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Doc: No documentation on operator API auth
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The custom authentication protocol used to access
the operator API (logs, reboot, ... of a VM) was
not documented.
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Authentication protocol for VM owner
=======================================

This custom protocol allows a user (owner of a VM) to securely authenticate to a CRN, using their Ethereum wallet.
This scheme was designed in a way that's convenient to be integrated in the console web page.

It allows the user to control their VM. e.g : stop reboot, view their log, etc…

## Motivations

This protocol ensures secure authentication between a blockchain wallet owner and an aleph.im compute node.

Signing operations is typically gated by prompts requiring manual approval for each operation.
With hardware wallets, users are prompted both by the software on their device and the hardware wallet itself.

## Overview

The client generates a [JSON Web Key](https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc7517) (JWK) key pair and signs the public key with their Ethereum account. The signed public key is sent
in the `X-SignedPubKey` header. The client also signs the operation payload with the private JWK, sending it in the
`X-SignedOperation` header. The server verifies both the public key and payload signatures, ensuring the request's
integrity and authenticity. If validation fails (e.g., expired key or invalid signature), the server returns a 401
Unauthorized error.

Support for Solana wallets is planned in the near future.

## Authentication Method for HTTP Endpoints

Two custom headers are added to each authenticated request:

* X-SignedPubKey: This contains the public key and its associated metadata (such as the sender’s address and expiration
date), along with a signature that ensures its authenticity.
* X-SignedOperation: This includes the payload of the operation and its cryptographic signature, ensuring that the
operation itself has not been tampered with.

### 1. Generate and Sign Public Key

A new JWK is generated using elliptic curve cryptography (EC, P-256).

The use of a temporary JWK key allows the user to delegate limited control to the console without needing to sign every
individual request with their Ethereum wallet. This is crucial for improving the user experience, as constantly signing
each operation would be cumbersome and inefficient. By generating a temporary key, the user can provide permission for a
set period of time (until the key expires), enabling the console to perform actions like stopping or rebooting the VM on
their behalf. This maintains security while streamlining interactions with the console, as the server verifies each
operation using the temporary key without requiring ongoing involvement from the user's wallet.

The generated public key is converted into a JSON structure with additional metadata:
* `pubkey`: The public key information.
* `alg`: The signing algorithm, ECDSA.
* `domain`: The domain for which the key is valid.
* `address`: The Ethereum address of the sender, binding the public key to this identity.
* `expires`: The expiration time of the key.

Example
```json
{
"pubkey": {
"crv": "P-256",
"kty": "EC",
"x": "hbslLmhG3h2RwuzBYNVeQ7WCbU-tUzMjSpCFO2i5-tA",
"y": "KI4FJARKwyYcRy6xz1J9lu8OItV87Fw91eThe2hnnuc"
},
"alg": "ECDSA",
"domain": "localhost",
"address": "0x8Dd070629F107e7946dD68BDcb8ABE8475F47B0E",
"expires": "2010-12-26T17:05:55Z"
}
```

This public key is signed using the Ethereum account to ensure its authenticity. The resulting signature is
combined with the public key into a payload and sent as the `X-SignedPubKey` header.

### 2. Sign Operation Payload

#### Operation Payload Format

The operation payload is a JSON object that encapsulates the details of an API request. It ensures that the request's
integrity can be verified through signing. Below are the fields included:

- **`time`**: (string, ISO 8601 format) The timestamp for when the operation is valid, including the timezone is mandatory (`Z`
indicates UTC). This helps prevent replay attacks (capturing the packet and replying it multiple time). e.g. `"2010-12-25T17:05:55Z"`
- **`method`**: (string) The HTTP method used for the operation (e.g., `GET`, `POST`).
- **`path`**: (string) The endpoint path of the request (e.g., `/`).
- **`domain`**: (string) The domain associated with the request. This ensures the request is valid for the intended
CRN. (e.g., `localhost`).

Example

```json
{
"time": "2010-12-25T17:05:55Z",
"method": "GET",
"path": "/",
"domain": "localhost"
}
```

It is sent serialized as a hex string.

#### Signature
This payload is serialized in JSON, signed, and sent in the `X-SignedOperation` header to ensure the integrity and authenticity
of the request.

* The operation payload (containing details such as time, method, path, and domain) is serialized and converted into a byte array.
* The JWK (private key) is used to sign this operation payload, ensuring its integrity. This signature is then included in the X-SignedOperation header.


### 3. Include authentication Headers
These two headers are to be added to the HTTP Request:

1. **`X-SignedPubKey` Header:**
- This header contains the public key payload and the signature of the public key generated by the Ethereum account.

Example:
```json
{
"payload": "<hexadecimal string of the public key payload>",
"signature": "<Ethereum signed public key>"
}
```

2. **`X-SignedOperation` Header:**
- This header contains the operation payload and the signature of the operation payload generated using the private
JWK.

Example:
```json
{
"payload": "<hexadecimal string of the operation payload>",
"signature": "<JWK signed operation payload>"
}
```

### Expiration and Validation

- The public key has an expiration date, ensuring that keys are not used indefinitely.
- Both the public key and the operation signature are validated for authenticity and integrity at the server side.
- Requests failing verification or expired keys are rejected with `401 Unauthorized` status, providing an error message
indicating the reason.

### WebSocket Authentication Protocol

In the WebSocket variant of the authentication protocol, the client establishes a connection and authenticates through
an initial message that includes their Ethereum-signed identity, ensuring secure communication.

Due to web browsers not allowing custom HTTP headers in WebSocket connections,
the two header are sent in one json packet, under the `auth` key.

Example authentication packet
```json
{
"auth": {
"X-SignedPubKey": {
"payload": "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",
"signature": "0xea99ef5f1a10f2d103f94dce4f8650730315246e6d15cf9e5862c11adfd6482703cd1ec684a4f3dffb36ae5c4a57b08a47108fe55e3b2454e45f6e63342e0f471b"
},
"X-SignedOperation": {
"payload": "7b2274696d65223a2022323031302d31322d32355431373a30353a35355a222c20226d6574686f64223a2022474554222c202270617468223a20222f222c2022646f6d61696e223a20226c6f63616c686f7374227d",
"signature": "6f737654cd00e4d4155d387509978e7a9a4d27f5b59c9492ac1dec7b09f9aecc58c9365526bbddd6211b65f40f4956c50ab26f395f7170ce1698c11e28e25d3a"
}
}
}
```

If the authentication succeed the server will answer with
```json
{
"status": "connected"
}
```

In case of failed auth the server will respond with await `{"status": "failed", "reason": "string describing the reason"})` and close the connexion

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