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    Collect CA LDAP logs

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    This document explains how to ingest CA LDAP logs to Google Security Operations using Bindplane agent.

    CA Directory (formerly Symantec Directory) is an LDAP v2/v3 compliant directory server based on X.500 standards. It provides enterprise-level directory services with comprehensive logging capabilities including alarm, trace, warn, query, summary, connection, diagnostic, update, and statistics logs for monitoring directory operations and security events.

    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 CA Directory server
    • If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements
    • Privileged access to the CA Directory server (root or administrator)
    • CA Directory installed and configured with logging enabled

    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. Save the file securely on the system where Bindplane is to 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 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

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

        receivers 
 : 
  
 udplog 
 : 
  
 listen_address 
 : 
  
 "0.0.0.0:514" 
 exporters 
 : 
  
 chronicle/ca_directory 
 : 
  
 compression 
 : 
  
 gzip 
  
 creds_file_path 
 : 
  
 '/etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json' 
  
 customer_id 
 : 
  
 'YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID' 
  
 endpoint 
 : 
  
 malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com 
  
 log_type 
 : 
  
 CA_LDAP 
  
 raw_log_field 
 : 
  
 body 
  
 ingestion_labels 
 : 
  
 env 
 : 
  
 production 
  
 source 
 : 
  
 ca_directory 
 service 
 : 
  
 pipelines 
 : 
  
 logs/ca_directory_to_chronicle 
 : 
  
 receivers 
 : 
  
 - 
  
 udplog 
  
 exporters 
 : 
  
 - 
  
 chronicle/ca_directory

    2. Replace the following placeholders:

      • Receiver configuration:

        • listen_address : Set to 0.0.0.0:514 to listen on all interfaces on UDP port 514

          • For Linux non-root installations, use port 1514 or higher
          • Ensure the port matches the port configured in rsyslog forwarding

      • 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 : Replace YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID with your customer ID . For details, see Get Google SecOps customer ID .

        • endpoint : Regional endpoint URL:

          • US: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
          • Europe: europe-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
          • Asia: asia-southeast1-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com

        • log_type : Set to CA_LDAP (Chronicle ingestion label for CA Directory)

        • ingestion_labels : Optional labels for filtering and organization

    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:

      1. Run the following command:

         sudo  
systemctl  
restart  
observiq-otel-collector

      2. Verify the service is running:

         sudo  
systemctl  
status  
observiq-otel-collector

      3. Check logs for errors:

         sudo  
journalctl  
-u  
observiq-otel-collector  
-f

    • To restart the Bindplane agent in Windows:

      1. 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.

      2. Verify the service is running:

         sc query observiq-otel-collector

      3. Check logs for errors:

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

    Configure CA LDAP syslog forwarding using rsyslog

    This section describes how to configure rsyslog on the CA Directory server to forward logs to the Bindplane agent.

    Identify CA Directory log file locations

    CA Directory stores log files in the following locations:

    • Linux: /opt/CA/Directory/dxserver/logs/
    • Windows: C:\Program Files\CA\Directory\dxserver\logs\

    The log files follow naming patterns based on the DSA name (for example, democorp_alarm , democorp_warn , democorp_trace ).

    Available log types

    CA Directory generates the following log types:

    • Alarm log: Critical events (always enabled)
    • Warn log: Errors and warnings
    • Trace log: Detailed operation tracing
    • Query log: Detailed operation information with timestamps
    • Summary log: Operation summaries
    • Connection log: Connection and disconnection events
    • Diagnostic log: Rejected operations
    • Statistics log: Per-minute operational statistics
    • Update log: Add, modify, rename, and delete operations
    • Time log: Operation timing information

    Configure rsyslog on Linux

    1. Sign in to the CA Directory server as root or with sudo privileges.

    2. Install rsyslog if not already installed:

       sudo  
yum  
install  
rsyslog

      Or for Debian/Ubuntu:

       sudo  
apt-get  
install  
rsyslog

    3. Create a new rsyslog configuration file for CA Directory:

       sudo  
nano  
/etc/rsyslog.d/ca-directory.conf

    4. Add the following configuration to forward CA Directory logs:

       # Load the imfile module for file monitoring
module(load="imfile" PollingInterval="10")

# Monitor CA Directory alarm logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="/opt/CA/Directory/dxserver/logs/*_alarm*"
    Tag="ca-directory-alarm"
    Severity="error"
    Facility="local0")

# Monitor CA Directory warn logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="/opt/CA/Directory/dxserver/logs/*_warn*"
    Tag="ca-directory-warn"
    Severity="warning"
    Facility="local0")

# Monitor CA Directory trace logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="/opt/CA/Directory/dxserver/logs/*_trace*"
    Tag="ca-directory-trace"
    Severity="info"
    Facility="local0")

# Monitor CA Directory query logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="/opt/CA/Directory/dxserver/logs/*_query*"
    Tag="ca-directory-query"
    Severity="info"
    Facility="local0")

# Monitor CA Directory connection logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="/opt/CA/Directory/dxserver/logs/*_connection*"
    Tag="ca-directory-connection"
    Severity="info"
    Facility="local0")

# Monitor CA Directory update logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="/opt/CA/Directory/dxserver/logs/*_update*"
    Tag="ca-directory-update"
    Severity="info"
    Facility="local0")

# Forward all CA Directory logs to Bindplane agent
if $syslogtag contains 'ca-directory' then @@BINDPLANE_AGENT_IP:514
& stop

    5. Replace BINDPLANE_AGENT_IP with the IP address of the Bindplane agent host:

      • If Bindplane agent is on the same server: 127.0.0.1
      • If Bindplane agent is on a different server: Enter the IP address (for example, 192.168.1.100 )

    6. Save the configuration file:

      Press Ctrl+O , then Enter , then Ctrl+X

    7. Verify the rsyslog configuration syntax:

       sudo  
rsyslogd  
-N1

    8. Restart the rsyslog service:

       sudo  
systemctl  
restart  
rsyslog

    9. Verify rsyslog is running:

       sudo  
systemctl  
status  
rsyslog

    10. Check rsyslog logs for errors:

       sudo  
tail  
-f  
/var/log/messages

    Configure rsyslog on Windows

    1. Download and install rsyslog for Windows from the rsyslog website .

    2. Open the rsyslog configuration file:

       notepad "C:\Program Files\rsyslog\rsyslog.conf"

    3. Add the following configuration:

       # Load the imfile module for file monitoring
module(load="imfile" PollingInterval="10")

# Monitor CA Directory alarm logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="C:\\Program Files\\CA\\Directory\\dxserver\\logs\\*_alarm*"
    Tag="ca-directory-alarm"
    Severity="error"
    Facility="local0")

# Monitor CA Directory warn logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="C:\\Program Files\\CA\\Directory\\dxserver\\logs\\*_warn*"
    Tag="ca-directory-warn"
    Severity="warning"
    Facility="local0")

# Monitor CA Directory trace logs
input(type="imfile"
    File="C:\\Program Files\\CA\\Directory\\dxserver\\logs\\*_trace*"
    Tag="ca-directory-trace"
    Severity="info"
    Facility="local0")

# Forward all CA Directory logs to Bindplane agent
if $syslogtag contains 'ca-directory' then @@BINDPLANE_AGENT_IP:514
& stop

    4. Replace BINDPLANE_AGENT_IP with the IP address of the Bindplane agent host.

    5. Save the configuration file.

    6. Restart the rsyslog service:

       net stop rsyslog
net start rsyslog

    Enable CA Directory logging

    Ensure that the required log types are enabled in CA Directory:

    1. Edit the DSA configuration file:

      • Linux: /opt/CA/Directory/dxserver/config/servers/democorp.dxc
      • Windows: C:\Program Files\CA\Directory\dxserver\config\servers\democorp.dxc

    2. Verify or add the following logging settings:

       set alarm-log = true;
    set warn-log = true;
    set trace-log = true;
    set query-log = true;
    set connection-log = true;
    set update-log = true;

    3. Save the configuration file.

    4. Restart the CA Directory DSA:

      • Linux:

         dxserver  
stop  
democorp
dxserver  
start  
democorp

      • Windows:

         net stop "CA Directory DSA - democorp"
net start "CA Directory DSA - democorp"

    Verify log forwarding

    1. Generate test activity in CA Directory by performing LDAP queries or authentication attempts.

    2. Check the Bindplane agent logs to verify logs are being received:

      • Linux:

         sudo  
journalctl  
-u  
observiq-otel-collector  
-f

      • Windows:

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

    3. Sign in to the Google SecOps console and verify that CA Directory logs are appearing in the log viewer.

    For more information about CA Directory logging, see the Broadcom CA Directory documentation .

    For detailed rsyslog configuration examples, see the Broadcom Knowledge Base article on centralized logging .

    UDM mapping table

    Log Field UDM Mapping Logic
    agent.ephemeral_id, logstash.irm_region, logstash.irm_environment, logstash.irm_site, host.os.name
    		 additional.fields Merged as labels with keys "ephemeral_id", "irm_region", "irm_environment", "irm_site", "os_name" respectively
    host.architecture
    		 hardware.cpu_platform Value copied directly
    logstash.process.host
    		 intermediary.hostname Value copied directly
    logstash.collect.timestamp
    		 metadata.collected_timestamp Parsed as timestamp using date filter
    msg
    		 metadata.description Value copied directly
    		metadata.event_type Set to "STATUS_UPDATE"
    agent.type, agent.version
    		 observer.application Concatenated as "%{agent.type} %{agent.version}" if both not empty, else "%{agent.type}"
    agent.type, agent.id
    		 observer.asset_id Concatenated as "%{agent.type}: %{agent.id}"
    agent.hostname
    		 observer.hostname Value copied directly
    host.id
    		 principal.asset.asset_id Concatenated as "CA_LDAP:%{host.id}"
    hardware
    		 principal.asset.hardware Merged from hardware object
    host.hostname
    		 principal.hostname Value copied directly
    host.ip
    		 principal.ip Merged from host.ip array
    host.mac
    		 principal.mac Merged from host.mac array
    host.os.family
    		 principal.platform Set to "LINUX" if matches "(rhel|redhat)"
    host.os.kernel
    		 principal.platform_patch_level Value copied directly
    host.os.version
    		 principal.platform_version Value copied directly
    log.file.path
    		 principal.process.file.full_path Value copied directly
    syslog_severity
    		 security_result.severity Set to "INFORMATIONAL" if matches "(?i)(DEFAULT|DEBUG|INFO|NOTICE)", "ERROR" if matches "(?i)ERROR", "MEDIUM" if matches "(?i)WARNING", "HIGH" if matches "(?i)(CRITICAL|ALERT|EMERGENCY)"
    syslog_severity
    		 security_result.severity_details Value copied directly
    		metadata.product_name Set to "CA_LDAP"
    		metadata.vendor_name Set to "CA_LDAP"

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

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