User`s guide
®
USER’S GUIDE
AUTOMATIC TRANSFER SWITCH
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This method has the following advantages and disadvantages.
• Advantages:
– Before they are transmitted, the user name and password for
Automatic Transfer Switch access and all data to and from the
Automatic Transfer Switch are encrypted.
– The length of the public key (RSA key) that is used for encryption
when setting up an SSL session is 1024 bits, providing more
complex encryption and consequently a higher level of security than
the public key used in Method 1. (This longer encryption key is also
used in Method 3.)
– The server certificate that you upload to the Automatic Transfer
Switch enables SSL to authenticate that data are being received
from and sent to the correct Automatic Transfer Switch. This
provides an extra level of security beyond the encryption of the user
name, password, and transmitted data.
– The root certificate that you install to the browser enables the
browser to authenticate the Automatic Transfer Switch’s server
certificate to provide additional protection from unauthorized access.
• Disadvantage:
Because the certificates do not have the digital signature of a
commercial Certificate Authority, you must load a root certificate
individually into the certificate store (cache) of each user’s
browser. (Browser manufacturers already provide root certificates
for commercial Certificate Authorities in the certificate store within
the browser.)