Cipherpack - A Cryprographic Stream Processor

Original document location.

Git Repository

This project's canonical repositories is hosted on Gothel Software.

Overview

Cipherpack, a secure stream processor utilizing public-key signatures to authenticate the sender and public-key encryption of a symmetric-key for multiple receiver ensuring their privacy and high-performance message encryption.

Cipherpack securely streams messages through any media, via file using ByteInStream_File and via all libcurl network protocols using ByteInStream_URL are build-in and supported.
Note: libcurl must be enabled via `-DUSE_LIBCURL=ON` at build.

A user may use the media agnostic ByteInStream_Feed to produce the input stream by injecting data off-thread and a CipherpackListener to receive the processed output stream.

Cipherpack is implemented using C++20 and is accessible via C++ and Java.

Please find the more detailed overview in the API doc.

Original use-case is a secure update process, elevating your installed firm- and software.
Hence original project name was Elevator.

See details on the C++ and Java API including its different C++ API level modules.

Status

Build and clang-tidy clean on C++20, passing all unit tests.

Supported Platforms

Language requirements

• C++20 or better, see jaulib C++ Minimum Requirements.
• Java 11, 17+ (optional)

See supported platforms for details.

C++ Minimum Requirements

C++20 is the minimum requirement for releases > 1.1.4, see jaulib C++ Minimum Requirements.

Release 1.1.4 is the last version conforming to C++17.

Programming with Cipherpack

API

API Documentation

Up to date API documentation can be found:

• C++ API Doc
  • General User Level API
• Java API Doc
• jaulib Standalone C++ API Doc.

Building Binaries

This project uses the following git submodules

• Jau Library
• Botan

Build Dependencies

• CMake >= 3.21 (2021-07-14)
• C++ compiler
  • gcc >= 11 (C++20), recommended >= 12
  • clang >= 13 (C++20), recommended >= 16
• Optional for lint validation
  • clang-tidy >= 16
• Optional for vscodium integration
  • clangd >= 16
  • clang-tools >= 16
  • clang-format >= 16
• Optional
  • libunwind8 >= 1.2.1
  • libcurl4 >= 7.74 (tested, lower may work)
• Optional Java support
  • OpenJDK >= 11
  • junit4 >= 4.12

Install on FreeBSD

Installing build dependencies on FreeBSD >= 13:

pkg install git
pkg install sudo
pkg install cmake
pkg install libunwind
pkg install doxygen
pkg install squashfs-tools
pkg install bash
ln -s /usr/local/bin/bash /bin/bash

Install optional Java dependencies:

pkg install openjdk17
pkg install openjdk17-jre
pkg install junit
rehash

For Java ensure /etc/fstab includes:

fdesc   /dev/fd         fdescfs         rw      0       0
proc    /proc           procfs          rw      0       0

jau::fs::mount_image() and jau::fs::umount() are currenly not fully implemented under FreeBSD, hence testing using cmake option -DTEST_WITH_SUDO=ON is disabled.

To use URL streaming functionality via the curl library in jau_io_util.hpp and jau/io_util.cpp, the cmake option -DUSE_LIBCURL=ON must be set.
This also requires installation of the following packets:

pkg install curl
apt install mini-httpd

Note: mini-httpd is being used for unit testing URL streaming only.

Install on Debian or Ubuntu

Installing build dependencies for Debian >= 12 and Ubuntu >= 22:

apt install git
apt install build-essential g++ gcc libc-dev libpthread-stubs0-dev 
apt install clang-16 clang-tidy-16 clangd-16 clang-tools-16 clang-format-16
apt install libunwind8 libunwind-dev
apt install cmake cmake-extras extra-cmake-modules pkg-config
apt install doxygen graphviz

If using optional clang toolchain, perhaps change the clang version-suffix of above clang install line to the appropriate version.

After complete clang installation, you might want to setup the latest version as your default. For Debian you can use this clang alternatives setup script.

Install optional Java dependencies:

apt install openjdk-17-jdk openjdk-17-jre junit4

To test jau::fs::mount_image() and jau::fs::umount() under Linux with enabled cmake option -DTEST_WITH_SUDO=ON,
the following build dependencies are added

apt install libcap-dev libcap2-bin
apt install squashfs-tools

To use URL streaming functionality via the curl library in jau_io_util.hpp and jau/io_util.cpp, the cmake option -DUSE_LIBCURL=ON must be set.
This also requires installation of the following packets:

apt install libcurl4 libcurl4-gnutls-dev
apt install mini-httpd

Note: mini-httpd is being used for unit testing URL streaming only.

Build Procedure

Build preparations

git clone --recurse-submodule git://jausoft.com/srv/scm/cipherpack.git
cd cipherpack

CMake Build via Presets

Analog to jaulib CMake build presets ...

Following debug presets are defined in CMakePresets.json

• debug
  • default generator
  • default compiler
  • C++20
  • debug enabled
  • java (if available)
  • libunwind enabled
  • libcurl enabled
  • testing on
  • testing with sudo off
• debug-gcc
  • inherits from debug
  • compiler: gcc
  • disabled clang-tidy
• debug-clang
  • inherits from debug
  • compiler: clang
  • enabled clang-tidy
• release
  • inherits from debug
  • debug disabled
  • libunwind disabled
• release-gcc
  • compiler: gcc
  • disabled clang-tidy
• release-clang
  • compiler: clang
  • enabled clang-tidy

Kick-off the workflow by e.g. using preset release-gcc to configure, build, test, install and building documentation. You may skip install and doc by dropping it from --target.

cmake --preset release-gcc
cmake --build --preset release-gcc --parallel
cmake --build --preset release-gcc --target test install doc

CMake Build via Hardcoded Presets

Analog to jaulib CMake hardcoded presets ...

Besides above CMakePresets.json presets, JaulibSetup.cmake contains hardcoded presets for undefined variables if

• CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX and CMAKE_CXX_CLANG_TIDY cmake variables are unset, or
• JAU_CMAKE_ENFORCE_PRESETS cmake- or environment-variable is set to TRUE or ON

The hardcoded presets resemble debug-clang presets.

Kick-off the workflow to configure, build, test, install and building documentation. You may skip install and doc by dropping it from --target.

rm -rf build/default
cmake -B build/default
cmake --build build/default --parallel
cmake --build build/default --target test install doc

The install target of the last command will create the include/ and lib/ directories with a copy of the headers and library objects respectively in your dist location.

CMake Variables

Our cmake configure has a number of options, cmake-gui or ccmake can show you all the options. The interesting ones are detailed below:

See jaulib CMake variables for details.

Deprecated Build Scripts

• scripts/build-cross.sh .. cross-build
• scripts/rebuild-cross.sh .. cross-build

(FIXME: scripts needs to be overhauled to reflect new CMake build/dist folder)

Test Scripts

• scripts/test_java.sh .. invoke a java unit test
• scripts/test_exe_template.sh .. invoke the symlink'ed files to invoke native unit tests

(FIXME: scripts needs to be overhauled to reflect new CMake build/dist folder)

Cross Build

Also provided is a cross-build script using chroot into a target system using QEMU User space emulation and Linux kernel binfmt_misc to run on other architectures than the host.

You may use our pi-gen branch to produce a Raspi-arm64, Raspi-armhf or PC-amd64 target image.

IDE Integration

Eclipse

Tested Eclipse 2024-03 (4.31).

IDE integration configuration files are provided for

• Eclipse with extensions
  • CDT or CDT @ eclipse.org
  • CDT-LSP recommended
    • Should work with clang toolchain >= 16
    • Utilizes clangd, clang-tidy and clang-format to support C++20 and above
    • Add to available software site: https://download.eclipse.org/tools/cdt/releases/cdt-lsp-latest
    • Install C/C++ LSP Support in the Eclipse CDT LSP Category
  • CMake Support, install C/C++ CMake Build Support with ID org.eclipse.cdt.cmake.feature.group
    • Usable via via Hardcoded CMake Presets with debug-clang

The Hardcoded CMake Presets will use build/default as the default build folder with debug enabled.

Make sure to set the environment variable CMAKE_BUILD_PARALLEL_LEVEL to a suitable high number, best to your CPU core count. This will enable parallel build with the IDE.

You can import the project to your workspace via File . Import... and Existing Projects into Workspace menu item.

For Eclipse one might need to adjust some setting in the .project and .cproject (CDT) via Eclipse settings UI, but it should just work out of the box.

Otherwise recreate the Eclipse project by

• delete .project and .cproject
• File . New . C/C++ Project and Empty or Existing CMake Project while using this project folder.

VSCodium or VS Code

IDE integration configuration files are provided for

• VSCodium or VS Code with extensions
  • vscode-clangd
  • twxs.cmake
  • ms-vscode.cmake-tools
  • notskm.clang-tidy
  • Java Support
    • redhat.java
      • Notable, .settings/org.eclipse.jdt.core.prefs describes the lint behavior
    • vscjava.vscode-java-test
    • vscjava.vscode-java-debug
    • vscjava.vscode-maven
  • cschlosser.doxdocgen
  • jerrygoyal.shortcut-menu-bar

For VSCodium one might copy the example root-workspace file to the parent folder of this project (note the filename change) and adjust the path to your filesystem.

cp .vscode/cipherpack.code-workspace_example ../cipherpack.code-workspace
vi ../cipherpack.code-workspace

Then you can open it via File . Open Workspace from File... menu item.

• All listed extensions are referenced in this workspace file to be installed via the IDE
• The local settings.json has clang-tidy enabled
  • If using clang-tidy is too slow, just remove it from the settings file.
  • clangd will still contain a good portion of clang-tidy checks

Support

Cipherpack is provided by Gothel Software and Zafena ICT.

If you like to utilize Cipherpack in a commercial setting, please contact Gothel Software to setup a potential support contract.

Changes

1.1.4

• Last version conforming to C++17

1.1.1

• Stable stream handling w/o knowledge of content-size under heavy load
• jaulib v1.1.1
  • Fixed Java_org_jau_sys_Clock_get[Monotonic|WallClock]TimeImpl() for JNI callbacks
  • Fixed jau::io::ByteInStream_[URL|Feed] utilize blocking read-operations w/o knowledge of content-size

1.0.0

• First stable release

0.6.0

• Completed restructuring incl. stream CIPHERPACK_0003 and API doc
• Completed Java binding, all tests passed

0.5.0

• Renamed from Elevator to Cipherpack
• namespace elevator::cipherpack -> cipherpack
• Added pure streaming encryptThenSign() and checkSignThenDecrypt() base function

0.4.0

• Working version with universal jau::io::ByteInStream and matured unit testing OK and error cases

0.0.0

• Kick-off