the user’s account. We guessed that this interaction worked with the “forgot password” functionality, so we found an example user account by querying “example*” using our original wildcard finding and retrieving the victim user ID. After retrieving this ID, we initiated a reset password attempt for the user account until we got to the point where the system requested a TOTP code from the user’s 2FA device (e.g. email or phone).

At this point, we retrieved the TOTP code generated from the API endpoint and entered it into the reset password confirmation field.

It worked! We had reset a user account, gaining full account takeover on any BMW employee and contractor user.

At this point, it was possible to completely take over any BMW or Rolls Royce employee account and access tools used by those employees.

To demonstrate the impact of the vulnerability, we simply Googled “BMW dealer portal” and used our account to access the dealer portal used by sales associates working at physical BMW and Rolls Royce dealerships.

After logging in, we observed that the demo account we took over was tied to an actual dealership, and we could access all of the functionality that the dealers themselves had access to. This included the ability to query a specific VIN number and retrieve sales documents for the vehicle.

With our level of access, there was a huge amount of functionality we could’ve performed against BMW and Rolls Royce customer accounts and customer vehicles. We stopped testing at this point and reported the vulnerability.

The vulnerabilities reported to BMW and Rolls Royce have since been fixed.

(2) Remote Code Execution and Access to Hundreds of Internal Tools on Mercedes-Benz and Rolls Royce via Misconfigured SSO

Early in our testing, someone in our group had purchased a Mercedes-Benz vehicle and so we began auditing the Mercedes-Benz infrastructure. We took the same approach as BMW and began testing the Mercedes-Benz employee SSO.

We weren’t able to find any vulnerabilities affecting the SSO portal itself, but by exploring the SSO website we observed that they were running some form of LDAP for the employee accounts. Based on our high level understanding of their infrastructure, we guessed that the individual employee applications used a centralized LDAP system to authenticate users. We began exploring each of these websites in an attempt to find a public registration so we could gain SSO credentials to access, even at a limited level, the employee applications.

After fuzzing random sites for a while, we eventually found the “umas.mercedes-benz.com” website which was built for vehicle repair shops to request specific tools access from Mercedes-Benz. The website had public registration enabled as it was built for repair shops and appeared to write to the same database as the core employee LDAP system.

We filled out all the required fields for registration, created a user account, then used our recon data to identify sites which redirected to the Mercedes-Benz SSO. The first one we attempted was a pretty obvious employee tool, it was “git.mercedes-benz.com”, short for Github. We attempted to use our user credentials to sign in to the Mercedes-Benz Github and saw that we were able to login. Success!

The Mercedes-Benz Github, after authenticating, asked us to set up 2FA on our account so we could access the app. We installed the 2FA app and added it to our account, entered our code, then saw that we were in. We had access to “git.mercedes-benz.com” and began looking around.

After a few minutes, we saw that the Github instance had internal documentation and source code for various Mercedes-Benz projects including the Mercedes Me Connect app which was used by customers to remotely connect to their vehicles. The internal documentation gave detailed instructions for employees to follow if they wanted to build an application for Mercedes-Benz themselves to talk to customer vehicles and the specific steps one would have to take to talk to customer vehicles.

At this point, we reported the vulnerability, but got some pushback after a few days of waiting on an email response. The team seemed to misunderstand the impact, so they asked us to demonstrate further impact.

We used our employee account to login to numerous applications which contained sensitive information and achieved remote code execution via exposed actuators, spring boot consoles, and dozens of sensitive internal applications used by Mercedes-Benz employees. One of these applications was the Mercedes-Benz Mattermost (basically Slack). We had permission to join any channel, including security channels, and could pose as a Mercedes-Benz employee who could ask whatever questions necessary for an actual attacker to elevate their privileges across the Benz infrastructure.

To give an overview, we could access the following services:

  • Multiple employee-only Githubs with sensitive information containing documentation and configuration files for multiple applications across the Mercedes-Benz infrastructure
  • Spring boot actuators which lead to remote code execution, information disclosure, on sensitive employee and customer facing applications
    Jenkins instances
  • AWS and cloud-computing control panels where we could request, manage, and access various internal systems
  • XENTRY systems used to communicate with customer vehicles
  • Internal OAuth and application-management related functionality for configuring and managing internal apps
  • Hundreds of miscellaneous internal services

(3) Full Account Takeover on Ferrari and Arbitrary Account Creation allows Attacker to Access, Modify, and Delete All Customer Information and Access Administrative CMS Functionality to Manage Ferrari Websites

When we began targeting Ferrari, we mapped out all domains under the publicly available domains like “ferrari.com” and browsed around to see what was accessible. One target we found was “api.ferrari.com”, a domain which offered both customer facing and internal APIs for Ferrari systems. Our goal was to get the highest level of access possible for this API.

We analyzed the JavaScript present on several Ferrari subdomains that looked like they were for use by Ferrari dealers. These subdomains included `cms-dealer.ferrari.com`, `cms-new.ferrari.com` and `cms-dealer.test.ferrari.com`.

One of the patterns we notice when testing web applications is poorly implemented single sign on functionality which does not restrict access to the underlying application. This was the case for the above subdomains. It was possible to extract the JavaScript present for these applications, allowing us to understand the backend API routes in use.

When reverse engineering JavaScript bundles, it is important to check what constants have been defined for the application. Often these constants contain sensitive credentials or at the very least, tell you where the backend API is, that the application talks to.

For this application, we noticed the following constants were set:

const i = {
                        production: !0,
                        envName: "production",
                        version: "0.0.0",
                        build: "20221223T162641363Z",
                        name: "ferrari.dws-preowned.backoffice",
                        formattedName: "CMS SPINDOX",
                        feBaseUrl: "https://{{domain}}.ferraridealers.com/",
                        fePreownedBaseUrl: "https://{{domain}}.ferrari.com/",
                        apiUrl: "https://api.ferrari.com/cms/dws/back-office/",
                        apiKey: "REDACTED",
                        s3Bucket: "ferrari-dws-preowned-pro",
                        cdnBaseUrl: "https://cdn.ferrari.com/cms/dws/media/",
                        thronAdvUrl: "https://ferrari-app-gestioneautousate.thron.com/?fromSAML#/ad/"
                    }

From the above constants we can understand that the base API URL is `https://api.ferrari.com/cms/dws/back-office/` and a potential API key for this API is `REDACTED`.

Digging further into the JavaScript we can look for references to `apiUrl` which will inform us as to how this API is called and how the API key is being used. For example, the following JavaScript sets certain headers if the API URL is being called:

})).url.startsWith(x.a.apiUrl) && !["/back-office/dealers", "/back-office/dealer-settings", "/back-office/locales", "/back-office/currencies", "/back-office/dealer-groups"].some(t => !!e.url.match(t)) && (e = (e = e.clone({
                                    headers: e.headers.set("Authorization", "" + (s || void 0))
                                })).clone({
                                    headers: e.headers.set("x-api-key", "" + a)
                                }));

All the elements needed for this discovery were conveniently tucked away in this JavaScript file. We knew what backend API to talk to and its routes, as well as the API key we needed to authenticate to the API.

Within the JavaScript, we noticed an API call to `/cms/dws/back-office/auth/bo-users`. When requesting this API through Burp Suite, it leaked all of the users registered for the Ferrari Dealers application. Furthermore, it was possible to send a POST request to this endpoint to add ourselves as a super admin user.

While impactful, we were still looking for a vulnerability that affected the broader Ferrari ecosystem and every end user. Spending more time deconstructing the JavaScript, we found some API calls were being made to `rest-connectors`:

return t.prototype.getConnectors = function() {
    return this.httpClient.get("rest-connectors")
}, t.prototype.getConnectorById = function(t) {
    return this.httpClient.get("rest-connectors/" + t)
}, t.prototype.createConnector = function(t) {
    return this.httpClient.post("rest-connectors", t)
}, t.prototype.updateConnector = function(t, e) {
    return this.httpClient.put("rest-connectors/" + t, e)
}, t.prototype.deleteConnector = function(t) {
    return this.httpClient.delete("rest-connectors/" + t)
}, t.prototype.getItems = function() {
    return this.httpClient.get("rest-connector-models")
}, t.prototype.getItemById = function(t) {
    return this.httpClient.get("rest-connector-models/" + t)
}, t.prototype.createItem = function(t) {
    return this.httpClient.post("rest-connector-models", t)
}, t.prototype.updateItem = function(t, e) {
    return this.httpClient.put("rest-connector-models/" + t, e)
}, t.prototype.deleteItem = function(t) {
    return this.httpClient.delete("rest-connector-models/" + t)
}, t

The following request unlocked the final piece in the puzzle. Sending the following request revealed a treasure trove of API credentials for Ferrari: :

GET /cms/dws/back-office/rest-connector-models HTTP/1.1

To explain what this endpoint’s purpose was: Ferrari had configured a number of backend APIs that could be communicated with by hitting specific paths. When hitting this API endpoint, it returned this list of API endpoints, hosts and authorization headers (in plain text). 

This information disclosure allowed us to query Ferrari’s production API to access the personal information of any Ferrari customer. In addition to being able to view these API endpoints, we could also register new rest connectors or modify existing ones. 

HTTP Request

GET /core/api/v1/Users?email=ian@ian.sh HTTP/1.1
Host: fcd.services.ferrari.com

HTTP Response

HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-type: application/json

…"guid":"2d32922a-28c4-483e-8486-7c2222b7b59c","email":"ian@ian.sh","nickName":"ian@ian.sh","firstName":"Ian","lastName":"Carroll","birthdate":"1963-12-11T00:00:00"…

The API key and production endpoints that were disclosed using the previous staging API key allowed an attacker to access, create, modify, and delete any production user account. It additionally allowed an attacker to query users via email address or nickname.

Additionally, an attacker could POST to the “/core/api/v1/Users/:id/Roles” endpoint to edit their user roles, setting themselves to have super-user permissions or become a Ferrari owner.

This vulnerability would allow an attacker to access, modify, and delete any Ferrari customer account with access to manage their vehicle profile.

(4) SQL Injection and Regex Authorization Bypass on Spireon Systems allows Attacker to Access, Track, and Send Arbitrary Commands to 15 million Telematics systems and Additionally Fully Takeover Fleet Management Systems for Police Departments, Ambulance Services, Truckers, and Many Business Fleet Systems

When identifying car-related targets to hack on, we found the company Spireon. In the early 90s and 2000s, there were a few companies like OnStar, Goldstar, and FleetLocate which were standalone devices which were put into vehicles to track and manage them. The devices have the capabilities to be tracked and receive arbitrary commands, e.g. locking the starter so the vehicle cannot start.

Sometime in the past, Spireon had acquired many GPS Vehicle Tracking and Management Companies and put them under the Spireon parent company. 

We read through the Spireon marketing and saw that they claimed to have over 15 million connected vehicles. They offered services directly to customers and additionally many services through their subsidiary companies like OnStar.

We decided to research them as, if an attacker were able to compromise the administration functionality for these devices and fleets, they would be able to perform actions against over 15 million vehicles with very interesting functionalities like sending a cities police officers a dispatch location, disabling vehicle starters, and accessing financial loan information for dealers.

Our first target for this was very obvious: admin.spireon.com

The website appeared to be a very out of date global administration portal for Spireon employees to authenticate and perform some sort of action. We attempted to identify interesting endpoints which were accessible without authorization, but kept getting redirected back to the login.

Since the website was so old, we tried the trusted manual SQL injection payloads but were kicked out by a WAF that was installed on the system

We switched to a much simpler payload: sending an apostrophe, seeing if we got an error, then sending two apostrophes and seeing if we did not get an error. This worked! The system appeared to be reacting to sending an odd versus even number of apostrophes. This indicated that our input in both the username and password field was being passed to a system which could likely be vulnerable to some sort of SQL injection attack.

For the username field, we came up with a very simple payload:

victim' #

The above payload was designed to simply cut off the password check from the SQL query. We sent this HTTP request to Burp Suite’s intruder with a common username list and observed that we received various 301 redirects to “/dashboard” for the username “administrator” and “admin”.

After manually sending the HTTP request using the admin username, we observed that we were authenticated into the Spireon administrator portal as an administrator user. At this point, we browsed around the application and saw many interesting endpoints.

The functionality was designed to manage Spireon devices remotely. The administrator user had access to all Spireon devices, including those of OnStar, GoldStar, and FleetLocate. We could query these devices and retrieve the live location of whatever the devices were installed on, and additionally send arbitrary commands to these devices. There was additional functionality to overwrite the device configuration including what servers it reached out to download updated firmware.

Using this portal, an attacker could create a malicious Spireon package, update the vehicle configuration to call out to the modified package, then download and install the modified Spireon software.

At this point, an attacker could backdoor the Spireon device and run arbitrary commands against the device. 

Since these devices were very ubiquitous and were installed on things like tractors, golf carts, police cars, and ambulances, the impact of each device differed. For some, we could only access the live GPS location of the device, but for others we could disable the starter and send police and ambulance dispatch locations.

We reported the vulnerability immediately, but during testing, we observed an HTTP 500 error which disclosed the API URL of the backend API endpoint that the “admin.spireon.com” service reached out to. Initially, we dismissed this as we assumed it was internal, but after circling back we observed that we could hit the endpoint and it would trigger an HTTP 403 forbidden error.

Our goal now was seeing if we could find some sort of authorization bypass on the host and what endpoints were accessible. By bypassing the administrator UI, we could directly reach out to each device and have direct queries for vehicles and user accounts via the backend API calls.

We fuzzed the host and eventually observed some weird behavior:

By sending any string with “admin” or “dashboard”, the system would trigger an HTTP 403 forbidden response, but would return 404 if we didn’t include this string. As an example, if we attempted to load “/anything-admin-anything” we’d receive 403 forbidden, while if we attempted to load “/anything-anything” it would return a 404.

We took the blacklisted strings, put them in a list, then attempted to enumerate the specific endpoints with fuzzing characters (%00 to %FF) stuck behind the first and last characters.

During scanning, we saw that the following HTTP requests would return a 200 OK response:

GET /%0dadmin
GET /%0ddashboard

Through Burp Suite, we sent the HTTP response to our browser and observed the response: it was a full administrative portal for the core Spireon app. We quickly set up a match and replace rule to modify GET /admin and GET /dashboard to the endpoints with the %0d prefix.

After setting up this rule, we could browse to “/admin” or “/dashboard” and explore the website without having to perform any additional steps. We observed that there were dozens of endpoints which were used to query all connected vehicles, send arbitrary commands to connected vehicles, and view all customer tenant accounts, fleet accounts, and customer accounts. We had access to everything.

At this point, a malicious actor could backdoor the 15 million devices, query what ownership information was associated with a specific VIN, retrieve the full user information for all customer accounts, and invite themselves to manage any fleet which was connected to the app.

For our proof of concept, we invited ourselves to a random fleet account and saw that we received an invitation to administrate a US Police Department where we could track the entire police fleet.

(5) Mass Assignment on Reviver allows an Attacker to Remotely Track and Overwrite the Virtual License Plates for All Reviver Customers, Track and Administrate Reviver Fleets, and Access, Modify, and Delete All User Information

In October, 2022, California announced that it had legalized digital license plates. We researched this for a while and found that most, if not all of the digital license plates, were done through a company called Reviver.

If someone wanted a digital license plate, they’d buy the virtual Reviver license plate which included a SIM card for remotely tracking and updating the license plate. Customers who uses Reviver could remotely update their license plates slogan, background, and additionally report if the car had been stolen via setting the plate tag to “STOLEN”.

Since the license plate could be used to track vehicles, we were super interested in Reviver and began auditing the mobile app. We proxied the HTTP traffic and saw that all API functionality was done on the “pr-api.rplate.com” website. After creating a user account, our user account was assigned to a unique “company” JSON object which allowed us to add other sub-users to our account.

The company JSON object was super interesting as we could update many of the JSON fields within the object. One of these fields was called “type” and was default set to “CONSUMER”. After noticing this, we dug through the app source code in hopes that we could find another value to set it to, but were unsuccessful.

At this point, we took a step back and wondered if there was an actual website we could talk to versus proxying traffic through the mobile app. We looked online for a while before getting the idea to perform a reset password on our account which gave us a URL to navigate to.

Once we opened the password reset URL, we observed that the website had tons of functionality including the ability to administer vehicles, fleets, and user accounts. This was super interesting as we now had a lot more API endpoints and functionality to access. Additionally, the JavaScript on the website appeared to have the names of the other roles that our user account could be (e.g. specialized names for user, moderator, admin, etc.)

We queried the “CONSUMER” string in the JavaScript and saw that there were other roles that were defined in the JavaScript. After attempting to update our “role” parameter to the disclosed “CORPORATE” role, we refreshed out profile metadata, then saw that it was successful! We were able to change our roles to ones other than the default user account, opening the door to potential privilige escalation vulnerabilities.

It appeared that, even though we had updated our account to the “CORPORATE” role, we were still receiving authorization vulnerabilities when logging into the website. We thought for a while until realizing that we could invite users to our modified account which had the elevated role, which may then grant the invited users the required permissions since they were invited via an intended way versus mass assigning an account to an elevated role.

After inviting a new account, accepting the invitation, and logging into the account, we observed that we no longer received authorization errors and could access fleet management functionality. This meant that we could likely (1) mass assign our account to an even higher elevated role (e.g. admin), then (2) invite a user to our account which would be assigned the appropriate permissions.

This perplexed us as there was likely some administration group which existed in the system but that we had not yet identified. We brute forced the “type” parameter using wordlists until we noticed that setting our group to the number “4” had updated our role to “REVIVER_ROLE”. It appeared that the roles were indexed to numbers, and we could simply run through the numbers 0-100 and find all the roles on the website.

The “0” role was the string “REVIVER”, and after setting this on our account and re-inviting a new user, we logged into the website normally and observed that the UI was completely broken and we couldn’t click any buttons. From what we could guess, we had the administrator role but were accessing the account using the customer facing frontend website and not the appropriate administrator frontend website. We would have to find the endpoints used by administrators ourselves.

Since our administrator account theoretically had elevated permissions, our first test was simply querying a user account and seeing if we could access someone else’s data: this worked!

We could take any of the normal API calls (viewing vehicle location, updating vehicle plates, adding new users to accounts) and perform the action using our super administrator account with full authorization.

At this point, we reported the vulnerability and observed that it was patched in under 24 hours. An actual attacker could remotely update, track, or delete anyone’s REVIVER plate. We could additionally access any dealer (e.g. Mercedes-Benz dealerships will often package REVIVER plates) and update the default image used by the dealer when the newly purchased vehicle still had DEALER tags.

The Reviver website also offered fleet management functionality which we had full access to.

(6) Full Remote Vehicle Access and Full Account Takeover affecting Hyundai and Genesis

This vulnerability was written up on Twitter and can be accessed on the following thread:

https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=true&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1597695281881296897&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fsamcurry.net%2Fweb-hackers-vs-the-auto-industry%2F&sessionId=53b9ca9842ac4a0ce6fd39e82f4b1bd614f85d70&theme=light&widgetsVersion=a3525f077c700%3A1667415560940&width=550px

(7) Full Remote Vehicle Access and Full Account Takeover affecting Honda, Nissan, Infiniti, Acura

This vulnerability was written up on Twitter and can be accessed on the following thread:

https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=true&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=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%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1597792097175674880&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fsamcurry.net%2Fweb-hackers-vs-the-auto-industry%2F&sessionId=53b9ca9842ac4a0ce6fd39e82f4b1bd614f85d70&theme=light&widgetsVersion=a3525f077c700%3A1667415560940&width=550px

(8) Full Vehicle Takeover on Nissan via Mass Assignment

This vulnerability was written up on Twitter and can be accessed on the following thread:

https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=true&embedId=twitter-widget-2&features=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%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1597984481511903234&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fsamcurry.net%2Fweb-hackers-vs-the-auto-industry%2F&sessionId=53b9ca9842ac4a0ce6fd39e82f4b1bd614f85d70&theme=light&widgetsVersion=a3525f077c700%3A1667415560940&width=550px

Credits

The following people contributed towards this project:

Special thanks to the following people who helped create this blog post:

Source :
https://samcurry.net/web-hackers-vs-the-auto-industry/

How to Solve Hyper-V Cannot Delete Checkpoint | 3 Solutions

Case: Hyper-V snapshot no delete option

My Hyper-V host is Server 2012 R2. I have a virtual machine (Server 2012 R2) with a checkpoint. When I right click on the checkpoint, there is no “Delete checkpoint… ” option. I need to delete this checkpoint so that it is merged with the parent VHDX. What is the best method for doing this?

– Question from social.technet.microsoft.com

Have you ever encountered the situation where your Hyper-V cannot delete checkpoint because of “Delete” option missing? Right-clicking on the Hyper-V checkpoint, there are only “Settings”, “Export”, “Rename” and “Help” options left, why would this happen?

Hyper-V snapshot no delete option

There are many reasons may cause Hyper-V snapshot delete option not available, such as connection error with the host, or a backup tool failure. The most likely scenario is that the checkpoint created by a third-party tool was not deleted properly by the same tool.

More specifically, the checkpoints and associated .AVHDX files should be merged and deleted at the end of a backup – only the newer .AVHDX files should be kept. However, sometimes the checkpoints may be corrupted because the VM is in a locked or backed up state, or some other reason is preventing the deletion and merging. In this case, you may find the delete option missing, and Hyper-V cannot delete this checkpoint.

How to fix this? I will provide you 3 proven solutions, you can try them one by one. *They also work for cleaning up after a failed Hyper-V checkpoint.

How to solve Hyper-V cannot delete checkpoint (3 solutions)

When you are unable to delete checkpoint in Hyper-V, you can first try some regular troubleshooting means. If they cannot solve this issue, don’t worry, there are still some alternatives can help you delete Hyper-V checkpoint properly. I will cover all of them below.

Solution 1. Troubleshooting steps that you should try first

Before taking other measures, you can try some simple ways in Hyper-V Manager to see if you can make snapshot removal work. That is:

  • Right-click on the host name in Hyper-V Manager and select Refresh.
Refresh Hyper-V host
  • Close and restart the Hyper-V Manager.
  • Highlight the target checkpoint and use the [Delete] key on the keyboard. It should pop up a window confirming whether to delete the checkpoint or not.

If none of these ways can help, then you may need to try delete checkpoint Hyper-V with PowerShell.

Solution 2. Properly delete Hyper-V checkpoint with PowerShell

Hyper-V PowerShell module is a bundle of cmdlets for creating, configuring and managing Microsoft Hyper-V hosts and virtual machines. It can be more a time efficient method than using GUI. You can use it remove any Hyper-V checkpoint that has no delete option.

Launch Windows PowerShell as administrator on the Hyper-V host, input and execute the following command to delete the checkpoint:

Get-VMSnapshot -VMName <VMName> | Remove-VMSnapshot

Delete Hyper-V checkpoint via PowerShell

Note:

1. You need to replace <VMName> with your target virtual machine name.

2. If you need to specify a host, you can add a parameter of -ComputerName. The command looks like:

Get-VMSnapshot -ComputerName <ComputerName> -VMName <VMName> | Remove-VMSnapshot

3. If you want to delete a specified checkpoint, you can first run the command to get the checkpoint name:

Get-VMSnapshot -ComputerName <ComputerName> -VMName <VMName>

Then use the name to delete the specified checkpoint, the command will be like:

Get-VMSnapshot -VMName <VMName> -Name <CheckpointName> | Remove-VMSnapshot

Once the command succeeded, you can see the merge progress for the particular VM. It may take some time depending on the snapshot size. After that, you should be able to modify the virtual machine configuration again.

If this method still cannot delete your Hyper-V checkpoint, turn to the next one.

Solution 3. Export and import Hyper-V VM to resolve checkpoint cannot delete

You can try Hyper-V export VM and import as suggested by some other users, which are also said can be used to solve the problem.

1. Launch Hyper-V Manager. Right-click on the name of the target checkpoint, and select Export…

Export Hyper-V checkpoint

2. In the pop-up window, click Browse to specify a network share as the storage destination to the exported files. And then click Export.

export  checkpoint

3. Right-click on the host name and select Import Virtual Machine… Click Next on the pop-up wizard.

Import Virtual Machine

4. On Locate Folder page, click Browse… to specify the folder containing the exported VM files. Click Next to continue.

Locate Folder

5. On Select Virtual Machine page, select the virtual machine to import, then click Next.

Select Virtual Machine

4. On Choose Import Type page, choose the type of import to perform:

  • Register the virtual machine in-place (use the existing unique ID): use the exported files in-place, and when the import has completed, the export files become the running state files and can’t be removed. The ID will be the same as the exported one.
  • Restore the virtual machine (use the existing unique ID): restore the VM to the specified or default location, with the same ID as the exported one. When the import has completed, the exported files remain intact and can be removed or imported again.
  • Copy the virtual machine (create a new unique ID): restore the VM to the specified or default location, and create a new unique ID. Which means the exported files remain intact and can be removed or imported again, and you can import the VM to the same host multiple times.

Click Next to continue.

Choose Import Type

5. Choose the second or the third option, the wizard will add 2 more pages for selecting storage.

On Choose Destination page, you can check Store the virtual machine in a different location option, and click Browse… to specify Virtual machine configuration folder, Checkpoint store, and Smart paging folder. Leave the option unchecked the wizard will import the files to default Hyper-V folders. Then click Next.

Choose Destination

6. On Choose Storage Folders page, you can click Browse… to specify where you want to store the imported virtual hard disks for this VM, or leave the default location unchanged. Then click Next.

Choose Storage Folders

7. On Summary page, review the settings and click Finish to start restore.

Summary

Furthere reading: FAQ about Hyper-V delete checkpoint

The above describes how to solve the problem that the delete option disappears and the hyper-v checkpoint cannot be deleted. Besides, many users may have some other confusion about checkpoints. I have compiled some common questions and their answers here.

Q: Where are checkpoints stored on a Hyper-V host?

In general, the default location for storing checkpoint configuration files is:

%systemroot%\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Hyper-V\Snapshots

And the default locations for storing AVHDX files (checkpoint storages) are:

Windows Server 2012R2 / Windows 8.1: C:UsersPublicDocumentsHyper-VVirtual Hard Disks

Windows Server 2012 / Windows 8: C:ProgramDataMicrosoftWindowsHyper-VNew Virtual MachineVirtual Hard Disks

Q: Can you directly delete checkpoint files (.avhdx)?

Whenever a checkpoint is deleted, Hyper-V merges the .vhdx and .avhdx files automatically, and the .avhdx files should be removed from the disk after the Hyper-V checkpoint merging process is complete. So a proper checkpoint deletion does not result in data loss.

It’s not a good idea to delete the .avhdx file in VM folder directly, because it may cause the checkpoint tree to fail.

The normal steps to delete a checkpoint is:

Open the Hyper-V Manager -> Select the virtual machine for which you need to remove checkpoints -> Locate the Checkpoints tab -> Right-click on the desired checkpoint -> click “Delete Checkpoint”. If asked to confirm the action, make sure the checkpoint is correct and click “Delete” again.

Note if you need to delete all subsequent checkpoints, right-click the earliest checkpoint and click “Delete Checkpoint Subtree”.

If you find some orphaned Hyper-V AVHDX files in the VM folder, but no snapshots on that VM, this may be because incomplete deletion or merging, you can refer to: delete Hyper-V AVHDX file without checkpoints.

Q: Hyper-V checkpoint delete vs merge

A checkpoint is any new change or save between the old state and the present, it stops writing to the actual disk and writes to the change disk.

Once you are satisfied and delete the checkpoint, the changes are written back/merged to the actual disk and are write enabled again. Therefore, deleting a checkpoint and merging a checkpoint are actually the same thing.

If you don’t want the changes, you just need to revert them and any changes since the checkpoint will be deleted.

Q: Can Hyper-V checkpoints be used as regular backup means?

The answer is NO. VM snapshot and backup are different from each other. Microsoft’s Hyper-V checkpoint is not a replacement of backup.

When you create a backup, you are creating a copy of your virtual machine. It stores complete data of VM. Backups in Hyper-V can be used to restore a whole VM and do not affect the performance.

When you create a checkpoint, you are creating a differencing disk based on the original virtual machine hard disk. If the original disk is damaged, the child disk is easy to be lost or damaged as well. All changes made after the checkpoint are re-directed to the child disk and leaves the original virtual machine disk read-only.

Meanwhile, checkpoints are running out of the memory of disk with a rapid speed, which will gradually  to the poor performance of your virtual machines.

Hyper-V Restore Checkpoint

In short, Hyper-V checkpoint is just a secure “undo” button. If you want to test something quickly and restore the VM to a stable state, checkpoint in Hyper-V is convenient and fast to execute the process. But, if you want long-term and independent protection for VMs, you still need to find effective Hyper-V backup solution.

Better option for long-term protection: Image-based VM backup

As mentioned above, if you are looking for long-term data protection and the ability to quickly restore VMs to a usable state in the event of a disaster, then you are more suited to an image-based VM backup solution.

Here I’d like to introduce you AOMEI Cyber Backup, this free Hyper-V backup solution is designed to protect virtual machines from any data threats, whether you are using Hyper-V in Microsoft Windows Server 2022 / 2019 / 2016 / 2012 R2, Microsoft Windows 11 / 10 / 8 / 8.1 or Hyper-V Server 2019 / 2016 / 2012 R2.

You can use the software to simplify Hyper-V backup and management. If offers you the following benefits:

Easy-to-use: User-friendly interface to complete backup and restore process based on several clicks.
Perpetual Free: No time limit for AOMEI Cyber Backup Free Edition to protect up to multiple virtual machines.
Auto Backup Schedule: Schedule backups for multiple VMs at once and auto run it without powering off VMs.
Centralized Management: Create and manage Hyper-V VM backups from the central console without installing Agent on each VM.
Flexible Backup Strategy: Flexibly tracking data and store backups to different storages.
Role Assignment: allows one administrator to create sub-accounts with limited privileges.

Please hit the button below to download and use AOMEI Cyber Backup for free:

Download FreewareVMware ESXi & Hyper-V

Secure Download

*You can choose to install this VM backup software on either Windows or Linux system.

3 easy steps to perform free VM backup:

1. Open AOMEI Cyber Backup web client, and access to Source Device >> Hyper-V >> Add Hyper-V to bind your Hyper-V host, then enter the required information and click Confirm.

Add Hyper-V Host

2. Access to Backup Task >> Create New Task to configure your Hyper-V backup task. In the opened wizard, you can select Hyper-V virtual machines to back up, the storages to save the backups.

Backup Target

Also, you can configure Schedule to select backup method as full / incremental backup, and specify the backup frequency on basis of daily / weekly / monthly to automatically run the Hyper-V backup task.

Schedule Hyper-V VM Backup

3. Start Backup: click Start Backup and select Add the schedule and start backup now, or Add the schedule only.

When completing the Hyper-V backup solution, you can monitor the backing up process on the main interface, and you can also check the Backup Log to see if there are any errors that result in your backup failure.

When you want to Restore a VM from the backup, you can select any backup version from the history, and Restore to original location easily.

Restore Hyper-V VM

✍While the Free Edition covers most of the VM backup needs, you can also upgrade to enjoy:

  • Backup Cleanup: Specify retention policy to delete old VM backups automatically, thus saving storage space.
  • Restore to new location: Make a clone of a virtual machine in the same or another datastore/host, without reinstalling or configuring a new VM.

Summary

If you find your Hyper-V snapshot no delete option, I summarized several ways to solve the problem Hyper-V cannot delete checkpoint in this article. Hope it could be helpful to you.

Besides this, you may encounter some other issues, such as Hyper-V VM running slow, stuck at restoring or saved state, Hyper-V VM no internet, failed to change state, etc. To prevent your virtual machines from getting all kinds of errors and eventual crashes, it’s always recommended to back up your VMs that are loaded with important data.

Source :
https://www.ubackup.com/enterprise-backup/hyper-v-cannot-delete-checkpoint.html

The best productivity apps in 2023

The premise of this article’s headline is nonsense, sure, but it isn’t clickbait—I promise. 

You’re almost certainly here because you searched for “best productivity apps.” I understand that impulse. You want to get more done in less time, which is about as universal a feeling as humans can have at work. The problem: productivity is deeply personal, and the words “productivity tools” mean a lot of different things to different people. What works for you may or may not work for me, which is why—after over a decade of writing about productivity software—I don’t really believe there are objectively “best” productivity apps. 

5 things you should automate today

Start automating

I do, however, think there are categories of tools that can help you become a better version of yourself. Some of them work better for more people than others, and not everyone needs an app from every category. Knowing what kinds of apps exist, and what you should look for in an app, is more important than knowing what the “best” app in that category is. 

Having said that, you’re here for software recommendations, not my personal reflections on the nature of productivity. So I’m going to go over the main kinds of productivity apps I think most humans who use electronic devices at work should know about. I’ll explain why I think each category is important, point to an app or two that I think will work well for most people, then offer links to other options if you want to learn more. 

Just remember: the specific app doesn’t matter. The best productivity app is the one that works best for you. The most important thing is having a system. Sound good? Let’s jump in. 

How we evaluate and test apps

All of our best apps roundups are written by humans who’ve spent much of their careers using, testing, and writing about software. We spend dozens of hours researching and testing apps, using each app as it’s intended to be used and evaluating it against the criteria we set for the category. We’re never paid for placement in our articles from any app or for links to any site—we value the trust readers put in us to offer authentic evaluations of the categories and apps we review. For more details on our process, read the full rundown of how we select apps to feature on the Zapier blog.


A to-do list like Todoist

We all have things we need to do—at work and in the rest of our lives. The worst place you could store those things, in my opinion, is in your mind. It’s just stressful: you’ll remember, at random moments, that there’s something you were supposed to be doing, and that memory will result in panic. Writing down everything you need to do allows you to make a plan, and (crucially) means you don’t have to panic. 

Not everyone benefits from a dedicated to-do list app—some of the most productive people I know prefer sticky notesemail inboxes, or even spreadsheets. I think that’s great, so long as you have some place to record the things you need to do. 

Todoist, our pick for the best to-do list app for balancing power and simplicity

I think that Todoist, shown above, is a great to-do list app for most people. It’s easy to use but also offers a lot of features. It can also be installed on basically any device you can imagine, meaning your to-do list is always available. It allows you to assign due dates to tasks, sort tasks by project, or even view a project using a Kanban board. You don’t have to worry about those features if you don’t want to, though, which is why I think it’s a great starting point for someone who needs a to-do list. 

If Todoist doesn’t work for you, though, check out our list of the best to-do list apps—it’s got a wide variety of recommendations. I, personally, use TickTick because I like how easy it is to add tasks, and I also can’t stop saying good things about Things for sheer simplicity on Apple devices. Find a tool you like—and that you remember to actually open. There’s nothing less useful than an app full of tasks you never look at. 

Once you’ve picked your to-do list app, make the most of it with automation, so you can easily add tasks that come in by email, team chat apps, project management tools, or notes. Read more about automating your to-do list.

A calendar like Google Calendar

There are only so many hours in the day, unfortunately, which means you have to budget them. A calendar is how you do that. You could use a paper wall calendar, sure, but a calendar app lets you invite other people to an event. Also, in a world where so many meetings are virtual, calendar apps give you a useful place to store the link to your Zoom call. 

Google Calendar, our pick for the best free calendar app

I think that Google Calendar, shown above, is the right calendar app for most people—particularly people who already use Gmail. Google Calendar is easy to load on any device, lets you see your calendar in several different views, and makes it easy to invite anyone else to any event or meeting you happen to plan. I could write multiple articles on Google Calendar features (and I have). This app does everything any other app can do, and more, all while being pretty easy to use.

If Google Calendar doesn’t work for you, though, check out our list of the best calendar apps for more options. Microsoft Outlook is a solid alternative, as is the Calendar app that comes with all Apple devices. 

I’d also consider looking into some kind of meeting scheduling app. These apps let anyone sign up for appointments with you, which is particularly useful if you have a meeting-heavy calendar. Calendly, shown below, is a solid option, with a lot of customizability and the ability to sync with Google Calendar. You can check out our list of the best meeting schedulers for a more complete rundown of Calendly and other options. 

Calendly, our pick for the best meeting scheduler app for simplified scheduling

Once you choose a calendar app, take it to the next level. With automation, you can do things like automatically turn calendar events into tasks on your to-do list or use forms to create calendar events. Here’s how you can bring context to your calendar by connecting other apps.

A note-taking app like OneNote

I’m constantly taking notes: before and during meetings; while researching an article; while brewing beer. And I think most people have some class of information they’ll need to reference later that doesn’t quite meet the threshold of a “document.” Who wants a sprawling series of folders with all of that information? 

This, to me, is what note-taking apps are for: quickly writing things down so you can read them later and (hopefully) follow up. They also work well as a personal journal, or a place to store files related to a particular project. 

Justin's beer brewing notes in OneNote

OneNote, above, is probably the note-taking app most people should try first. It’s free—so long as you don’t run out of OneDrive storage—and it gives you all kinds of ways to organize notes, from notebooks to sections to sub-headers. It also has powerful search, which includes the scanned contents of any images or PDFs you might drop in a note. 

But OneNote isn’t the only option. You should check out our list of the best note-taking apps for more choices. If you loved Evernote back in the day, you should check out Joplin, which is a completely free and open source replacement for that app. And I personally love Obsidian, which turns your notes into an entire database, complete with internal links and an extensive plugin collection. There are a lot of good choices out there—find something that lets you write things down and dig them up later.

See our favorite ways to use automation to improve how you put your notes to worktrack action items from meetings, and put an end to regular copy-paste actions.

A distraction blocker like Freedom

I’ve never tried to work in the middle of an amusement park, but I imagine it would be distracting. The internet is worse. Everything you could possibly imagine is available, all delivered by brilliant engineers who are doing everything they can to keep you looking at more and more and more of it. It’s understandable if you have trouble getting stuff done in that context, which is why apps that block distractions are so helpful. 

Freedom, our pick for the best focus app for blocking distractions on all your devices at once

Freedom is a great tool for the job. It runs on every platform and can block distractions—both websites and apps—on all of your devices. That means you can’t, for example, block Twitter on your computer only to pick up your phone and look at it there. With Freedom, you can set up multiple block lists, then start timers for any of them.

I personally love Serene, which combines distraction blocking with a sort of to-do list. You say what you want to do and how long it will take, then you start a distraction-free session to work on it. There’s also Cold Turkey Blocker, which can optionally prevent you from changing the time settings on your computer as a way of working around the block you set up. You’ve got more choices, though, particularly if you’re a Mac user. Check out our list of the best distraction blockers to learn more. 

Remember: the internet is distracting on purpose. There’s no shame in using a tool to build discipline. 

A habit tracker like Streaks or HabitNow

My dentist tells me I should brush my teeth twice a day, and I believe him, but I tended to only brush at night. I used a habit tracker to change that. 

These applications might sound similar to a to-do list, but they’re very different. You can’t add individual tasks to a habit tracker—only recurring ones. The idea is to set an intention to do something regularly, then keep track of how often you regularly do it. Eventually, you have a streak going, which psychologically motivates you to keep it up until the habit becomes second nature. Don’t laugh—it works. 

Streaks, our pick for the best habit tracker for iPhone

We recommend checking out Streaks, shown above, for iPhone and HabitNow, below, for Android. These apps both live on your phone, which is the place you’re most likely to look. They both let you create a list of habits you’d like to build, then remind you about that intention. They also both show you your progress in various ways. 

HabitNow, our pick for the best habit tracker for Android users

They’re not the only options, however; check out our list of the best habit tracker apps for more ideas. Also keep in mind that some to-do lists have habit-tracking capabilities built right in. I, personally, use TickTick‘s built-in habit tracker—I love it. And some people use a paper calendar for tracking a simple habit—just add an X every day you stick to your habit. 

An app to save things for later like Pocket

I’d love to read articles or watch YouTube videos all day. We all would. Sometimes, though, you have to do something else—even though your friend just sent you a really, really interesting article. That’s where read-it-later apps come in. They let you quickly save something you intend to read, so that you can come back to it when you have time.

Pocket, our pick for the best read it later app for turning articles into a podcast

I think that Pocket, above, is the app of choice in this class. It’s free to use, offers extensions for every major browser, and also has great mobile versions that sync your articles for offline reading. There’s even built-in support for highlighting, then reviewing your highlights later. 

Instapaper is a close second, and it even lets you send articles to your Kindle. These aren’t your only choices, though—check out our list of the best read-it-later apps for some more options. It’s also worth noting that some people use bookmarking apps or even note-taking apps for the same purpose, and that’s great—they both make it easy to save things for future reference. 

Automate the process of saving articles by connecting your read-it-later app to Zapier. Here are some ideas to get you started.

A screen recording tool like Loom

Whether it’s for a quick presentation or troubleshooting a problem, sometimes recording what’s on your screen and sharing it just makes life easier. Screen recording tools are perfect for this, allowing you to quickly record your screen, your voice, and even your face if you have a webcam. 

A screenshot of Loom, our pick for the best screen recording software for quickly recording and sharing on desktop

Loom is a great first tool to check out in this category. It’s easy to set up, works on all major platforms, and makes it really simple to share recordings. You can even add your face, via a webcam, to the recording. 

I personally use Zappy, which was originally an internal tool used by Zapier. It’s honestly the best screenshot tool I’ve ever used, and it’s free—if you use a Mac, it’s worth a try. Check out our list of the best screen recording tools for more options, and keep in mind you can actually record your screen without any software, if you don’t mind managing the file yourself. 

Want to share your screen in real-time? You need a screen sharing tool (Zoom works pretty well, surprisingly).

Other productivity tools worth checking out

This article could go on forever. There’s no end to great software out there, and I love writing about it. I think the above categories should save you all kinds of time—and take up plenty of your time to set up—but here are a few other suggestions if you’re feeling particularly motivated.

  • Password managers, like LastPass or 1Password, help you generate random passwords for all of your different services without the need for memorization. This is great for security, but it also makes logging in to stuff faster. Here’s a list of the best password managers.
  • Mobile scanning apps, like Microsoft Lens, let you scan documents using your phone while also digitizing any text using optical character recognition (OCR). Check out our list of the best mobile scanning OCR apps for more choices. 
  • Text expansion tools, like PhraseExpress, mean you’ll never need to look up and copy-paste the same message to multiple people ever again. Read more about text expansion software, or learn how it can make you better at dating
  • Dictation software, like Dragon by Nuance, lets you type by talking, which can save you all sorts of time. Here’s our list of the best dictation software.
  • Time tracking apps, like Toggl Track, are great for keeping track of how long projects take and making sure you’re not spending too much time on the wrong things. Take a look at our list of the best time tracking apps to find the right one for you.
  • Mind mapping software, like Coggle, helps you map the connections between different ideas while you’re brainstorming. Here are our picks for the best mind mapping software.
  • AI software, like OpenAI, could make all kinds of tasks easier in the future. It’s early, granted, but I already find it useful when I’m in the brainstorming phase of a project—I can ask the bot to generate ideas.

Once you have apps set up in some of these categories, you can take the whole productivity thing even further. Automation software like ours at Zapier connects all the other apps you use, with workflows you can build yourself—no code required. Like the tools above, Zapier won’t solve every problem you have, but it’s a great way to connect tools that otherwise don’t integrate well—which means you can use the best tools for you, as opposed to the tools that happen to play nice together. And it’s not limited to productivity—eventually, you’ll find yourself automating even your most business-critical workflows.

Plus, if you sign up for Zapier, we’ll be able to write more useful articles like this one. Here are five things you should automate today to get started.

This post was originally published in September 2018 by Matthew Guay. The most recent update was in December 2022.

Source :
https://zapier.com/blog/best-productivity-apps/

Set Chrome as Default Browser using GPO

In this guide, I’m going to show you how to make Google Chrome the default browser using Group Policy (GPO). This guide applies to Windows Server 2012,2016,2019, 2022 as well as Windows 8/10/11.

To do this, there are several steps you’ll need to do. It’s not as simple as just creating a GPO and applying it to a target computer.

This guide assumes you’ve already implemented Google Chrome Enterprise and are already managing Google Chrome browsers at an enterprise level. If not, follow step 1 first.


Step 1: (Optional) Import Google Chrome .ADMX Template Files

Before you begin to manage settings and policies for your Google Chrome browser, you first need to download the .admx and .adml files from here: https://chromeenterprise.google/browser/for-your-enterprise/

Extract it once download and expand the subfolder Configuration.

  1. In the “adm” folder, find your language (en-US) and copy the chrome.adm file to your desktop.
  2. In the admx folder, find your language again (en-US), and copy the chrome.adml file to your desktop.

Next, RDP to your Domain Controller. Copy those two extracted files to the desktop of your DC.

  1. Browse to C:\Windows\PolicyDefinitions and drag the chrome.admx.
  2. In C:\Windows\PolicyDefinitions\en-US\folder, drag the chrome.adml file.

Now that you’ve copied in the necessary Group Policy files to manage your Google Chrome browsers, install Chrome Enterprise from here.

I used PDQ Deploy to push this out to all computers, but for testing you can simply install it on your PC.


Step 2: Create a new Group Policy Object

Log into your Domain Controller and open Group Policy ManagementRight-click Group Policy Objects > New. Give it a helpful name like “Chrome Default Browser”.

Right-click the new policy > Edit. Then expand Computer Configuration > Policies > Administrative Templates > Google > Google Chrome. Double-click that and switch to Enabled.

You’ll notice in the Help section of the GPO that this will only work for Windows 7. For Windows 8-10, you will need to define a file associates XML file.


Step 3: Deploy File Associations File

The next step is to download a “default file associations” sample file, place it on a network share, and then configure another group policy.

Download the sample file from here: https://smarthomepursuits.com/download/5801/

You can either place the file in a network share available by everyone. Or, you could also use Powershell or PDQ Deploy/SCCM to push this file to a certain location on everyone’s computer.

For this example, I put the file in a network share like this: \\server01\fileshare01\chromedefault.xml


Step 4: Edit Chrome Browser GPO to include path to XML

Next, open up Group Policy Management from your DC again. Edit your new “Chrome Default Browser” policy.

Navigate to Computer Configuration > Policies > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > File Explorer.

Locate the “Set a default associations configuration file” policy. Edit it, and use the path from step 3.

Click Apply and OK once complete.


Step 5: Update GPO and Test

Next, you need to apply this GPO to a target OU or computer. I always recommend moving a test computer from Active Directory Users & Computers into a test OU to prevent breaking any production systems.

Locate the OU > right-click > Link an existing GPO > Choose the new “Chrome Default Browser” GPO.

Once the computer has been moved into the test OU, and you’ve applied the policy to that same OU, run the following command on the command to update the policy:

gpupdate /force

Then, sign out. The default browser will not be switched until after you log out.

To confirm it’s working properly, search Windows for “Default Apps” on your computer and switch it to Edge. Then, sign out and sign back in. If all goes well – you can open Default Apps again and successfully see that it has switched your default web browser to Google Chrome!


Wrapping Up

Hopefully this guide helped you force change the default web browser to Google Chrome for your company!

Source :
https://smarthomepursuits.com/set-chrome-as-default-browser-using-gpo/

Find Computers Recently Joined To Active Directory

If you’ve been looking for a Powershell script to find the most recent computers that have been joined to your Active Directory domain, then you’re in luck.

This Powershell script is super simple and is only a few lines of code long. I’ve also paired it with my Next In Line Computer Name Script. We have a standard naming convention when joining computer objects to the domain: company abbreviations, then append a number.

When this script runs, it will output computers that have been joined to the domain within the last 30 days. You can of course change the number to anything you like.


Powershell Script To Filter by Join Date / When Computer Account Was Created

$Joined = [DateTime]::Today.AddDays(-30)
Get-ADComputer -Filter 'WhenCreated -ge $joined' -Properties whenCreated | Format-Table Name,whenCreated,distinguishedName -Autosize -Wrap

Here’s what the output looks like:

If you have the same naming convention we do, then you could obviously just look at the last joined object and create xxxxxxx745 as the next object. However, if you’d like to take it a step further and have it display a box that visually tells you which computer name to use, then follow this guide. (It’s as simple as creating a text file called number.txt and adding the number of the last computer object you joined to the domain.)

If you’ve set that up, then here is the script you could use instead. On the last line, just append your computer prefix in place of the xxxx’s.

[void][Reflection.Assembly]::LoadWithPartialName('Microsoft.VisualBasic')

$NotifyUser = {
    [Microsoft.VisualBasic.Interaction]::MsgBox(
        ($args -join ' '), #Notification
        [Microsoft.VisualBasic.MsgBoxStyle]::Information,
        "Next Available Computer Object" #TitleBar
    )
}

[int](get-content "\\fileshare\IT\Scripts\New Hire-Computer\number.txt") + 1 | out-file "\\fileshare\IT\Scripts\New Hire-Computer\number.txt"
$Value = Get-content "\\fileshare\IT\Scripts\New Hire-Computer\number.txt"
$recently = [DateTime]::Today.AddDays(-30)
Write-Host -BackgroundColor Magenta Computers joined to the domain within last 30 days:
Get-ADComputer -Filter 'WhenCreated -ge $recently' -Properties whenCreated | Format-Table Name,whenCreated -Autosize -Wrap

&$NotifyUser Use Computer Name: xxxxxxx$Value

My Homelab Equipment

Here is some of the gear I use in my Homelab. I highly recommend each of them.

The full list of server components I use can be found on my Equipment List page.

Source :
https://smarthomepursuits.com/find-computers-recently-joined-to-active-directory/

Traffic Light Protocol (TLP) Definitions and Usage

CISA currently uses Traffic Light Protocol (TLP) according to the FIRST Standard Definitions and Usage Guidance — TLP Version 2.0Note: On Nov. 1, 2022, CISA officially adopted TLP 2.0; however, CISA’s Automated Indicator Sharing (AIS) capability will not update from TLP 1.0 to TLP 2.0 until March 2023. This exception includes AIS’s use of the following open standards: the Structured Threat Information Expression (STIX™) for cyber threat indicators and defensive measures information and the Trusted Automated Exchange of Intelligence Information (TAXII™) for machine-to-machine communications.

In addition to the FIRST TLP 2.0 webpage, see CISA’s:

Collapse All Sections

What is TLP?

The Traffic Light Protocol (TLP) was created in order to facilitate greater sharing of information. TLP is a set of designations used to ensure that sensitive information is shared with the appropriate audience. It employs five official marking options to indicate expected sharing boundaries to be applied by the recipient(s). TLP only has five marking options; any designations not listed in this standard are not considered valid by FIRST.

TLP provides a simple and intuitive schema for indicating when and how sensitive information can be shared, facilitating more frequent and effective collaboration. TLP is not a “control marking” or classification scheme. TLP was not designed to handle licensing terms, handling and encryption rules, and restrictions on action or instrumentation of information. TLP labels and their definitions are not intended to have any effect on freedom of information or “sunshine” laws in any jurisdiction.

TLP is optimized for ease of adoption, human readability and person-to-person sharing; it may be used in automated sharing exchanges, but is not optimized for that use.

TLP is distinct from the Chatham House Rule (when a meeting, or part thereof, is held under the Chatham House Rule, participants are free to use the information received, but neither the identity nor the affiliation of the speaker(s), nor that of any other participant, may be revealed.), but may be used in conjunction if it is deemed appropriate by participants in an information exchange.

The source is responsible for ensuring that recipients of TLP information understand and can follow TLP sharing guidance.

If a recipient needs to share the information more widely than indicated by the original TLP designation, they must obtain explicit permission from the original source.

How do I determine appropriate TLP designation?

ColorWhen should it be used?How may it be shared?
 TLP:RED 
TLP:RED
Not for disclosure, restricted to participants only.
Sources may use TLP:RED when information cannot be effectively acted upon without significant risk for the privacy, reputation, or operations of the organizations involved. For the eyes and ears of individual recipients only, no further.Recipients may not share TLP:RED information with any parties outside of the specific exchange, meeting, or conversation in which it was originally disclosed. In the context of a meeting, for example, TLP:RED information is limited to those present at the meeting. In most circumstances, TLP:RED should be exchanged verbally or in person.
 TLP:AMBER+STRICT 
TLP:AMBER
Limited disclosure, restricted to participants’ organization.
Sources may use TLP:AMBER+STRICT when information requires support to be effectively acted upon, yet carries risk to privacy, reputation, or operations if shared outside of the organization.Recipients may share TLP:AMBER+STRICT information only with members of their own organization on a need-to-know basis to protect their organization and prevent further harm.
 TLP:AMBER 
TLP:AMBER
Limited disclosure, restricted to participants’ organization and its clients (see Terminology Definitions).
Sources may use TLP:AMBER when information requires support to be effectively acted upon, yet carries risk to privacy, reputation, or operations if shared outside of the organizations involved. Note that TLP:AMBER+STRICT should be used to restrict sharing to the recipient organization only. Recipients may share TLP:AMBER information with members of their own organization and its clients on a need-to-know basis to protect their organization and its clients and prevent further harm.
 TLP:GREEN 
TLP:GREEN
Limited disclosure, restricted to the community.
Sources may use TLP:GREEN when information is useful to increase awareness within their wider community.Recipients may share TLP:GREEN information with peers and partner organizations within their community, but not via publicly accessible channels. Unless otherwise specified, TLP:GREEN information may not be shared outside of the cybersecurity or cyber defense community.
 TLP:CLEAR 
TLP:WHITE
Disclosure is not limited.
Sources may use TLP:CLEAR when information carries minimal or no foreseeable risk of misuse, in accordance with applicable rules and procedures for public release.Recipients may share this information without restriction. Information is subject to standard copyright rules.

TLP 2.0 Terminology Definitions

Community

Under TLP, a community is a group who share common goals, practices, and informal trust relationships. A community can be as broad as all cybersecurity practitioners in a country (or in a sector or region).

Organization

Under TLP, an organization is a group who share a common affiliation by formal membership and are bound by common policies set by the organization. An organization can be as broad as all members of an information sharing organization, but rarely broader.

Clients

Under TLP, clients are those people or entities that receive cybersecurity services from an organization. Clients are by default included in TLP:AMBER so that the recipients may share information further downstream in order for clients to take action to protect themselves. For teams with national responsibility, this definition
includes stakeholders and constituents. Note: CISA considers “clients” to be stakeholders and constituents that have a legal agreement with CISA.

Usage

How to use TLP in email

TLP-designated email correspondence should indicate the TLP color of the information in the Subject line and in the body of the email, prior to the designated information itself. The TLP color must be in capital letters: TLP:RED, TLP:AMBER+STRICT, TLP:AMBER, TLP:GREEN, or TLP:WHITE.

How to use TLP in documents

TLP-designated documents should indicate the TLP color of the information in the header and footer of each page. To avoid confusion with existing control marking schemes, it is advisable to right-justify TLP designations. The TLP color should appear in capital letters and in 12 point type or greater. Note: TLP 2.0 has changed the color coding of TLP:RED to accomodate individuals with low vision.

RGB:
TLP:RED : R=255, G=43, B=43, background: R=0, G=0, B=0
TLP:AMBER : R=255, G=192, B=0, background: R=0, G=0, B=0
TLP:GREEN : R=51, G=255, B=0, background: R=0, G=0, B=0
TLP:WHITE : R=255, G=255, B=255, background: R=0, G=0, B=0

CMYK:
TLP:RED : C=0, M=83, Y=83, K=0, background: C=0, M=0, Y=0, K=100
TLP:AMBER : C=0, M=25, Y=100, K=0, background: C=0, M=0, Y=0, K=100
TLP:GREEN : C=79, M=0, Y=100, K=0, background: C=0, M=0, Y=0, K=100
TLP:WHITE : C=0, M=0, Y=0, K=0, background: C=0, M=0, Y=0, K=100

Source :
https://www.cisa.gov/tlp

Apply sensitivity labels to your files and email in Office

Excel for Microsoft 365 Word for Microsoft 365 Outlook for Microsoft 365 More…

Note: This feature requires a Microsoft 365 subscription and is available for users and organizations whose administrators have set up sensitivity labels. If you’re an administrator looking to get started with sensitivity labels see Get started with sensitivity labels.

You can apply sensitivity labels to your files and emails to keep them compliant with your organization’s information protection policies.

The names of these labels, the descriptions you see when you hover over them, and when to use each label will be customized for you by your organization. If you need additional information about which label to apply, and when, contact your organization’s IT department.

How are sensitivity labels applied?

Sensitivity labels are applied either manually or automatically.

Note: Even if your administrator has not configured automatic labeling, they may have configured your system to require a label on all Office files and emails, and may also have selected a default label as the starting point. If labels are required you won’t be able to save a Word, Excel, or PowerPoint file, or send an email in Outlook, without selecting a sensitivity label. 

To apply, change, or remove a label manually follow these steps:

Office 365Office 365 for MacOffice for AndroidOffice for iOSWeb

Outlook

  1. When composing an email, select Sensitivity.

    Sensitivity button in Outlook for the webImportant:  Sensitivity is not available if your Office account isn’t a work account, and if your administrator hasn’t configured any sensitivity labels and enabled the feature for you. 
  2. Choose the sensitivity label that applies to your email.

    Sensitivity button with sensitivity options in Outlook for the webNote: If your organization has configured a website to learn more about their sensitivity labels, you will also see a Learn More option.

To remove a sensitivity label that has already been applied to an email, unselect it from the Sensitivity menu. Naturally if your organization requires labels on all files you won’t be able to remove it.

Word, Excel, PowerPoint

  1. On the Home tab, select Sensitivity.

    Sensitivity button in Office on the webImportant:  Sensitivity is not available if your Office account isn’t a work account with a Office 365 Enterprise E3 or Office 365 Enterprise E5 license assigned, or if your administrator hasn’t configured any sensitivity labels and enabled the feature for you .
  2. Choose the sensitivity label that applies to your file.

    Sensitivity button and dropdown menu in Office on the webNote: If your organization has configured a website to learn more about their sensitivity labels, you will also see a Learn More option.

To remove a sensitivity label that has already been applied to a file, unselect it from the Sensitivity menu. Naturally if your organization requires labels on all files you won’t be able to remove it.

Automatically applied (or recommended) labels

If your administrator has set up automatic labeling then files or emails that contain certain kinds of information – such as social security numbers, credit card numbers, or other sensitive information – can have a specified label either recommended for, or applied, automatically. 

If a label has been applied automatically you’ll see a notification below the Office ribbon that looks like this.

Screenshot of a Policy Tip for an automatically applied sensitivity label

The notice for when a label has been recommended, but not automatically applied, looks similar.

For more information see Automatically apply or recommend sensitivity labels to your files and emails in Office 

How do I know what label is currently applied?

The way to see the currently applied label, if any, varies slightly depending upon whether you’re on desktop or mobile.

On desktop apps (including Office for the web) look at the status bar at the bottom of the window.

The Excel status bar showing a "General" sensitivity label has been applied

On the Office mobile apps, select the  Three dots icon  menu.

Outlook is a bit different

In Outlook nothing appears if no label has been selected or if you’re composing an email and only the default label is applied. 

If a label has been selected, however, you’ll see it on the InfoBar just above the To field.

A sensitivity label displayed in the InfoBar above the To field in an Outlook email message.

What happens when I apply a sensitivity label?

When you apply a sensitivity label, the label information will persist with your file or email, even as it is shared between devices, applications, and cloud services. Applying a sensitivity label may also result in changes to your file or email according to your organization’s configuration, such as:

  • Encryption with Information Rights Management may be applied to your file or email
  • A header or footer may appear in your file or email
  • A watermark may appear in your file

Note: If you don’t have permission to change or remove a sensitivity label, you’ll be prevented from doing so with an error message in most apps. In some apps, like Outlook mobile, the sensitivity labels will simply be disabled.

Not all apps on all platforms support the same behavior, so the exact results of applying a sensitivity label may vary slightly. For more information about what capabilities are supported on each platform see Support for sensitivity label capabilities in apps.

Justify changes to sensitivity label

Your administrator can have a policy that requires you to provide justification before changing a sensitivity label from a higher sensitivity to a lower sensitivity. In this configuration, you may be asked to choose a justification reason or provide your own when selecting a less sensitive label.

Note: You will only be asked to justify changes one time after opening a document or replying to forwarding an email message. After justifying once, subsequent changes will not require justification until that document or email message is closed and opened again.

The dialog box that appears when your organization requires you to provide a justification for changing a sensitivity label.

See also


Source :
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/apply-sensitivity-labels-to-your-files-and-email-in-office-2f96e7cd-d5a4-403b-8bd7-4cc636bae0f9#OfficeVersion=Web

What FQDN’s and IP’s are used by SonicWall products to update their services?

Description

This article lists the Fully Qualified Domain Names (FQDNs) in use by SonicWall for its licensing and security services.

Resolution

SonicWall firewalls:

  • lm2.sonicwall.com – Registration information/licensing.
  • licensemanager.sonicwall.com – Registration information/licensing for older firewalls.
  • software.sonicwall.com – Softwares, firmwares, NetExtender, GVC.
  • responder.global.sonicwall.com – Probe target.
  • clientmanager.sonicwall.com – Client CF enforcement download.
  • policymanager.sonicwall.com – Global Security Client.
  • convert.global.sonicwall.com – Preference processor server.
  • geodnsd.global.sonicwall.com – Used for flow reporting and GeoIP.
  • webcfs00.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs01.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs02.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs03.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs04.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs05.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs06.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs07.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs08.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs10.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • webcfs11.global.sonicwall.com – Content filter server.
  • gcsd.global.sonicwall.com – Cloud antivirus and status.
  • sig2.sonicwall.com – Signature updates.
  • sigserver.global.sonicwall.com – Signature updates for older firewalls.
  • lmdashboard.global.sonicwall.com – License manager dashboard.
  • appreports.global.sonicwall.com – App reports server.
  • sonicsandbox.global.sonicwall.com – Default Capture ATP server (west coast) UDP 2259, and https (tcp 443).
  • sonicsandboxmia.global.sonicwall.com  – East coast capture ATP server UDP 2259, and https (tcp 443).
  • utmgbdata.global.sonicwall.com – Map info URL domain.
  • cfssupport.sonicwall.com – View rating of a website.
  • cloudtt.global.sonicwall.com – Zero Touch provisioning
  • eprs2.global.sonicwall.com (204.212.170.36, 204.212.170.11, 204.212.170.10) – Content Filter Client servers.
  • wsdl.mysonicwall.com  – Automatic preference backups and firmware downloads.
  • sonicsandbox.global.sonicwall.com
  • sonicsandboxmia.global.sonicwall.com
  • sonicsandboxams.global.sonicwall.com
  • sonicsandboxfra.global.sonicwall.com
  • sonicsandboxtko.global.sonicwall.com

    This information can also be found in the Tech Support Report (TSR). More information about the TSR can be found in the following article:
    How to Download Tech Support Files (TSR, EXP, Logs) From SonicWall UTM Firewalls

Capture Client software:

  • captureclient-36.sonicwall.com
  • captureclient.sonicwall.com
  • sonicwall.sentinelone.net (S1 agent)
  • software.sonicwall.com (software package updates)
  • sonicsandbox.global.sonicwall.com (Capture ATP- Applicable for Capture Client Advanced License)

SonicWall CSC:

  • For SanJose Colo

    FQDN: cloudgms.sonicwall.com
    Zero Touch FQDN: cloudtt.global.sonicwall.com
    IP: 4.16.47.168, 4.16.47.188

  • For AWS Colo

    FQDN: cscma.sonicwall.com
    Zero Touch FQDN: cscmatt.global.sonicwall.com
    IP: 34.211.138.110, 52.37.12.168, 52.89.82.203, 52.11.92.114

  • For AMS Colo

    FQDN: cloudgmsams.sonicwall.com
    Zero Touch FQDN: cloudttams.global.sonicwall.com
    IP: 213.244.188.168, 213.244.188.188

  • For AWS-FRA Colo

    FQDN: cscmafra.sonicwall.com
    Zero Touch FQDN: cscmafratt.global.sonicwall.com, cscmafratta.global.sonicwall.com
    IP: 18.197.234.66, 18.197.234.59

SonicWall NSM:

  • For Oregon AWS Colo

    FQDN: nsm-uswest.sonicwall.com (Use it in GMS settings under Administration Page)
    Zero Touch FQDN: nsm-uswest-zt.sonicwall.com (Use it in ZeroTouch Settings under Diag page)
    IP: 13.227.130.81, 13.227.130.63, 3.227.130.69, 13.227.130.12, 52.39.29.75, 44.233.105.101, 44.227.248.206

  • For AWS-FRA Colo

    FQDN: nsm-eucentral.sonicwall.com (Use it in GMS settings under Administration Page)
    Zero Touch FQDN: nsm-eucentral-zt.sonicwall.com (Use it in ZeroTouch Settings under Diag page)
    IP: 13.227.130.70, 13.227.130.69, 13.227.130.15, 13.227.130.92, 18.156.16.24, 18.157.240.148, 3.127.176.56

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Categories

Source :
https://www.sonicwall.com/support/knowledge-base/what-fqdn-s-and-ip-s-are-used-by-sonicwall-products-to-update-their-services/170503941664663/

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