comForte introduces SecurLib, a library to add SSL to TCP/IP applications

SecurLib brings the power of comForte's proven Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) implementation to existing TCP/IP applications on the NonStop platform. Without SecurLib, adding an SSL encryption layer to TCP/IP sockets in the HP Guardian environment is a daunting task. Open source libraries such as OpenSSL do not easily fit the Guardian "no-wait I/O" paradigm. Furthermore, even with portable libraries, a proper SSL implementation must be based on a thorough understanding of the underlying concepts. SecurLib hides all of these implementation complexities so that SSL encryption can be added by changing just a few lines of source code. HP has licenced SecurLib for incorporation into its Open System Management (OSM) product suite for NonStop servers.

The challenge

Many companies have built applications on the NonStop server which make use of TCP/IP as a means to communicate with other systems. Those applications have been implemented using the TCP/IP sockets API provided as part of the NonStop operating system. Adding an SSL encryption layer to those applications can be a daunting task. Open source libraries such as OpenSSL do not easily fit the Guardian "Nowait" IO paradigm. Even with portable libraries a proper SSL implementation must be based on a thorough understanding of the intricacies of SSL. Furthermore, optimizing the performance of SSL encryption for the NonStop platform can present a serious challenge.

The solution

SecurCS hides the SSL implementation complexities, so that SSL encryption can be added by changing just a few lines of your source code. After replacing the standard socket calls in the source code with SecurLib's counterpart and adding a few lines of initialization code, your application will be ready to communicate to SSL-enabled communication partners. With SecurLib, your application will benefit from comForte's proven SSL implementation optimized for the NonStop platform.

Requirements

To use SecurLib, the following requirements have to be met:

•  You need to have the full source code of your application

•  The application can be written in TAL, C, C++ or COBOL

•  SecurLib is delivered as a static library to be bound together with your application with a header file

•  The first Release of SecurLib supports native compilers only, support for non-native compilers can be added upon request

Further Information

The SecurLib Manual contains a detailed description on how to integrate SecurLib with your application. Please contact admin@legato.com.sg for an evaluation copy.