Securely establishing key-based SSH communications between virtual machines during cloud marketplace provisioning
AssigneeEMC IP Holding Company LLC
InventorsBin Yu, Arthur Zhou
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Virtual machines are launched in a public cloud software marketplace by a user purchasing a software product. The virtual machines are automatically provisioned and configured upon launching. One virtual machine generates a public/private key pair, and key-based SSH communications is securely established between the virtual machines without the necessity of insecurely transferring the private key over an insecure public communications channel.
Claims14
A method of automatically and securely establishing key-based Secure shell (SSH) communications between processing entities over an insecure network in a public cloud environment without insecurely transferring a private key of a public/private key pair over the network, comprising:
- launching instances of first and second virtual machines in said public cloud environment using an initiation template that automatically provisions and configures simultaneously each said first and second virtual machine, said launching comprising providing by said initiation template corresponding first and second instance identifiers for said first and second virtual machine instances, respectively;
- enabling temporarily upon said launching a password-based SSH communications channel on the second virtual machine using said second instance identifier as a password, and enabling key-based SSH only on said first virtual machine;
- generating by said first virtual machine a public/private key pair of the first virtual machine for key-based SSH communications with said second virtual machine;
- transferring to said second virtual machine over said password-based SSH communications channel the public key of said public/private key pair of the first virtual machine, and configuring the second virtual machine to use the first virtual machine's public key as a public key of the second virtual machine;
- and
- establishing a key-based SSH communications channel between the first virtual machine and the second virtual machine using the public/private key pair of the first virtual machine.
Computer readable non-transitory media storing executable instructions for controlling a processor to perform a method of automatically and securely establishing key-based Secure shell (SSH) communications between processing entities over an insecure network in a public cloud environment without insecurely transferring a private key of a public/private key pair over the network, comprising:
- launching instances of first and second virtual machines in said public cloud environment using an initiation template that automatically provisions and configures simultaneously each said first and second virtual machine, said launching comprising providing by said initiation template corresponding first and second instance identifiers for said first and second virtual machine instances, respectively;
- enabling temporarily upon said launching a password-based SSH communications channel on the second virtual machine using said second instance identifier as a password, and enabling key-based SSH only on said first virtual machine;
- generating by said first virtual machine a public/private key pair of the first virtual machine for key-based SSH communications with said second virtual machine;
- transferring to said second virtual machine over said password-based SSH communications channel the public key of said public/private key pair of the first virtual machine, and configuring the second virtual machine to use the first virtual machines public key as a public key of the second virtual machine;
- and
- establishing key-based SSH communications between the first virtual machine and the second virtual machine using the public/private key pair of the first virtual machine.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.