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    Collect F5 AFM logs

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    This document explains how to ingest F5 Advanced Firewall Management (AFM) logs to Google Security Operations using the Bindplane agent.

    F5 BIG-IP AFM is a network firewall module that generates syslog messages for firewall rule actions (accept, drop, reject), IP intelligence events, and TCP errors. The parser extracts fields from CSV-formatted or syslog-formatted logs and maps them to the Unified Data Model (UDM).

    Before you begin

    Make sure you have the following prerequisites:

    • A Google SecOps instance
    • Windows Server 2016 or later, or Linux host with systemd
    • Network connectivity between the Bindplane agent and the F5 BIG-IP appliance
    • If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements
    • Privileged access to F5 BIG-IP and F5 Advanced Firewall Management

    Get Google SecOps ingestion authentication file

    1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
    2. Go to SIEM Settings > Collection Agents.
    3. Download the Ingestion Authentication File.

    4. Save the file securely on the system where the Bindplane agent will be installed.

    Get Google SecOps customer ID

    1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
    2. Go to SIEM Settings > Profile.

    3. Copy and save the Customer IDfrom the Organization Detailssection.

    Install the Bindplane agent

    Install the Bindplane agent on your Windows or Linux operating system according to the following instructions.

    Windows installation

    1. Open Command Promptor PowerShellas an administrator.

    2. Run the following command:

        msiexec 
  
 / 
 i 
  
 "https://github.com/observIQ/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/observiq-otel-collector.msi" 
  
 / 
 quiet

    3. Wait for the installation to complete.

    4. Verify the installation by running:

       sc query observiq-otel-collector

      The service should show as RUNNING.

    Linux installation

    1. Open a terminal with root or sudo privileges.

    2. Run the following command:

       sudo  
sh  
-c  
 " 
 $( 
curl  
-fsSlL  
https://github.com/observiq/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/install_unix.sh ) 
 " 
  
install_unix.sh

    3. Wait for the installation to complete.

    4. Verify the installation by running:

       sudo  
systemctl  
status  
observiq-otel-collector

      The service should show as active (running).

    Additional installation resources

    For additional installation options and troubleshooting, see the Bindplane agent installation guide .

    Configure Bindplane agent to ingest syslog and send to Google SecOps

    Locate the configuration file

    • Linux:

       sudo  
nano  
/etc/bindplane-agent/config.yaml

    • Windows:

       notepad "C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\config.yaml"

    Edit the configuration file

    • Replace the entire contents of config.yaml with the following configuration:

        receivers 
 : 
  
 tcplog 
 : 
  
 listen_address 
 : 
  
 "0.0.0.0:5145" 
 exporters 
 : 
  
 chronicle/f5_afm 
 : 
  
 compression 
 : 
  
 gzip 
  
 creds_file_path 
 : 
  
 '/etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json' 
  
 customer_id 
 : 
  
 '<customer_id>' 
  
 endpoint 
 : 
  
 malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com 
  
 log_type 
 : 
  
 F5_AFM 
  
 raw_log_field 
 : 
  
 body 
 service 
 : 
  
 pipelines 
 : 
  
 logs/f5_afm_to_chronicle 
 : 
  
 receivers 
 : 
  
 - 
  
 tcplog 
  
 exporters 
 : 
  
 - 
  
 chronicle/f5_afm

    Configuration parameters

    Replace the following placeholders:

    • Receiver configuration:

      • listen_address : IP address and port to listen on:
        • 0.0.0.0 to listen on all interfaces (recommended)
        • Port 5145 is used for F5 AFM high-speed logging (adjust to match your F5 configuration)

    • Exporter configuration:

      • creds_file_path : Full path to ingestion authentication file:
        • Linux: /etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json
        • Windows: C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\ingestion-auth.json
      • customer_id : Customer ID copied from the Google SecOps console
      • endpoint : Regional endpoint URL:
        • US: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
        • Europe: europe-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
        • Asia: asia-southeast1-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
        • See Regional Endpoints for complete list

    Save the configuration file

    • After editing, save the file:
      • Linux: Press Ctrl+O , then Enter , then Ctrl+X
      • Windows: Click File > Save

    Restart the Bindplane agent to apply the changes

    • To restart the Bindplane agent in Linux, run the following command:

       sudo  
systemctl  
restart  
observiq-otel-collector

      1. Verify the service is running:

         sudo  
systemctl  
status  
observiq-otel-collector

      2. Check logs for errors:

         sudo  
journalctl  
-u  
observiq-otel-collector  
-f

    • To restart the Bindplane agent in Windows, choose one of the following options:

      • Command Prompt or PowerShell as administrator:

         net stop observiq-otel-collector && net start observiq-otel-collector

      • Services console:

        1. Press Win+R , type services.msc , and press Enter.
        2. Locate observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector.
        3. Right-click and select Restart.

        4. Verify the service is running:

           sc query observiq-otel-collector

        5. Check logs for errors:

            type 
  
 "C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\log\collector.log"

    Enable F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager

    1. Sign in to the BIG-IP appliancemanagement console.
    2. Go to System > License.
    3. Verify that the Advanced Firewall Manageris licensedand enabled.
    4. To enable the Advanced Firewall Manager, go to System > Resource > Provisioning.
    5. Select the checkbox from the Provisioning columnand select Nominalfrom the list.
    6. Click Submit.

    Configure Logging Pool in F5 AFM

    1. Go to Local Traffic > Pools.
    2. Click Create.
    3. Provide the following configuration details:
      • Name: Enter a name for the logging pool (for example, logging_pool).
      • Health Monitor: In the Availablelist, select TCPand click <<.
    4. In the Resourcetab, select the Logging Poolyou created earlier from the Node Namelist.
    5. In the Addressfield, enter the Bindplane agent IP address.
    6. In the Service Portfield, enter 5145 or other port as you defined in the Bindplane agent.
    7. Click Add.
    8. Click Finish.

    Configure the formatted log destination in F5 AFM

    1. Go to System > Logs > Configuration > Log Destinations.
    2. Click Create.
    3. Provide the following configuration details:
      • Name: Enter a name for the logging format destination (for example, Logging_Format_Destination ).
      • Description: Enter a description.
      • Type: Select Remote Syslog.
      • Syslog Format: Select Syslog.
      • High-Speed Log Destination: Select your high-speed logging destination (for example, Logging_HSL_Destination ).
    4. Click Finished.

    Configure Log Publisher in F5 AFM

    1. Go to System > Logs > Configuration > Log Publishers.
    2. Click Create.
    3. Provide the following configuration details:
      • Name: Enter a name for the publisher (for example, Log_Publisher ).
      • Description: Enter a description.
      • Destinations: Select the log destination namethat you created in the Configure Logging Pool in F5 AFMstep and click <<to add items to the Selectedlist.

    Configure Logging Profile in F5 AFM

    1. Go to Security > Event Logs > Logging Profile.
    2. Click Create.
    3. Provide the following configuration details:
      • Name: Enter a name for the log profile (for example, Logging_Profile).
      • Network Firewall: Select the Enabledcheckbox.
      • Publisher: Select the log publisherthat you configured earlier (for example, Log_Publisher ).
      • Log Rule Matches: Select the Accept, Drop, and Rejectcheckboxes.
      • Log IP Errors: Select the Enabledcheckbox.
      • Log TCP Errors: Select the Enabledcheckbox.
      • Log TCP Events: Select the Enabledcheckbox.
      • Storage Format: Select Field-List.
      • Delimiter: Enter , (comma) as the delimiter for events.
      • Storage Options: Select all of the optionsin the Available Itemslist and click <<.
      • In the IP Intelligencetab, select the log publisherthat you configured (for example, Log_Publisher ).
    4. Click Finished.

    Configure Virtual Server Profile Association in F5 AFM

    1. Go to Local Traffic > Virtual Servers.
    2. Select the virtual serverto modify.
    3. Go to the Security tab > Policies.
    4. From the Log Profilelist, select Enabled.
    5. From the Profilefield, select Logging_Profileand click <<.
    6. Click Update.

    UDM mapping table

    Log field UDM mapping Logic
    acl_policy_name
    		 security_result.detection_fields.acl_policy_name Value of column22 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column13
    acl_policy_type
    		 security_result.detection_fields.acl_policy_type Value of column21 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column18
    acl_rule_name
    		 security_result.rule_name Value of column23 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column11
    acl_rule_uuid
    		 security_result.rule_id Value of acl_rule_uuid field from the grok pattern
    action
    		 security_result.action If value of column25 is Drop , Reject or Block then BLOCK, else if value of column25 is Accept , Accept decisively , Established or Allow then ALLOW
    attackID
    		 security_result.detection_fields.attackID Value of column12 if the log format is CSV with no src_ip
    bigip_hostname
    		 intermediary.hostname Value of column2 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column3
    bigip_ip
    		 intermediary.ip Value of column2 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column1
    context_name
    		 additional.fields.context_name.string_value Value of column4 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column10 if there is src_ip, else value of column5
    context_type
    		 additional.fields.context_type.string_value Value of column3 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column4 if there is src_ip, else value of column4
    dest_fqdn
    		 additional.fields.dest_fqdn.string_value Value of column7 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column13
    dest_geo
    		 additional.fields.dest_geo.string_value Value of column14
    dest_ip
    		 target.asset.ip, target.ip Value of column8 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column6 if there is src_ip, else value of column6
    dest_port
    		 target.port Value of column10 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column8 if there is src_ip, else value of column8
    drop_reason
    		 security_result.summary Value of column26 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column19
    eventId
    		 additional.fields.eventId.string_value Value captured in the grok pattern
    flow_id
    		 additional.fields.flow_id.string_value Value of column29 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column17
    loglevel
    		 security_result.severity If value of loglevel field from the grok pattern is warning , debug or notice then MEDIUM, else if value is info or informational then INFORMATIONAL, else if value is err or error then HIGH, else if value is alert , crit or emer then CRITICAL
    packetsReceived
    		 network.received_packets Value of column15 if the log format is CSV with no src_ip
    process
    		 target.application Value of process field from the grok pattern
    protocol_number_src
    		 network.ip_protocol Value of column12 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value extracted from the ip_protocol_out variable
    route_domain
    		 additional.fields.route_domain.string_value Value of column13 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column9
    source_fqdn
    		 additional.fields.source_fqdn.string_value Value of column5 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column7
    src_geo
    		 additional.fields.src_geo.string_value Value of column8
    src_ip
    		 principal.asset.ip, principal.ip Value of column6 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column9 if the log format is CSV with no src_ip, else value of column5
    src_port
    		 principal.port Value of column9 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column7 if the log format is CSV with no src_ip, else value of column7
    ts
    		 metadata.event_timestamp Value of ts field from the grok pattern
    vlan
    		 additional.fields.vlan.string_value Value of column11 if the log format is SYSLOG, else value of column21
    		metadata.event_type If src_ip and dest_ip exist then NETWORK_CONNECTION, else if only src_ip exists then STATUS_UPDATE, else GENERIC_EVENT
    		metadata.log_type F5_AFM
    		metadata.product_name Advanced Firewall Management
    		metadata.vendor_name F5

    Need more help? Get answers from Community members and Google SecOps professionals.

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