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The Apache Knox gateway provides a software layer intended to perform this perimeter security function. Not all operations are fully supported yet with Knox to have it completely replace the need for the traditional edge node, but the project's roadmap addresses missing functionality.
What are people doing in this space? Early adopters have already deployed Knox, but the majority of clusters still rely heavily on traditional edge nodes.
Where do I go for more info? http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/edge-nodes-in-hadoop-clusters.html and http://knox.apache.org/
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Data encryption can be broken into two primary scenarios; encryption in-transit and encryption at-rest. Wire encryption options exist in Hadoop to aid with the in-transit needs that might be present. HDP has many There are multiple options available to protect data as it moves through Hadoop over RPC, HTTP, Data Transfer Protocol (DTP), and JDBC.
For encryption at-rest, there are some open source activities underway, but HDP Hadoop does not inherently have a baseline encryption solution for the data that is persisted within HDFS. There are several 3rd party solutions available (including Hortonworks partners) that specifically target this requirement. Custom development could also be undertaken, but the absolute easiest mechanism to obtain encryption at-rest is to tackle this at an OS or hardware level. Mercy will need to determine what, if any, of the available encryption options provide the right trade-off of simplicity and security. This decision will surely be impacted by what other security components and practices are employed
What are people doing in this space? My awareness is that few Hadoop administrators have enabled encryption, at-rest or in-transit, at this time.
Where do I go for more info? http://docs.hortonworks.com/HDPDocuments/HDP2/HDP-2.1.3/bk_reference/content/reference_chap-wire-encryption.html
Summary
As you can see, there are many avenues to explore to ensure you create the best security posture for your particular needs. Remember, the vast majority of these options are mutually exclusive allowing for multiple approaches to security. This is surely one area there still is work to be done and definitely in pulling together the disparate pieces into tools that are easy to adopt by enterprises.