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Intel(R) Intelligent Storage Acceleration Library Crypto Version

ISA-L_crypto is a collection of optimized low-level functions targeting storage applications. ISA-L_crypto includes:

• Multi-buffer hashes - run multiple hash jobs together on one core for much better throughput than single-buffer versions.

  • SHA1, SHA256, SHA512, MD5, SM3

• Multi-hash - Get the performance of multi-buffer hashing with a single-buffer interface. Specification ref : Multi-Hash white paper

• Multi-hash + murmur - run both together.

• AES - block ciphers

  • XTS, GCM, CBC

• Rolling hash - Hash input in a window which moves through the input

Also see:

• ISA-L_crypto for updates.
• For non-crypto ISA-L see isa-l on github.
• The github wiki covering isa-l and isa-l crypto.
• Contributing.
• Security Policy.
• FIPS Mode.

Building ISA-L

Prerequisites

x86_64:

• Assembler: nasm v2.14.01 or later
• Compiler: gcc, clang, icc or MSVC (Visual Studio 2019 or later).
• Make: GNU 'make' or 'nmake' (Windows).
• Optional: Building with autotools requires autoconf/automake packages.

aarch64:

• Assembler: gas v2.34 or later.
• Compiler: gcc v8 or later.
• For gas v2.24~v2.34, sve2 instructions are not supported. To workaround it, sve2 optimization should be disabled by
  • ./configure --disable-sve2
  • make -f Makefile.unx DEFINES+=-DNO_SVE2=1

Autotools

To build and install the library with autotools it is usually sufficient to run:

./autogen.sh
./configure
make
sudo make install

Makefile

To use a standard makefile run:

make -f Makefile.unx

Windows

On Windows use nmake to build dll and static lib:

nmake -f Makefile.nmake

Other make targets

Other targets include:

• make check : create and run tests
• make tests : create additional unit tests
• make perfs : create included performance tests
• make ex : build examples
• make doc : build API manual

Algorithm recommendations

Legacy or to be avoided algorithms listed in the table below are implemented in the library in order to support legacy applications. Please use corresponding alternative algorithms instead.

+----------------------------------------------------+
| # | Algorithm      | Recommendation | Alternative  |
|---+----------------+----------------+--------------|
| 1 | MD5 integrity  | Legacy         | SHA256       |
|---+----------------+----------------+--------------|
| 2 | SHA1 integrity | Avoid          | SHA256       |
+----------------------------------------------------+

Intel(R) Intelligent Storage Acceleration for Crypto Library depends on C library and it is recommended to use its latest version.

Applications using the Intel(R) Intelligent Storage Acceleration for Crypto Library rely on Operating System to provide process isolation. As the result, it is recommended to use latest Operating System patches and security updates.

DLL Injection Attack

Problem

The Windows OS has an insecure predefined search order and set of defaults when trying to locate a resource. If the resource location is not specified by the software, an attacker need only place a malicious version in one of the locations Windows will search, and it will be loaded instead. Although this weakness can occur with any resource, it is especially common with DLL files.

Solutions

Applications using libisal_crypto DLL library may need to apply one of the solutions to prevent from DLL injection attack.

Two solutions are available:

• Using a Fully Qualified Path is the most secure way to load a DLL
• Signature verification of the DLL

Resources and Solution Details

• Security remarks section of LoadLibraryEx documentation by Microsoft: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/libloaderapi/nf-libloaderapi-loadlibraryexa#security-remarks
• Microsoft Dynamic Link Library Security article: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/dlls/dynamic-link-library-security
• Hijack Execution Flow: DLL Search Order Hijacking: https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1574/001
• Hijack Execution Flow: DLL Side-Loading: https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1574/002