No central authentication for administrators
At a glance
Base severity
Area
Platform
Evidence level
Benchmark reference
Reads the export, not the device
ConfigProof reads a configuration export. This control is evaluated against the objects in that file, and it reports what the file says. It does not connect to the device and sees no traffic, so a finding here describes the configuration, not what the firewall is doing right now.
Why it matters
Every switch keeps its own local accounts, so removing a departing administrator or enforcing strong authentication has to be done device by device, and logins are not tied to a person.
How to fix it
Web interface
The steps below are written for the web interface. A finding raised on your own export carries the same steps with your object names filled in.
- Enable aaa new-model, define TACACS+ (or RADIUS) servers and a server group, and use it for login and exec authorization with local as fallback.
Command line
Cisco IOS-XE CLI
configure terminalaaa new-modeltacacs server <server-name>address ipv4 <aaa-server>key <key>exitaaa group server tacacs+ <server-group>server name <server-name>exitaaa authentication login default group <server-group> localaaa authorization exec default group <server-group> localendwrite memory
An example. Values in angle brackets are yours to supply; a finding on your own export fills in the names it read. Typed in configuration mode; copy running-config startup-config saves it, with no separate commit. Read every line first.
Read it back
show running-config | section aaatest aaa group <server-group> <user> legacy
Values to fill in5
- <server-name>
- A name for the TACACS+ server
- <aaa-server>
- The TACACS+ server address
- <key>
- The TACACS+ shared key
- <server-group>
- A name for the TACACS+ server group
- <user>
- The account name
Before you type it3
- Written from the Cisco IOS-XE 17 and NX-OS 9 and 10 command references and not run on a device: read each line before you paste it.
- Confirm your own session is not using the service you are turning off.
- On a Nexus (NX-OS) switch the same change is typed with NX-OS syntax; check the NX-OS configuration guide for the equivalent command.
How to confirm the fix
- show running-config | section aaa shows aaa authentication login default group <group> local.
- test aaa group <group> <user> <password> legacy succeeds.
Limits
- No limitation is recorded for this control beyond the one that applies to all of them: it reads a configuration export.
Compliance references
No benchmark recommendation is mapped to this control in this version.
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