Web services security model in WebSphere Application Server

[Version 5 only]

Web services security model in WebSphere Application Server

The Web services security model used by WebSphere Application Server is the declarative model. WebSphere Application Server does not include any application programming interfaces (APIs) for programmatically interacting with Web services security. However, a few Server Provider Interfaces (SPIs) are available for extending some security-related behaviors.

Important distinction between Version 5.x and Version 6 applications

Note: The information in this article supports version 5.x applications only that are used with WebSphere Application Server Version 6. The information does not apply to version 6 applications.

Figure 1. Web services security model The security constraints for Web services security are specified in IBM deployment descriptor extensions for Web services. The Web services security run time acts on the constraints to enforce Web services security for the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) message. The scope of the IBM deployment descriptor extension is at the enterprise bean (EJB) or Web module level. Bindings are associated with each of the following IBM deployment descriptor extensions:

Client (Might be either a J2EE Client (Application Client Container) or Web services acting as a client): ibm-webservicesclient-ext.xmi; ibm-webservicesclient-bnd.xmi
Server: ibm-webservices-ext.xmi; ibm-webservices-bnd.xmi

IBM recommends that you use the tools provided by IBM (the Application Server Toolkit and Rational Web Developer) to create the IBM deployment descriptor extension and bindings. After the bindings are created, you can use the administrative console or an assembly tool to specify the bindings.

Important

Note: The binding information is collected after application deployment rather than during application deployment. The alternative is to specify the required binding information before deploying your application.

Figure 1. Web services security message interpretation The Web services security run time enforces Web services security based on the defined security constraints in the deployment descriptor and binding files. Web services security has the following four points where it intercepts the message and acts on the security constraints defined:

Message points Description

Request sender (defined in the ibm-webservicesclient-ext.xmi and ibm-webservicesclient-bnd.xmi files)

Applies the appropriate security constraints to the SOAP message (such as signing or encryption) before the message is sent, generating the time stamp or the required security token.

Request receiver (defined in the ibm-webservices-ext.xmi and ibm-webservices-bnd.xmi files)

Verifies that the Web services security constraints are met.
Verifies the freshness of the message based on the time stamp. The freshness of the message indicates whether the message complies with predefined time constraints.
Verifies the required signature.
Verifies that the message is encrypted and decrypts the message if encrypted.
Validates the security tokens and sets up the security context for the downstream call.

Response sender (defined in the ibm-webservices-ext.xmi and ibm-webservices-bnd.xmi files)

Applies the appropriate security constraints to the SOAP message response, like signing the message, encrypting the message, or generating the time stamp.

Response receiver (defined in the ibm-webservicesclient-ext.xmi or ibm-webservicesclient-bnd.xmi files)

Verifies that the Web services security constraints are met.
Verifies the freshness of the message based on the time stamp. The freshness of the message indicates whether the message complies with predefined time constraints.
Verifies the required signature.
Verifies that the message is encrypted and decrypts the message, if encrypted.

Message points	Description
Request sender (defined in the ibm-webservicesclient-ext.xmi and ibm-webservicesclient-bnd.xmi files)	Applies the appropriate security constraints to the SOAP message (such as signing or encryption) before the message is sent, generating the time stamp or the required security token.
Request receiver (defined in the ibm-webservices-ext.xmi and ibm-webservices-bnd.xmi files)	Verifies that the Web services security constraints are met. Verifies the freshness of the message based on the time stamp. The freshness of the message indicates whether the message complies with predefined time constraints. Verifies the required signature. Verifies that the message is encrypted and decrypts the message if encrypted. Validates the security tokens and sets up the security context for the downstream call.
Response sender (defined in the ibm-webservices-ext.xmi and ibm-webservices-bnd.xmi files)	Applies the appropriate security constraints to the SOAP message response, like signing the message, encrypting the message, or generating the time stamp.
Response receiver (defined in the ibm-webservicesclient-ext.xmi or ibm-webservicesclient-bnd.xmi files)	Verifies that the Web services security constraints are met. Verifies the freshness of the message based on the time stamp. The freshness of the message indicates whether the message complies with predefined time constraints. Verifies the required signature. Verifies that the message is encrypted and decrypts the message, if encrypted.

Related reference
Web services security support