OSCAL Assessment Models in Trestle

Overview

OSCAL defines two assessment-related models:

• Assessment Plan (SAP): Defines the scope, methodology, and schedule for a security assessment
• Assessment Results (SAR): Documents the findings, observations, and risks from an assessment

Assessment Plan (SAP)

Purpose

Defines what will be assessed, how, when, and by whom. Corresponds to a Security Assessment Plan in FedRAMP/NIST terminology.

Key Components

{
  "assessment-plan": {
    "uuid": "...",
    "metadata": { "title": "...", "version": "..." },
    "import-ssp": { "href": "#..." },
    "local-definitions": {
      "activities": [],
      "objectives-and-methods": []
    },
    "reviewed-controls": {
      "control-selections": [
        { "include-controls": [{ "control-id": "ac-1" }] }
      ]
    },
    "assessment-subjects": [],
    "assessment-assets": {
      "assessment-platforms": []
    },
    "tasks": []
  }
}

Key Fields

Field	Purpose
import-ssp	References the SSP being assessed
reviewed-controls	Controls in scope for this assessment
assessment-subjects	Systems, components, or inventories being assessed
assessment-assets	Tools and platforms used for assessment
tasks	Scheduled assessment activities
local-definitions.activities	Assessment activities and their steps
local-definitions.objectives-and-methods	Assessment objectives tied to controls

Workspace Location

assessment-plans/
└── my-assessment/
    └── assessment-plan.json

Assessment Results (SAR)

Purpose

Documents the outcomes of a security assessment, including findings, observations, and risk determinations.

Key Components

{
  "assessment-results": {
    "uuid": "...",
    "metadata": { "title": "...", "version": "..." },
    "import-ap": { "href": "#..." },
    "results": [
      {
        "uuid": "...",
        "title": "Assessment Round 1",
        "start": "2024-01-15T00:00:00Z",
        "end": "2024-01-30T00:00:00Z",
        "reviewed-controls": {},
        "findings": [],
        "observations": [],
        "risks": []
      }
    ]
  }
}

Key Fields

Field	Purpose
import-ap	References the assessment plan
results	One or more assessment result sets
results[].findings	Individual assessment findings per control
results[].observations	Evidence and observations collected
results[].risks	Identified risks with severity
results[].attestations	Assessor attestation statements

Finding Structure

{
  "uuid": "...",
  "title": "AC-1 Finding",
  "description": "...",
  "target": {
    "type": "objective-id",
    "target-id": "ac-1",
    "status": { "state": "not-satisfied" }
  },
  "related-observations": [{ "observation-uuid": "..." }],
  "related-risks": [{ "risk-uuid": "..." }]
}

Finding States

State	Meaning
satisfied	Control objective is met
not-satisfied	Control objective is not met (generates POA&M entry)

Workspace Location

assessment-results/
└── my-assessment-results/
    └── assessment-results.json

Trestle Operations

Import Assessment Models

trestle import -f assessment-plan.json -o my-assessment
trestle import -f assessment-results.json -o my-results

Validate

trestle validate -t assessment-plan -n my-assessment
trestle validate -t assessment-results -n my-results

Split and Merge

Assessment models support split/merge like other OSCAL models:

trestle split -t assessment-results -n my-results -e 'assessment-results.results'
trestle merge -t assessment-results -n my-results -e 'results'

Relationship to Other Models

Catalog → Profile → SSP → Assessment Plan → Assessment Results → POA&M

• Assessment Plan references an SSP via import-ssp
• Assessment Results reference an Assessment Plan via import-ap
• Findings in Assessment Results feed into POA&M items
• Controls assessed are selected from the SSP's profile

Important: JSON-Based Workflow

Assessment models do not have trestle author generate/assemble commands. Unlike catalogs, profiles, component definitions, and SSPs, assessment plans and assessment results use a JSON-based workflow:

create → split → edit JSON → merge → validate

Direct JSON editing via the split/merge cycle is the correct approach for these models.

Additional Resources

• For worked examples and step-by-step walkthroughs, see examples.md