As a developer, it is important to know ASP.NET Core security features. Securing your web applications should always be a top priority. One of the ways you can improve your application’s security is by removing sensitive information such as server headers from the HTTP response. In this post, we’ll go over how to remove the server header from an ASP.NET Core Web API application.
Why Remove Server Headers?
The response of an HTTP request includes server headers that provide information about the web server running the application. Attackers can use this information to target specific vulnerabilities or exploit your application. Removing the server header can make it more difficult for attackers to identify the technology stack being used and can make your application less of a target.
How to Remove the Server Header in ASP.NET Core
Here are the steps to remove the server header in an ASP.NET Core Web API application:
Step 1: Create a Middleware Class
In the root folder of your project, create a new class called “RemoveServerHeaderMiddleware” that implements the IMiddleware interface. This interface provides a single method called “InvokeAsync” that accepts an HttpContext and a RequestDelegate. The HttpContext contains information about the current request and response, while the RequestDelegate is a function that represents the next middleware in the pipeline.
public class RemoveServerHeaderMiddleware : IMiddleware
{
public Task InvokeAsync(HttpContext context, RequestDelegate next)
{
context.Response.Headers.Remove("Server");
return next(context);
}
}
Step 2: Configure the RemoveServerHeaderMiddleware
In the Startup.cs file, add the middleware to the pipeline before any other middleware that may add the “Server” header.
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
services.AddTransient<RemoveServerHeaderMiddleware>();
...... //excluded code
}
public void Configure(IApplicationBuilder app, IWebHostEnvironment env)
{
// add middleware to remove "Server" header
app.UseMiddleware<RemoveServerHeaderMiddleware>(); // this line or below lines
//app.Use(next => context =>
//{
// context.Response.OnStarting(() =>
// {
// context.Response.Headers.Remove("server");
// return Task.CompletedTask;
// });
// return next(context);
//});
// add other middleware
app.UseHttpsRedirection();
app.UseRouting();
app.UseAuthorization();
app.UseEndpoints(endpoints =>
{
endpoints.MapControllers();
});
}
Other Topics you might be interested
Sample App
Essential Product API – DOTNET CORE WEB API project using version 3.1. You can also use.Net 6 or above
That’s it! Your ASP.NET Core Web API application will no longer include the “Server” header in its response headers. This concludes you implemented part of “ASP.NET Core security” in your web application.
