Collect Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center logs

This document explains how to ingest Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center logs to Google Security Operations using Bindplane agent.

Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center (FMC), formerly known as FireSIGHT Management Center or Firepower Management Center, is a centralized management console that provides comprehensive policy management, event analysis, and reporting for Cisco Secure Firewall Threat Defense devices. FMC can send connection events, security intelligence events, intrusion events, file events, and malware events via syslog to external SIEM systems.

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 Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center
• If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements
• Privileged access to the Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center web interface
• Admin or Security Analyst user role in FMC

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 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 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/cisco_fmc 
    : 
     
    compression 
    : 
     
    gzip 
     
    creds_file_path 
    : 
     
    '/etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json' 
     
    customer_id 
    : 
     
    'YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID' 
     
    endpoint 
    : 
     
    malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com 
     
    log_type 
    : 
     
    CISCO_FIRESIGHT 
     
    raw_log_field 
    : 
     
    body 
     
    ingestion_labels 
    : 
     
    env 
    : 
     
    production 
     
    source 
    : 
     
    fmc 
    service 
    : 
     
    pipelines 
    : 
     
    logs/fmc_to_chronicle 
    : 
     
    receivers 
    : 
     
    - 
     
    udplog 
     
    exporters 
    : 
     
    - 
     
    chronicle/cisco_fmc 
    
   

2. Replace the following placeholders:

   • Receiver configuration:

     • listen_address : Set to 0.0.0.0:514 to listen on all interfaces on UDP port 51 . If port 514 requires root privileges on Linux, use port 1514 instead and configure FMC to send to that port.

   • 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

     • YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID : Replace 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 CISCO_FIRESIGHT (exact match required)

     • 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 Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center syslog forwarding

This section describes how to configure FMC to send security event syslog messages (connection, security intelligence, intrusion, file, and malware events) from Firepower Threat Defense devices to the Bindplane agent.

Configure syslog settings for Firepower Threat Defense devices

1. Sign in to the Cisco FireSIGHT Management Centerweb interface.
2. Go to Devices > Platform Settings.
3. Edit the platform settings policy associated with your Firepower Threat Defense device, or create a new policy.
4. In the left navigation pane, click Syslog.
5. Click Syslog Serversand click Addto configure a new syslog server.
6. Provide the following configuration details:
   • IP Address: Enter the IP address of the Bindplane agent host (for example, 192.168.1.100 ).
   • Protocol: Select UDP.
   • Port: Enter 514 (or 1514 if you configured Bindplane to listen on a non-privileged port).
   • Interface: Select the management interface or the interface that can reach the Bindplane agent.
7. Click OKto save the syslog server configuration.
8. Click Syslog Settingsand configure the following settings:
   • Check Enable Timestamp on Syslog Messages.
   • Timestamp Format: Select ISO 8601(recommended for Chronicle).
   • Check Enable Syslog Device IDand optionally enter a custom device identifier.
9. Click Logging Setup.
10. Select whether or not to Send syslogs in EMBLEM format. For Chronicle ingestion, either format is supported.
11. Click Saveto save the platform settings policy.

Configure access control policy logging settings

1. In the Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center web interface, go to Policies > Access Control.
2. Edit the applicable access control policy.
3. Click the Loggingtab.
4. Select FTD 6.3 and later: Use the syslog settings configured in the FTD Platform Settings policy deployed on the device.
5. Optionally select a Syslog Severitylevel (for example, Infoor Alert).
6. If you will send file and malware events, check Send Syslog messages for File and Malware events.
7. Click Save.

Enable logging for Security Intelligence events

1. In the same access control policy, click the Security Intelligencetab.
2. In each of the following locations, click Loggingand enable logging:
   • Beside DNS Policy: Click Logging, enable Log at Beginning of Connectionand Log at End of Connection, and enable Syslog Server.
   • In the Block Listbox for Networks: Click Logging, enable Log at Beginning of Connectionand Log at End of Connection, and enable Syslog Server.
   • In the Block Listbox for URLs: Click Logging, enable Log at Beginning of Connectionand Log at End of Connection, and enable Syslog Server.
3. Click Save.

Enable syslog logging for access control rules

1. In the same access control policy, click the Rulestab.
2. Click a rule to edit.
3. Click the Loggingtab in the rule.
4. Choose whether to log the beginning or end of connections, or both:
   • Check Log at Beginning of Connection(generates high volume).
   • Check Log at End of Connection(recommended for most use cases).
5. If you will log file events, check Log Files.
6. Check Syslog Server.
7. Verify that the rule is Using default syslog configuration in Access Control Logging. Do not configure overrides.
8. Click Addto save the rule.
9. Repeat steps 2-8 for each rule in the policy that you want to log.

Configure intrusion policy syslog settings

1. Navigate to Policies > Intrusion.
2. Edit the intrusion policy associated with your access control policy.
3. Click Advanced Settings > Syslog Alerting.
4. Set Syslog Alertingto Enabled.
5. Click Editnext to Syslog Alerting.
6. Configure the following settings:
   • Logging Host: Leave this blank to use the syslog settings configured in the FTD Platform Settings. If you specify a logging host here, you must also configure Facilityand Severity.
   • Facility: Only applicable if you specify a Logging Host. Select a facility (for example, AUTHor LOCAL0).
   • Severity: Only applicable if you specify a Logging Host. Select a severity level (for example, Infoor Alert).
7. Click Back.
8. Click Policy Informationin the left navigation pane.
9. Click Commit Changes.

Deploy configuration changes

1. After configuring all syslog settings, deploy the changes to your managed devices.
2. In the Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center web interface, click Deployin the top right corner.
3. Select the devices to which you want to deploy the configuration.
4. Click Deployto apply the changes.

Verify syslog forwarding

1. Generate test traffic or security events on your Firepower Threat Defense devices.
2. Check the Bindplane agent logs to verify that syslog messages are being received:

• Linux:

   sudo  
  journalctl  
  -u  
  observiq-otel-collector  
  -f 
  

• Windows:

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

1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console and verify that events are appearing in the Eventsviewer.

Supported event types

Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center can send the following event types via syslog to Google SecOps:

Syslog message format

Cisco FireSIGHT Management Center sends syslog messages in the following format:

• Example connection event:

   <134>1 2024-01-15T10:15:45.123Z fmc-hostname %FTD-6-430003:
  EventPriority: Low,
  DeviceUUID: abc123,
  InstanceID: 1,
  FirstPacketSecond: 1705318545,
  ConnectionID: 12345,
  AccessControlRuleAction: Allow,
  SrcIP: 10.0.0.5,
  DstIP: 8.8.8.8,
  SrcPort: 54321,
  DstPort: 53,
  Protocol: udp,
  IngressInterface: inside,
  EgressInterface: outside,
  IngressZone: inside-zone,
  EgressZone: outside-zone,
  ACPolicy: Default-Policy,
  AccessControlRuleName: Allow-DNS,
  User: user@example.com,
  ApplicationProtocol: DNS,
  InitiatorBytes: 64,
  ResponderBytes: 128 
  

• Example intrusion event:

   <134>1 2024-01-15T10:16:30.456Z fmc-hostname %FTD-4-430001:
  EventPriority: High,
  DeviceUUID: abc123,
  InstanceID: 1,
  SrcIP: 192.168.1.100,
  DstIP: 10.0.0.50,
  SrcPort: 12345,
  DstPort: 80,
  Protocol: tcp,
  IngressInterface: outside,
  EgressInterface: inside,
  IngressZone: outside-zone,
  EgressZone: inside-zone,
  IntrusionPolicy: Security-Over-Connectivity,
  SignatureID: 1:2024123:1,
  SignatureGeneratorID: 1,
  Classification: web-application-attack,
  Priority: 1,
  Message: SQL injection attempt detected 
  

The syslog messages include key-value pairs separated by commas, making them suitable for parsing by Google SecOps.

Limitations

• It may take up to 15 minutes for events to appear in Google SecOps after being sent from FMC.
• Retrospective malware events are not available via syslog.
• Events generated by AMP for Endpoints are not available via syslog.
• Some metadata available via eStreamer API is not included in syslog messages (for example, detailed user information from LDAP, extended application metadata, geolocation data).
• If you configure object names (policy names, rule names) with special characters such as commas, they may interfere with syslog parsing. Avoid using special characters in object names.

UDM mapping table

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