Collect Aruba switch logs

Supported in:

Google secops SIEM

This document explains how to ingest Aruba switch logs to Google Security Operations using the Bindplane agent.

Aruba switches generate syslog messages for system events, interface state changes, authentication, and process activity. The parser extracts fields from syslog messages using grok patterns and maps them to the UDM model.

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 Aruba switch
If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements
Privileged access to the Aruba switch

Get Google SecOps ingestion authentication file

Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
Go to SIEM Settings > Collection Agents.
Download the Ingestion Authentication File.
Save the file securely on the system where the Bindplane agent will be installed.

Note: This JSON file contains credentials for authenticating the Bindplane agent to Google SecOps.

Get Google SecOps customer ID

Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
Go to SIEM Settings > Profile.
Copy and save the Customer ID from the Organization Details section.

Note: The customer ID is required for configuring the Bindplane agent exporter.

Install the Bindplane agent

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

Windows installation

Open Command Prompt or PowerShell as an administrator.

Run the following command:

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

Wait for the installation to complete.
Verify the installation by running:
```
sc query observiq-otel-collector
```
The service should show as RUNNING.

Linux installation

Open a terminal with root or sudo privileges.

Run the following command:

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

Wait for the installation to complete.
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 the 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:
    udplog:
        listen_address: "0.0.0.0:514"

exporters:
    chronicle/aruba_switch:
        compression: gzip
        creds_file_path: '/etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json'
        customer_id: '<customer_id>'
        endpoint: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
        log_type: ARUBA_SWITCH
        raw_log_field: body

service:
    pipelines:
        logs/aruba_switch_to_chronicle:
            receivers:
                - udplog
            exporters:
                - chronicle/aruba_switch

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 514 is the standard syslog port (requires root on Linux; use 1514 for non-root)
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

Verify the service is running:

sudo systemctl status observiq-otel-collector

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"
```

Configure syslog on the Aruba switch

Option 1: CLI configuration

Connect to the Aruba switch via SSH:
```
ssh admin@<switch-ip>
```
Enter global configuration mode:
```
configure terminal
```
Specify the external syslog server:
```
logging <bindplane-ip>
```
- Replace <bindplane-ip> with the Bindplane agent IP address.
(Optional) Set the logging severity level:
```
logging severity <level>
```
Note: Severity levels range from 0 (emergency) to 7 (debug).
(Optional) Add a custom log source identifier (tag):
```
logging facility local5
```
Save the configuration:
```
write memory
```

Option 2: Web interface configuration

Log in to the Aruba switch web interface.
Go to System > Logs > Syslog.
Add syslog server parameters:
- Enter the Bindplane IP address.
- Enter the Bindplane Port.
- Set the Severity Level to control the verbosity of logs.
Click Save.

UDM mapping table

Log Field	UDM Mapping	Logic
`app`	`principal.application`	The value of the `app` field from the raw log is directly assigned to `principal.application`.
`description`	`security_result.description`	The value of the `description` field from the raw log is directly assigned to `security_result.description`.
`event_id`	`additional.fields.key`	The string "event_id" is assigned to `additional.fields.key`.
`event_id`	`additional.fields.value.string_value`	The value of the `event_id` field from the raw log is directly assigned to `additional.fields.value.string_value`.
`host`	`principal.asset.hostname`	The value of the `host` field from the raw log is directly assigned to `principal.asset.hostname`.
`host`	`principal.hostname`	The value of the `host` field from the raw log is directly assigned to `principal.hostname`.
`pid`	`principal.process.pid`	The value of the `pid` field from the raw log is directly assigned to `principal.process.pid`.
`ts`	`metadata.event_timestamp`	The value of the `ts` field from the raw log is converted to a timestamp and assigned to `metadata.event_timestamp`. The timestamp is also used for the top-level `timestamp` field in the UDM. The `metadata.event_type` is set to "STATUS_UPDATE" because the `principal_mid_present` variable is set to "true" in the parser when the `host` field is present in the raw log. The string "ARUBA_SWITCH" is assigned to `metadata.product_name` within the parser. The string "ARUBA SWITCH" is assigned to `metadata.vendor_name` within the parser. The parser attempts to extract and parse the user agent from the raw log using `client.userAgent.rawUserAgent`. If successful, the parsed user agent is assigned to `network.http.parsed_user_agent`. However, since the raw logs provided do not contain this field, this UDM field will likely be empty. The parser attempts to extract the raw user agent from the raw log using `client.userAgent.rawUserAgent`. If successful, the raw user agent is assigned to `network.http.user_agent`. However, since the raw logs provided do not contain this field, this UDM field will likely be empty.

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