Configuring Tcp Attack Protection; Overview; Enabling The Syn Cookie Feature; Displaying And Maintaining Tcp Attack Protection - HP 5500 HI Series Configuration Manual

Configuring TCP attack protection

Overview

An attacker can attack the switch during the process of establishing a TCP connection. To prevent such
an attack, the switch provides the SYN Cookie feature.

Enabling the SYN Cookie feature

As a general rule, the establishment of a TCP connection involves the following three handshakes.
1. The request originator sends a SYN message to the target server.
2. After receiving the SYN message, the target server establishes a TCP connection in
SYN_RECEIVED state, returns a SYN ACK message to the originator, and waits for a response.
3. After receiving the SYN ACK message, the originator returns an ACK message, establishing the
TCP connection.
Attackers may mount SYN Flood attacks during TCP connection establishment. They send a large number
of SYN messages to the server to establish TCP connections, but they never make any response to SYN
ACK messages. As a result, a large number of incomplete TCP connections are established, resulting in
heavy resource consumption and making the server unable to handle services normally.
The SYN Cookie feature can prevent SYN Flood attacks. After receiving a TCP connection request, the
server directly returns a SYN ACK message, instead of establishing an incomplete TCP connection. Only
after receiving an ACK message from the client can the server establish a connection, and then enter
ESTABLISHED state. In this way, incomplete TCP connections could be avoided to protect the server
against SYN Flood attacks.
Follow these guidelines when you enable the SYN Cookie feature:
If you enable MD5 authentication for TCP connections, the SYN Cookie configuration is ineffective.
•
Then, if you disable MD5 authentication for TCP connections, the SYN Cookie configuration
automatically becomes effective. For more information about MD5 authentication, see Layer 3—IP
Routing Configuration Guide.
With the SYN Cookie feature enabled, only the maximum segment size (MSS), is negotiated during
•
TCP connection establishment, instead of the window's zoom factor and timestamp.
To enable the SYN Cookie feature:
Step
1. Enter system view.
2. Enable the SYN Cookie feature.

Displaying and maintaining TCP attack protection

Command
system-view
tcp syn-cookie enable
349
Remarks
N/A
Enabled by default