RusBITech-Astra: ALD Pro

Main article: IT Service Management (ITSM)

ALD Pro is a complete tool for administering user and department accounts, PCs, and servers. It has mechanisms for managing group policies, fine-tuning the domain, monitoring domain controller resources, and auditing events. In addition, there are capabilities that are not available in other Linux systems, for example, you can build hierarchies of departments and assign group policies to them.

2024

ALD Pro 2.3.0 with Upgraded Inter-Domain Mechanisms

Astra Group announced the release of an updated version of the system for centralized IT infrastructure management - ALD Pro 2.3.0. The release includes improved mechanisms for interaction between domains and a number of significant improvements and innovations made on the basis of feedback from partners, customers, Group specialists and internal developer service.

Among the key changes in ALD Pro 2.3.0 are the implementation of one-way (outgoing) and two-way trust relationships between ALD Pro domains. This feature will significantly improve the security of the IT infrastructure and reduce the technical requirements for server equipment. The protection of the information system has been strengthened due to the fact that hashes of user passwords now do not leave the perimeter of the domain and each domain can be placed under the control of an independent team of IT specialists.

The reduction in RAM requirements is manifested in the ability to divide a large infrastructure into several directories, each of which will have significantly fewer objects, and controllers will need to cache significantly less data in memory.

With the upgrade to the specified version, it will be possible to configure one-way and two-way trust relationships between ALD Pro domains, obtain information about users of the trusted domain with the id command and add them to external (external) groups to grant HBAC and SUDO configuration rights, log into the operating system from a trusted domain and access its shared folders using Kerberos authentication, and enter the management portal under trusted domain accounts.

Other improvements and fixes affected components such as group policies, global catalog, synchronization module, etc. Optimized global catalog synchronization management, developed an aldproctl tool to check the availability of system services and provided the ability to enter workstations based on OCAstra Linux 1.7.5 into the domain. Updated supporting documentation including reference center, ALD Pro manual, test program and methodology.

We are confident that the catalog service is a mandatory component of the IT infrastructure of any enterprise, so we are continuously improving our solution taking into account the feedback from our users. In 2024, we will focus our efforts on three main areas: improving product reliability, simplifying system operation in productive environments and facilitating migration, including the development of hybrid scenarios. As a result, this version will be released with the most popular and strong characteristics and will help to successfully solve operational problems in terms of centralized management of domain objects, "said Evgeny Pautov, Director of the Astra Group Management Tools Development Department.

ALD Pro 2.2.0 with optimized user interface

Astra Group on February 5, 2024 announced the release of an updated version of the system for centralized domain management ALD Pro 2.2.0 - a universal solution focused on large corporations, medium and small businesses.

One of the main changes to ALD Pro 2.2.0 is improved transport for obtaining and applying policy settings - group and software, as well as event collection rules. This significantly reduces the load on domain controllers and helps simplify the use of the ALD Pro system for customers with a large fleet of user PCs.

The approach to ALD Pro repositories and dependency packages has also changed. The concept of interacting OS with Astra repositories Linux when installing ALD Pro has been redesigned. Now connecting the base and extended repositories of Astra Linux is not a prerequisite for deploying the product. The required minimum is the main and repository-update repository of Astra Linux. This helps improve the installation process and minimizes the risk of receiving and updating packages.

An important addition was the isolation of backend Python applications that now run in a separate virtual environment. They are responsible for handling user requests, managing data, and executing security policies. Isolating them increases system stability and simplifies dependency management.

Improved user interface. Changes have been made to UX/UI, including the reworking of the Bread Crumbs element (link chains at the top of the interface). Added the ability to reset the user password through the ALD Pro interface. Significantly updated user documentation - both the Help Center and the Administrator's Guide. The information was completely revised in accordance with the wishes of system administrators, which the ALD Pro team has received since the first releases.

When upgrading from previous versions of ALD Pro, the developers strongly recommend following the Administrator's Guide.

{{quote 'We are pleased to present to our customers and partners ALD Pro 2.2.0 - a solution that not only improves the efficiency and security of IT infrastructure, but also supports strategic import substitution and digital independence initiatives. Developers receive feedback from ALD Pro users, carefully examine and analyze comments and suggestions for improving the capabilities of our product. Therefore, we are fully confident that this version of ALD Pro will become a reliable tool for achieving the business goals and technological leadership of our clients, "said Alexey Fomenko, Director of the Management Tools Development Department of Astra Group. }}

2023

Compatible with HOSTVM VDI

The ALD Pro software package (product) "Astra Groups" and the solution for building virtual working environments (HOSTVM VDI developer product HOSTVM) have passed the Ready for Astra compatibility test. The correct operation of products in tandem is officially confirmed by a certificate under the number 14155/2023. Astra Group announced this on December 27, 2023.

ALD Pro includes a set of tools for centralized administration of domain objects in the Linux infrastructure, including the directory service. Deploying ALD Pro in a HOSTVM VDI environment enables users to efficiently manage virtual desktops and customers to choose the right solution for their software requirements.

HOSTVM VDI is a specialized virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) software that allows you to access them from any device and provides delivery of personal desktops, terminal sessions and virtualized applications published on a server running the Linux family of operating systems.

The compatibility of the HOSTVM VDI Virtual Desktop Solution and ALD Pro Directory Service will help you build a virtualization and computer management infrastructure that provides customers with efficiency, flexibility, and security. We provide customers not just with tools, but with the opportunity to create a harmonious environment where virtual resource management becomes an integral part of the business, "said Ivan Klimov, Head of Virtualization Platform Development at HOSTVM.

Most companies from a variety of companies industries economies migrate Active Directory from to Russian solutions. For our part, we support such projects and provide our customers with not only products that are not inferior to the software of foreign vendors, but also related services. In tandem with the development of HOSTVM VDI virtual working environments, ALD Pro will become a solid foundation for creating a structure that is used both for organizing objects and for applying policies and delegating powers, "said Dmitry Tarakanov, Director of the Department for the Development of Technological Cooperation" Astra Group. "

Compatibility with Ankey IDM

The compatibility of Ankey IDM and ALD Pro has been confirmed. The software stack is suitable for import substitution, and its application avoids sanctions risks and ensures compliance with regulatory requirements. This was announced on October 2, 2023 by Gazinformservice (GIS). Read more here.

ALD Pro 2.1.0

On August 16, 2023, Astra Group of Companies, a Russian software developer, announced the release of an updated version of the system for managing the directory service - ALD Pro 2.1.0.

ALD Pro 2.1.0

According to the company, ALD Pro is a tool that allows you to build a domain for the Linux infrastructure and, through group policies, centrally manage the parameters of domain objects: computers, servers and users. The decision is entered in the "Register of Russian Software" under the number 12159.

One of the key challenges when migrating infrastructures to import-independent solutions is to ensure that the implemented products work correctly in conjunction with legacy software and services from Microsoft during the transition period. Another important task is to avoid the high costs of administering two different solutions.

These questions are facing all organizations that are switching to domestic software, and it was these user needs that formed the basis for the release of ALD Pro 2.1.0. The solution received the following functionality: bilateral trust relationships and data synchronization with MS AD. To do this, the developers implemented a global catalog and a data synchronization module between Microsoft Active Directory (MS AD) and ALD Pro domains.

These capabilities will allow administrators to build a complete heterogeneous infrastructure for a transition period and reduce risks when migrating domain data. Now you can:

• Connect from Linux desktops from the ALD Pro domain to services and network resources (web server, file server, database, etc.), including printers in the MS AD domain.
• Synchronize individual user accounts and user groups from MS AD domains with the ALD Pro-based global catalog.

In the updated version of the system, we implemented the mechanism of bilateral trust relations between Microsoft Active Directory and ALD Pro. These capabilities, which were not previously in the Linux market, will allow our customers to work in a hybrid domain environment, use common equipment and network resources. It became possible to gradually transfer the IT infrastructure to domestic solutions, since for a transition period all domain users will be able to continue working with existing services. This will reduce the labor costs of administrators and optimize the quality of the entire import substitution process. noted Evgeny Pautov, Director of the Management Tools Development Department of Astra Group of Companies

Additionally, in ALD Pro 2.1.0, users will receive a number of changes related to information security, domain management, access rights, as well as system updates and system documentation.

{{quote 'author
= Pautov added' In addition to the standard user and administrator manuals, our team develops documentation describing the best practices for using the product. We have created a separate line of architects and engineers who work directly with customers, analyze cases, explore the possibilities of system optimization and applicability in real infrastructures of organizations.}}

It is also worth noting that the product development and maintenance teams, in addition to bringing out the updated functionality, have achieved significant success in optimizing the system in large infrastructures. Load testing was carried out on one of the customers, and its positive results indicate that the solution withstands the load of 300 thousand users.

As of August 2023, more than 50 large customers made the choice in favor of ALD Pro, and the number of licenses sold reached 100 thousand.

ALD Pro 2.0 Release with Architecture, Information Security, and Group Policy Management

GC "Astra" July 24, 2023 announced the release of an updated version by the directory service - ALD Pro 2.0. The system allows you to build domain on Linux and manage computers an organization's fleet using group politician through an intuitive interface. ALD Pro implements automated installation capabilities on OS ON computers in the domain, remote access to user desktops, and monitoring the status of directory service services. The product is listed in "" under Unified Register of Russian Programs for Computers and Databases Ministry of Digital Development number 12159.

Among the architectural changes, it should be noted the modification of the mechanism for deploying ALD Pro subsystems: a data bus with a message queue is implemented to ensure the guaranteed delivery of automation tasks to domain computers, thereby making it possible to develop this functionality within the framework of subsequent versions of ALD Pro.

The delegation was modified - a transition was made to a tool that allows you to flexibly configure privileges in roles and limit their scope, and a foundation was formed for the further development of the functional unit.

ALD Pro 2.0 has updated the event logging engine to improve message processing speed as well as structured message formats. Optimized speed and utilization of processor and RAM resources on the server and client side, as well as the functionality of interaction with the most current SIEM systems.

In release 2.0, a lot of work has been done to update the documentation based on user experience. The Product Help Center has been updated to update existing and added materials, as well as updated user, operational, and API documentation.

The updated version of ALD Pro implements a number of fundamental changes. They relate to both the addition of opportunities and the development of existing ones. Innovations affect architecture, information security, group policy management mechanisms, solution update processes, and many other aspects of ALD Pro. All these improvements are aimed at scalability, fault tolerance and stability of the system on large installations. This approach is supposed to be preserved and improved when developing all subsequent versions of ALD Pro, told Alexey Fomenko, Director of the Management Tools Development Department of Astra Group.

The version of ALD Pro 2.0 is already available to users in the Astra Linux SE OS repository for July 2023. When upgrading from a previous version, developers strongly recommend following the steps outlined in the Administrator's Guide to Installing and Updating 2.0.0.

Compatible with Aladdin Enterprise

Astra Group and Aladdin have completed a project to confirm the technological compatibility of Aladdin Enterprise CA products . и ALD Pro. Astra Group of Companies announced this on July 14, 2023.

The certificate obtained as a result of the tests confirms that the Aladdin Enterprise CA Enterprise Certification Authority fully controls the authenticity of the accounts of computers, users, devices and services included in the domain.

The Aladdin Enterprise CA accepts and processes requests from PKI users for digital certificates, validates for validity, and issues certificates according to the user's (object's) access level and security policy. Each of the digital certificates (public key certificates) confirms that the private (closed) part of the key is known only to the owners. Thus, the communication of domain objects between each other and the certification authority becomes trusted.

The compatibility of ALD Pro and the Aladdin Enterprise CA Enterprise Center allows you to provide certificates of users, computers and devices within the ALD Pro domain, organize strict authentication of users and devices in the domain, as well as the basis for trusted interaction of all objects and components (servers for various purposes, AWS employees and external users, network hardware, IIoT devices, domain controllers). Two technology partners have created a solution that closes the task of two-factor user authentication using certificates.

The integration of the ALD Pro catalog service with the Aladdin Enterprise CA certification center allows you to manage user certificates to implement the highest degree of protection for user accounts through the two-factor authentication mechanism using smart cards and JaCarta tokens, which is extremely important for many of our customers, - said Alexey Fomenko, Director of the Management Tools Development Department of Astra Group of Companies.

Aladdin is working to create an alternative to the certification authority from Microsoft, which has left the Russian market, and open source solutions that do not have the proper level of security and corporate maturity. Integration with ALD Pro - an important milestone in creating a realistic alternative to Active Directory Certificate Services - allows you to integrate corporate PKI management processes into unified domain administration and operation processes. Work with the ALD Pro team to develop integration scenarios for the use and maintenance of corporate PKI customers continues, "said Denis Polushin, Product Manager at Aladdin Enterprise CA.

As part of the Russian PAC "DataRu Piastre"

On the basis ON of the software GC "Astra" and hardware complex (PAC) "" PIASTRE Data from and, domestic producer server and network equipment DSS other IT solutions of the company was created. DataRu The product is designed to quickly create large-scale multi-user systems that are suitable for processing various, including confidential, systems. This was reported data on March 28, 2023 by the Astra Group of Companies.

The software part of PAC PIASTRE is based on OCAstra Linux Special Edition, and also includes other solutions from the software stack of Astra Group of Companies. Among them are the Brest Virtualization Tools software package, the ALD Pro centralized cluster management tool, the DCImanager equipment monitoring system and RuBackup backup tools. The software of the Astra Group allows not only to deploy large high-load systems, but also to provide the maximum level of security that is relevant for customers who work with confidential information of varying degrees of secrecy. Read more here.

2022

ALD Pro 1.2.0 Domain Management Release

On November 29, 2022, Astra Group announced the release of ALD Pro 1.2.0, which implemented more than 50 improvements, 10 of them related to information security.

The changes affected the demanded functionality of the product: the role model, which allows distributing access rights between system administrators, replaced some system components, updated supporting and internal documentation.

The developer implemented basic support Astra Linux 1.7.2 for the server and user infrastructure, the emergence of the possibility of interaction RuPost Corporate Mail System with and modification of the role model. As of November 29, 2022, ALD Pro has additional system roles that allow you to configure the solution more flexibly in large companies. The dnsmasq component has been replaced by ISC DHCP to provide high fault tolerance - DHCP-servers the number of network devices supported by one DHCP server has been increased (clients that use ALD Pro 1.1.3 will automatically be replaced during the upgrade to the latest version, and the system will not have to be reinstalled from scratch).

To increase the level information security , improvements were carried out that affected a number of system components and sections of ALD Pro: additional settings were included, code authentications optimization was carried out, and improved. enciphering Functional changes were made to the product based on feedback from customers, partners, specialists of the vendor's internal quality control service. The changes also affected the user interface of the system (UX/direction UI), which takes into account the wishes of users to ensure more convenient operation in the system.

"The ALD Pro development team constantly strives to increase its flexibility and convenience for customers. Since the launch of the product on the market, more than 200 improvements have already been made, and, which is extremely important for us, research has been successfully completed in the field of organizing bilateral trust relations MS AD - ALD Pro with support for the global catalog function, a prototype object synchronization module between MS AD domains has been implemented - ALD Pro, including passwords. This will ensure the possibility of smooth and comfortable migration of users to the Astra Group ecosystem, "says Alexey Fomenko, Director of the Astra Group Management Tools Development Department.

As part of a cloud platform based on the Russian software of the Astra Group and MasterCloud solutions

Astra Group of Companies and Mastertel on August 23, 2022 announced that they had entered into a partnership agreement with the aim of creating and developing a cloud platform for the provision of services IaaS and. The SaaS Russian developer stack also includes the ALD Pro solution. More. here

Compatibility with Pragmatic Tools Migrator

Astra Group of Companies and Pragmatic Tools on July 8, 2022 announced the compatibility of Pragmatic Tools Migrator with the ALD Pro directory service based on OCAstra Linux.

Pragmatic Tools migrates organizational structure, users and groups from Microsoft Active Directory to ALD Pro of Astra group of companies. The vendor's solution ensures that changes are synchronized throughout the import substitution process, thereby allowing you to save Microsoft Active Directory management processes and maintain the required level of information security, avoid the cost of expanding the staff and save on software licenses designed for auditing corporate directories.

Microsoft's departure from Russia has again aggravated the issue of import substitution for domestic companies. Since the amount of work on migration is expected to be large, funds are needed to automate this process. Pragmatic Tools Migrator will simplify migration to domestic operating systems, including Astra Linux, "said Andrei Arefiev, founder of Pragmatic Tools.

For Astra Linux users, the Astra group of companies has developed the ALD Pro software package. The product is designed for centralized domain management and is focused mainly on system administrators: it simplifies their work and automates the execution of typical tasks.

It is easy to get used to ALD Pro even without specific knowledge in the field of Linux: the interface and key functionality of the product are identical to those laid down in foreign counterparts. The solution is easily deployed, you do not need to use the command line and write scripts to work with it. The main actions are performed one click at a time, and can be operated on in categories familiar to administrators and users of Western operating systems. We are grateful to our colleagues from Pragmatic Tools for cooperation and hope that the use of Pragmatic Tools Migrator software in conjunction with ALD Pro will help our customers switch to Russian technologies as quickly and comfortably as possible and ensure the independence of their IT infrastructures and business processes from foreign vendors, "said Alexey Fomenko, Deputy Head of the Astra Group Development Department.