Re: Making sslrootcert=system work on Windows psql - Mailing list pgsql-hackers

From George MacKerron
Subject Re: Making sslrootcert=system work on Windows psql
Date
Msg-id CA4CF26D-0E9D-4371-B76E-56C907F2046F@mackerron.co.uk
Whole thread Raw
In response to Re: Making sslrootcert=system work on Windows psql  (Christoph Berg <myon@debian.org>)
List pgsql-hackers
> On 3 Apr 2025, at 14:28, Christoph Berg <myon@debian.org> wrote:
>
> What are the chances of making "use the system/os default CA store"
> the default? "sslmode=require" would then already actually "require" a
> certificate if I'm reading the docs right. This would match user
> expectation for POLA.

Right: the issue at present is that sslmode=require does require a certificate, but IIRC basically any old certificate
willdo. It doesn’t need to be signed by any particular CA. It doesn’t even need to have the server’s name on it. 


> This default could then be pointed at the correct locations (plural)
> on all operating systems. (sslrootcert=system:wincert:otherlocation?)
>
> The "default default" would still be sslmode=prefer so it wouldn't
> break today's normal case. Users of sslmode=require will understand
> that supplying a CA certificate is no longer optional.
>
> Perhaps add a sslmode=require-weak could be added as a workaround.

I would love it if sslmode=require started verifying against OS cert stores and so became secure against MITM attacks.
I’dcertainly support that. But I would say that’s a much bigger backwards-incompatible change than the one I was asking
for.:) 

--
George MacKerron


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