Military software defined radio (SDR) systems are a major factor in future network-centric operations due to their flexibility and support for more capable radio communications systems. The inherent nature of software-based systems requires a more complex auxiliary infrastructure and multiple independent levels of security compared with typical systems: Secure booting of the SDR device, cryptographically signed software, real time operating platform software as well as radio applications. This technology raises new challenges with respect to the management. The largest impact on SDR deployments is due to the auxiliary cryptographic infrastructure for the security of the software life cycle and the cyclic update of the keys. Compared to conventional radio devices, the SDR system with the cryptographic infrastructure described in this paper reaches a higher security level and is more flexible. The advantage is the possibility to deploy trunked radio system and further waveforms, such as coalition wideband, which will be standardized in the future. Also it is possible to update cryptographic mechanisms. In this work, we analyze the requirements for a high secure SDR deployment and model the life cycle of the components of a deployed SDR node based on the Joint Program Executive Office (JPEO) Software Communication Architecture (SCA).

翻译：军用软件定义无线电（SDR）系统因其灵活性及对更强大无线电通信系统的支持能力，已成为未来网络中心化作战的关键要素。与典型系统相比，基于软件的系统其固有特性需要更复杂的辅助基础设施和多重独立安全层级：包括SDR设备的安全启动、经密码学签名的软件、实时操作平台软件以及无线电应用程序。这项技术在管理方面带来了新的挑战。对SDR部署影响最大的是用于软件生命周期安全及密钥循环更新的辅助密码学基础设施。与传统无线电设备相比，采用本文所述密码学基础设施的SDR系统达到了更高的安全等级，并具备更强的灵活性。其优势在于能够部署集群无线电系统及更多波形（例如未来将标准化的联盟宽带波形），同时支持密码学机制的更新。在本工作中，我们分析了高安全性SDR部署的需求，并基于联合项目执行办公室（JPEO）的软件通信架构（SCA），对已部署SDR节点的组件生命周期进行了建模。