Collect Kea DHCP logs

Supported in:

Google secops SIEM

This document explains how to ingest Kea DHCP logs to Google Security Operations using the Bindplane agent.

ISC Kea is an open-source DHCP server that generates lease allocation, renewal, and release logs for IPv4/IPv6 address management. The parser extracts fields from Kea DHCP log messages and maps them to the Unified Data Model (UDM), including DHCP-specific network attributes, principal and target identifiers, and security result metadata.

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 Kea DHCP server
If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements
Privileged access to the Kea DHCP server host (root or sudo)

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 Bindplane 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 the Bindplane agent installation guide.

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

Locate the configuration file

Linux:

sudo nano /opt/observiq-otel-collector/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/kea_dhcp:
        compression: gzip
        creds_file_path: '/etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json'
        customer_id: '<customer_id>'
        endpoint: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
        log_type: KEA_DHCP
        raw_log_field: body

service:
    pipelines:
        logs/kea_dhcp:
            receivers:
                - udplog
            exporters:
                - chronicle/kea_dhcp

Configuration parameters

Replace the following placeholders:

Receiver configuration:
- udplog: The receiver type based on protocol:
  - udplog for UDP syslog
  - tcplog for TCP syslog
  - syslog for RFC 3164/5424 syslog
- 0.0.0.0: IP address to listen on:
  - 0.0.0.0 to listen on all interfaces (recommended)
  - Specific IP address to listen on one interface
- 514: Port number to listen on (for example, 514, 1514, 6514)
Exporter configuration:
- <customer_id>: Customer ID from the earlier step
- malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com: 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
- Adjust the creds_file_path depending on the platform:
  - Linux: /etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json
  - Windows: C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\ingestion-auth.json

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 Kea DHCP syslog forwarding

Kea DHCP writes logs to local files on the server. Configure syslog output so these logs are forwarded to the Bindplane agent.

Open the Kea DHCP configuration file (typically kea-dhcp4.conf or kea-dhcp6.conf).
Locate the loggers section.

Add or modify a logger entry to use the syslog output, for example:

{
    "loggers": [
        {
            "name": "kea-dhcp4",
            "output_options": [
                {
                    "output": "syslog:kea-dhcp4"
                }
            ],
            "severity": "INFO"
        }
    ]
}

Save the configuration file.
Configure the system syslog daemon (for example, rsyslog) to forward Kea logs to the Bindplane agent. Edit /etc/rsyslog.d/kea-forward.conf:
```
:programname, isequal, "kea-dhcp4" @BINDPLANE_AGENT_IP:514
```
Note: Use @@ instead of @ for TCP. A single @ sends over UDP. Replace BINDPLANE_AGENT_IP with the IP address of the Bindplane agent host.
Restart the rsyslog service:
```
sudo systemctl restart rsyslog
```

Restart the Kea DHCP service:

sudo systemctl restart kea-dhcp4-server

UDM mapping table

Log Field	UDM Mapping	Logic
	metadata.event_type	Type of event
product_event	metadata.product_event_type	Product-specific event type
	network.application_protocol	Application protocol
mac	network.dhcp.chaddr	Client hardware address
client_ip	network.dhcp.ciaddr	Client IP address
lease_time	network.dhcp.lease_time_seconds	Lease time in seconds
	network.dhcp.opcode	DHCP opcode
src_ip	network.dhcp.requested_address	Requested IP address
	network.dhcp.type	DHCP message type
src_ip	network.dhcp.yiaddr	Your IP address
client_ip	observer.ip	Observer IP address
host	principal.hostname	Principal hostname
client_ip	principal.ip	Principal IP address
mac	principal.mac	Principal MAC address
src_port	principal.port	Principal port
	security_result.severity	Severity of the security result
desc	security_result.summary	Summary of the security result
domain_name	target.hostname	Target hostname
dest_port	target.port	Target port
	metadata.product_name	Product name
	metadata.vendor_name	Vendor name

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