Overview

WhiteSource for GitHub.com is a GitHub app which is part of WhiteSource Developer Integrations, that continuously scans your repositories and alerts on security vulnerabilities. It also includes continuous automated security remediation with WhiteSource Remediate, using fix Pull Requests. The app can be installed from here. 

WhiteSource for GitHub.com detects all open source components in your software, without ever scanning your code.

Prerequisites

• The Issues tab must be enabled for each repository. Do as follows for each repository requiring a scan:

  1. Go to the relevant GitHub repository, and click Settings.

  2. Verify that the Issues checkbox is enabled. 

  3. Check that the Issues tab appears next to the Code tab.

• You must have administrator permissions to your GitHub account and to the relevant repositories (owner credentials) in order to install the WhiteSource for GitHub.com app.

• Python support: The default Python version supported is 2.7. If you have a python project with version 3 or above, you will need to perform the following procedure:

  1. Add a .whitesource configuration file to your repository. Alternatively, you can apply this globally across your repositories by using the Global Repo Configuration.

  2. Use the configMode parameter and set it to either LOCAL or EXTERNAL.

  3. In the whitesource.config file, add the following parameter: python.path=python3.
     NOTE: if you are using the pip package manager with python version 3, ensure you also add the following parameter: python.pipPath=pip3.

• R support: The default CRAN Mirror URL used by the integration is https://cloud.r-project.org/. If you need to change the CRAN Mirror URL, do as follows:

  1. Add a .whitesource configuration file to your repository. Alternatively, you can apply this globally across your repositories by using the Global Repo Configuration.

  2. Use the configMode parameter and set it to either LOCAL or EXTERNAL.

  3. In the whitesource.config file, add the following parameter: r.cranMirrorUrl=<INSERT_URL_HERE>.

Installing WhiteSource for GitHub.com

Installation is done via the following link Click the Install button on the page that opens.

If you have more than one GitHub account then you should initially confirm your installation location by selecting the GitHub account(s) for which you would like to install the WhiteSource for GitHub.com app. Click the Configure link for the relevant account.

The following screen is displayed for the selected account or in cases where you have only one GitHub account:

If you are integrating multiple repositories and want to apply global configurations, refer here before continuing in this procedure.

Select one of the following options:

• All Repositories (Default): An option to scan all the repositories of the account.

• Only select repositories: Select specific repositories that you would like to scan.
  

Read the permissions that must be provided for the WhiteSource for GitHub.com app to work, then click Install.

Registering WhiteSource for GitHub.com

After the installation, the following registration form appears:

Fill in all the fields of the form. In order to obtain your WhiteSource license key, make sure you are an administrator in WhiteSource and go to the Integrate page of the WhiteSource application, then scroll down until you can view the 'WhiteSource for Developers' heading. Open the WhiteSource for GitHub.com section and click the Generate License Key link below it.

A license key is then displayed and a new Service user is created for this integration inside the WhiteSource Application with a WS prefix.  NOTE: Do not remove this Service user and ensure this user remains part of the Admin group. 

Copy the license key by clicking the Click to copy link and paste it into the License Key field of the form. Fill in all other fields and click the Submit button.

After selecting your repositories, an onboarding pull request is created. This pull request contains a WhiteSource configuration file (.whitesource) that can be customized before merging the pull request. Once the pull request is merged, a WhiteSource scan will be initiated.

At this stage, the WhiteSource for GitHub.com app has started scanning your selected repositories. If a vulnerability is detected, then you will receive an email, and an issue will be created in your GitHub's project 'Issues' tab. The scanning process may take a number of minutes.

A new product is also created for each repository that was selected for scanning and has the name 'GH_<GitHub repository name>'. For example, if the repository name is 'Bolt-4-GH_Demo' then the following product is created:

The .whitesource File

A WhiteSource configuration file (.whitesource) is added to each repository that is enabled for a scan. It provides configurable parameter(s) for the WhiteSource scan. The .whitesource file is only added in the default branch of the repository (unless modified, it is the master branch). Any configuration change that is done to this file must be in the default branch of the repository. 

.whitesource file

{
  "scanSettings": {
    "configMode": "AUTO",
	"configExternalURL": "",
	"projectToken": "",
	"baseBranches": []
  },
  "checkRunSettings": {
    "displayMode": "diff",
    "vulnerableCheckRunConclusionLevel": "failure"
  },
  "issueSettings": {
    "minSeverityLevel": "LOW"
  }
}

Parameters

Global Settings

"settingsInheritedFrom": "whitesource/whitesource-config@master"

"settingsInheritedFrom": "whitesource/whitesource-config@master", 
"scanSettings": {
  "projectToken": "12345",
  "baseBranches": ["master","integration"]
}

Scan Settings (scanSettings)

Check Run Settings (checkRunSettings)

<!-- <INFO>{"projectToken":"8cd2d2a8651145c087609e0a43f783e95f7008cb908541498348fed529572e01"}</INFO> -->

Issue Settings (issueSettings)

Remediate Settings (remediateSettings)

Initiating a Scan

A WhiteSource scan is initiated via a valid GitHub push command. A valid push command meets at least one of the following requirements:

• One of the commits in the push command added/removed a source file(s) that has an extension supported by WhiteSource.
  Refer to the WhiteSource Languages page in order to find out whether or not a specific language and its extensions are supported. 

• One of the commits in the push command includes an addition/modification of the package manager dependency file(s).
  Refer to the list of supported dependency files to find out whether your dependency files are supported.

NOTE: A push command may consist of multiple commits.

Viewing Details of the Scan

Results can be viewed in the following places:

• The Issues tab within the GitHub project

• The WhiteSource Security/License/IaC Check within the GitHub project's Commits tab

• The WhiteSource UI

• Via email notifications

Viewing the Issues Tab

If you are performing Pull Requests or push commands via the Web browser, refresh your Web browser in order to view the issues that were generated by WhiteSource. NOTE: It may take a number of minutes for the issues to be scanned and displayed after a valid push command is initiated.

The Issues tab displays all the issues that the WhiteSource Integration detected with the red security vulnerability label. This proprietary label indicates a security vulnerability was detected by WhiteSource. 

As part of your workflow, you have the option to add a relevant label(s) to specific issues, and close issues that were resolved.

Issues that were manually closed will not be re-opened during future WhiteSource scans unless their label and/or name have been manually changed or changed via the GitHub API.

Viewing Details of an Issue

See here for more information.

Viewing WhiteSource Security Checks

Status Check indicators are displayed for each head commit on the Commits sub-tab of the Code tab. Clicking a specific indicator opens a pop-up window that displays further details on the status:

Clicking the Details link in the popup window displays the WhiteSource Security Check page for the selected head commit. The page includes the conclusion status of the head commit along with a Security Report.

The security report displays all the vulnerabilities that were found in descending order according to the severity and CVSS score. The following information is displayed for each vulnerability:

• CVE: A link to the related CVE page for the vulnerability. Displayed in a collapsible format (click the arrow to expand/collapse for more information regarding the vulnerability).

• Severity: Overall score of the severity (High, Medium or Low).

• CVSS Score

• Vulnerable Library

• Suggested Fix 

• Issue: A link to the WhiteSource issue that was generated for the vulnerability. 

Types of Indicators

The following status indicators are available as feedback on a head commit:

• Queued: Scan has not begun and is scheduled to begin.

• In progress: Scan is in progress.

• Completed: Scan completed with one of the following conclusions:

  • Success: When the parameter 'vulnerable.check.run.conclusion.level' is set to 'success', the status of the head commit is always success  A 'Success' status is displayed for the commit even when it fails.

  • Failure: Default for all completed scans. When the parameter 'vulnerable.check.run.conclusion.level' is set to 'failure' (default), the status of a 'failed' head commit is 'failure', and a policy for approving merging pull requests that include failed head commits with the another branch in the repository is enforced. Note that a 'failed' status can be caused due to security vulnerabilities or due to an error that occurred during the scan.

  • Neutral: Conclusion occurs when the push command was not valid.

Samples of Check Status Indicators 

Queued

The following is a sample of a 'Queued' status, which indicates that the security check is about to start scanning the head commit's vulnerabilities.

In Progress

The following is a sample of an 'In-Progress' status, which indicates that the security check is currently scanning the head commit.

Completed with Success Conclusion

This status can be displayed in two scenarios:

1. When the parameter 'vulnerable.check.run.conclusion.level' is set to 'success' or 'failure', and a 'success' status is provided for the scan, since no vulnerabilities were found and no errors occurred during the scan for this head commit. In this case, the merging of a pull request that includes this commit to another branch in the repository is automatically approved. 
   
   
   
   

2. When the parameter 'vulnerable.check.run.conclusion.level' is set to 'success'. In this configuration, even a 'failed' status for a head commit's scan is converted to 'success'. In this case, the merging of a pull request that includes this head commit to another branch in the repository is automatically approved. 
   
   The following screenshot displays a 'success' indicator for a commit that includes an error that occurred during the scan, since the parameter 'vulnerable.check.run.conclusion.level' is set to 'success'. In this case, the merging of a pull request that includes this head commit to another branch in the repository is automatically approved. 
   
   

Completed with Failure Conclusion

When the parameter 'vulnerable.check.run.conclusion.level' is set to ''failure', all head commits that fail the scan due to the security check or due to an error that occurred during the scan display a 'failure' status.  In this case, only the administrator of the repository can approve merging a pull request that includes this head commit to another branch in the repository, and therefore, it will not be automatically merged.

The following screenshot is a sample of the display in a pull request page when a 'failure' policy is enforced and one or more of its head commits have a 'failure' status. Only the administrator of the repository can approve the merging of a pull request with a 'failure' status:

Completed with Neutral Conclusion

A neutral conclusion occurs in the following scenario:

• The push command was not valid. See the Initiating a Scan section for more information on valid commands.
  
  

Viewing WhiteSource License Checks

In the Code > commits page you can view the status and results of each scan. Click a specific check icon in order to view the WhiteSource check.

Types of Indicators

The following commit status indicators are available as feedback on the head commits:

• Success: No license policy violations were detected. 

• Failed: One or more license policy violations were detected during the WhiteSource scan.

Viewing WhiteSource IaC Checks

In the Code > commits page you can view the status and results of each scan. Click a specific check icon in order to view the WhiteSource check.

Types of Indicators

The following commit status indicators are available as feedback on the head commits:

• Success: No license policy violations were detected. 

• Failed: One or more license policy violations were detected during the WhiteSource scan.

Viewing Details in the WhiteSource UI

• In the WhiteSource UI, WhiteSource projects will have the same name as the corresponding GitHub repository, with a "GH_" prefix, unless otherwise specified in the .whitesource file using a project token.

• The name of the WhiteSource product will be your GitHub username preceded by "GH_".

Email Notifications

After a WhiteSource scan is performed, a separate email message is sent for each generated Issue, with information on the vulnerability or license policy violation that was detected.

NOTE: The information in the email message is identical to the displayed information on the Issues tab.

Initiating a Merge Policy

Overview

A merge policy utilizes the app's integration with GitHub Checks API. It enables the repository's administrator to approve the merging of a pull request with 'Failed' commit statuses to a target branch in the repository. 
For more information on Checks API, see the related GitHub Checks API introduction page.

NOTE: This integration supports merge policies for PRs created either from a branch in the same repository or originating from a different repository.

Adding a Branch Protection Rule 

In order to enable a merge policy based on the conclusion of a WhiteSource Security Check, you must initially add the following GitHub rule for branch protection:

1. Go to the repository Settings > Branches.

2. Click Add Rule.

3. Apply the rule to a specific branch or enter '*' to apply the rule to all branches.

4. Select the Require status checks to pass before merging checkbox.

Uninstalling

To uninstall this app, do the following:

1. In your GitHub's account settings, go to the Applications section.

2. Next to the WhiteSource for GitHub.com app, click on Configure. The WhiteSource for GitHub.com page is displayed.

3. Scroll down in order to view the Uninstall WhiteSource for GitHub.com button.

4. Click on the Uninstall button. Uninstalling WhiteSource for GitHub.com removes it from all your repositories.

5. Optionally, go to the Authorized GitHub apps tab, and next to the WhiteSource for GitHub.com app., click Revoke