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Why Monitoring Control Plane Policing (CoPP) with an NAE Agent Is Effective for Detecting DoS Attacks

Control Plane Policing (CoPP): AOS-CX switches use CoPP to protect the CPU from excessive traffic caused by DoS attacks (e.g., ARP floods, ICMP floods). CoPP enforces rate limits and drops malicious traffic at the control plane level.

NAE (Network Analytics Engine) Agent:

The NAE on AOS-CX switches can monitor CoPP counters in real time and trigger alerts if thresholds for certain traffic types (e.g., ICMP, ARP) are exceeded.

Admins can use NAE to automate detection and respond faster to DoS attacks.

Analysis of Each Option

A. Deploy an NAE agent on the switches to monitor control plane policing (CoPP):

Correct:

NAE agents provide real-time visibility into CoPP behavior, helping detect DoS attacks more quickly.

By analyzing CoPP statistics, the NAE can pinpoint abnormal traffic patterns and alert admins.

This is the most efficient and scalable solution for this use case.

B. Configure the switches to implement RADIUS accounting to HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass and enable HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass Insight:

Incorrect:

While ClearPass can provide visibility into user authentication and device activity, it is not specifically designed to detect or mitigate DoS attacks against switches.

C. Implement ARP inspection on all VLANs that support end-user devices:

Incorrect:

ARP inspection helps mitigate ARP spoofing or poisoning, but it does not directly address detection of DoS attacks like ICMP or ARP floods.

It is a preventative measure, not a detection tool.

D. Enabling debugging of security functions on the switches:

Incorrect:

Debugging logs can help troubleshoot specific issues but are not practical for real-time detection of DoS attacks.

Enabling debugging can overload the switch and is not suitable for proactive monitoring.

Final Recommendation

Deploying an NAE agent to monitor CoPP is the best solution because it provides real-time detection, alerting, and insights into traffic patterns that indicate DoS attacks.

References

AOS-CX Network Analytics Engine (NAE) Configuration Guide.

HPE Aruba AOS-CX Control Plane Policing Documentation.

Best Practices for Protecting Switches Against DoS Attacks in Aruba Networks.

For a company that wants to apply a standard configuration to all AOS-CX switch ports and dynamically adjust their configuration based on the identity of the user or device that connects, the best approach is to have the switches download user-roles from HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass Policy Manager (CPPM). This method centralizes the configuration of identity-based settings in CPPM, allowing it to dynamically assign roles and policies to switch ports based on authentication and authorization results. This ensures consistent and secure network access control tailored to each user or device.

To ensure that HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass Policy Manager (CPPM) applies tag-based rules to a client immediately after learning the client has that tag, verify that both 802.1X services have the "Profile Endpoints" option enabled and an appropriate Change of Authorization (CoA) profile selected in the Profiler tab. This setup ensures that when a device is profiled and tagged, CPPM can immediately enforce the updated policies through CoA.

1.Profile Endpoints: Enabling this option ensures that endpoint profiling is active, allowing CPPM to gather and use device information dynamically.

2.CoA Profile: Selecting an appropriate CoA profile ensures that CPPM can push policy changes immediately to the network devices, applying the new rules without delay.

3.Real-Time Enforcement: This configuration allows for the immediate application of new tags and associated policies, ensuring compliance with security requirements.

Traffic Forwarding for APs:

In AOS-10, AP traffic forwarding can happen locally (bridged) or through tunnels to a gateway.

The VLAN settings on the "APs" role depend on whether the APs bridge the SSID traffic locally or forward it through a tunnel.

Option B: Correct. You need to know whether the traffic is bridged or tunneled to determine the VLAN assignments.

Option A: Incorrect. LURs/DURs affect role assignment but not VLAN settings for traffic forwarding.

Option C: Incorrect. Establishing tunnels with gateways is relevant to centralized traffic forwarding, not VLANs for bridged traffic.

Option D: Incorrect. AP IP addressing (static or DHCP) does not impact the VLAN for forwarded SSID traffic.

1. Understanding the Role Mapping Evaluation:

Role mapping is set to "Evaluate: Select first," meaning the first rule that matches the client attributes will determine the role(s) assigned.

Contractors group: Since the client is in the Contractors group (not Managers), Rule 1 in the Role Mapping Policy does not match.

TEAP-Method-1-Status EQUALS Success: This condition matches Rule 2, so the client is assigned the domain-comp role.

No other rules match, so the default role [Other] is not applied.

2. Resulting Role from Role Mapping Policy:

The client is assigned the domain-comp role.

3. Enforcement Policy Evaluation:

Enforcement policy is also set to "Evaluate: Select first," so the first matching rule determines the enforcement profile.

Rule 1 (Tips Role = manager AND domain-comp):

The client only has the domain-comp role, not manager, so this rule does not match.

Rule 2 (Tips Role = manager):

The client does not have the manager role, so this rule does not match.

Rule 3 (Tips Role = domain-comp):

This rule matches the client's role, but it is not evaluated because the enforcement policy already skipped to the default action after failing the first two rules.

4. Default Enforcement Profile:

Since no rule explicitly matches and the policy evaluation stops at the default, the default profile [Deny Access Profile] is applied.

Final Outcome:

The client is denied access because none of the matching rules satisfy the conditions.

References

Aruba ClearPass Policy Manager Role Mapping and Enforcement Policies Guide.

Role and Policy Evaluation Logic for ClearPass Authentication Services.

Hub-Spoke VPN Configuration:

HPE Aruba Central SD-WAN Orchestrator enables hub-spoke topology where branch gateways (BGWs) connect to VPN concentrators (VPNCs) located at data centers.

A key step in configuring this is defining which VPNCs the BGWs will prefer for connectivity.

The DC Preference List is configured in the BGW groups to prioritize the data centers to which BGWs connect.

Option Analysis:

Option A: Incorrect. VPN pools control IP allocation, not which branches connect to VPNCs.

Option B: Incorrect. IKE policies define key exchange mechanisms but are not part of the connection preference process.

Option C: Correct. Admins configure a DC preference list in BGW groups to determine connectivity priorities with VPNCs.

Option D: Incorrect. IPsec policies define encryption parameters at a global level, but this is not specific to the hub-spoke connection configuration.

The use case for the HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass OnGuard dissolvable agent is implementing a one-time compliance scan. The dissolvable agent is designed to perform a compliance check without requiring a permanent installation on the client device. This is ideal for environments where a quick, temporary assessment of the device's security posture is needed without the overhead of a persistent agent.

1.Dissolvable Agent: The dissolvable agent is downloaded and executed on the client device for a single session, performing the necessary compliance checks before being removed automatically.

2.One-time Compliance Scan: This method is particularly useful for guest or unmanaged devices where a temporary compliance scan is sufficient to ensure security standards are met.

3.Minimal Impact: Since the agent does not persist on the client device, it minimizes the impact on the user's system and does not require ongoing maintenance or updates.

To prevent rogue OSPF routers in the network shown in the exhibit, the preferred configuration on Switch-2 is to configure OSPF authentication on Lag 1 in MD5 mode. This setup enhances security by ensuring that only routers with the correct MD5 authentication credentials can participate in the OSPF routing process. This method protects the OSPF sessions against unauthorized devices that might attempt to introduce rogue routing information into the network.

1.OSPF Authentication: Implementing MD5 authentication on Lag 1 ensures that OSPF updates are secured with a cryptographic hash. This prevents unauthorized OSPF routers from establishing peering sessions and injecting potentially malicious routing information.

2.Secure Communication: MD5 authentication provides a higher level of security compared to simple password authentication, as it uses a more robust hashing algorithm.

3.Applicability: Lag 1 is the primary link between Switch-1 and Switch-2, and securing this link helps protect the integrity of the OSPF routing domain.

The preferred method for assigning clients to a role on the AOS firewall is to configure HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass Policy Manager (CPPM) to assign the role using a RADIUS enforcement profile with an Aruba-User-Role VSA (Vendor-Specific Attribute). This method allows ClearPass to dynamically assign the appropriate user roles to clients during the authentication process, ensuring that role-based access policies are consistently enforced across the network.

Internet Key Exchange (IKE)/IKEv2 plays a crucial role in an HPE Aruba Networking client-to-site VPN by helping to negotiate the IPsec Security Association (SA) automatically and securely. IKE/IKEv2 handles the authentication and key exchange processes, ensuring that both the client and the VPN gateway can establish a secure IPsec tunnel.

1.SA Negotiation: IKE/IKEv2 automates the negotiation of the Security Association, which defines the parameters for the secure IPsec tunnel.

2.Secure Authentication: It provides a secure method for authenticating the communicating parties and exchanging cryptographic keys.

3.Efficiency: Using IKE/IKEv2 simplifies the setup and maintenance of secure VPN connections, enhancing the overall security and reliability of the VPN.