SAMBA

General Information

Technologies must be operated and maintained in accordance with Federal and Department security and privacy policies and guidelines. More information on the proper use of the TRM can be found on the TRM Proper Use Tab/Section.

Website:	Go to site
Description:	SAMBA is the standard Windows interoperability suite of programs for Linux and Unix. It is free software licensed under the GNU Not Unix (GNU) General Public License. This technology provides secure, stable, fast file and print services for all clients using the Server Message Block (SMB) or Common Internet File System (CIFS) protocol, for all versions of Disk Operating System (DOS), Windows, OS/2, Linux, and MacOS. Samba provides the ability to seamlessly integrate Linux/Unix Servers and desktops into active directory environments. It can function both as a domain controller or as a regular domain member. SAMBA consists of two key programs; SMB Daemon (SMBD) and NetBIOS Message Block Daemon (NMBD). Their job is to implement the four basic CIFS services, which are: File & print services Authentication and Authorization Name resolution Service announcement (browsing) This technology provides releases in a release cycle series. Months 1-6 is fully supported. Months 7-12 is in the maintenance mode. Months 13-18 is in the security fixes only mode. In total, each series is maintained for a period of approximately 18 months after which it is considered at end of life (EOL) and not supported.
Technology/Standard Usage Requirements:	Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Officer (ISO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.
Section 508 Information:	This technology has not been assessed by the Section 508 Office. The Implementer of this technology has the responsibility to ensure the version deployed is 508-compliant. Section 508 compliance may be reviewed by the Section 508 Office and appropriate remedial action required if necessary. For additional information or assistance regarding Section 508, please contact the Section 508 Office at Section508@va.gov.
Decision:	View Decisions

Decision Source:	TRM Mgmt Group
Decision Process:	One-VA TRM v22.12
Decision Date:	12/05/2022 at 23:28:43 UTC
Introduced By:	TRM Request
Vendor Name:	Samba

Vendor Release Information

The Vendor Release table provides the known releases for the TRM Technology, obtained from the vendor (or from the release source).

Version	Release Date	Vendor End of Life Date	Vendor Desupport Date
3.x	08/09/2011	03/04/2015
4.x	11/15/2022

Current Decision Matrix (12/01/2022)

Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Officer (ISO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.

The VA Decision Matrix displays the current and future VA IT position regarding different releases of a TRM entry. These decisions are based upon the best information available as of the most current date. The consumer of this information has the responsibility to consult the organizations responsible for the desktop, testing, and/or production environments to ensure that the target version of the technology will be supported. Any major.minor version that is not listed in the VA Decision Matrix is considered unapproved for use.

Legend:

White	Approved: The technology/standard has been approved for use.
Yellow	Approved w/Constraints: The technology/standard can be used within the specified constraints located below the decision matrix in the footnote[1] and on the General tab.
Gray	Unapproved: This technology or standard can be used only if a POA&M review is conducted and signed by the Authorizing Official Designated Representative (AODR) as designated by the Authorizing Official (AO) or designee and based upon a recommendation from the POA&M Compliance Enforcement, has been granted to the project team or organization that wishes to use the technology.
Orange	Divest: VA has decided to divest itself on the use of the technology/standard. As a result, all projects currently utilizing the technology/standard must plan to eliminate their use of the technology/standard. Additional information on when the entry is projected to become unapproved may be found on the Decision tab for the specific entry.
Black	Prohibited: The technology/standard is not (currently) permitted to be used under any circumstances.
Blue	Planning/Evaluation Constraint:The period of time this technology is currently being evaluated, reviewed, and tested in controlled environments. Use of this technology is strictly controlled and not available for use within the general population. If a customer would like to use this technology, please work with your local or Regional OI&T office and contact the appropriate evaluation office displayed in the notes below the decision matrix. The Local or Regional OI&T office should submit an inquiry to the TRM if they require further assistance or if the evaluating office is not listed in the notes below.

Release/Version Information:

VA decisions for specific versions may include a ‘.x’ wildcard, which denotes a decision that pertains to a range of multiple versions.

For example, a technology approved with a decision for 7.x would cover any version of 7.(Anything) - 7.(Anything). However, a 7.4.x decision would cover any version of 7.4.(Anything), but would not cover any version of 7.5.x or 7.6.x on the TRM.

VA decisions for specific versions may include ‘+’ symbols; which denotes that the decision for the version specified also includes versions greater than what is specified but is not to exceed or affect previous decimal places.

For example, a technology approved with a decision for 12.6.4+ would cover any version that is greater than 12.6.4, but would not exceed the .6 decimal ie: 12.6.401 is ok, 12.6.5 is ok, 12.6.9 is ok, however 12.7.0 or 13.0 is not.

<Past

CY2023

CY2024

CY2025

Future>

Release

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

3.x

Unapproved

4.x

Approved w/Constraints
[3, 4, 5, 6]

Approved w/Constraints
[4, 5, 6, 7]

Decision Constraints


[1]	Users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Office (ISO) or local OIT representative for permission to download and use this software. Downloaded software must always be scanned for viruses prior to installation to prevent adware or malware. Freeware may only be downloaded directly from the primary site that the creator of the software has advertised for public download and user or development community engagement. Users should note, any attempt by the installation process to install any additional, unrelated software is not approved and the user should take the proper steps to decline those installations.

[2]	Due to National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) identified security vulnerabilities, extra vigilance should be applied to ensure the versions remain properly patched to mitigate known and future vulnerabilities. The local ISO can provide assistance in reviewing the NIST vulnerabilities.

[3]	Due to potential information security risks for cloud-based technologies, users should coordinate closely with their facility ISSO for guidance and assistance on cloud products. If further guidance is needed contact the Enterprise Cloud Solution Office (ECSO), which is the body responsible for new software development in and migration of existing systems to the VA Enterprise Cloud (VAEC) and ensuring organizational information, Personally Identifiable Information (PII), Protected Health Information (PHI), and VA sensitive data are not compromised within the VAEC. For information about Software as a Service (SaaS) products or to submit a SaaS product request with the VA OIT Product Engineering team, please use their online form. (Ref: VA Directive 6004, VA Directive 6517, VA Directive 6513 and VA Directive 6102).

[4]	This technology has received one or more VA security bulletins that provide specific guidance on vulnerability patching and mitigation. It is the responsibility of VA system owners to ensure that the appropriate mitigations are taken to address all known and future discovered vulnerabilities with this product. See the Reference tab for more information on security bulletins related to this product.

[5]	Users should check with their supervisor, Information System Security Officer (ISSO) or local OIT representative for permission to download and use this software. Downloaded software must always be scanned for viruses prior to installation to prevent adware or malware. Freeware may only be downloaded directly from the primary site that the creator of the software has advertised for public download and user or development community engagement. Users should note, any attempt by the installation process to install any additional, unrelated software is not approved and the user should take the proper steps to decline those installations.

[6]	Due to National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) identified security vulnerabilities, extra vigilance should be applied to ensure the versions remain properly patched to mitigate known and future vulnerabilities. The local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) can provide assistance in reviewing the NIST vulnerabilities.

[7]	Due to potential information security risks for cloud-based technologies, users should coordinate closely with their facility ISSO for guidance and assistance on cloud products. If further guidance is needed contact the Enterprise Cloud Solution Office (ECSO), which is the body responsible for new software development in and migration of existing systems to the VA Enterprise Cloud (VAEC) and ensuring organizational information, Personally Identifiable Information (PII), Protected Health Information (PHI), and VA sensitive data are not compromised within the VAEC. For information about Software as a Service (SaaS) products or to submit a SaaS product request, visit the Product Marketplace. (Ref: VA Directive 6004, VA Directive 6517, VA Directive 6513 and VA Directive 6102).

Note:

At the time of writing, version 4.17.3 is the most current version, released 11/15/2022. All versions prior to 4.15, are no longer supported by the vendor.

References

The following reference(s) are associated with this entry:
Type	Name	Description
Vendor Provided*	Samba Release History	This link provides information about releases of the software.
Policy	Samba Release Planning	This link provides information of Samba`s Future releases.
*NOTE: Vendor provided information is subject to the accuracy of the manufacturer.

Technology Components

Note: This list may not be complete. No component, listed or unlisted, may be used outside of the technology in which it is released. The usage decision for a component is found in the Decision and Decision Constraints.
Name	Description
No components have been identified for this entry.

VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

Domain Area	Category	Customer Guidance	Category Locked By ELT Date
Collaboration and Electronic Workplace Productivity Software	Miscellaneous Productivity Tools and Utilities

Open Source

This entry is available as an open source technology.

Operating Systems Supported by the Technology

Amazon Linux - Approved w/Constraints
macOS - Approved w/Constraints
Oracle Linux - Approved w/Constraints
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) - Approved w/Constraints
Windows Client - Approved w/Constraints
Windows Server - Approved w/Constraints
z/OS - Approved w/Constraints

Technologies/Standards Relationships

Runtime Dependencies:

No runtime dependencies have been identified.

Comparable Technologies:

Companion Technologies/Supported Standards:

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

The vendor of this technology is an industry leader in the subject matter.
This technology has a comprehensive set of documentation.
There is no licensing fee associated with this technology.
This technology is available at no cost through open-source licensing and supports VA`s open source initiative.
This is a mature technology.
At the time of writing, there are a limited number of TRM options providing this functionality. The addition of this technology will provide end users with multiple viable options.

Adoption Risks

This technology was discovered by a routine scan of the network. There is no documented use request associated with this technology.
Due to the rapid release schedule of this technology, the VA may be unable to update to the most recent patch and may require a deployment model requiring the use of specific versions.
There are known Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) associated with this technology. Please see NVD - Results (nist.gov) for more details.
There are Threat & Assessment Analysis Portal (TAAP) bulletins associated with this technology.

Architectural Benefits

This technology is portable as it runs on multiple TRM-approved operating systems.
This technology is compatible with multiple other Technical Reference Model (TRM) technologies and standards used by the organization.

Architectural Risks

This technology includes cloud-based functionality which has potential information security risks.

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VA Technical Reference Model v 24.3

General Information

Vendor Release Information

Current Decision Matrix (12/01/2022)

Decision Constraints

References

Technology Components

VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

Open Source

Operating Systems Supported by the Technology

Technologies/Standards Relationships

Runtime Dependencies:

Comparable Technologies:

Companion Technologies/Supported Standards:

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

Adoption Risks

Architectural Benefits

Architectural Risks

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VA Technical Reference Model v 24.3

General Information

Vendor Release Information

Current Decision Matrix (12/01/2022)

Decision Constraints

References

Technology Components

VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

Open Source

Operating Systems Supported by the Technology

Technologies/Standards Relationships

Runtime Dependencies:

Comparable Technologies:

Companion Technologies/Supported Standards:

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

Adoption Risks

Architectural Benefits

Architectural Risks

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