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- Administration User Interface Reference
- Guest Access User Interface Reference
- Web Portals Customization Reference
- Policy User Interface Reference
- Operations User Interface Reference
- Network Access Flows
- Switch and Wireless LAN Controller Configuration Required to Support Cisco ISE Functions
- Supported Management Information Bases in Cisco ISE
Cisco Identity Services Engine Administrator Guide, Release 1.4.1
Bias-Free Language
The documentation set for this product strives to use bias-free language. For the purposes of this documentation set, bias-free is defined as language that does not imply discrimination based on age, disability, gender, racial identity, ethnic identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, and intersectionality. Exceptions may be present in the documentation due to language that is hardcoded in the user interfaces of the product software, language used based on RFP documentation, or language that is used by a referenced third-party product. Learn more about how Cisco is using Inclusive Language.
- Updated:
- April 15, 2016
Chapter: Administer Cisco ISE
- Log in to Cisco ISE
- Specify Proxy Settings in Cisco ISE
- Ports Used by the Admin Portal
- Specify System Time and NTP Server Settings
- Change the System Time Zone
- Configure SMTP Server to Support Notifications
- Install a Software Patch
- Roll Back Software Patches
- View Patch Install and Rollback Changes
- FIPS Mode Support
- Enable FIPS Mode in Cisco ISE
- Configure Cisco ISE for Administrator CAC Authentication
- Securing SSH Key Exchange Using Diffie-Hellman Algorithm
- Configure Cisco ISE to Send Secure Syslog
Administer Cisco ISE
- Log in to Cisco ISE
- Specify Proxy Settings in Cisco ISE
- Ports Used by the Admin Portal
- Specify System Time and NTP Server Settings
- Change the System Time Zone
- Configure SMTP Server to Support Notifications
- Install a Software Patch
- Roll Back Software Patches
- View Patch Install and Rollback Changes
- FIPS Mode Support
- Enable FIPS Mode in Cisco ISE
- Configure Cisco ISE for Administrator CAC Authentication
- Securing SSH Key Exchange Using Diffie-Hellman Algorithm
- Configure Cisco ISE to Send Secure Syslog
Log in to Cisco ISE
Log in to Cisco ISE using your administrator username and password.
During the initial setup, if you do not enable SSH then you will not be able to access the ISE admin console via SSH. To enable SSH, enter the service sshd enable command in the global configuration mode, by accessing the Cisco ISE CLI. You can disable SSH by using the no service sshd command in the global configuration mode.
Administrator Login Browser Support
The Cisco ISE Admin portal supports the following HTTPS-enabled browsers:
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Mozilla Firefox versions 31.x ESR, 36.x, and 37.x
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Mozilla Firefox versions 31.x ESR, 32.x, and 33.x
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Microsoft Internet Explorer 10.x and 11.x
Adobe Flash Player 11.2.0.011.1.0.0 or above must be installed on the system running your client browser.
The minimum required screen resolution to view the Admin portal and for a better user experience is 1280*800 pixels.
Administrator Lockout Following Failed Login Attempts
If you enter an incorrect password for your specified administrator user ID enough times, the Admin portal “locks you out” of the system, adds a log entry in the Server Administrator Logins report, and suspends the credentials for that administrator ID until you have an opportunity to reset the password that is associated with that administrator ID, as described in the “Performing Post-Installation Tasks” chapter of the Cisco Identity Services Engine Hardware Installation Guide. The number of failed attempts that is required to disable the administrator account is configurable according to the guidelines that are described in 'User Account Custom Attributes and Password Policies' section. After an administrator user account gets locked out, an e-mail is sent to the associated administrator user.
Disabled System administrators' status can be enabled by any Super Admin, including Active Directory users.
Specify Proxy Settings in Cisco ISE
If your existing network topology requires you to use a proxy for Cisco ISE, to access external resources (such as the remote download site where you can find client provisioning and posture-related resources), you can use the Admin portal to specify proxy properties.
The proxy settings impact the following Cisco ISE functions:
- Partner Mobile Management
- Endpoint Profiler Feed Service Update
- Endpoint Posture Update
- Endpoint Posture Agent Resources Download
- CRL (Certificate Revocation List) Download
The Cisco ISE proxy configuration supports basic authentication for proxy servers. NT LAN Manager (NTLM) authentication is not supported.
Ports Used by the Admin Portal
The Admin portal is set to use HTTP port 80 and HTTPS port 443, and you cannot change these settings. Cisco ISE also prevents you from assigning any of the end-user portals to use the same ports, which reduces the risk to the Admin portal.
Specify System Time and NTP Server Settings
Cisco ISE allows you to configure up to three Network Time Protocol (NTP) servers. You can use the NTP servers to maintain accurate time and synchronize time across different timezones. You can also specify whether or not Cisco ISE should use only authenticated NTP servers, and you can enter one or more authentication keys for that purpose.
Cisco recommends that you set all Cisco ISE nodes to the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) timezone—especially if your Cisco ISE nodes are installed in a distributed deployment. This procedure ensures that the reports and logs from the various nodes in your deployment are always in sync with regard to the timestamps.
You must have either the Super Admin or System Admin administrator role assigned.
If you have both a primary and a secondary Cisco ISE node, you must log in to the user interface of the secondary node and configure the system time and NTP server settings on each Cisco ISE node in your deployment individually.
Change the System Time Zone
Once set, you cannot edit the time zone from the Admin portal. To change the time zone setting, you must enter the following command in the Cisco ISE CLI:
clock timezone timezone
 Note | Cisco ISE uses POSIX-style signs in the time zone names and the output abbreviations. Therefore, zones west of Greenwich have a positive sign and zones east of Greenwich have a negative sign. For example, TZ='Etc/GMT+4' corresponds to 4 hours behind Universal Time (UT). |
For more information on the clock timezone command, refer to the Cisco Identity Services Engine CLI Reference Guide.
Configure SMTP Server to Support Notifications
You must set up a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) server to send e-mail notifications for alarms, to enable sponsors to send email notification to guests with their login credentials and password reset instructions, and to enable guests to automatically receive their login credentials after they successfully register themselves and with actions to take before their guest accounts expire.
The recipient of alarm notifications can be any internal admin users with “Include system alarms in emails” option enabled. The sender’s email address for sending alarm notifications is hardcoded as ise@<hostname>.
Install a Software Patch
You can install patches on Cisco ISE servers in your deployment from the Primary Administration Node (PAN). To install a patch from the PAN, you must download the patch from Cisco.com to the system that runs your client browser.
Note | Cisco ISE allows you to install a patch on an Inline Posture node only through the CLI. |
To install patches from the CLI, refer to Cisco Identity Services Engine CLI Reference Guide.
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You must have the Super Admin or System Admin administrator role assigned.
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Make sure that the auto-failover configuration, if enabled in your deployment, is turned off. When you install a software patch, you will be restarting the application server processes. There might be a delay while these services restart. Due to this delay in restart of services, auto-failover of Secondary Administration Node might get initiated.
What to Do Next
If you need to install the patch on one or more secondary nodes, ensure that the nodes are up and repeat the process to install the patch on the remaining nodes.
Cisco ISE Software Patches
Cisco ISE software patches are usually cumulative. Cisco ISE allows you to perform patch installation and rollback from CLI or GUI.
Software Patch Installation Guidelines
When you install or roll back a patch from a standalone or Primary Administration Node (PAN), Cisco ISE restarts the application. You might have to wait for a few minutes before you can log in again.
Ensure that you install patches that are applicable for the Cisco ISE version that is deployed in your network. Cisco ISE reports any mismatch in versions as well as any errors in the patch file.
You cannot install a patch with a version that is lower than the patch that is currently installed on Cisco ISE. Similarly, you cannot roll back changes of a lower-version patch if a higher version is currently installed on Cisco ISE. For example, if patch 3 is installed on your Cisco ISE servers, you cannot install or roll back patch 1 or 2.
When you install a patch from the PAN that is part of a distributed deployment, Cisco ISE installs the patch on the primary node and then all the secondary nodes in the deployment. If the patch installation is successful on the PAN, Cisco ISE then continues patch installation on the secondary nodes. If it fails on the PAN, the installation does not proceed to the secondary nodes. However, if the installation fails on any of the secondary nodes for any reason, it still continues with the next secondary node in your deployment. Secondary Cisco ISE nodes are restarted consecutively after the patch is installed on those nodes. While installing a patch on secondary nodes, you can continue to perform tasks on the PAN.
Roll Back Software Patches
When you roll back a patch from the PAN that is part of a distributed deployment, Cisco ISE rolls back the patch on the primary node and then all the secondary nodes in the deployment.
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You must have either the Super Admin or System Admin administrator role assigned.
- Make sure that the auto-failover configuration, if enabled in your deployment, is turned off. When you roll back a software patch, you will be restarting the application server processes. There might be a delay while these services restart. Due to this delay in restart of services, auto-failover of Secondary Administration Node might get initiated.
| Step 1 | Choose . | ||
| Step 2 | Click the radio button for
the patch version whose changes you want to roll back and click
Rollback.
| ||
| Step 3 | After you log in, click the Alarms link at the bottom of the page to view the status of the rollback operation. | ||
| Step 4 | Choose | ||
| Step 5 | To view the progress of the patch rollback, choose the patch in the Patch Management page and click Show Node Status. | ||
| Step 6 | Click the radio button for
the patch and click
Show Node Status
on any secondary nodes to ensure that the patch is rolled back from all the
nodes in your deployment.
If the patch is not rolled back from any of the secondary nodes, ensure that the node is up and repeat the process to roll back the changes from the remaining nodes. Cisco ISE only rolls back the patch from the nodes that still have this version of the patch installed. |
Software Patch Rollback Guidelines
To roll back a patch from Cisco ISE nodes in a deployment, you must first roll back the change from the PAN. If this is successful, the patch is then rolled back from the secondary nodes. If the rollback process fails on the PAN, the patches are not rolled back from the secondary nodes. However, if the patch rollback fails on any secondary node, it still continues to roll back the patch from the next secondary node in your deployment.
While Cisco ISE rolls back the patch from the secondary nodes, you can continue to perform other tasks from the PAN GUI. The secondary nodes will be restarted after the rollback.
View Patch Install and Rollback Changes
The monitoring and troubleshooting component of Cisco ISE provides information on the patch installation and rollback operations that are performed on your Cisco ISE nodes according to a time period that you specify.
You must have either the Super Admin or System Admin administrator role assigned.
FIPS Mode Support
Product Cisco Identity Services Engine uses embedded FIPS 140-2 validated cryptographic modules Cisco Common Cryptographic Module (Certificate #1643 and #2100). For details of the FIPS compliance claims, see the FIPS Compliance Letter.
When FIPS mode is enabled, the Cisco ISE administrator interface displays a FIPS mode icon to the left of the node name in the upper-right corner of the page.
If Cisco ISE detects the use of a protocol or certificate that is not supported by the FIPS 140-2 level 1 standard, Cisco ISE displays a warning with the name of the protocol or certificate that is noncompliant, and FIPS mode will not be enabled. Ensure that you choose only FIPS-compliant protocols and replace non-FIPS-compliant certificates before you enable FIPS mode.
After you enable FIPS mode, you must reboot all other nodes in the deployment. To minimize disruption to your network, Cisco ISE automatically performs a rolling restart by first restarting the Primary Administration Node (PAN) and then restarting each secondary node, one at a time.
 Tip | We recommend that you do not enable FIPS mode before completing any database migration process. |
Cisco ISE, Release 1.3, does not support FIPS mode.
Enable FIPS Mode in Cisco ISE
You can provide Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 140-2 compliant encryption and decryption in your Cisco ISE network.
What to Do Next
Once you have enabled FIPS mode, enable and configure the following FIPS 140-2 compliant functions:
- Import Network Devices into Cisco ISE
- Generate a Self-Signed Certificate
- Create a Certificate Signing Request and Submit the CSR to a Certificate Authority
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Configure RADIUS authentication settings under Network Device Definition Settings.
In addition, you may want to enable administrator account authorization using a Common Access Card (CAC) function. Although using CAC functions for authorization is not strictly a FIPS 140-2 requirement, it is a well-known secure-access measure that is used in a number of environments to bolster FIPS 140-2 compliance.
FIPS Mode Operational Parameters
The FIPS standard places limitations on the use of certain algorithms. In order to enforce this standard, you must enable FIPS operation in Cisco ISE. Cisco ISE enables FIPS 140-2 compliance via RADIUS shared secret and key management measures. While in FIPS mode, any functions using non-FIPS-compliant algorithms fail, and certain authentication functionality is disabled.
Enabling FIPS mode also automatically disables Password Authentication Protocol (PAP) and Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP) protocols, which the guest login function of Cisco ISE requires.
Cisco NAC Agent Requirements when FIPS Mode is Enabled
The Cisco NAC Agent always looks for the Windows Internet Explorer TLS 1.0 settings to discover the Cisco ISE network. (These TLS 1.0 settings should be enabled in Internet Explorer.) Therefore, client machines must have Windows Internet Explorer Version 7, 8, or 9 installed and TLS1.0 enabled to allow for Cisco ISE posture assessment functions to operate on client machines accessing the network. The Cisco NAC Agent can automatically enable the TLS 1.0 setting in Windows Internet Explorer if FIPS mode has been enabled in Cisco ISE.
Configure Cisco ISE for Administrator CAC Authentication
Before beginning configuration, do the following:
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(Optional) Turn on FIPS mode. FIPS mode is not required for certificate-based authentication, but the two security measures often go hand-in-hand. If you do plan to deploy Cisco ISE in a FIPS 140-2 compliant deployment and to use CAC certificate-based authorization as well, be sure to turn FIPS mode on and specify the appropriate private keys and encryption/decryption settings first.
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Ensure that the domain name server (DNS) in Cisco ISE is set for Active Directory.
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Ensure that Active Directory user and user group membership has been defined for each administrator certificate.
To ensure that Cisco ISE can authenticate and authorize an administrator based on the CAC-based client certificate that is submitted from the browser, be sure that you have configured the following:
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The external identity source (Active Directory in the following example)
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The user groups in Active Directory to which the administrator belongs
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Active Directory user groups to Cisco ISE RBAC permissions mapping
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The Certificate Authority (trust) certificates that sign the client certificates
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A method to determine if a client certificate has been revoked by the CA
You can use a Common Access Card (CAC) to authenticate credentials when logging into Cisco ISE.
| Step 1 | Enable FIPS mode. You will be prompted to restart your system after you enable the FIPS mode. You can defer the restart if you are going to import CA certificates as well. | ||
| Step 2 | Configure an Active Directory identity source in Cisco ISE and join all Cisco ISE nodes to Active Directory. | ||
| Step 3 | Configure a certificate
authentication profile according to the guidelines.
Be sure to select the attribute in the certificate that contains the administrator user name in the Principal Name X.509 Attribute field. (For CAC cards, the Signature Certificate on the card is normally used to look up the user in Active Directory. The Principal Name is found in this certificate in the "Subject Alternative Name" extension, specifically in a field in that extension that is called "Other Name." So the attribute selection here should be "Subject Alternative Name - Other Name.") If the AD record for the user contains the user's certificate, and you want to compare the certificate that is received from the browser against the certificate in AD, check the Binary Certificate Comparison check box, and select the Active Directory instance name that was specified earlier. | ||
| Step 4 | Enable Active Directory for
Password-Based Admin Authentication. Choose the Active Directory instance name
that you connected and joined to Cisco ISE earlier.
| ||
| Step 5 | Create an External Administrator Group and map it to an Active Directory Group. Choose . Create an external system administrator group. | ||
| Step 6 | Configure an admin
authorization policy to assign RBAC permissions to the external admin groups.
| ||
| Step 7 | Choose
to import certificate authority certificates
into the Cisco ISE certificate trust store.
Cisco ISE does not accept a client certificate unless the CA certificates in the client certificate’s trust chain are placed in the Cisco ISE Certificate Store. You must import the appropriate CA certificates in to the Cisco ISE Certificate Store. | ||
| Step 8 | Configure the certificate
authority certificates for revocation status verification.
| ||
| Step 9 | Enable client
certificate-based authentication. Choose
.
|
Supported Common Access Card Standards
Cisco ISE supports U.S. government users who authenticate themselves using Common Access Card (CAC) authentication devices. A CAC is an identification badge with an electronic chip containing a set of X.509 client certificates that identify a particular employee. Access via the CAC requires a card reader into which you insert the card and enter a PIN. The certificates from the card are then transferred into the Windows certificate store, where they are available to applications such as the local browser running Cisco ISE.
Windows Internet Explorer Version 8 and 9 users running the Windows 7 operating system must install the ActiveIdentity ActivClient Version 6.2.0.133 third-party middleware software product for Cisco ISE to interoperate with CAC. For more information on ActiveIdentity security client products, refer to http://www.actividentity.com/products/securityclients/ActivClient/.
Common Access Card Operation in Cisco ISE
The Admin portal can be configured so that you authentication with Cisco ISE is permitted only by using a client certificate. Credentials-based authentication—such as providing a user ID and password—is not permitted. In client certificate authentication, you insert a Common Access Card (CAC) card, enter a PIN and then enter the Cisco ISE Admin portal URL into the browser address field. The browser forwards the certificate to Cisco ISE, and Cisco ISE authenticates and authorizes your login session, based on the contents of the certificate. If this process is successful, you are presented with the Cisco ISE Monitoring and Troubleshooting home page and given the appropriate RBAC permissions.
Securing SSH Key Exchange Using Diffie-Hellman Algorithm
You can configure Cisco ISE to only allow Diffie-Hellman-Group14-SHA1 SSH key exchanges. To do this, you must enter the following commands from the Cisco ISE Command-Line Interface (CLI) Configuration Mode:
service sshd key-exchange-algorithm diffie-hellman-group14-sha1
ise/admin#conf t
ise/admin (config)#service sshd key-exchange-algorithm diffie-hellman-group14-sha1
Configure Cisco ISE to Send Secure Syslog
To configure Cisco ISE to send only TLS-protected secure syslog between the Cisco ISE nodes and to the Monitoring nodes, you must perform the following tasks:
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Ensure that all the Cisco ISE nodes in your deployment are configured with appropriate server certificates. If you want your setup to be FIPS 140-2 compliant, the certificate keys must have a key size of 2048 bits or greater.
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Ensure that the default network access authentication policy does not allow any version of the SSL protocol. Use the TLS protocol in the FIPS mode along with FIPS-approved algorithms.
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Ensure that all the nodes in your deployment are registered with the Primary Administration Node (PAN). Also, ensure that at least one node in your deployment has the Monitoring persona enabled to function as the secure syslog receiver (TLS server).
Configure Secure Syslog Remote Logging Target
Cisco ISE system logs are collected and stored by log collectors for various purposes. You must choose the Cisco ISE Monitoring node as your log collector for configuring a secure syslog target.
| Step 1 | Log in to the Admin portal. |
| Step 2 | Choose . |
| Step 3 | Click Add. |
| Step 4 | Enter a name for the secure syslog server. |
| Step 5 | Choose Secure Syslog from the Target Type drop-down list. |
| Step 6 | Choose Enabled from the Status drop-down list. |
| Step 7 | Enter the IP address of the Cisco ISE Monitoring node in your deployment. |
| Step 8 | Enter 6514 as the port number. The secure syslog receiver listens on TCP port 6514. |
| Step 9 | Choose the syslog facility code. The default is LOCAL6. |
| Step 10 | Check the Buffer Messages When Server is Down check box. If this option is checked, Cisco ISE stores the logs if the secure syslog receiver is unreachable, periodically checks the secure syslog receiver, and forwards them when the secure syslog receiver comes up. |
| Step 11 | Select a CA certificate that you want Cisco ISE to present to the secure syslog server. |
| Step 12 | Uncheck the Ignore Server Certificate validation check box. You must not check this option. |
| Step 13 | Click Submit. |
Enable Logging Categories to Send Auditable Events to the Secure Syslog Target
You must enable logging categories for Cisco ISE to send auditable events to the secure syslog target.
| Step 1 | Log in to the Admin portal. |
| Step 2 | Choose . |
| Step 3 | Click the radio button next to the AAA Audit logging category, then click Edit. |
| Step 4 | Choose WARN from the Log Severity Level drop-down list. |
| Step 5 | Move the secure syslog remote logging target that you created earlier to the Selected box. |
| Step 6 | Click Save. |
| Step 7 | Repeat this procedure to enable the following logging categories: |
Disable the TCP Syslog and UDP Syslog Collectors
For Cisco ISE to send only secure syslog between the ISE nodes, you must disable the TCP and UDP syslog collectors, and enable only the secure syslog collector.
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