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4. Trusted Software Stack

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Trusted Computing
This chapter is in the book Trusted Computing
4 Trusted Software StackIn order to use physical security chips (including TPM and TCM), users require a soft-ware module to interact with them. This module is called Trusted Software Stack(TSS).1As the entry of using a security chip, TSS usually locates between the secur-ity chip and user applications. It facilitates user applications to invoke security chipinterfaces, and provides functions such as security chip access, security authentica-tion, cryptographic services and resource management. Different security chips needappropriate software stacks such as TCG Software Stack corresponding to TPM andTCM Service Module (TSM) corresponding to TCM.TSS is the bridge of interaction between user applications and security chip. Asecurity chip provides core functions for building trust environment such as key gen-eration, key storage and signature verification. Meanwhile, TSS provides auxiliaryfunctions for building trust environment such as key usage, integrity measurementand communication between applications and security chips. In summary, the maingoals of TSS are as follows [89]:(1) To provide a set of APIs for user applications to synchronously access securitychip.(2) To manage requests from multiple applications and provide synchronous accessto security chip.(3) To shield processing procedure of internal commands for user applic-ations in the manner of appropriate byte stream order and parameterassignment.(4) To manage limited resources of security chip.TSS simplifies the use of security chip. To code a security chip-based application, aprogrammer only needs to know basic concepts of security chip and upper interfacesprovided by TSS, and is not required to concern about complexity of internal structureof security chip.In this chapter, we introduce the overall architecture and functions of TSS, andthen take the TSM as a TSS example to illustrate the definitions of interfaces at differ-ent layers and their invoking relationship. We will further introduce basic instances ofTSS-based development and outline implementation and application of some existingopen-source TSSs.1Without specification, TSS in this chapter means a general software stack using a security chip, notspecially indicating TCG Software Stack in TPM or TSM in TCM.DOI 10.1515/9783110477597-004
© 2017 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Munich/Boston

4 Trusted Software StackIn order to use physical security chips (including TPM and TCM), users require a soft-ware module to interact with them. This module is called Trusted Software Stack(TSS).1As the entry of using a security chip, TSS usually locates between the secur-ity chip and user applications. It facilitates user applications to invoke security chipinterfaces, and provides functions such as security chip access, security authentica-tion, cryptographic services and resource management. Different security chips needappropriate software stacks such as TCG Software Stack corresponding to TPM andTCM Service Module (TSM) corresponding to TCM.TSS is the bridge of interaction between user applications and security chip. Asecurity chip provides core functions for building trust environment such as key gen-eration, key storage and signature verification. Meanwhile, TSS provides auxiliaryfunctions for building trust environment such as key usage, integrity measurementand communication between applications and security chips. In summary, the maingoals of TSS are as follows [89]:(1) To provide a set of APIs for user applications to synchronously access securitychip.(2) To manage requests from multiple applications and provide synchronous accessto security chip.(3) To shield processing procedure of internal commands for user applic-ations in the manner of appropriate byte stream order and parameterassignment.(4) To manage limited resources of security chip.TSS simplifies the use of security chip. To code a security chip-based application, aprogrammer only needs to know basic concepts of security chip and upper interfacesprovided by TSS, and is not required to concern about complexity of internal structureof security chip.In this chapter, we introduce the overall architecture and functions of TSS, andthen take the TSM as a TSS example to illustrate the definitions of interfaces at differ-ent layers and their invoking relationship. We will further introduce basic instances ofTSS-based development and outline implementation and application of some existingopen-source TSSs.1Without specification, TSS in this chapter means a general software stack using a security chip, notspecially indicating TCG Software Stack in TPM or TSM in TCM.DOI 10.1515/9783110477597-004
© 2017 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Munich/Boston

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Preface V
  3. Contents VII
  4. 1. Introduction 1
  5. 2. Trusted Platform Module 18
  6. 3. Building Chain of Trust 66
  7. 4. Trusted Software Stack 100
  8. 5. Trusted Computing Platform 133
  9. 6. Test and Evaluation of Trusted Computing 168
  10. 7. Remote Attestation 197
  11. 8. Trust Network Connection 243
  12. Appendix A: Foundations of Cryptography 265
  13. References 289
  14. Index 299
Readers are also interested in:
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110477597-004

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Preface V
  3. Contents VII
  4. 1. Introduction 1
  5. 2. Trusted Platform Module 18
  6. 3. Building Chain of Trust 66
  7. 4. Trusted Software Stack 100
  8. 5. Trusted Computing Platform 133
  9. 6. Test and Evaluation of Trusted Computing 168
  10. 7. Remote Attestation 197
  11. 8. Trust Network Connection 243
  12. Appendix A: Foundations of Cryptography 265
  13. References 289
  14. Index 299
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