Our Cyber Defense Knowledge Base | Network Perception (2024)

Getting Started

Once NP-View Server is installed, the application will start automatically. Note that NP-Live has been Rebranded to NP-View Server. Several of the instructions still correctly refer to NP-Live as we migrate the installation services to the new product names.

If the Linux Administrator wishes to start and stop the application, two helper scripts have been included to aid in these tasks:

• Stop : sudo /opt/np-live/stop_NP-Live.sh
• Start : sudo /opt/np-live/start_NP-Live.sh

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Upon initial start, the Welcome screen shows the configuration wizard to guide the Administrator through the remaining configuration steps which include:

1. Authentication
2. Licensing
3. Users

Configure Authentication

The following authentication options are available to configure in NP-View Server.

• Active Directory / LDAP
• Radius
• Local

Active Directory or LDAP

For Active Directory or LDAP authentication we use LDAPv3 TLS over port 389. If the communication returns an exception, we attempt unencrypted communication. We do not support LDAPS. Before starting, note that setup requires a dedicated Credential Binding Account (LDAP Administrator). The Credentials Binding Account must be included in at least one of the system groups for NP-View Server to query and link the users.

An example of a properly configured LDAP screen on NP-View is below:

The setup page will allow for the definition of three system groups using a Distinguished Name. A Distinguished Name (often referred to as a DN or FDN) is a string that uniquely identifies an entry in the Directory Information Tree. The format of a DN is: CN=groupname,OU=grouptype,DC=subdomain,DC=example,DC=com. Your domain needs to match the DC specified in your DN. For an example DN like above, the domain would be: ‘subdomain.example.com’.

For example:

ldap_group_admin = 'CN=NP-Live Admin, OU=Permissions, DC=ad, DC=np, DC=test'
ldap_group_write = 'CN=NP-Live WorkspaceAdmin, OU=Permissions, DC=ad, DC=np, DC=test'
ldap_group_read = 'CN=NP-Live Viewer, OU=Permissions, DC=ad, DC=np, DC=test'

group_translation = {'Administrator' : ldap_group_admin,
'WorkspaceAdmin' : ldap_group_write,
'Viewer' : ldap_group_read}

Reminder: The three CN names must be unique or roles will be overlapped in NP-View resulting in features being disabled.

To find the DN on Windows, open a Windows command prompt on your Active Directory server and type the command: dsquery group -name "known group name".

Users assigned to NP-View must login once to get setup within the NP-View database for sharing and transferring of workspaces. No users exist until after the first login.

Troubleshooting Active Directory Setup

If an error is returned when configuring Active Directory, the steps to troubleshoot are:

Step 1: From your Active Directory server, type the command below in a terminal after replacing the “CN=…” portion with the Distinguished Name of the group you’d like to check:

dsget group "CN=groupname,OU=grouptype,DC=subdomain,DC=example,DC=com" -members

Verify that the output shows the expected list of user(s) in that group. If it doesn’t, check your Active Directory group and user configuration.

Step 2: From your Active Directory server, type the command below in a terminal after replacing the “CN=…” portion with the Distinguished Name of the group you’d like to check, and also replacing USERNAME with your actual username:

dsquery * -Filter "(&(objectClass=user)(memberOf:1.2.840.113556.1.4.1941:=CN=groupname,OU=grouptype,DC=subdomain,DC=example,DC=com)(sAMAccountName=USERNAME))"

If the output is empty, verify that your user in Active Directory has the attribute sAMAccountName set. If not, set it and try the command again. Verify also that the sAMAccountName value matches your AD username value. You can also try to enter the username in the NP-View Active Directory configuration form with the format USERNAME@DOMAIN.

If the output shows the expected list of groups for that user, but NP-View still generates an error, then contact the NP support team.

Radius

Radius authentication requires your server address and secret. Once input, the user can test their connection using their personal login credentials for verification. Note that for Radius authentication, all users are assigned to the Administrator group.

Local Authentication

NP-View Server provides an internal mechanism for the administration of users. During setup, the screen will require the user to setup the Administration account by inputting a user ID and password. This account will be assigned to the Administrator role and will have access to all system features. An example of a properly configured Local Auth screen on NP-View is below:

User Management

NP-View Server provides a User Management function for users assigned to the the Administrator role. It can be accessed in the user menu at the top right of the screen either on the workspace page or from within a workspace.

User Management – Active Directory or LDAP

Clicking User Management will open a window that shows the LDAP setup information. The left half of the screen allows the user to change the NP-View LDAP settings. LDAP Auth credentials are required to update the information. The optional email field override is used as the default email address for the Notification Manager if no email address is provided as part of the LDAP credentials.

The right half of the user management screen allows for the testing of each LDAP user and will retrieve their LDAP settings for review.

User Management – Local Authentication

Clicking User Management will open a window that shows the user related information associated with this account, their account details, and their account permissions.

From this window Administrators can edit (pencil icon), delete (x icon) or add user accounts (create new user button).

A user’s ID should be the user’s email address (this will be used for notifications) and an administrator-defined password. Each user will need to be assigned to a role which will provide the user with system wide access.

1. Administrator – Has access to all users, workspace and system administration functions including managing users and license functions.
2. WorkspaceAdmin – Has access to all workspace administration functions.
3. Viewer – Has read only access to the system.

Reset Authentication

The Administrator can also reset the authentication method entirely by selecting the “Reset authentication system” link. “Reset authentication” only resets the authentication and does not remove any workspaces or data. Note that workspaces are assigned to user id’s. If the authentication method (or user id format) is changed, the workspaces will no longer be available to users. The administrator or workspace admin must utilize the transfer workspace function to assign the legacy workspace to the new user id’s.

Password Reset

• Workspace Admin or Viewer user groups: Contact your Administrator who can manually reset your password through the User Management function on the system menu (upper right corner).
• Admins: connect through SSH to the NP-View server and remove the file db/auth_provider.cfg inside the NP-View application folder (by default: /opt/np-live).
• Refresh the NP-View web page to show the Welcome screen and reconfigure the authentication.

License and Terms

The Administrator can Show, Upgrade or Renew their license. Licensing terms and legal disclosures are available from the system menu where user management is found.

Configure License Key

After the authentication, the Welcome screen will guide the Administrator through reviewing the EULA and adding the license key. The license key should have been sent to you by email and also posted on the Network Perception portal. If you haven’t received a key, please send a request to support@network-perception.com. Renewed or upgraded license keys can only be installed from the home screen (not from within a workspace) by members of the Administrator group.

Additional Configuration Features

Configure Automatic Updates

NP-View Server can automatically download new releases and update itself if you select “Automatically check for updates”. Alternatively, you can select “Update NP-View” from the upper right menu or update offline using the following steps:

1. Download the latest release from the Network Perception portal.
2. Copy the release file to the NP-View Server using SCP or WinSCP
3. Connect to the NP-View Server shell using SSH and execute the release file with the command sudo sh NP-View_server_installer.sh

Configure Shutdown and Startup Options

To speed performance on startup, NP-View terminates background processes that are running when the system is gracefully shutdown and clears out all tasks and jobs. If any processes remain upon startup, they are also terminated. To change the configuration,

• stop the NP-View Server application.
• in the docker-compose.yml file for the manager change cancelTasksStartup=True to cancelTasksStartup=False
• in the docker-compose.yml file for the manager change clearRqStartup=True to clearRqStartup=False Note that the previous setting must also be set to True for this operation to work.
• start the NP-View Server application.

Configure User Timeout

The system can be configured automatically time out a user after a period of idle days. The default is set to 30 days. To change the configuration,

• stop the NP-View Server application.
• in the docker-compose.yml file for the webserver\environment service, change sessionLengthDays=30 to any positive floating point number representing elapsed days. For Example:
  • 0.5 = 12 hrs
  • 1.5 = 36 hours
  • 30 = 720 hrs.
  • If set to 0, user timeout will default to 30 minutes.
• start the NP-View Server application.

Timeout for connectors is 1 day and cannot be changed. Also, the timeout value is not static and will be overwritten by the next software update. Prior to restarting after an update, the timeout needs to be reset to the value of choice.

Configure Devices within a Custom View

The system can be configured to allow for more devices within a custom view. The default is set to 25 devices. To change the configuration:

• stop the NP-View Server application.
• in the docker-compose.yml file for the
  • services : manager : environment, change devCountLimit=25 to a positive integer.
  • services : bgmanager : environment, change devCountLimit=25 to a positive integer.
  • services : webserver : environment, change devCountLimit=25 to a positive integer.
• start the NP-View Server application.

Note: The limit is not static and will be overwritten by the next software update. Prior to restarting after an update, the limit needs to be reset to the value of choice. Note: NP has only tested the system to the default limit. Raising the limit is at the user’s risk as unintended consequences including data loss and the system exhausting system resources may occur.

Configure A Static IP Address on your Linux Server

To set a static IP address for your NP-View Server, follow the instructions in this document.

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This section describes how to update the NP-View Server application and the underlying components if the OVF was used for the initial installation.

Updating the NP-View Server Application

To update an existing NP-View Application, the steps are:

1. Download the latest release Linux Installer Release (not the .OVF) from the Network Perception Portal and copy it onto your NP-view server using SCP (or WinSCP from a Windows client)
2. Login onto the NP-View server using SSH (or Putty from a Windows client)
3. Get root permissions using the command: sudo -i
4. Prior to installing the new version, it is recommended to make a backup of your database (see below)
5. Execute the new NP-View release file using the command: sh NP-View_installer.sh (where NP-View_installer.sh is the name of the new release file downloaded in step 1).
6. Follow the guided steps of the installer, which will automatically start NP-View once the update is complete.
7. Connect to the user interface of NP-View using your web browser and check in the bottom-left corner of the home page that the version number matches the new release

Get Version API call

To check the version update your server URL to the following

https://<np-view_server_address>/version

Backing up the NP-View Server Database

1. Stop the NP-View Server (you can use the script /opt/np-live/stop_nplive.sh)
2. From the NP-View Server folder (by default: /opt/np-live/, run the command: tar -zcf db_backup_$(date '+%Y_%m_%d').tgz db (this command may take few minutes to complete)
3. Run the new release installer, which will update the containers and then launch NP-View Server

Updating CentOS 7 and Docker

If the OVF was used for the initial installation, that package included the CentOS 7 operating system and Docker. These applications must be updated separately from the NP-View Server Application using the below instructions. The instructions cover NP-View Servers that have internet access and those that do not have internet access.

CentOS will be EOL June 30, 2024. We recommend customers to transition to Ubuntu. Our new OVF uses Ubuntu and instructions for updating Ubuntu will be coming soon.

Updating when the NP-View server has internet access:

– stop NP-View
cd /opt/np-live/
./stop_NP-Live.sh

– run all updates
yum update -y

– reboot server
reboot

Updating when the NP-View server does not have internet access:

If NP-View server is installed in an environment that does not have internet access, a separate Centos 7 server with Docker that has internet access is required to create the update package. All commands below are case sensitive.

Network-Perception uses this mirror for CentOS updates and this mirror for Docker updates

Centos 7 that is online:

– make sure you are root
sudo su -

– create packages directory
cd /root/
mkdir packages
cd packages

– download all packages
yum list installed | awk {'print $1; }' | tail -n +3 | xargs yumdownloader

– you should see docker included in the output list.

– compress archive (capital -C is important)
tar czf /root/packages.tar.gz *.rpm -C /root/packages/

– Copy packages.tar.gz to the offline server. The user can use the below command to scp:
scp packages.tar.gz root@ipAddress:/root/

Centos 7 that is offline running NP-View:

– make sure you are root
sudo su -
– stop NP-View
cd /opt/np-live/
./stop_NP-Live.sh

– create directory and extract the archive
cd /root/
mkdir packages/
mv packages.tar.gz packages/
cd packages/
tar -xf packages.tar.gz

– install all updates:
yum -y localinstall *.rpm

– reboot server
reboot

– now everything is up to date on the offline server.

If you get any docker swarm errors:

– make sure you are root
sudo su -

– leave and join swarm cluster
docker swarm leave --force && docker swarm init

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Network mapping provides the Networking Team (Network Engineer, Network Security) with capabilities that allow users to:

• Visualize an accurate topology of the network architecture
• Identify and label critical cyber assets and critical network zones
• Easily review which devices are protecting which network zones

Visualize Topology

NP-View can be used to discover your network topology and the underlying control plane, including layer-2 and layer-3 configurations. Without leaving the topology map, you can review many aspects of the network’s design including Firewalls, Routers, Switches, Gateways, Networks, VPNs, Hosts and more.

Critical Assets and Zones

Each asset can be tagged with categories and criticalities as well as grouped into zones making it easy to review which devices are protecting which network zones.

Details On-demand

Selecting a node in the topology map will interactively display an information panel with detailed data about that node.

Firewall ruleset review provides Network Engineers, Network Security, and Compliance Analysts with functionality for:

• Easy review of firewall access rules and object groups using the Access Rules and Object Groups reports.
• Automatic identification of configuration risks using the Risks and Warnings report.
• Validating recent policy modifications as part of a configuration change review process using the Change Tracking report.

How to Review Access Rules

An independent review of firewall policies has to be periodically conducted to ensure that network access rules are correctly implemented and documented. It is important because lack of access rule review leads to unexpected network access vulnerabilities.

• Frequency: each time firewall policies are changed, and at least once a quarter
• How to do it:
  • Step 1: given a workspace populated with network device configurations, open the Access Rule table from the main menu (top left)
  • Step 2: leverage the “Column Search” feature or the “Compare” feature to show the rules in scope of your verification
    • For instance, filter the “Device” column to only show rules for a specific device, or filter the “Binding (ACL)” column to only show rules bound to a specific interface, or use the “Compare” feature to only show rules added or removed recently
  • Step 3: review values for the source, destination, service, binding, risk, and description of each rule in scope
    • The “Description” column captures comment, description, or justification from the device configuration
    • The “Risk” and “Risk Criticality” columns are populated by NP-View during the automated risk analysis
  • Step 4: to identify rules that are not justified, sort the table by “Description”. Empty values will be shown at the bottom.
  • Step 5: to document your review process, double click on the “Comment” or “Comment Status” cells to add your own comment. The comment status can be either “Verified” or “To Review” or “To Revise”
  • Step 6: to save an evidence of your review process, export the table to Excel using the export options in the top right corner of the table

Access Rules Table

The Access Rules report provides the users with complete details on each Access Rule with the ability to add justifications and actions.

Object Groups

The Object Groups report provides the users with complete details on each Object Group with the ability to add justifications and actions.

Risks and Warnings

As modifications are made to the network, the Network Perception default Policies and Requirements identify potential risks. The Risks and Warnings report provides the users with a summary of the potential risks and their criticality with the ability to add actions and comments.

Change Tracking

As modifications are made to the network and the updated configuration files are imported, the changes are logged in the Change Tracking table.

Segmentation verification provides the Networking Team and Audit Team with capabilities that allows users to:

• Assess correctness of network segmentation
• Identify risky network connectivity paths
• Understand exposure of vulnerable assets

Network Segmentation Accuracy

NP-View be used to verify the accuracy of your network segmentation.

The connectivity matrix which is available from the device info panel can be used to verify open ports between devices.

Inbound and outbound connections can be verified for each network using the highlight paths function.

Identifying Risky Connectivity Paths

Using industry best practices, Network Perception automatically identifies potential risks related to network configurations. Using the Network Perception Connectivity Path analysis, the user can review each of the highlighted risks and make a judgment on action.

Exposure of Vulnerable Assets – Vulnerability Analytics

NP-View provides your security team with a single pane of glass for reviewing network vulnerability exposure. With the addition of scanner data or data from a vulnerability data service, vulnerabilities can be tracked across your network.

Topology Display of Vulnerabilities

When scanned data has been added to a workspace, and a topology view is built that also includes that scan data, nodes on the topology of that view will be marked with a shield indicating the presence of vulnerabilities.

These shields can be toggled on and off using the topology settings menu.

Device Panel Display of Vulnerabilities

Firewalls, Gateways, and Hosts may contain vulnerability and service information imported from scans. Clicking on any of these nodes in a View that contains vulnerability information, will display it in the info panel that opens over the main menu.

Clicking on the Vulnerabilities link will present a pop out with the vulnerability details.

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Performing a regular review of your compliance metrics is important for your organization. Performing the review manually is time consuming and tedious. Audit assistance provides the Compliance Team (Auditor, Compliance Officer, Compliance Analyst, and Consultants) with capabilities that allow users to:

• Verify compliance with cybersecurity regulations and best practices through Policy Review.
• Seamlessly store evidence for compliance review with Change Tracking.
• Easily prepare compliance reports using the Audit Assistants listed below:

Workspace Report (Standard)

The Workspace Report assistant is available within each workspace and will generate a report for a specific view that includes detailed information about configuration files that were imported and parsed including:

• Configuration assessment report including risk alerts
• Ports and Interfaces
• Access rules
• Object groups
• Path analysis

Industry Best Practice (Premium)

The Best Practice assistant requires a license to activate. This report is available within each workspace to generate a report for a specific view that includes the following topics:

• Parser Warnings and potential misconfigurations
• Unused Object Groups
• Access Rules missing a justification
• Unnamed nodes
• NP Best Practice Policies on access rules and CiS Benchmarks that have identified potential risks
• ACL’s with no explicit deny by default rule

NERC CIP Compliance (Premium)

The NERC CIP assistant requires a license to activate this function and guides the user through the steps required to create a report covering CIP-005 requirements. The NERC CIP audit assistant is only available within a NERC-CIP workspace and allows audit teams to classify BES cyber assets as High, Medium, and Low based on the standards. We have added a category for untrusted (Internet, Corp, etc.) to tag non BES assets. NP-View allows compliance teams to collect and report evidence related to the following requirements:

• CIP-002 – BES Cyber System Categorization; impact rating and 15-month review
• CIP-003 – Security Management Control; cyber security policy
• CIP-005 – Electronic Security Perimeter; remote access management
• CIP-007 – System Security Management; ports and services
• CIP-010 – Change Management and Vulnerability; configuration change management, configuration monitoring, vulnerability assessment

A demo workspace for the NERC CIP audit assistant is included with the software. To see the audit assistant in action, follow these steps:

1. Click on the demo workspace to build the topology.
2. Create a custom view by selecting all of the firewalls, right click, Create View from Selection and give it a name.
3. Once the view is generated, select Manage Zones from the left manu and click on the Auto Generate Zones button.
   • Red zones represent your high criticality assets.
   • Orange zones represent your medium criticality assets.
   • Yellow zones represent your low criticality assets.
   • Gray zones represent your untrusted assets.
4. On the left menu, select Summary Reports and the NERC-CIP Compliance Report
5. Click through the wizard, the defaults will represent the selections suggested by the auto group function.
6. Click Generate Report to view the report in a new tab.

Performing a regular review of your compliance metrics is important for your organization. Performing the review manually is time consuming and tedious. Audit assistance provides the Compliance Team (Auditor, Compliance Officer, Compliance Analyst, and Consultants) with capabilities that allow users to:

• Verify compliance with cybersecurity regulations and best practices through Policy Review.
• Seamlessly store evidence for compliance review with Change Tracking.
• Easily prepare compliance reports using the Audit Assistants listed below:

Workspace Report

The Workspace Report assistant is available within each workspace and will generate a report for a specific view that includes detailed information about configuration files that were imported and parsed including:

• Configuration assessment report including risk alerts and warnings.
• Device Information (Routes, Interfaces, and NAT Rules)
• Access rules
• Object groups
• Connectivity paths

Industry Best Practice

Your license key will determine if The Best Practice assistant is available. This report is available within each workspace to generate a report for a specific view that includes the following topics:

• Parser Warnings and potential misconfigurations
• Unused Object Groups
• Access Rules missing a justification
• Unnamed nodes
• NP Best Practice Policies on Access Rules and CiS Benchmarks that have identified potential risks
• Topology summary and connectivity

NERC CIP Compliance

Your license key will determine if the NERC CIP assistant feature is activate. The NERC CIP assistant guides the user through the steps required to create a report covering CIP-005 requirements. The NERC CIP audit assistant is only available within a NERC-CIP workspace and allows audit teams to classify BES cyber assets as High, Medium, and Low based on the standards. We have added a category for untrusted (Internet, Corp, etc.) to tag non BES assets. NP-View allows compliance teams to collect and report evidence related to the following requirements:

• CIP-002 – BES Cyber System Categorization; impact rating and 15-month review
• CIP-003 – Security Management Control; cyber security policy
• CIP-005 – Electronic Security Perimeter; remote access management
• CIP-007 – System Security Management; ports and services
• CIP-010 – Change Management and Vulnerability; configuration change management, configuration monitoring, vulnerability assessment

A demo workspace for the NERC CIP audit assistant is included with the software. To see the audit assistant in action, follow these steps:

1. Create a demo workspace using the system menu (upper right corner of the topology)
2. Open the demo workspace to show the topology.
3. Create a custom view by selecting all of the firewalls, right click, Create View from Selection and give it a name.
4. Once the view is generated, select Manage Zones from the left menu and click on the Auto Generate Zones button.
   1. Red zones represent your high criticality assets.
   2. Orange zones represent your medium criticality assets.
   3. Yellow zones represent your low criticality assets.
   4. Gray zones represent your untrusted assets.
5. On the left menu, select Summary Reports and the NERC-CIP Compliance Report
6. Click through the wizard, the defaults will represent the selections suggested by the auto group function.
7. Click Generate Report to view the report in a new tab.

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System Logs

Record of operating system events.

System Logs can be accessed from the main menu. Press L on the keyboard to open the system logs.

• Data: The System Logs Table shows a detailed sequence of tasks attempted and completed.
• Use: The System Logs Table is primarily used for system debugging and contains information, errors and warnings derived during system operation.
• Filters: The System Logs Table has three views
  • Workspace
    • Displays all system actions for the open workspace
    • Available to the Administrator and Workspace Admin
  • User
    • Displays the actions taken by the current user on the open workspace
    • Available to the Administrator and Workspace Admin
  • System
    • Displays the overall operation of system across users and workspaces
    • Only accessible by the Administrator
• Each view can be filtered to show only
  • Information
  • Errors
    • Errors are generated when a system operation fails to complete
  • Warnings
    • Warnings are generated during data parsing and when policy / requirement infractions are identified
  • All
    • Display all events.

Network visualization via The Topology Map is the most powerful feature of NP-View.

Once you:

1. Create a workspace
2. Import configuration files
3. Import supporting meta data

NP-View’s visualization engine will process your information and create a dynamic, usable network diagram, starting you at the Home View. Workspaces are broken down into views, which you can read more about here > Manage Views.

Topology Map

Based on your imported configurations, NP-View will create a map to connect and display nodes of the following types:

• Firewalls (physical and virtual)
• Routers (physical and virtual)
• Switches
• Host-Routers
• Networks (subnets)
• Hosts
• Gateways
• Border Gateways
• VPN Tunnels
• Unmapped Hosts and Networks

Details: Each node is represented by its own individual icon on the map, and when clicked will open a details panel with information about the selected node. From each details panel devices can be assigned a category (colored text tag) and criticality (colored ring).

Risk Display: If a device has active alerts, the number of alerts will be displayed as a red circle on the device icon.

Unmapped Gateway:

• Unmapped hosts and networks indicate IP addresses that are external to the topology and could not be connected to primary networks.
• For a given networking device (e.g., a firewall), primary networks constitute the IP ranges defined by its interfaces.
• In other words, all the networks a device faces are called primary.
• Nonetheless, the device’s ruleset can refer to arbitrary IP spaces, not necessarily those within primary ranges.
• Consequently, NP-View identifies those external/unknown IP spaces as hosts, networks, or ranges, as defined in the config, and places them behind the Unmapped gateway.

Organizing the Map

On the Topology Map, users can rearrange any object or group of objects on the canvas by simply selecting and dragging a device to a new location. Device locations can be saved with the “Save Topology” button which can be found in the top center of the screen.

• Multiple devices can be selected by holding the shift key down (the cursor changes to a + sign) and dragging the mouse to make the selection.
• The Ctrl key can be used to select / deselect individual devices.
• Once selected, the devices can be assigned to a common category or criticality.
• Alternatively, the devices can be segmented into zones. See more info on zone creation.

Save Topology: When objects are moved on the topology map, the ‘Save Topology’ button will become active. Multiple objects can be moved prior to saving the topology.

If the user attempts to switch views before saving, a notification will be presented as follows:

The user can proceed to the selected view without saving by clicking “OK”, or they can choose “cancel” to go back and ‘Save Topology’ .

Other Topology Functions

Settings: Opens a panel with user preferences that can be set for the map. See the section below for more

Pin/ Unpin Topology: Selecting this, moving one device will cause the map to auto arrange. This can be helpful if when importing a large number of devices, the topology map initially displays with overlapping devices

Collapse/ Expand Topology Nodes: Some Topology Maps may become visually overwhelming depending on how many nodes are present. This setting will hide end points and only display Primary devices and networks

Night Mode: Sets the map to a different color scheme

Highlight Paths: Opens the Highlight Paths menu item. See the Paths article for more.

Manage Views: Opens the Manage Views menu item. See the Manage Views article for more.

Center Map: Centers the map on the screen

Topology Settings

NP-View provides a settings menu specifically for the topology. This menu can be used to show as much or as little information as you desire on the topology map. This keeps the topology map at a level of organization that suits your use.

The topology settings menu is easily accessible from the menu in the bottom right of the topology map by clicking on the gear icon.

This will open the topology settings dialog and allow users to show or hide different types of information on the fly.

• Highlight Verified Assets – this setting enables or disables the verified assets feature.
• Collapse Nodes By Default – this setting toggles the behavior of whether or not nodes on the topology map are collapsed when the topology is rendered.
• Show Gateways with NO IP – this setting toggles the display of gateways (white gateway icons) that are defined but have no IP address assigned. The default behavior is to hide them.
• Show Networks with NO IP – this setting toggles the display of networks / interfaces (white cloud icons) that are defined but have no IP address assigned. The default behavior is to hide them.
  • Show Only Bridge Groups - Some devices define bridge groups that show up as Networks with NO IP. If a bridge group is identified in the Interfaces table, this selection will allow for the bridge groups to be displayed while the rest of the NO IP networks are hidden.
• Show Topology Elements – this setting toggles the display of topology elements that the user may wish to selectively hide for viewing or screen shots.
  • IP Addresses - Any IPaddress on the topology, even if it is the device name.
  • Names - Any device name that is not an IP address.
  • Categories - User assigned categories.‍
  • Criticalities - User assigned criticalities.
  • Vulnerability Shields – Icons that show vulnerabilities on nodes when scans have been imported into the workspace.
  • Risk Bubbles - Red risk bubbles that identify the number of risk alerts associated with each device.
  • Zones - User defined zones

Users & Groups

For NP-View server, each user will be assigned to one of three user groups:

1. Administrator
   • Can create, view and edit workspaces
   • Has access to all users’ workspaces – including other administrators
   • Can share, transfer or export all workspaces
2. Workspace Admin
   • Can create, view and edit workspaces
   • Workspace Admins have access to their own workspaces, and to ones that are shared with them.
   • Can share, transfer or export their own workspace workspace and export workspaces shared with them.
3. Viewer
   • Viewers have no authoring capability and can only view workspaces that have been shared with them by Administrators or Workspace Admin’s

For local authentication, the group assignment is made when the user is created.

For Active Directory / LDAP, the assigned group is made in the authentication server.

For Radius, all users are assigned to the Administrator group.

The following table is a comprehensive list of supported devices. The instructions provided in the table can be used to manually extract data from the device for import. While we do our best to support the below devices, it is impossible for us to test the parsers with every possible device configuration combination. If errors occur during device import, Network Perception is committed to working with our customers to resolve their specific parsing issues.

Note that Network Perceptions device support policy follows that of the manufacturer. When a manufacturer ends support for a product, so does Network Perception. End of support devices are not removed from NP-View but will not be upgraded if issues arise.

Supported Devices with Vendor Partnership

The devices in this list are actively tested in our lab to support the most current versions of the manufacturer software. Network Perception has an active partnership with these vendors for software and support.

Supported Devices with no Vendor Partnership

The devices in this list are actively tested in our lab to support the most current versions of the manufacturer software.

Historical Devices

The devices in this list were developed based on customer provided configuration files. We are no longer actively developing these parsers but they are supported for break/fix and require customers sanitized config files to assist with the debug of issues.

Additional Instructions

Requesting Support for New Devices

The above list of supported hardware has been lab and field tested. Newer versions generally work unless their is a major platform or API upgrade. Please contact support@network-perception.com if you wish to get more information on parsers, request support for a particular device or are interested on co-developing a solution.

NP-View includes a utility to automatically retrieve network device configuration files on a schedule. The connector types supported in NP-View Server are below:

Configuration Managers

For retrieving config files from network management systems. For each connector, the user can select the devices to be uploaded for monitoring.

Direct Device Connection

For retrieving config files directly from the network device.

Volume Shares

For retrieving config files that are uploaded to a common collection repository.

Asset Managers

For retrieving asset related information from asset management systems.

Experimental Connectors

Support for the following device connectors are in various stages of development and are provided for field testing purposes. Using these device connectors may or may not work for your specific environment or configurations. If you find issues with these devices, please provide your feedback to support@network-perception.com

Cloud Providers

For retrieving VLAN and services configurations from cloud providers.

Configuration Managers

For retrieving config files from network management systems. For each connector, the user can select the devices to be uploaded for monitoring.

Legacy Configuration Managers

These devices are no longer supported by NP-View. While the system did support these devices in the past, the vendor no longer provides support to external developers and these devices have been removed from active support.

Additional Connector Instructions

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If you have a system for which you need a connector or if you encounter a technical issue, please contact support@network-perception.com.

Connectors automate the secure retrieval of configuration files from firewalls, routers, switches, and network device configuration managers. NP-View Server can host one or more connectors that securely retrieves configuration files at the specified frequency. By default, connectors are accessible through HTTPS on port TCP/8443 of the NP-View server and is isolated for security purposes.

The first time an administrator accesses the connectors (+Import Data -> New connector -> Manage connectors), they are required to define a Connector group name and a secure passphrase. The Connector group name will be used to create the encrypted connector file store. Connector information is encrypted at rest and in transit using a passphrase protected PGP key. Only the connector owners know the passphrase and the passphrase is never stored. Once initiated, connectors run in the background collecting network information. If the NP-View server is restarted, the connector owner is required to re-authenticate and restart the connectors. Connector owners can create multiple connector groups and each will require their own login. Once created, the user can select from the list of available connectors when logging in.

The connector page contains five main options.

The buttons from left to right are:

• + Add New Connector
• bulk start all connectors (see bulk start parameters below)
• bulk stop all connectors
• delete the connector (user must be logged into the connector group to delete)
• exit the connector group.

Add Connector

To add a new connector, select “+Add New Connector” button and a list of available connectors is presented. Connector options are: Cloud Providers, Configuration Managers, Direct Devices and Volume Shares

Upon selecting the Connector type to add, the user is requested to fill in connection information. Connector information varies by vendor. The connector configuration for a Palo Alto device is as follows:

The user must enter a Connector name (no spaces), host name, and credentials. The user can then verify the credentials are correct with the “Test credentials” button. The user can setup the polling cycle and provide the workspaces to deliver the resultant information.

Polling Cycles are:

• On demand
• Daily
• Weekly
• Bi-Weekly
• Monthly

Configuration Management Systems

For Configuration Management Systems and file Shares, additional information may be required. The user can retrieve a list of files from the device and filter the results. To include specific files, put them in the include list field. To exclude files, put them in the exclude list field. If both lists are used, include list filter will be applied first and the exclude list filter to the results of the include list filter. If the share is PGP encrypted, a PGP Public key will be required.

Workspaces must be added to the connector for data to be transferred and displayed in the workspace. If workspaces are added after a connector is setup, data will not be sent to the workspace until the next scheduled import and a configuration change is identified. Creating workspaces before connectors facilitates faster visualization of data.

Connector Tile

Once the connector is added, a tile is added to the connectors home page.

Connector tiles are sorted by the characters in their names using standard Linux conventions:

1. whitespace
2. integer
3. special char
4. uppercase [A-Z]
5. underscore (possibly other special chars)
6. lowercase [a-z]

From the tile, the user can:

• manually activate the connector for a one time data pull
• run / pause the connector
• edit the connector
• copy the connector
• delete the connector.

The tile banner will show in three colors:

• red – connector failed
• blue – connector scheduled to run
• gray – connector paused

Click the start / pause button to restart a failed or paused connector, note that a connector may take several minutes to change the banner color.

NP-View can import auxiliary data from third party systems to enrich and augment the analysis. The data files listed below are supported and can be manually imported using drag and drop or through a shared network drive connector. We recommend importing configuration files first or at the same time as the auxiliary data files or a system error may occur. If auxiliary data is input after configuration files are processed, the auxiliary data will need to be added to a new or existing custom view(s) to display the data.

Hosts

Hosts can be identified from multiple sources including configuration files, network scan files, ARP tables and hostname files. Once network device configuration files have been imported, one can import additional files to add metadata to the workspace. A hostname file is a simple text file with two columns: IP address and hostname separate by a tab.

Aux Data Loading Example

This example applies to the loading of any Aux data file but is specific to creating and loading a host file.

First, load a firewall into a workspace and create a custom view with the firewall.

Notice that four hosts are not named. Next, create a host file, hosts.txt, to enrich the information. The host file will add a name tied to each of the hosts and also includes hosts not currently displayed.
172.30.90.50 Alice
172.30.90.51 Bob
172.30.90.42 Wendy
172.30.91.80 Sam
172.30.91.81 Carl

Make sure any hosts added to the file do not conflict with firewall interfaces or they will be merged into the firewall.

Save the host file, drag and drop the file into the workspace (or use the +Import Data function).

Click upload and the file will be imported into the workspace.

Once the file has been uploaded, it will parse in a similar fashion to config files.

Once processed, proceed to the “Manage Views” menu and select a new or existing view to add host data. Click the Auxiliary Data checkbox and then the “Save View” button. The view will be regenerated with the data from the host file.

The updated assets will be displayed on the topology and in Asset inventory.

If for some reason a device has multiple names retrieved from multiple different file types, the additional names will be displayed in the Alias column.

Next, update the Host file again. In this scenario, we rename “Carl” to “Carly” and “Sam” to “Sammy”. The updated file is as follows:
172.30.90.50 Alice
172.30.90.51 Bob
172.30.90.42 Wendy
172.30.91.80 Sammy
172.30.91.81 Carly

Load the file into the workspace and the custom views where auxiliary data has been applied. This will update the workspace.

Host data can come from multiple sources, also hosts can appear and disappear from the network. Host data is treated as replacement data for adding and deleting hosts over time.

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Network and vulnerability scanners

The output from network and vulnerability scanners can be imported into a workspace to add CVE information, hosts, attributes, and port information to the topology map. We support version 1.0 <?xml version=”1.0″ ?> of the below scanners:

• Nmap – Use command nmap -oX
• Rapid 7 Nexpose,
• Tenable Nessus – Export the .nessus scan in XML format.

When exporting the report, it should be saved using the XML format to properly import into NP-View. The data extracted and imported depends on the scanner used and the data available on the network. Below is a list of data NP-View attempts to import.

• hostnames
• addresses
• interfaces
• local interface IP’s
• local interface names
• mac
• domains
• parent
• operating systems
• vlan

Multi-Home Hosts

Multi-Home hosts are endpoints that have multiple network interfaces. If NP-View identifies hosts with multiple interfaces, the host will be duplicated on the topology with each IP address. For example, the host called 'dual-homed' can be seen three times on the map below.

To resolve this, a 'multi_home_host.txt' file can be manually generated and loaded into NP-View as auxiliary data. The file must be named 'multi_home_host.txt' and be of the following format:

192.168.135.115 dual-homed

192.168.135.114 dual-homed

192.168.135.113 dual-homed

Where the first field is the IPaddress and the second field is the name of the host.

When importing the 'multi_home_host.txt' and adding it to a view, the hosts will be connected as follows:

Note that the file can be named as *_multi_home_host.txt where *_ is anything preceding multi_home_host.txt. For example:

tuesday_multi_home_host.txt

web_server_multi_home_host.txt

the_big_kahuna_multi_home_host.txt

Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)

ARP files can be used to add hosts as well as MAC addresses for the hosts. The following formats are supported:

Cisco

Use show arp to export the ARP table. The file format will be as follows:

<hostname># show arp

outside 10.0.0.100 d867.da11.00c1 2

inside 192.168.1.10 000c.295b.5aa2 21

inside 192.168.1.12 000c.2933.561c 36

inside 192.168.1.14 000c.2ee0.2b81 97

Cisco ARP Example

Using the data set from the Hosts example, a simple ARP table has been created in the Cisco format.

Distribution# show arp

inside 172.30.90.50 d867.da11.00c1 2

inside 172.30.90.51 000c.295b.5aa2 21

inside 172.30.90.42 000c.2933.561c 36

inside 172.30.91.80 000c.2ee0.2b81 97

inside 172.30.91.81 000c.2ecc.2b82 95

Distribution#

Loading this data into NP-View will add the MAC addresses to each host which is visible in Asset inventory.

Windows

Use arp -a > arp_table.txt to export the ARP table. The file format will be:

Interface: 192.168.86.29 --- 0x6

Internet Address Physical Address Type

192.168.86.1 88-3d-24-76-49-f2 dynamic

192.168.86.25 50-dc-e7-4b-13-40 dynamic

192.168.86.31 1c-fe-2b-30-78-e5 dynamic

192.168.86.33 8c-04-ba-8c-dc-4d dynamic

Linux

Use arp -a > arp_table.txt to export the ARP table. The file format will be:

? (172.18.0.3) at 02:42:ac:12:00:03 [ether] on br-d497989bc64d

? (192.168.135.200) at 00:0c:29:f6:47:bb [ether] on ens160

? (172.17.0.2) at <incomplete> on docker0

? (192.168.135.178) at 00:0c:29:f3:e2:6b [ether] on ens160

Palo Alto

Use show arp all to export the ARP table. The file format will be:

maximum of entries supported : 2500

default timeout: 1800 seconds

total ARP entries in table : 3

total ARP entries shown : 3

status: s - static, c - complete, e - expiring, i - incomplete

interface ip address hw address port status ttl

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ethernet1/1 192.0.2.10 00:0c:29:ac:30:19 ethernet1/1 c 295

ethernet1/2 198.51.100.10 00:0c:29:d7:67:09 ethernet1/2 c 1776

ethernet1/3 203.0.113.10 00:0c:29:b9:19:c9 ethernet1/3 c 1791

Route Tables

Route files are a special case in that they provide ruleset-specific enrichment data whereas the other auxiliary files listed above provide topology-specific enrichment data.

Route table – Cisco

The output of the command show route on Cisco devices can be imported into NP-View with associated configuration files. For VRF’s, use the command show ip route vrf *. Cisco route files are handled a bit differently than the rest of the aux data as they are integrated upon import and are not considered as aux data when creating a view. Naming of the route files are not important as long as they are unique. The first row of the route file contains the <device name># command to link the route table with the correct device.

Claroty CDT

NP-View connects to the Claroty CTD (cloud or on premise) through the API. NP-View will extract the following fields of data and map them as endpoints in NP-View.

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Below are the currently known issues in NP-View along with the available workarounds. These issues will be addressed as part of the upcoming release. If you are experiencing an issue not covered in this document, please contact Technical Support at: support@network-perception.com.

1. Typing into a field in NP-View Desktop doesn’t register any text

Reset window focus (This may not always work)

• Alt+Tab out of the application
• Alt+Tab back into the application

Login to NP-View Desktop via web browser

• Open a web browser (Chrome/Edge) with NP-View still running
• Type “localhost:8080” in the address bar to load NP-View in a browser window

NP-View is licensed on an annual basis. The cost of the license depends on the number of configuration files imported from primary network devices (firewalls, routers, and switches).

How Licensing Works

When importing devices (manual or automated), a reminder notice is provided stating: “Importing new devices requires available licenses. Devices are activated in the order they are imported. If the total license count is exceeded, importing of additional unlicensed devices will be prohibited.

To determine the available number of devices licenses, see the summary at the bottom of Licenses and Terms.

Supported Devices and Connectors

The knowledge base contains a list of actively supported devices (link) and connectors (link). These lists change over time as manufacturer end of life support and as we add support for new devices. These lists are referred to in our terms of service and used to define what is in scope of the NP-View license agreement. Network Perception reserves the right to alter this list at any time without customer notice.

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When Device Licenses are Activated

Device licenses are activated when a device is first imported. When the device limit is reached, import of additional devices (manual or automated) will be prohibited and a message will be issued in the help center and system logs.

Device licensing is permanent. Once a license is allocated to a device it cannot be re-assigned to another device.

Palo Alto NGFW and Virtual Systems (VSYS)

Virtual systems are separate, logical firewall instances within a single physical Palo Alto Networks firewall. Rather than using multiple physical firewalls, IT departments can use a single firewall and enable virtual systems on them to independently separate traffic.

The default is vsys1. You cannot delete vsys1 because it is relevant to the internal hierarchy on the firewall; vsys1 appears even on firewall models that don’t support multiple virtual systems.

When using multiple virtual systems, if a configured vsys has an interface with access rules, NP-View will represent the vsys as a separate firewall and a device license is allocated. If a vsys has no interfaces or access rules and is used only for object management then NP-View does not display the firewall and it requires no license.

FortiGate and Virtual Domains (VDOM)

Virtual Domains (VDOMs) are used to divide a FortiGate into two or more virtual units that function independently. VDOMs can provide separate security policies and, in NAT mode, completely separate configurations for routing and VPN services for each connected network. If a VDOM has no interfaces or access rules and is used only for object management then NP-View does not display the firewall and it requires no license.

Hiding Devices

If a device is no longer required in any workspace, the Administrator can hide the device from all workspaces by unchecking the “Visible in Workspace” check box and selecting the “Submit” button.

The licensed device will remain in “license and Terms” and displayed as follows:

The data is not deleted from the workspaces. If the Administrator wishes to restore the device to all workspaces, they can by importing new data for the device or by rechecking the checkbox and clicking “Submit”.

Note: NP provided demo devices in the demo workspace are excluded from display in the license manager and device counts.

User Deleted Devices

If the user deletes a device from all workspaces, the device still remains licensed but as it has no system association will not be displayed in License and Terms. The device can be restored in the future by importing new data for the device into any workspace.

Expired Licenses

When the license expires, workspaces for all users will be disabled along with manual data imports. A message will be displayed stating that the license has expired and to contact sales to renew. Connectors will continue to collect data and deliver the updates to workspaces and demo workspaces will continue to function.

License Downgrade

If a customer downgrades their device count, the Administrator will need to select the devices to remain active after inputting the new license key. If the Administrator does not select the devices to remain, the system will allocate the devices in the order they are used. All remaining unlicensed devices will be removed from all workspaces.

Compliance Module Downgrade

If a customer downgrades their compliance module license, all workspaces associated with that module will be disabled. The user can manually delete these workspaces.

Existing Customer Upgrades

For existing customers upgrading from a previous version of software to version 3.1.0 or later, devices that are imported and active in the license manager (check box marked) will remain licensed. Devices that are unlicensed (check box unmarked) will be removed from all existing workspaces. If a customer needs to replace one or more devices, please contact support.

Auditors and NP Certification

Auditors and NP Certification members working project style engagements using NP-View Desktop are provided with a special feature to reset the system to its original state after an engagement so that no customer data is retained.

Adding a license to NP-View Desktop and NP-View Server

• Step 1: Create an account on the Portal website
• Step 2: If you don’t see an active license in the Portal home page, select “Request License” or contact support@network-perception.com
• Step 3: Once a license key has been generated for you, make sure the format is correct. It should be a JSON structure similar to:

{
"email": "email address",
"type": "License type",
"expiration": "date",
"max_rulesets": "purchased device",
"max_users": "purchased user",
"module_np": if purchased,
"module_nerccip": if purchased,
"key": "secret key"
}


• Step 4a: For New Installations, upon system installation, the Administrator will input the NP license key into the setup screen which will set the maximum limit on the number of devices that can be imported (manually or automated) into the system.
• Step 4b: For existing customers, launch NP-View and select “License & terms” from the user menu (top right corner).

• Then scroll down and select “Upgrade or renew your license” followed by “Input license manually”. You can then copy/paste the license JSON structure (including opening and closing curly brackets) into the text field area.

• Note: the licensing function is available only to the Administrator role in NP-View Server and the must logout and re-login for the license to take affect.

HA Device Licensing

NP-View Professional server support the licensing of active / passive high availability (HA) groups for firewalls. HA Group definitions are only required if the device name of the primary and secondary devices are different. Once the active firewalls are loaded into NP-View, the HA definition file can be exported using postman or a tool of your choice using:

GET /license/ha-groups?file-export=true and a file will be downloaded.

The file export will be a text file. Column 1 will be the HA Group name and will be initially empty. Column 2 will be the firewall name.

HA Group Name, Device Name
, asaDMZ-fw1
, asaUCCtoBA1
, asaUCCtoSub-A
, asaBA
, firewallSub

The administrator will then update the text file to add unique group names as well as the name of the passive firewall. The updated file can look as follows. Devices without group names will remain as individual firewalls.

HA Group Name, Device Name
A-Group, asaDMZ-fw1
A-Group, asaDMZ-fw2
B-Group, asaUCCtoBA1
B-Group, asaUCCtoBA2
C-Group, asaUCCtoSub-A
C-Group, asaUCCtoSub-B
, asaBA
, firewallSub

Once the file is updated, the file can be posted using postman or the tool of your choice:

POST /license/ha-groups

When new firewalls are added or groups need to be redefined, the above GET / POST process can be repeated.

HA Groups will share one device license. If firewalls are ungrouped and there are not enough free device licenses, the user will be asked to remove firewalls from NP-View that are to be unlicensed and deleted from the system.

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NP-View has a series of shortcut keys to quickly access commonly used functions. This section describes some of the frequently used shortcut keys. Note the the list of shortcut keys is available from the upper right menu or by using the “K” key

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Help Center

The Help Center can be found on the system menu on the upper right corner of the topology.

The Help Center will display warnings or errors identified during the import of device files.

The information in the help center is designed to provide information for the tech support team to help diagnose the issues.

There are many types of possible errors including:

1. Invalid file formats (e.g., .gif or .png)
2. Improperly formatted files (files exported as text but loaded into a word processors where extra characters are added before saving).
3. Incomplete set of files (many devices require more than one file for import this includes Palo Alto and IP tables)
4. Misconfigured files where rules or objects are undefined.

As every customer has a different environment and possible device configurations are endless. We sometimes run into a situation where the parser cannot handle the device as configured. When this happens, we request the customer to sanitize the config file on the NP Poral and upload the file for debug purposes. Support from our customers is important for us to quickly remediate parsing issues unique to a device or specific file.

The Help Center provides a download for the error log which can be submitted to technical support through the support portal.

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