Cray Clears Common Criteria Evaluation

Cray has announced that their Cray Linux Environment [CLE] has just been certified under the Common Criteria Evaluation and Validation Scheme.  The Cray Linux Environment version 2.1 running on both the XT4 and XT5 series of supercomputing systems has met the specs set forth in the Evaluation Level [EAL3+].  As a part of the certification, Cray also has to provide ALC_FLR.1-level flaw remediation.

So, what is the EAL3 certification?  The cert is overseen by the National Information Assurance Partnership [NIAP] as a set of common security requirements established by government agencies and private companies and approved by the International Organization for Standardization. In short, its a real bear to pass this muster.

Many government and large private organizations use the Common Criteria certification as a baseline for buying systems for secure operation.  In purchasing a certified system, the organization can ensure that the system retains the characteristics of its original purpose [ie, as a supercomputer] under stringement security configurations.

For more info on Cray’s passing grade, read the full article here.