Polaris by Synopsys - Detailed Review
Developer Tools
Polaris by Synopsys - Product Overview
The Synopsys Polaris Software Integrity Platform
The Synopsys Polaris Software Integrity Platform is a comprehensive, cloud-based application security testing solution that caters to the needs of development, security, and DevSecOps teams.
Primary Function
Polaris is designed to integrate various application security testing services, including Static Application Security Testing (SAST), Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST), Software Composition Analysis (SCA), Interactive Application Security Testing (IAST), and Application Security Orchestration and Correlation (ASOC). This platform aims to identify and remediate security vulnerabilities, ensuring the delivery of secure and high-quality software.
Target Audience
The primary users of Polaris include development teams, security teams, and DevSecOps teams within organizations of all sizes, from small teams to large enterprises. It is particularly beneficial for those who need to manage and secure a large number of applications and projects.
Key Features
Integrated Security Testing
Polaris combines best-of-breed scanning technologies for SAST, DAST, SCA, IAST, and ASOC, providing a unified platform for comprehensive application security testing.
AI-Powered Capabilities
With the introduction of Polaris Assist, the platform now includes AI-augmented features such as vulnerability summaries and code fix recommendations. These AI-powered tools help boost productivity by automating repetitive security tasks and providing easy-to-understand summaries of detected vulnerabilities and suggested code fixes.
Fast and Accurate Scanning
Polaris offers fast incremental scanning that reduces scan times by analyzing only the code that has changed since the last scan. This is particularly useful for large codebases and infrastructure-as-code (IaC) templates.
Seamless Integrations
The platform integrates seamlessly with popular development and DevOps tools such as GitHub, GitLab, Azure repositories, Jenkins, and Jira. This allows for automated scanning and policy enforcement, and easy tracking of remediation progress.
Scalability and Flexibility
Polaris is highly scalable and flexible, enabling organizations to choose the specific application security testing services they need. It supports multiple programming languages, frameworks, and infrastructure-as-code platforms, making it suitable for a wide range of applications and teams.
Compliance and Standards
The platform helps teams comply with various security and industry standards, including OWASP Top 10, CWE Top 25, MISRA, and CERT C/C /Java. It provides detailed reports and insights to track and manage compliance across different projects and teams.
Overall, Polaris by Synopsys is a powerful tool that streamlines application security testing, enhances productivity, and ensures the delivery of secure software.
Polaris by Synopsys - User Interface and Experience
The Polaris Software Integrity Platform
The Polaris Software Integrity Platform by Synopsys is designed with a strong focus on ease of use and a user-friendly interface, particularly for developers and DevSecOps teams.
Ease of Use and Onboarding
The platform offers simplified onboarding and configuration processes. For instance, Synopsys fAST Dynamic, a part of the Polaris platform, allows users to initiate scans in just a few simple steps, eliminating the need for intricate configuration settings or extensive technical security knowledge. Scans can be triggered easily from the user interface or through the Polaris API, making dynamic testing accessible to various teams, including developers and DevOps engineers.
User Interface
The Polaris platform features an intuitive web interface that makes it easy for developers to onboard and start scanning their code quickly. The interface is designed to be developer-friendly, allowing users to run static application security testing (SAST) and software composition analysis (SCA) at scale with minimal effort. The platform also integrates seamlessly with existing developer tools, test automation, and CI/CD workflows, ensuring a smooth user experience.
Integration and Automation
Polaris allows for seamless integration with popular tools such as Jira, GitLab, GitHub, and Jenkins. This integration enables teams to triage, assign, and track remediation progress directly within the Polaris UI, streamlining remediation workflows and enhancing overall efficiency.
AI-Driven Features
With the introduction of Polaris Assist, the platform incorporates AI-driven functionalities that simplify and streamline application security. Polaris Assist provides AI-generated issue summaries and code fix recommendations, making it easier for developers to interpret and act on static analysis tests. These features reduce the time to fix vulnerabilities, allowing teams to focus on building high-quality software faster.
Enterprise Visibility
The platform offers comprehensive dashboards and reports that provide a clear view of vulnerabilities and trends across all teams and applications. This visibility helps in managing enterprise application risk holistically and ensures that security and development teams can collaborate in real time to meet release deadlines.
Conclusion
In summary, the Polaris Software Integrity Platform is engineered to be highly accessible and user-friendly, with a focus on simplifying the application security process for developers and DevSecOps teams. Its intuitive interface, easy onboarding, and seamless integration with other tools make it an efficient and effective solution for managing application security.
Polaris by Synopsys - Key Features and Functionality
The Synopsys Polaris Software Integrity Platform
Polaris offers a range of key features and functionalities that significantly enhance application security and developer productivity.
Integrated Application Security Platform
Polaris is an integrated, cloud-based Application Security Testing (AST) solution optimized for modern DevSecOps. It combines static application security testing (SAST) and software composition analysis (SCA) engines, providing fast and highly accurate scanning capabilities.
Key Features of Polaris
Flexibility and Scalability
Polaris allows for on-demand provisioning, management, and monitoring of enterprise-wide scanning and assessments 24×7. It scales cost-effectively to meet the needs of testing from a single application to thousands, offering a unified SaaS platform.
Ease of Use
The platform offers easy onboarding, deployment, and testing from a single unified platform. It integrates seamlessly with existing developer, test automation, and CI/CD workflows, making it user-friendly and efficient.
Concurrent Scanning
Polaris enables concurrent scanning of SAST and SCA analyses, allowing multiple tests to run simultaneously without any limits. This feature improves performance and reduces the time required for security assessments.
Accurate Findings
The platform uses market-leading SAST and SCA engines to provide complete and highly accurate results. Expert analysis and triage by Synopsys security experts help in identifying and removing false positive findings, ensuring critical issues are prioritized for timely remediation.
Enterprise Visibility
Polaris dashboards and reports provide a comprehensive view of vulnerabilities and trends across all teams and applications, giving organizations a clear insight into their overall risk posture.
Polaris Assist: AI-Driven Features
Polaris AI Issue Summaries
Polaris Assist integrates AI technology to generate concise and actionable summaries of identified vulnerabilities. These summaries include insights into potential risks and contextual guidance for remediation, making it easier for developers to interpret and respond to static analysis findings.
Polaris AI Fix Suggestions
This feature streamlines the remediation process by providing AI-generated code fix recommendations. Developers can review and implement these suggestions directly into their codebase, significantly reducing the time and effort required to address security vulnerabilities.
Expert Verification and Analysis
SAST scan results are reviewed by Synopsys security experts to remove false positives and prioritize critical findings for timely remediation. This expert triage ensures that the most critical security issues are addressed promptly.
Seamless Integrations
Polaris provides seamless integrations with development and DevOps toolchains, including version control systems (SCM integrations) and CI/CD pipelines. This integration automates application security solutions within high-velocity, agile DevOps environments.
Policy Management
The platform allows for customizable rules to be set up quickly based on defined business risk policies. This simplifies policy management by automating the enforcement of security and risk policies.
Flexible Reporting and Analytics
Polaris offers flexible reports and analytics capabilities, enabling organizations to manage risk, measure, and improve their risk posture using enterprise analytics. This feature helps in monitoring and improving the overall security stance of the organization.
In summary, the Polaris Software Integrity Platform, enhanced by Polaris Assist, combines advanced AI technology with extensive security expertise to provide a comprehensive, scalable, and user-friendly application security solution. This integration of AI-driven features significantly enhances security and developer productivity, allowing teams to build more secure software efficiently.
Polaris by Synopsys - Performance and Accuracy
Performance
- Polaris is optimized for high-performance scanning, allowing teams to run Static Application Security Testing (SAST), Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST), and Software Composition Analysis (SCA) concurrently. This concurrent scanning capability significantly improves overall performance by enabling multiple analyses to be conducted simultaneously.
- The platform supports integration with various tools and workflows, including CI/CD pipelines, which helps in automating security testing and streamlining the development process.
- Recent updates have enhanced the platform’s support for different development environments, such as the addition of support for Gradle’s rich model for declaring versions, which helps in managing dependency conflicts more effectively.
Accuracy
- Polaris utilizes market-leading SAST, DAST, and SCA engines that provide highly accurate results. These engines are designed to identify vulnerabilities and issues with a high degree of precision, reducing false positives through expert analysis and triage.
- The platform includes features like Polaris Assist, which uses Large Language Model (LLM) technology to generate concise and actionable summaries of detected vulnerabilities. This AI-driven approach helps in providing accurate and context-specific remediation guidance, making it easier for developers to address security issues.
Reporting and Visibility
- Polaris offers comprehensive dashboards and reports that provide a clear view of vulnerabilities and trends across all teams and applications. This includes Executive Summary Reports, Developer Detail Static Reports, and Standard Compliance Detail Reports, which help in assessing the overall risk posture and prioritizing issues for remediation.
Limitations and Areas for Improvement
- While Polaris supports a wide range of languages and frameworks, there are specific limitations and deprecations to be aware of. For example, support for certain versions of macOS, Windows Server, and programming languages like Go 1.19 has been removed or deprecated in recent updates.
- There have been known issues with certain upgrades, such as the Coverity 2023.12.0 upgrade, which introduced errors for projects tested with JavaScript. However, these issues are typically addressed in subsequent releases.
User Experience
- Polaris has made significant strides in enhancing user experience through features like Polaris Assist, which automates repetitive tasks and provides easy-to-understand summaries and AI-generated code fix recommendations. This helps in reducing the time developers spend on security issues and improves overall productivity.
Summary
In summary, Polaris by Synopsys demonstrates strong performance and accuracy through its concurrent scanning capabilities, accurate vulnerability detection, and comprehensive reporting features. While there are some limitations and areas where improvements are ongoing, the platform’s integration with AI technologies and continuous updates aim to address these issues and enhance the overall user experience.
Polaris by Synopsys - Pricing and Plans
No Publicly Available Pricing Plans
The pricing for Synopsys Polaris is not publicly disclosed in the sources. This suggests that the pricing may be customized based on the specific needs and requirements of the organizations.
No Free Trial or Freemium Version
Unlike some other software solutions, Synopsys Polaris does not offer a free trial or a freemium version. This indicates that potential users would need to contact the vendor directly to inquire about pricing and plans.
Customized Pricing
Given the absence of public pricing information, it is likely that Synopsys provides customized quotes based on the specific features, support, and services required by the client. This approach allows for a more tailored solution but requires direct communication with the vendor to obtain accurate pricing.
Features and Capabilities
While the pricing plans are not detailed, Synopsys Polaris is known for its comprehensive set of features, including:
- Application security from developer to deployment
- Static Application Security Testing (SAST)
- Support for various development tools and integrations (e.g., Synopsys Bridge, Gradle)
- Security audit reports
- Issue management and remediation guidance
- Compliance reports and more.
Contact for Pricing Information
To get the most accurate and up-to-date pricing information, it is recommended to contact Synopsys directly or request a quote through their official channels.
Polaris by Synopsys - Integration and Compatibility
The Polaris Software Integrity Platform
The Polaris Software Integrity Platform by Synopsys is designed to integrate seamlessly with a variety of developer tools and DevOps environments, ensuring smooth and efficient application security testing.
Integration with CI/CD Tools
Polaris integrates effortlessly with popular Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) tools such as Jenkins, Travis CI, GitHub Actions, and Azure DevOps. This integration allows teams to automate static application security testing (SAST) and software composition analysis (SCA) directly within their existing build pipelines. For example, the universal CI connector in Polaris intelligently identifies the build environment characteristics, including programming languages and package managers, and automatically configures the appropriate integration.
GitHub and GitLab Integration
Polaris provides direct integration with GitHub and GitLab, enabling developers to receive feedback on security issues through pull request comments. This feature allows for real-time feedback on new issues introduced in pull requests, including both SAST and SCA findings. Once these issues are addressed, Polaris automatically resolves them in the next scan.
Jira Integration
Polaris also integrates with Jira Cloud, enabling teams to manage and track security issues seamlessly. Issues identified by Polaris can be sent to Jira for further triage and remediation, ensuring that security defects are properly tracked and resolved.
IDE Integration
The Code Sight™ plugin, part of the Polaris platform, integrates with integrated development environments (IDEs) to conduct fast, incremental source code analysis in the background. This plugin provides developers with immediate feedback on security and quality issues without requiring them to leave their IDE.
Scalability and Flexibility
Polaris is a cloud-based, software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that can scale to meet the needs of organizations of any size. It supports concurrent scanning, allowing teams to run SAST and SCA analyses simultaneously without any limits on the number of tests. This flexibility ensures that application security testing can be performed efficiently and cost-effectively.
Compatibility
Polaris is compatible with a wide range of development environments and tools. It supports various programming languages and package managers, making it versatile for different project requirements. The platform’s centralized web-based user interface simplifies management, deployment, and monitoring of enterprise-wide scanning and assessments, ensuring that it can be used across diverse technical setups.
Conclusion
In summary, Polaris by Synopsys offers comprehensive integration with various developer tools and DevOps platforms, ensuring that application security testing is both efficient and seamless, and compatible with a broad range of development environments.
Polaris by Synopsys - Customer Support and Resources
Support Options for Polaris Software Integrity Platform
For customers using the Polaris Software Integrity Platform by Synopsys, there are several comprehensive customer support options and additional resources available to ensure smooth and effective use of the platform.
Support Tickets and Monitoring
Customers can open a support ticket, monitor existing tickets, and find relevant documentation directly from the Polaris platform. This can be done by clicking the help icon at the top right of the interface, which opens a help window where users can initiate these actions.
Access to Documentation and Community
The Polaris platform provides easy access to various resources, including documentation and community forums. Users can sign into Polaris and use the help icon to access resources such as the Black Duck Community and Black Duck Support without needing to sign in again, provided they use the same email address for all accounts.
System Status
To check the current system status of Polaris, users can visit the dedicated system status page at https://systemstatus.polaris.synopsys.com. This helps in identifying any ongoing issues or maintenance activities.
Integration with Other Tools
For developers, Polaris offers integrations with popular development tools such as GitLab, GitHub, Jenkins, and Jira. These integrations streamline remediation workflows, allowing teams to triage, assign, and track remediation progress directly within the Polaris UI.
Polaris Assist
Additionally, Polaris Assist, a virtual security assistant powered by generative AI, provides users with easy-to-understand summaries of detected vulnerabilities and AI-generated code fix recommendations. This feature simplifies and streamlines application security, helping developers to fix vulnerabilities more quickly.
Developer Portal
The Polaris Developer Portal offers detailed documentation and guides on how to use the platform effectively. For example, the portal includes instructions on how to integrate Polaris with Azure DevOps, enabling security and development teams to analyze security risks in their software products seamlessly.
By leveraging these support options and resources, users of the Polaris Software Integrity Platform can ensure they are getting the most out of the platform while maintaining high standards of application security.
Polaris by Synopsys - Pros and Cons
Advantages
Automation and Efficiency
Polaris Assist, a part of the Polaris platform, automates repetitive and time-consuming tasks for security and development teams. It uses AI to generate concise summaries of detected vulnerabilities and provides AI-generated code fix recommendations, significantly reducing the time needed to remediate security issues.
Integrated Security Testing
The Polaris platform integrates seamlessly with DevOps workflows, allowing developers to perform security testing activities directly within their workflows. This includes static analysis (Polaris fAST Static) and software composition analysis (Polaris fAST SCA), which can be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection.
Ease of Use
The platform offers a simple and easy-to-use interface, streamlining the experience for developers and minimizing the need for extensive training on new tools.
Comprehensive Analysis
Polaris fAST Static and Polaris fAST SCA enable teams to run multiple types of application security scans concurrently, delivering comprehensive test results from a single unified platform.
Cloud-Based Benefits
The cloud-based nature of the Polaris platform allows organizations to scale their application security testing efforts without the need for expensive hardware and software installations or additional staff.
Disadvantages
False Positives
Despite its strengths, the Polaris Software Integrity Platform has been noted to have a high false-positive rate, which can affect efficiency and require additional time to filter out non-critical issues.
Learning Curve
Some users have reported a steep learning curve, which can be a barrier for teams that are not familiar with the platform.
Integration Limitations
There are concerns about the platform’s integration with Integrated Development Environments (IDEs) like Eclipse, which could be improved.
Cost Considerations
The cost of the platform can be a significant factor for some users, potentially impacting purchasing decisions.
Overall, the Polaris Software Integrity Platform offers significant benefits in terms of automation, efficiency, and integrated security testing, but it also presents some challenges related to false positives, learning curve, and integration limitations.
Polaris by Synopsys - Comparison with Competitors
Polaris by Synopsys
Polaris is a comprehensive platform that integrates various security analysis engines, including Static Application Security Testing (SAST), Software Composition Analysis (SCA), and Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST). Here are some of its unique features:
- Automated Static Analysis: Polaris fAST Static allows for automated static analysis of all codebases, helping developers identify potential security flaws early in the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC).
- Software Composition Analysis: Polaris fAST SCA provides a complete Bill of Materials (BOM) of open-source components, including licenses, dependency trees, and upgrade guidance.
- Concurrent Scanning: The platform supports concurrent SAST and SCA scans, improving performance and allowing teams to run multiple analyses simultaneously.
- Expert Triage and Enterprise Visibility: Polaris offers expert verification and analysis to remove false positives and prioritize critical findings. It also provides enterprise-wide insights into vulnerabilities and risk posture.
Coverity
Coverity, also by Synopsys, is another strong contender in the SAST category. Here are some of its features:
- Speed and Accuracy: Coverity is known for its speed, ease of use, and accuracy in identifying software quality defects and security vulnerabilities early in the development process.
- Integration with CI/CD Pipelines: It seamlessly integrates with CI/CD pipelines and supports over 20 languages and 200 frameworks and templates.
- Code Sight IDE Plugin: This plugin provides developers with accurate analysis in seconds directly within their IDE.
Key Differences
- Unified Platform: Polaris stands out for its unified platform that combines multiple security testing capabilities, whereas Coverity is more focused on SAST.
- SCA Capabilities: Polaris includes comprehensive SCA features, which are not as prominently featured in Coverity.
Other Alternatives
Veracode and Checkmarx
These tools also offer SAST and SCA capabilities but differ in their specific features and integrations:
- Veracode: Known for its cloud-based platform and extensive support for various programming languages. It provides detailed vulnerability reports and remediation guidance.
- Checkmarx: Offers a broad range of application security testing tools, including SAST and SCA, with a strong focus on developer-friendly integrations and automated testing.
AI-Driven Coding Assistants
While not directly competing in the security testing space, AI-driven coding assistants like GitHub Copilot, Windsurf IDE, and JetBrains AI Assistant can complement these tools by enhancing developer productivity and code quality.
- GitHub Copilot: Provides real-time coding assistance, context-aware suggestions, and automated code documentation generation. It integrates well with popular IDEs like Visual Studio Code and JetBrains.
- Windsurf IDE: Offers AI-enhanced development features such as intelligent code suggestions, real-time AI collaboration, and multi-file smart editing. It is particularly strong in its deep contextual understanding and cascade technology.
- JetBrains AI Assistant: Integrates into JetBrains IDEs, offering smart code generation, context-aware completion, and proactive bug detection. It also supports automated testing and documentation generation.
In summary, Polaris by Synopsys is a powerful tool for integrated application security testing, while Coverity and other alternatives like Veracode and Checkmarx offer specialized SAST and SCA capabilities. AI-driven coding assistants can further enhance the development process by improving code quality and productivity. Each tool has its unique strengths and can be chosen based on the specific needs of the development and DevSecOps teams.
Polaris by Synopsys - Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions about Polaris Assist
What is Polaris Assist?
Polaris Assist is an AI-powered application security assistant integrated into the Synopsys Polaris Software Integrity Platform. It combines generative AI with decades of Synopsys’ curated real-world vulnerability, risk, and secure coding data to simplify and streamline application security.How does Polaris Assist help in application security?
Polaris Assist provides AI-augmented vulnerability summaries and code fix recommendations. It generates concise and actionable summaries of detected coding weaknesses and vulnerabilities, along with their potential risks and remediation guidance. This helps developers interpret and act on static analysis results more efficiently.What specific features does Polaris Assist offer?
Polaris Assist includes two key features: Polaris AI Issue Summaries and Polaris AI Fix Suggestions. The AI Issue Summaries make it easier for developers to understand and address detected vulnerabilities, while the AI Fix Suggestions recommend code fixes that developers can review and apply directly into their code.How does Polaris Assist integrate with the development workflow?
Polaris Assist is integrated into the Polaris Software Integrity Platform, which is part of the CI/CD workflow. This integration allows developers to receive real-time feedback and recommendations as they code, enabling them to fix defects and security issues earlier in the development process.What technologies does Polaris Assist leverage?
Polaris Assist leverages Large Language Model (LLM) technology combined with Synopsys’ extensive application security knowledge, including robust coding patterns, vulnerability detection rules, and Black Duck’s open source knowledge base.How does Polaris Assist impact productivity for security and development teams?
By providing easy-to-understand summaries and AI-generated code fix recommendations, Polaris Assist significantly reduces the time it takes to remediate security vulnerabilities. This allows teams to focus more on building high-quality software faster and with greater security.Can Polaris Assist be used with other application security testing tools?
Yes, the Polaris Software Integrity Platform, which includes Polaris Assist, is an open and scalable platform. It allows organizations to leverage existing investments in other AST solutions by orchestrating tests, aggregating, and prioritizing findings from both Synopsys and third-party tools.How does Polaris Assist enhance the overall security of software?
Polaris Assist enhances software security by providing detailed analysis of detected vulnerabilities and recommending specific code fixes. This helps in identifying and addressing security issues early in the development cycle, leading to more secure software.Is Polaris Assist cloud-based?
Yes, Polaris Assist is part of the Polaris Software Integrity Platform, which is a cloud-based solution. This allows for easy onboarding, automated scanning, and policy enforcement, as well as integration with DevOps workflows and tools like GitLab, GitHub, and Jenkins.How does Polaris Assist support DevSecOps practices?
Polaris Assist supports DevSecOps by integrating application security tests into the CI/CD workflow. It enables developers to run static app sec testing and software composition scanning at scale, and it streamlines remediation workflows through integrations with tools like Jira.What kind of support and resources are available for Polaris Assist users?
Users of Polaris Assist have access to various resources, including documentation, web interfaces, and APIs. Additionally, Synopsys provides support through multiple channels, such as their website, social media, and direct customer support. Polaris by Synopsys - Conclusion and Recommendation
Final Assessment of Polaris by Synopsys
The Polaris Software Integrity Platform by Synopsys is a comprehensive and integrated cloud-based solution that caters to the needs of application security, development, and DevSecOps teams. Here’s a detailed assessment of its features and benefits:Key Features and Benefits
- Integrated Platform: Polaris combines industry-leading static application security testing (SAST), dynamic application security testing (DAST), and software composition analysis (SCA) engines, making it a one-stop solution for various application security needs.
- Scalability and Flexibility: The platform is highly scalable, allowing organizations to test from a single application to thousands, and it offers flexible subscription models to adjust consumption based on business needs.
- Ease of Use and Onboarding: Polaris provides easy onboarding, deployment, and testing from a unified platform. It integrates seamlessly with existing developer tools, test automation, and CI/CD workflows.
- Concurrent Scanning: The platform supports unlimited concurrent scanning of SAST, DAST, and SCA analyses, significantly improving performance and efficiency.
- Accurate Findings: Polaris uses market-leading analysis engines to provide highly accurate results. Expert triage is available to identify and remove false positive findings, ensuring the accuracy of the security vulnerabilities detected.
- AI-Driven Enhancements: The recent introduction of Polaris Assist, an AI-driven application security assistant, simplifies vulnerability summaries and provides AI-generated code fix recommendations, enhancing both security and developer productivity.
Who Would Benefit Most
- Development Teams: Developers will benefit from the ease of use, seamless integration with CI/CD pipelines, and AI-generated code fix suggestions that save time and effort in addressing security vulnerabilities.
- Security Teams: Security teams can manage application security testing activities and risks across multiple applications and teams more effectively. The platform provides enterprise visibility through dashboards and reports, helping in tracking vulnerabilities and trends.
- DevSecOps Teams: The platform is optimized for DevSecOps, enabling real-time collaboration between application security and development teams. It automates scanning and policy enforcement, integrating well with SCM and CI tools.