Merlin Information

Merlin is a tool for managing other tools -- it can take a powerful but cryptic command-line tool and provide it with an easy-to-use interface. Here are some of Merlin's features:

• Utilization of Netscape 1.1: Provides a well-known interface and close integration with the vast information resources available via the Internet.

• Standard support for several popular security analysis tools: Comes with support for COPS 1.04, TAMU Tiger 2.2.3, Crack 4.1, Tripwire 1.2, and SPI 3.2.2 (for DOE, DOD and their contractors only).

• Plug-and-play style of tool support: Can be easily extended to support any command-line oriented tool which sends information to the standard output. All code is written in Perl and is designed for easy extendability.

• A powerful report browser: Provides the ability to sort reports based on the type of tool used, the creation date, or the host where the report is produced.

• Each session utilizes an arbitrary free socket port.

• The server only accepts requests from the local host.

• All requests to the server must include a "magic cookie" value, generated by the server at the beginning of each session.