Software update: pfSense 2.4.4

Version 2.4.4 of pfSense has been released. This package is based on the FreeBSD operating system and focuses on router and firewall tasks. It started in 2004 as a fork of m0n0wall due to differing views among the developers and over the years has grown into a router and firewall package that can be deployed in both small and very large environments. For more information, please refer to this page† The highlights for this release are as follows:

Free pfSense Gold Content

With the release of pfSense 2.4.4, all former pfSense Gold content is now free for all†

• AutoConfigBackup is integrated into pfSense version 2.4.4 and free for all to use. It is no longer an add-on package. It is now located under Services > Auto Config Backup.
• All hangout videos are available free on YouTubeand future hangouts are being broadcast using YouTube Live.
• The pfSense Book is now available free on the Netgate website†

New Features

2.4.4 includes a number of significant new features:

• OS Upgrade: Base Operating System upgraded to FreeBSD 11.2-RELEASE-p3. As a part of moving to FreeBSD 11.2, support is included for C3000-based hardware.
• PHP 7.2: PHP upgraded to version 7.2, which required numerous changes to syntax throughout the source code and packages.
• Routed IPsec (VTI): Routed IPsec is now possible using FreeBSD if_ipsec(4) Virtual Tunnel Interfaces (VTI).
• IPsec Speed ​​Improvements: The new Asynchronous Cryptography option under the IPsec Advanced Settings tab can dramatically improve IPsec performance on multi-core hardware.
• Default Gateway Group: The default gateway may now be configured using a Gateway Group setup for failover, which replaces Default Gateway Switching.
• Limiter AQM/Queue Schedulers: Limiters now include support for several Active Queue Management (AQM) methods and Queue Scheduler configurations such as FQ_CODEL.
• Certificate Subject Requirements: The Certificate Manager and OpenVPN wizard now only require the Common Name to be set, and all other fields are optional.
• DNS over TLS: The DNS Resolver now includes support for DNS over TLS as both a client and a server, including for domain overrides.
• Captive Portal Authentication: Captive Portal authentication is now integrated with the User Manager system. Captive Portal instances may now use RADIUS, LDAP, or Local Authentication like other integrated services.
• Captive Portal HTML Design and Usability: The default Captive Portal page has been redesigned. Controls have also been added which allow the logo and background images and Terms of Service text to be customized without editing and uploading custom HTML code.
• Integrated Switch Improvements: Netgate devices with integrated switches such as the SG-3100 and XG-7100 can now configure per-port speed and duplex settings, discrete port configuration interfaces can now be tied to switch ports for up/down status, and LAGG support is also now available (Load Balance mode only)
• New Hardware: Support has been added for the new SG-5100†
• † and more†

Security

This release includes several important security patches:

• FreeBSD SA for CVE-2018-6922: Resource exhaustion in TCP reassembly FreeBSD-SA-18:08.tcp
• FreeBSD SA for CVE-2018-3620, CVE-2018-3646: L1 Terminal Fault (L1TF) Kernel Information Disclosure FreeBSD-SA-18:09.l1tf
• FreeBSD SA for CVE-2018-6923: Resource exhaustion in IP fragment reassembly FreeBSD-SA-18:10.ip
• FreeBSD SA for CVE-2018-14526: Unauthenticated EAPOL-Key Decryption Vulnerability FreeBSD-SA-18:11.hostapd
• FreeBSD SA for CVE-2018-6924: Improper ELF header parsing FreeBSD-SA-18:12.elf
• FreeBSD errata notice for LazyFPU remediation causing potential data corruption FreeBSD-EN-18:08.lazyfpu
• Fixed two potential XSS vectors and an authenticated command execution issue.
• Upgraded several binary packages in the base system to address upstream vulnerabilities, including strongSwan CVE-2018-5388, OpenSSH CVE-2018-15473, and cURL CVE 2018-14618
• Updated default cryptographic settings for OpenVPN, IPsec, and Certificates
• Changed the included DH groups to those defined in RFC 7919
• Added stronger IPsec Pre-Shared Key usage warnings, and a button to generate a secure PSK
• Changed from sshlockout_pf to sshguard for monitoring failed logins and locking out offenders, this allows the lockout to work on IPv4 and IPv6 and also terminates states when adding offenders to the block list

• Disabled OpenVPN compression by default on new instances for security reasons due to VORACLE

  • Users are strongly urged to disable compression on OpenVPN instances if they pass unencrypted data such as HTTP to arbitrary Internet sites.

Notable Bug Fixes

In addition to security fixes, pfSense software version 2.4.4 also includes important bug fixes.

• Fixed an issue with ARM hardware not completely halting when shut down (SG-3100 and SG-1000†
• Fixed HDMI hot plug issues on Minnowboard Turbot hardware (MBT-2220 and MBT-4220)
• Fixed SG-1000 autonegotiation for 10baseT speed and duplex
• † and many more†