Collect Cisco WSM logs

Parser Version: 1.0

Supported in:

Google SecOps SIEM

This document explains how to ingest Cisco Wireless Services Module logs to Google Security Operations using Bindplane. The Cisco Wireless Services Module (WiSM) is an integrated wireless LAN controller module for Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series switches that manages wireless access points, handles client authentication, and enforces wireless security policies across enterprise wireless networks.

Before you begin

Make sure you have the following prerequisites:

• A Google SecOps instance.
• A Windows 2016 or later or Linux host with systemd.
• If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements.
• Privileged access to the Cisco Wireless Services Module or Wireless LAN Controller (WLC).

Get Google SecOps credentials for the Bindplane agent

To authenticate the Bindplane agent to Google SecOps, choose one of the following methods:

• New deployments: Use the Chronicle API (Option 1).
• Legacy deployments: Continue using the ingestion authentication file (Option 2) until the Ingestion API is discontinued on July 20, 2027.

Option 1: Create a service account for the Chronicle API (recommended)

1. Sign in to the Google Cloud console and select the Google Cloud project that is linked to your Google SecOps instance.
2. Go to IAM & Admin > Service Accounts.
3. Click Create service account.
4. Provide the following configuration details:
   • Service account name: Enter a name for the account (for example, bindplane-ingest).
   • Service account description: Enter a description (for example, Bindplane agent log ingestion).
5. Click Create and continue.
6. In the Grant this service account access to project section, click Select a role and select Chronicle Editor.
7. Click Continue, and then click Done.
8. Click the service account you created, and then go to the Keys tab.
9. Click Add key > Create new key.
10. Select JSON and click Create. The key file is downloaded to your computer.
11. Save the key file as ingestion-auth.json in the Bindplane collector directory (/opt/observiq-otel-collector/ingestion-auth.json on Linux or C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\ingestion-auth.json on Windows), or update creds_file_path in config.yaml to match the path where you save it.
12. Go to IAM & Admin > Settings and copy the Project number. You'll need it for the exporter configuration.

Note: The JSON key is a credential. Restrict access to the file on the Bindplane host and rotate the key according to your organization's policy.

Option 2: Download the ingestion authentication file (legacy)

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.

Note: This file authenticates the agent to the legacy Ingestion API (malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com), which Google has scheduled for end of life on July 20, 2027. Plan to move to Option 1 before that date.

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 ID from the Organization Details section.

Install the Bindplane agent

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

Windows installation

1. Open the Command Prompt or PowerShell as an administrator.

2. Run the following command:

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

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
   

Additional installation resources

For additional installation options, consult the installation guide.

Note: The Chronicle API exporter configuration requires Bindplane collector v1.106.0 or later. The previous commands install the latest release. If you're updating an existing installation, upgrade the collector before changing the configuration.

Configure the Bindplane agent to ingest syslog and send to Google SecOps

1. Access the configuration file:

   • Locate the config.yaml file. Typically, it is in the /observiq-otel-collector/ directory on Linux or in the installation directory on Windows.
   • Open the file using a text editor (for example, nano, vi, or Notepad).

2. Edit the config.yaml file as follows:

   receivers:
     udplog:
       listen_address: "0.0.0.0:514"
   
   exporters:
     chronicle/cisco_wsm:
       protocol: https
       # Region of your instance, for example us, europe, asia-southeast1
       location: <LOCATION>
       # Project number of the Google Cloud project linked to the instance
       project: '<PROJECT_NUMBER>'
       compression: gzip
       creds_file_path: '/path/to/ingestion-authentication-file.json'
       customer_id: '<customer_id>'
       endpoint: chronicle.googleapis.com
       log_type: CISCO_WSM
       raw_log_field: body
       ingestion_labels:
   
   service:
     pipelines:
       logs/cisco_wsm:
         receivers:
           - udplog
         exporters:
           - chronicle/cisco_wsm
   

• Replace the port and IP address as required in your infrastructure.
• Replace <LOCATION> with the region of your Google SecOps instance (for example, us, europe, or asia-southeast1). The exporter prefixes chronicle.googleapis.com with this value.
• Replace <PROJECT_NUMBER> with the project number from IAM & Admin > Settings.
• Replace <customer_id> with the actual customer ID.
• Update /path/to/ingestion-authentication-file.json to the path where the service account key file (Option 1) was saved in the Get Google SecOps credentials for the Bindplane agent section.

Legacy ingestion API exporter

• If you use the ingestion authentication file from Option 2, replace the exporters block with the following. Set creds_file_path to the path to the ingestion authentication file, and if your instance is outside the US, replace malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com with your regional endpoint (for example, europe-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com).

  exporters:
    chronicle/cisco_wsm:
      compression: gzip
      creds_file_path: '/path/to/ingestion-authentication-file.json'
      customer_id: '<customer_id>'
      endpoint: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
      log_type: CISCO_WSM
      raw_log_field: body
      ingestion_labels:
  

Note: This exporter will stop working when the Ingestion API is discontinued on July 20, 2027.

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 syslog forwarding on Cisco Wireless Services Module

Configure syslog via the WLC web interface

1. Sign in to the Cisco Wireless LAN Controller web interface.
2. Go to Management > Logs > Config.
3. In the Syslog Server IP Address field, enter the IP address of the Bindplane agent host (for example, 192.168.1.100).
4. Click Add.
5. Set the following syslog parameters:
   • Syslog Level: Select Informational (or your preferred severity level).
   • Syslog Facility: Select Local6.
6. Click Apply.

7. Click Save Configuration to save the settings.

   Note: The WLC sends syslog messages on UDP port 514 by default. This port is not configurable on AireOS-based controllers. Ensure the Bindplane agent is listening on port 514.

Configure syslog via the WLC CLI

1. Connect to the Cisco Wireless LAN Controller via SSH or console.

2. Add the syslog server (replace <BINDPLANE_IP> with the IP address of the Bindplane agent host):

   config logging syslog host <BINDPLANE_IP>
   

3. Set the syslog logging level:

   config logging syslog level informational
   

4. Set the syslog facility:

   config logging syslog facility local6
   

5. Save the configuration:

   save config
   

6. Verify the syslog configuration:

   show logging
   

   Note: The WLC sends syslog messages on UDP port 514 by default. This port is not configurable via the CLI on AireOS-based controllers.

UDM mapping table

Log Field	UDM Mapping	Logic
auth_mechanism	extensions.auth.mechanism	Merged
cisco_mnemonic	extensions.auth.mechanism	Mapped: AAA_MAX_RETRY → auth_mechanism
cisco_mnemonic	extensions.auth.type	Mapped: "LOGOUT","SESS_LOGOUT","RELOAD" → MACHINE, `"LOGIN_SUCCESS","WEBLOGIN_SUCCESS","...
hostname	intermediary.hostname	Directly mapped
intermediary_ip	intermediary.ip	Merged
cisco_message	metadata.description	Directly mapped
syslogtimestamp	metadata.event_timestamp	Parsed as MMM d HH:mm:ss
cisco_mnemonic	metadata.event_type	Mapped values (20 total, e.g. "LOGOUT","SESS_LOGOUT","RELOAD" → NETWORK_CONNECTION, `"LO...
cisco_tag	metadata.product_event_type	Directly mapped
auditid	metadata.product_log_id	Directly mapped
cisco_mnemonic	network.direction	Mapped: `"USER_NAME_CREATED", "Q_IND","INVALID_STATE_EVENT","ENTRY_CHANGED","ENTRY_DELETED",...
cisco_mnemonic	network.ip_protocol	Mapped: "ESTABLISHED_TO_PEER", "HANDSHAKE_FAILURE" → UDP
cipher	network.tls.cipher	Directly mapped
hostname	principal.hostname	Directly mapped
principal_hostname	principal.hostname	Directly mapped
cisco_mnemonic	principal.ip	Mapped: "LOGOUT","SESS_LOGOUT","RELOAD" → principal_ip, `"LOGIN_SUCCESS","WEBLOGIN_SUCCE...
principal_ip	principal.ip	Merged
cisco_mnemonic	principal.mac	Mapped values (6 total, e.g. `"USER_NAME_CREATED", "Q_IND","INVALID_STATE_EVENT","ENTRY_CHAN...
principal_mac	principal.mac	Mapped: ^(([0-9a-fA-F]{2}:){5}[0-9a-fA-F]{2})$ → principal_mac
principal_port	principal.port	Directly mapped
principal_process_id	principal.process.pid	Directly mapped
cisco_facility	principal.resource.type	Directly mapped
username	principal.user.userid	Directly mapped
action	security_result.action	Merged
cisco_mnemonic	security_result.action	Mapped: "ESTABLISHED_TO_PEER", "HANDSHAKE_FAILURE" → action, "SIG_INFO1", "ECHO_ERR" →...
category	security_result.category	Merged
cisco_mnemonic	security_result.category	Mapped: AAA_MAX_RETRY → category, ABORT_AUTH → category
cisco_mnemonic	security_result.description	Mapped values (7 total, e.g. `"USER_NAME_CREATED", "Q_IND","INVALID_STATE_EVENT","ENTRY_CHAN...
database_detection_fields	security_result.detection_fields	Merged
profile_detection_fields	security_result.detection_fields	Merged
tls_local_ip_detection_fields	security_result.detection_fields	Merged
tls_remote_detection_fields	security_result.detection_fields	Merged
cisco_severity	security_result.severity	Mapped values (8 total, e.g. 0 → ALERT, 1 → CRITICAL, 2 → HIGH)
cisco_severity	security_result.severity_details	Mapped values (8 total, e.g. 0 → System unusable, 1 → Immediate action needed, 2 ...
cisco_mnemonic	security_result.summary	Mapped values (11 total, e.g. `"USER_NAME_CREATED", "Q_IND","INVALID_STATE_EVENT","ENTRY_CHA...
reason_message	security_result.summary	Directly mapped
terminal	target.hostname	Directly mapped
cisco_mnemonic	target.ip	Mapped: "LOGOUT","SESS_LOGOUT","RELOAD" → target_ip, `"USER_NAME_CREATED", "Q_IND","INVA...
target_ip	target.ip	Merged
cisco_mnemonic	target.mac	Mapped: `"USER_NAME_CREATED", "Q_IND","INVALID_STATE_EVENT","ENTRY_CHANGED","ENTRY_DELETED",...
target_mac	target.mac	Mapped: ^(([0-9a-fA-F]{2}:){5}[0-9a-fA-F]{2})$ → target_mac
username	target.user.userid	Directly mapped
N/A	extensions.auth.type	Constant: MACHINE
N/A	metadata.event_type	Constant: NETWORK_CONNECTION
N/A	metadata.product_name	Constant: CISCO_WSM
N/A	metadata.vendor_name	Constant: CISCO_WSM
N/A	network.direction	Constant: BROADCAST
N/A	network.ip_protocol	Constant: UDP
N/A	security_result.description	Constant: The system has detected an orphaned ARP packet
N/A	security_result.severity	Constant: ALERT
N/A	security_result.severity_details	Constant: System unusable
N/A	security_result.summary	Constant: ARP request received with invalid Source IP Address

Change Log

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