Ruby

General Information

Technologies must be operated and maintained in accordance with Federal and Department security and privacy policies and guidelines. More information on the proper use of the TRM can be found on the TRM Proper Use Tab/Section.

Website:	Go to site
Description:	Ruby is a general-purpose programming language that combines Perl-like syntax with Smalltalk-like features. Ruby supports multiple programming paradigms including functional, object-oriented, and imperative. Ruby has a dynamic type system and automatic memory management. Note: If the version of Ruby provided by the system or package manager is out of date, a newer one can be installed using a third-party installer.
Technology/Standard Usage Requirements:	Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Officer (ISO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.
Section 508 Information:
Decision:	View Decisions

Decision Source:	TRM Mgmt Group
Decision Process:	One-VA TRM v24.3
Decision Date:	03/13/2024 at 17:18:08 UTC
Introduced By:	TRM Analysis
Standards Body:	Ruby Community

Vendor Release Information

The Vendor Release table provides the known releases for the TRM Industry Standard, obtained from the vendor (or from the release source).

Version	Release Date	Vendor Desupport Date
1.8.7	01/10/2010	07/31/2014
1.9.3	10/31/2011	02/25/2015
2.0.0	02/24/2013	02/24/2016
2.1.0	12/25/2013	04/01/2017
2.2.0	12/25/2014	04/01/2018
2.2.1	03/03/2015
2.1.6	04/13/2015
2.2.2	04/13/2015
2.3.0	12/25/2015
2.1.9	03/30/2016
2.2.5	04/26/2016
2.3.1	04/26/2016
2.4.1	03/22/2017	04/05/2020
2.2.7	03/28/2017
2.3.4	03/30/2017
2.5.x	03/28/2018
2.6.x	01/30/2019
2.7.x	03/31/2020
3.1.x	04/12/2022
3.2.x	01/12/2024
3.3.x	01/05/2024

Current Decision Matrix (03/08/2024)

Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Officer (ISO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.

The VA Decision Matrix displays the current and future VA IT position regarding different releases of a TRM entry. These decisions are based upon the best information available as of the most current date. The consumer of this information has the responsibility to consult the organizations responsible for the desktop, testing, and/or production environments to ensure that the target version of the technology will be supported. Any major.minor version that is not listed in the VA Decision Matrix is considered unapproved for use.

Legend:

White	Approved: The technology/standard has been approved for use.
Yellow	Approved w/Constraints: The technology/standard can be used within the specified constraints located below the decision matrix in the footnote[1] and on the General tab.
Gray	Unapproved: This technology or standard can be used only if a POA&M review is conducted and signed by the Authorizing Official Designated Representative (AODR) as designated by the Authorizing Official (AO) or designee and based upon a recommendation from the POA&M Compliance Enforcement, has been granted to the project team or organization that wishes to use the technology.
Orange	Divest: VA has decided to divest itself on the use of the technology/standard. As a result, all projects currently utilizing the technology/standard must plan to eliminate their use of the technology/standard. Additional information on when the entry is projected to become unapproved may be found on the Decision tab for the specific entry.
Black	Prohibited: The technology/standard is not (currently) permitted to be used under any circumstances.
Blue	Planning/Evaluation Constraint:The period of time this technology is currently being evaluated, reviewed, and tested in controlled environments. Use of this technology is strictly controlled and not available for use within the general population. If a customer would like to use this technology, please work with your local or Regional OI&T office and contact the appropriate evaluation office displayed in the notes below the decision matrix. The Local or Regional OI&T office should submit an inquiry to the TRM if they require further assistance or if the evaluating office is not listed in the notes below.

Release/Version Information:

VA decisions for specific versions may include a ‘.x’ wildcard, which denotes a decision that pertains to a range of multiple versions.

For example, a technology approved with a decision for 7.x would cover any version of 7.(Anything) - 7.(Anything). However, a 7.4.x decision would cover any version of 7.4.(Anything), but would not cover any version of 7.5.x or 7.6.x on the TRM.

VA decisions for specific versions may include ‘+’ symbols; which denotes that the decision for the version specified also includes versions greater than what is specified but is not to exceed or affect previous decimal places.

For example, a technology approved with a decision for 12.6.4+ would cover any version that is greater than 12.6.4, but would not exceed the .6 decimal ie: 12.6.401 is ok, 12.6.5 is ok, 12.6.9 is ok, however 12.7.0 or 13.0 is not.

<Past

CY2023

CY2024

CY2025

Future>

Release

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

1.8.7

Unapproved

1.9.3

Unapproved

2.0.0

Unapproved

2.1.0

Unapproved

2.2.0

Unapproved

2.2.1

Unapproved

2.1.6

Unapproved

2.2.2

Unapproved

2.3.0

Unapproved

2.1.9

Unapproved

2.2.5

Unapproved

2.3.1

Unapproved

2.4.1

Unapproved

2.2.7

Unapproved

2.3.4

Unapproved

2.5.x

Approved w/Constraints
[6, 7]

Divest
[7, 8, 9, 10]

Unapproved

2.6.x

Approved w/Constraints
[6, 7]

Divest
[7, 8, 9, 10]

Unapproved

2.7.x

Approved w/Constraints
[6, 7]

Divest
[7, 8, 9, 10]

Unapproved

3.1.x

Approved w/Constraints
[6, 7]

Divest
[7, 8, 9, 10]

Unapproved

3.2.x

Unapproved

Approved w/Constraints
[7, 8, 9, 10]

3.3.x

Unapproved

Approved w/Constraints
[7, 8, 9, 10]

Decision Constraints


[1]	Projects using this technology should employ a Test-Driven development model, and allow sufficient time to the functional testing phase to ensure adequate testing of dynamic typing.

[2]	Due to National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) identified security vulnerabilities, extra vigilance should be applied to ensure the versions remain properly patched to mitigate known and future vulnerabilities. The local ISO can provide assistance in reviewing the NIST vulnerabilities.

[3]	Projects using this technology must employ a Test-Driven development model, and allow sufficient time to the functional testing phase to ensure adequate testing of dynamic typing.

[4]	Users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Office (ISO) or local OIT representative for permission to download and use this software. Downloaded software must always be scanned for viruses prior to installation to prevent adware or malware. Freeware may only be downloaded directly from the primary site that the creator of the software has advertised for public download and user or development community engagement. Users should note, any attempt by the installation process to install any additional, unrelated software is not approved and the user should take the proper steps to decline those installations.

[5]	Projects using this technology must employ a Test-Driven development model and allow sufficient time to the functional testing phase to ensure adequate testing of dynamic typing.

[6]	Projects using this standard must employ a Test-Driven development model and allow sufficient time to the functional testing phase to ensure adequate testing of dynamic typing. This standard has received one or more VA security bulletins that provide specific guidance on vulnerability patching and mitigation. It is the responsibility of VA system owners to ensure that the appropriate mitigations are taken to address all known and future discovered vulnerabilities with this product. See the Reference tab for more information on security bulletins related to this product.

[7]	Due to National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) identified security vulnerabilities, extra vigilance should be applied to ensure the versions remain properly patched to mitigate known and future vulnerabilities. The local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) can provide assistance in reviewing the NIST vulnerabilities.

[8]	Projects using this standard must employ a Test-Driven development model and allow sufficient time to the functional testing phase to ensure adequate testing of dynamic typing.

[9]	Technology must remain patched and operated in accordance with Federal and Department security policies and guidelines in order to mitigate known and future security vulnerabilities.

[10]	This technology has received one or more VA security bulletins that provide specific guidance on vulnerability patching and mitigation. It is the responsibility of VA system owners to ensure that the appropriate mitigations are taken to address all known and future discovered vulnerabilities with this product. See the Reference tab for more information on security bulletins related to this product.

Note:

At the time of writing, version 3.3.0 is the most current version, released 01/05/2024.

References

The following reference(s) are associated with this entry:
Type	Name	Source	Description
*NOTE: Vendor provided information is subject to the accuracy of the manufacturer.

Standard Components

Note: This list may not be complete. No component, listed or unlisted, may be used outside of the technology in which it is released. The usage decision for a component is found in the Decision and Decision Constraints.
Source	Name	Description
Vendor	IRB	Interactive Ruby (IRB) is a Ruby Shell, complete with command-line history, line editing capabilities, and job control.

VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

Domain Area	Category	Customer Guidance	Category Locked By ELT Date
Application Technology Development Tools	Application Development Tools

Technologies/Standards Relationships

Implemented By/Verified With:

No technologies have been identified with this standard.

Comparable Standards:

Associated Standards:

No standards have been associated with this standard.

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

This standard is available at no cost through open source licensing and supports VA`s open source initiative.
This standard includes dynamic typing and supports parametric polymorphism. Ruby allows functions that will accept any type of input for function parameters (integers, strings, objects).
This standard provides for the identification of parameter type at runtime, which provides application flexibility and reduced runtime errors.
This standard allows procedural programming (defining functions/variables) with object orientation (everything is an object) or functional programming (anonymous functions, closures, and continuations statements all have values and functions return the last evaluation).
The Japanese Industrial Standard (JIJS) group approved Ruby as a standard, JIS X 3017, in 2011 and the International Standards Organization/International Electrotechnical Commission group approved Ruby as a standard, ISO/IEC 30170, in 2012.
This is a well-documented standard.

Adoption Risks

There are Threat & Assessment Analysis Portal (TAAP) bulletins associated with this standard.
This standard may require an extended testing period due to its support of dynamic typing.
There are known Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) associated with this standard. Please see https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/search/ for more details.
Due to the rapid release schedule of this standard, the VA may be unable to update to the most recent patch and may require a deployment model requiring the use of specific versions.

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References

Standard Components

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Comparable Standards:

Associated Standards:

General Analysis

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