Security Policies - Remote Access

Understanding Default Machine/Network Access Rules

The remote access policy defines the list of IP addresses and/or hostnames from which users and administrators may access this organization.

SysAdmin User Rules

Access for SysAdmins is configured in the Remote Access section of the System Settings.

Ad Hoc or Guest Users

For configuring unregistered or Guest Users, see Web Interface - Settings - Ad Hoc Transfer - Access - Unregistered Senders > Unregistered Sender Remote Access Rules

These settings may also be overridden by custom IP/hostname rules for particular users. (Some organizations will want to leave these default settings blank and ONLY allow specific IP access for each user.)

By default, administrators and users may only sign on from the local console. This is why there is a reminder on the home page of administrators to increase this access when the default values are set, and it is also why SysAdmins are given the chance to expand the range of allowed addresses during the creation of a new organization. Also by default, anonymous WebPost users may submit information to MOVEit Transfer, but may not create new WebPost folders.

In addition to the access rules for hosts, you can specify a list of trusted hosts for an organization. A host in the Trusted Hosts list will bypass the normal IP lockout and session IP consistency checks. In effect, when a user signs on to the organization from a trusted host, it works like signing on from the localhost. For more information, see the Trusted Hosts section of this document.

The Remote Access rule list contains:

• Administrator and FileAdmin Remote Access Rules: An access list which controls from which IP addresses or hostnames Administrators or FileAdmins may connect by default.
• User Remote Access Rules: An access list which controls from which IP addresses or hostnames end users may connect by default.
• Webpost Remote Access Rules: An access list which controls from which IP addresses or hostnames anonymous users may POST webposts from and/or ADD FOLDERS from. (New webpost folders can be automatically added if a new type of form begins submitting web information - see the WebPost help section for more information.)

Each section contains all current rules. At runtime, the rules will be processed in a top-to-bottom order.

Each rule consists of the following:

• Rule: Whether the rule allows or denies access.
• Hostname/IP: The IP address or hostname of each rule (see the topic titled Using the Expected Syntax).
• Comment: Any hint or notes the administrator wants to provide. Anything typed here is informational only and does not affect any other part of the rule.

In addition, an Edit Access Rules button for each section (below the last rule of the section) opens a separate page for each section, that is, one page each for Administrator and FileAdmin Remote Access Rules, User Remote Access Rules, and Webpost Remote Access Rules.

Rule Actions

Clicking Edit Access Rules for any section of rules opens a separate page for that section. There are separate pages for Administrator and FileAdmin Remote Access Rules (shown below), User Remote Access Rules, and Webpost Remote Access Rules.

Actions include:

• Prioritize. Move the rule up and down in the priority list - rules at the top of the list are processed first. (These buttons appear only when there are two or more rules.)
• Edit. Allows administrators to change details about the rule; opens the Edit Remote Access Rule page.
• Delete. Remote the rule from the access list.

In addition, the Add Remote Access Rule link (below the last rule) opens the Add Remote Access Rule page, where new rules can be added.

Using the Expected Syntax

To apply a hostname/IP access rule, use the expected syntax.

Syntax for IP addresses

<1rst-part>.<2nd-part>.<3rd-part>.<4th-part>

—Where part denotes an octet of the IP address.

Examples

198.51.100.1 (applies rule to one address, as shown)

203.0.113-255 (applies rule to 112 addresses, as shown)

198.51.100.1-29 (applies rule to range of 29 addresses, as shown)

198.51.100.* (expands rule to include 256 addresses, as shown)

—Where an octet (or part) can represent 256 individual IP addresses.

Syntax for address ranges

<1rst-part>.<2nd-part>.<3rd-part>.<4th-part-range-start>-<range-end>

—And where range can be specified in any octet of an IP address.

Examples

198.51.100.1-29

198.51.100-101.1

Syntax for host and network names

<sub-domain-host-part>.<second-level-domain-part>.<top-level-domain>

Examples

test.example.com (applies rule only to client requests from test subdomain/host)

*.example.com (applies rule to client requests originating from the example.com domain —subdomain ignored)

test.example.com,*.example.net (applies rule to one subdomain on example.com and any subdomain on example.net)

Add Remote Access Rule and Edit Remote Access Rule Pages

The fields here define a Hostname/IP address or range combination and whether it will be allowed or denied. The individual rule can be assigned a priority for applying it in combination with other access rules. For a new rule, fill out the fields to create a new remote access rule and then click the Add Entry button. Similarly, for an existing rule, change fields and then click the Update Entry button.

The fields and buttons on this page are:

• Rule: Values you can select are Allow or Deny.
• Hostname/IP: Value of single hostname or an IP address. You can include a wildcard character ("*") to apply yourAllow or Deny rule to match a range. Some examples are: 11.22.33.44 (a single host), and 11.22.33.* (where * means all machines under the 11.22.33 network) and *.example.edu (where "*" means all hosts using the example.edu domain).
• Priority: (Shown for the Add... page only, not Edit....) To specify initial placement in the list (whether at the top, bottom, or in middle). Values you can select are Highest, Middle, or Lowest.
• Comment (Optional): Text entry field.
• Add Entry / Update Entry: Click this button to close this page and add the new rule to - or update the existing rule on - the rules list.

Hostname/IP Masks

Hostname/IP entries can be individual hostnames, individual numeric IP addresses, or masks that allow matching against a range of hostnames or addresses. An asterisk (*) will match any value in a particular position. For example, 2* matches 23 or 213, *cat matches tomcat and bobcat and * matches all of the above.

A dash (-) will match numeric values which fall on or between the numbers on either side of the dash. For example, 2-4 matches 2, 3 and 4 but not 1 or 5.

Allow/Deny Decisions

When an incoming IP address or hostname is tested, rules are processed top-to-bottom. The first rule which applies to the incoming IP or hostname is the rule which actually allows or denies access.

By default, all IP addresses and hostnames are denied if they fall off the end of the list.

• Specific IP addresses and hostnames (for example, 192.168.3.4 or test.example.com) should be at the top.
• Ranges of IP addresses and hostnames (for example, 192.168.3.* or *.example.com) should be in the middle.
• Catch-all entries (for example, 192.*.*.* or *.edu) should be at the bottom.

Console Connections

When a user signs onto the MOVEit Transfer server from a web browser running on the same machine as the MOVEit Transfer server itself, that user is said to be connected to the console if he or she connects to MOVEit Transfer using a URL which begins with http://localhost... or http://127.0.0.1... rather than the usual http://MOVEitDMZ.example.com... URL.

These console connections are NOT subject to the remote access List. This exception prevents SysAdmins from locking themselves out with an empty Access List because they can always sign on from the same machine on which MOVEit Transfer runs.

Trusted Hosts

This feature lets Org admins designate a host as a trusted host for their organization, allowing the host the same privileges as localhost.

Under normal operations, clients that access MOVEit Transfer from any of the local interfaces will bypass the normal IP lockout and session IP consistency checks. This allows services like the MOVEit Transfer FTP server and the MOVEit Transfer SSH server to function properly and present the client's IP address for display and logging purposes. A trusted host will also bypass these checks.

This feature can be used in the following situations:

• Allow machine requests from a Trusted Host to supply an IP address as the effective IP address for machine transactions. (This is the <IPADDRESS> XML element in the MOVEit Transfer API). This feature is most often used when using MOVEit Transfer API within a separate web application to provide single-sign-on access to MOVEit Transfer. It allows the API session to be transferred to the client browser, and back again, and also allows API to present the client's IP address for display and logging purposes.
• Allow MOVEit to redirect to a Trusted Host after completing a non-wizard upload.
• Allow users to sign on from a Trusted Host regardless of other permissions and/or IP lockouts set for that host.

  If someone is continually trying and failing to sign-on as an existing user, the originating IP address may be locked out. Trusted Hosts can be used to override the lockout behavior. The Trusted Hosts entries associated with the user's organization are consulted. If the client's IP address matches a trusted host, that IP address will not be locked out. If the failed attempts are being made as a user that doesn't exist, and no organization is specified, the Trusted Hosts entries for the default organization will be consulted.

• Allow users to change IP addresses within a session if the old or new IP address is trusted, regardless of the IP switching mask.

To add an entry to the Trusted Hosts list:

1. Under Trusted Hosts, click Edit Access Rules.
2. Click Add Remote Access Rule.
3. Enter a hostname or IP address and a description (optional), then click Add Entry.

   The Hostname/IP field can contain either a hostname or an IP address. Both types can contain wildcard characters, and IP addresses can also be in the form of a range. For example: 11.22.33.44, 11.22.33.*, 11.22.33.44-55, jsmith.mycompany.com, *.mycompany.com.

   Note: Hostnames and IP addresses are not interchangeable. If myhost1 resolves to 192.168.1.200, and the list contains myhost1 but not 192.168.1.200, then users can access the host via URLs starting with https://myhost1 but not via URLs starting with https://192.168.1.200.

After you add the entry, it is shown in the list of allowed hosts.

1. You can return to the Trusted Hosts list and the entry will also be shown there.

To move a host entry:

Use the Arrow buttons to move the entry up and down in the priority list - entries at the top of the list are processed first. (These buttons appear only when there are two or more entries.)

To edit a host entry:

Locate the entry in the list of allowed hosts and click the Edit button. Enter any changes.

To delete a host entry:

Locate the entry in the list of allowed hosts. Next to the entry, select Delete, then select Yes to confirm the deletion.

IP Lockouts

When an IP address is locked out, it is locked out across all organizations at a particular site.

Notifications Triggered

If IP address is locked out, SysAdmin users who have their notification property set to On+Admin will receive an email notification that the lockout has occurred.

If there is only one non-system organization configured, Admin users in that org who have their notification property set to On+Admin will also receive email notifications.

Only SysAdmins may set IP Lockout Policy. (See the IP Lockout Policy section of the System Remote Access Policy page for more information). IP lockouts are enabled by default and set to lock out IP addresses after 15 bad attempts in any 5 minute period.

After you unlock an IP address, the user who triggered the IP lockout will still be locked and inactive. You can change the user's Account Status in the User Profile.

IP Switching

To prevent session hijacking, MOVEit Transfer normally does not allow the IP address used by a session to change over the course of that session. However, some firewalls and proxy servers use pools of IP addresses to assign to users who access the Internet and can sometimes assign different IP addresses to a user even within a single session. In order to allow these users full access to the server, the IP Switching feature allows administrators to set an allowable range within which a session IP address can change.

By default, the IP Switching option is set to None, which corresponds to a subnet mask of 255.255.255.255, or /32. This prevents any sort of IP address switching. Other available values are:

• Class C (255.255.255.0 or /24): Allows the session IP address to vary within the Class C portion of the address. For example, if the original session IP address was 1.1.1.1, switching to 1.1.1.2 would be allowed, but switching to 1.1.2.2 would not.
• Class B (255.255.0.0 or /16): Allows the session IP address to vary within the Class B portion of the address. For example, if the original session IP address was 1.1.1.1, switching to 1.1.2.2 would be allowed, but switching to 1.2.2.2 would not.
• Class A (255.0.0.0 or /8): Allows the session IP address to vary within the Class A portion of the address. For example, if the original session IP address was 1.1.1.1, switching to 1.2.2.2 would be allowed, but switching to 2.2.2.2 would not.
• All (0.0.0.0 or /0): Allows all IP address switching.