Using SSL to secure the connection between Enterprise Server and Smart Connection

Smart Connection can connect to Enterprise Server through SSL by using a WoodWing CA certificate and CA Root certificates of common Certificate Authorities such as those of Symantec.

Configuration

The SSL connection can be set up in various ways:

1. By using root certificates from the Keychain
2. By using the root certificates from Smart Connection
3. By using the root certificates from a defined folder

1. Using root certificates from the Keychain

Notes:  This option is only available for MacOS, not for Windows. The root certificates from the Keychain cannot be used when RabbitMQ has to be accessed over a secure connection.

In this setup, no configuration is done in Smart Connection. Any root certificates that are available in the Keychain are used for secure communication.

2. Using the root certificates from Smart Connection

Smart Connection includes Root certificates from the Mozilla CA Certificate Program. See the Mozilla documentation for the included certificates and their expiration dates.

To use these, enable the SSL option in Smart Connection.

Step 1. Access the WWSettings.xml file of Smart Connection.

Step 2. Locate the following line and un-comment it:

<SCEnt:SSL enable="true" cacertPath="certificate_path"/>

Step 3. Remove the certificate_path reference.

<SCEnt:SSL enable="true"/>

Step 4. Save the WWSettings.xml file.

Important: Make sure to validate the WWSettings.xml file for correct content. See Validating the WWSettings.xml file.

Step 5. Restart Smart Connection and log in to Enterprise Server.

3. Using the root certificates from a defined folder

Step 1. Access the WWSettings.xml file of Smart Connection.

Step 2. Locate the following line and un-comment it:

<SCEnt:SSL enable="true" cacertPath="certificate_path"/>

Step 3. Replace certificate_path by the path to the certificate.

Example (MacOS):<SCEnt:SSL enable="true" cacertPath="/Library/Application Support/WoodWing/Cert123.pem"/>

Note: Make sure that the correct quotation marks are used, as shown in the example above.

Step 4. Save the WWSettings.xml file.

Important: Make sure to validate the WWSettings.xml file for correct content. See Validating the WWSettings.xml file.

Step 5. Restart Smart Connection and log in to Enterprise Server.

The root certificates from Smart Connection are now stored locally in the following file:

• For MacOS
• Users/<user name>/Documents/SmartConnection.noindex/InCopy/cacert.pem
• Users/<user name>/Documents/SmartConnection.noindex/InDesign/cacert.pem

• For Windows
• C:\Users\<username>\My Documents\SmartConnection.noindex\InCopy\cacert.pem
• C:\Users\<username>\My Documents\SmartConnection.noindex\InDesign\cacert.pem

Using encryption keys

To let a user connect to Enterprise Server by making use of an encryption key, add cryptkey="[key name]" to the server URL in the WWSettings.xml file:

• Static:

<SCEnt:ServerInfo name="Enterprise" url="http://10.0.0.1/Enterprise/index.php" cryptkey="..."/>

• Dynamic:

<SCEnt:ServerInfo name="SC Enterprise" url="http://10.0.0.1/Enterprise/index.php" cryptkey="..."/>

Changing the SSL version

Smart Connection forces SSL connections to use TLSv1 or later by default. The underlying libcurl library negotiates with the server environment about which TLS version to use. The TLS version can be either TLS v1.0, v1.1, v1.2 or v1.3, depending on the server environment.

In case a connection should be established with the deprecated and insecure SSL v3, the following additional configuration should be added to the WWSettings.xml file:

Important: This disables the connection over the more secure TLS versions, and is therefore not encouraged.

<SCEnt:SSL sslVersion="SSLv3"/>

Troubleshooting

For troubleshooting SSL, visit the Apache documentation: SSL/TLS Strong Encryption.

Document history

• 31 March 2021: Updated section 'Changing the SSL version'.