Explore using secure websockets + JWT

[littlebee]

May be unnecessary for local interprocess communication (connections from 127.0.01), but for inbound internet connection, we should maybe only support wss:// connections.

One possible solution might be to use FastAPI instead of Flask and Websockets package in services/central_hub.py. The FastAPI docs say that you can use their security module with websockets server.

[littlebee]

I think maybe this is a lot larger than just using secure websockets, which addresses encryption and half of the bigger issue.

The other half of the bigger issue is that we should probably have some way to restrict users' ability to take control of the robot. This would imply the need for authentication.

We may also need a read-only versus update permissions. One of the use cases I'm exploring with @j-calvert is a telepresence robot that would allow one person at a time to control and stream their camera and mic to the onboard display for a limited time. While waiting for the update permissions, it would be cool feels if the waiting users could still see and hear what was being said. I'm imagining a service that could issue temporary JWTs and tell central_hub from which one at a time to allow updates.

[littlebee]

I have so many thoughts on this issue. I think maybe I'm spiraling around the fundamental question of what is basic_bot to be?

Is basic_bot a framework for makers and STEM kits or will it eventually become something more and actually provide value to small and medium sized manufacturing, fabrication, and distribution? I think ROS2, Siemens, and other competitors in the large robotic installations space would take years to unseat, and even getting a seat at the table would take many years and more capital than we have.

In contrast to putting on the big boy pants above, being a STEM kit supplier sounds pretty fun, albeit without the multi-million $ paydays.

So the logical question is, if basic_bot is a STEM component, does it need tight security? Of the 4-5 off-the-shelf kits that I've purchased and assembled, none had any measure of security better than what basic_bot currently has.

I kind of think it does still need at least an optional measure of security, but maybe not the most urgent. No one in an in-person classroom setting is going to want the nerd like me in the class hacking their robots and sending episodes of Firefly to all the displays :)

[littlebee]

Can secure websockets do client authentication based on SSH certificates? If so, that might be it. We normalize the need for having your SSL public key in ~/.ssh/authorized_keys on the robot and have a configuration option for enabling only authorized_keys.... ?