TPM Credential Storage for Host Self-Recovery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional approaches for managing security information in cloud computing environments are inadequate for quick and secure recovery of host computing devices from large-scale events like network faults and power failures, as they rely on remote communication for credentials, leading to latency and prolonged recovery times.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a trusted platform module (TPM) on host computing devices to securely store credentials and boot firmware measurements, allowing local decryption and loading of recovery images, thereby enabling self-recovery without network dependence and ensuring secure communication with remote devices through remote attestation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional approaches rely on remote communication for credentials during host recovery, then security can be maintained through centralized control, but recovery time increases due to network latency and dependence
Solution Approach 1:
The TPM securely stores credentials and boot firmware measurements in advance before any failure occurs. During recovery, these pre-stored credentials enable immediate local authentication and decryption operations without requiring remote communication, thus reducing recovery time while maintaining security
Solution Approach 2:
The TPM acts as an intermediary secure storage device between the host and remote credentials. It holds credentials locally and can provide them during recovery without requiring direct remote communication, serving as a mediator that reduces network dependence while maintaining security controls
2Adaptability or versatility
If credentials are stored remotely and fetched during recovery, then centralized security management is maintained, but network availability becomes a critical dependency for recovery
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments credential storage from remote servers and places it in local TPM modules on each host. This segmentation allows each host to independently recover using its own locally-stored credentials, reducing network dependence while maintaining centralized provisioning capabilities
Solution Approach 2:
Each host equipped with a TPM can perform self-recovery using credentials stored in its own TPM module. The host does not need to contact remote servers to retrieve credentials during recovery, enabling autonomous recovery operations that are independent of network availability
3Productivity
If local secure storage is implemented on each host, then recovery can proceed independently without network dependence, but the complexity of secure credential management increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex software-based credential management with hardware-based TPM modules that provide cryptographic operations and secure storage. This substitution simplifies credential management by leveraging the TPM's built-in security features rather than implementing complex software solutions
Data Source
AI summary
Approaches are described for enabling a host computing device to store credentials and other security information useful for recovering the state of the host computing device in a secure store, such as a trusted platform module (TPM) on the host computing device. When recovering the host computing device in the event of a failure (e.g., power outage, network failure, etc.), the host computing device can obtain the necessary credentials from the secure store and use those credentials to boot various services, restore the state of the host and perform various other functions. In addition, the secure store (e.g., TPM) may provide boot firmware measurement and remote attestation of the host computing devices to other devices on a network, such as when the recovering host needs to communicate with the other devices on the network.