Internet DRAFT - draft-herbert-intarea-ams
draft-herbert-intarea-ams
INTERNET-DRAFT T. Herbert
Intended Status: Standard Quantonium
Expires: August 2019 V. Siwach
Independent consultant
February 21, 2019
Address Mapping System
draft-herbert-intarea-ams-01
Abstract
This document describes the Address Mapping System that is a generic,
extensible, and scalable system for mapping network addresses to
other network addresses. The Address Mapping System is intended to be
used in conjunction with overlay techniques which facilitate
transmission of packets across overlay networks. Information returned
by the Address Mapping System can include the particular network
overlay method to use, as well as instructions related to using the
method. The Address Mapping System has a number of potential use
cases including identifier-locator protocols, network virtualization,
and promotion of privacy.
Status of this Memo
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provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.
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Copyright and License Notice
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Copyright (c) 2019 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
document authors. All rights reserved.
This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
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Table of Contents
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.1 Use cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.2 Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.3 Terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2 Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.1 Reference topology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.2 Functional components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.3 AMS router (AMS-R) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.3.1 Serving mapping information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2.3.2 Overlay forwarding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2.3.3 AMS router operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2.4 AMS forwarder (AMS-F) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.4.1 Overlay termination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.4.2 Overlay forwarding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3 Address Mapping Router Protocol (AMRP) . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.1 Key/value database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.2 BGP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.3 GTP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4 Address Mapping Forwarder Protocol (AMFP) . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.1 Common header format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.2 Hello messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
4.3 Version negotiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
5 AMFP Version 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.1 Message types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.2 Parameters message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.2.1 Supported identifier types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
5.2.2 Supported locator types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
5.2.3 Supported overlay methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
5.2.4 Default overlay method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
5.2.5 Default timeout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
5.2.6 Default priority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
5.2.7 Default weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
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5.2.8 Default instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
5.3 Map Request message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
5.4 Map Information message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
5.5 Compressed Map Information message . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
5.6 Locator Unreachable message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
5.7 Identifier and locator types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
5.8 Cache Occupancy message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
5.9 Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
5.9.1 Populating an mapping cache . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.9.2 Redirects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.9.2.1 Proactive push with redirect . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.9.2.2 Redirect rate limiting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.9.3 Map request/reply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.9.4 Push mappings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.9.5 Cache maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.9.5.1 Timeouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.9.5.2 Cache refresh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.9.6 AMS forwarder processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.9.7 Locator unreachable handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.9.8 Control connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.9.9 Protocol errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
6 Stateless mapping optimization using FAST . . . . . . . . . . . 35
6.1 Firewall and Service Tickets encoding . . . . . . . . . . . 35
6.2 Address mapping encoding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
6.3 Reference topology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
6.4 Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
6.4.1 Ticket requests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
6.4.2 Qualified locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.4.2.1 Fully qualified locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.4.2.2 Unqualified locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.4.3 AMS forwarder processing and FAST . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.4.4 Transit to the peer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.4.5 Ingress into the origin network . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
6.4.6 Overlay termination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
6.4.7 Fallback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
6.4.8 Mobile events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
6.4.9 Expired tickets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
7 Privacy in Internet addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
7.1 Criteria for privacy in addressing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
7.2 Achieving strong privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
7.3 Scaling network state . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
7.3.1 Hidden aggregation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
7.3.2 Address format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
7.3.3 Practicality of hidden aggregation methods . . . . . . . 44
7.4 Scaling bulk address assignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
8 Address Mapping System in 5G networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
8.1 Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
8.2 Protocol layering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
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8.3 Control plane between AMS and the network . . . . . . . . . 47
8.4 AMS and network slices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
8.5 AMS in 4G networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
8.6 Overlay forwarding methods in 5G networks . . . . . . . . . 49
9 Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
10 IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
11 Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
12 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
12.1 Normative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
12.2 Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Authors' Addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
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1 Introduction
This document describes the Address Mapping System (AMS). AMS is a
system that maps network addresses to other network addresses. The
canonical use case is to map "identifiers" to "locators" (applying
identifier-locator split terminology). Identifiers are logical
addresses that identify a node, and locators are addresses that
indicate the current location of a node. Identifiers are mapped to
locators at points in the data path to facilitate device mobility or
or network virtualization.
The address mapping system may be queried on a per packet basis in
the data path. For instance, an encapsulating tunnel ingress node for
virtualization would perform a lookup on each destination virtual
address to discover the address of the physical node to which a
packet should be forwarded. It follows that access to the mapping
system is expected to be tightly coupled with nodes that query the
system to perform packet forwarding.
The mapping system contains a database or table of all the address
mappings for a mapping domain. The database may be distributed across
some number of nodes, sharded for scalability, and caches may be used
to optimize communications. The mappings in a mapping system may be
very dynamic, for instance end user devices in a mobile network may
change location within the network at a high rate (e.g. a mobile
device in a fast moving automobile may frequently connect to
different cells). Protocols are defined to synchronize mapping
information across devices that participate in the address mapping
system.
1.1 Use cases
This section describes some of the use cases of the address mapping
system.
o Network virtualization
Container virtualization and Virtual Machines are popular
techniques for malleable and efficient use of compute resources
in datacenters. A key function in network virtualization is to
map virtual addresses to physical addresses. The physical
address represents the location of a virtual node. An overlay
technique, such as an encapsulation protocol like VXLAN
[RFC7348], GUE [GUE], Geneve [GENEVE], or GTP [GTP], is used to
forward a packet to its virtual destination based on the
physical address associated with a virtual address. The address
mapping system provides the necessary mapping information and
allows for mobility in container or VM migration.
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o Identifier/locator protocols
Identifier/locator protocols generalize the addressing model of
network virtualization. These include a group of protocols and
proposals that are being discussed in IETF which resolve the
currently strong correlation in IP addresses between
identification of a communication end point and the topological
location in the network. Identifier/locator protocols include
LISP [RFC6830], ILNP [RFC6740], and ILA [ILA]. These demand
mechanisms for rapid lookup and notification of the correlation
between identifiers of hosts and where they are located. The
address mapping system provides this.
o Network function virtualization
Network function virtualization [NFV] deployed in distributed
data centers, or the cloud, requires addressing of dedicated
network function instances that fulfils stringent performance
requirements. This is achieved by an efficient mapping of
network function (NF) logical name to an instance which the
address mapping system facilitates.
o Address resolution
Address resolution refers to the general concept of resolving a
higher layer address into a lower layer address. For instance,
in Ethernet, a network (IP) address is resolved to a link layer
(MAC) address via IPv4 ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) or IPv6
NDP (Neighbor Discovering Protocol). The address mapping system
provides an alternative system for address resolution.
o Privacy in Internet addressing
IP addressing is a privacy concern when addresses embed
information that can be used to infer the geographic location,
identity, or correlations in unrelated communications of a user.
Discussions on this topic and countermeasures have been scope of
numerous activities at IETF ([RFC4941], [RFC6462], [RFC7721],
[ADDRPRIV], [IDLOCPRIV]). An address mapping system can be used
as a basis for a solution as described in section 7.
o Mobile networks
Mobile networks, where the temporary location of a moving device
is typically changing more or less rapidly, require resolution
of the address of the current point of attachment (radio base
station) per device identifier. During an active session the
serving base station may change (handover) and the traffic is
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rerouted to and from the new point of attachment's address.
Whereas cellular networks so far have applied mainly proprietary
procedures and 3GPP protocols [3GPP15] to mobility, forthcoming
5G architectures allow multiple heterogeneous access
technologies and may employ IP-based mechanisms. The address
mapping system could provide the mapping between a client
address and its current point of attachment. Use of AMS in a 5G
service based architecture is described in section 8.
1.2 Requirements
Requirements for the Internet Addressing Mapping system are:
o Allow use of different overlay protocols
The mapping system should be agnostic to the protocol used to
implement an underlying network overlay. An overlay could be
implemented using an encapsulation protocol, such as GTP, GUE,
LISP, VXLAN, etc., or using an identifier/locator address split
protocol such as ILA or ILNP. A network may simultaneously use
different overlay protocols per its needs. Mapping information
provided by the address mapping system indicates the overlay
technique and overlay technique specific instructions to use
when sending to a destination.
o Secure access to mapping system
An address mapping system may contain sensitive information,
particularly in the case that locators would reveal location or
identity of specific users. Access to the mapping system must be
tightly controlled. Law enforcement considerations may require
maintaining a history of mappings to provide under legal order.
o Mapping caches (anchorless mobility)
Mapping caches may be implemented at the network edge to perform
overlay forwarding and avoid triangular routing through
centralized anchor points. A cache may be implemented as a
working set cache or could be pre-populated with mappings for
common destinations. The purpose of the cache is to optimize for
critical communications, however the use of caches should not be
required for viable communications.
o Scalability
Address mapping systems should be able to scale to at least a
billion mappings in a single mapping system domain. This
accounts for a large number of devices, where each device may
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have some number of associated mappings. It follows that a large
deployment will likely need a number of sharded mapping servers,
each of which may be replicated for reliability.
o Resiliency against Denial of Service attack
An address mapping system must be resistant to Denial of Service
attacks. For instance, if a mapping cache is used then a
resource exhaustion attack on a mapping cache must not result in
loss of service to users.
o User privacy
An address mapping system must facilitate user privacy. As
mentioned above, the mapping system must be secured to prevent
leakage of sensitive personal information. The mapping system
can also foster privacy in addressing by supporting untrackable,
per-flow IP addresses.
o Seamless handover
When a mobile device switches from one point of attachment to
another (handover), existing communications should continue
without packet loss or substantial delay. The mapping system
must be dynamic to handle handover events with bounded latency.
o Roaming
Devices may roam from one administrative domain to another. The
mapping systems in the home domain and remote domain may
coordinate to persist existing communications using addresses
that are local to the home domain.
o Stateless mapping mode
An address mapping system may provide a communication mode where
the mapping information is carried in packets themselves. When a
packet that contains such information enters a network, the
information can be decoded to determine the identifier to
locator mapping. This obviates the need for lookup in the
mapping system for each packet.
1.3 Terminology
Address Mapping System (AMS)
A system for mapping addresses to other addresses.
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Address mapping system domain
An administrative domain in which an address mapping system is
run. The address mappings and related addresses are considered
to be in a domain. An address mapping system domain implements
a security policy to prevent unauthorized viewing or
manipulation of mapping information.
Mapping database/mapping table
A logical or real database that contains all of the address
mappings for an address mapping system domain.
Mapping address
A network address that is an object in the address mapping
system table. Mapping addresses are typically IPv4 or IPv6
addresses, but can generically be any type of fixed length
network addresses.
Identifier
A mapping address that identifies an end node in network
communication. In AMS, "identifier" generically refers to the
key in an address mapping system database.
Locator
A mapping address that refers to the location of a node. In
AMS, "locator" generically refers to the addresses that a key
maps to in the mapping system database.
Mapping entry
A single entry in a mapping system database. A mapping entry
is composed of the key address (the identifier), one or more
locators that the key maps to, and optional ancillary
information.
Mapping query
A lookup in the address mapping system database. A key address
(identifier) is provided and the corresponding map entry
(containing locators) is returned if the key is matched.
Overlay forwarding
The processing performed to implement a network overlay that
forwards packets to the location for their destination address
based on a mapping entry in the address mapping system.
Overlay method/overlay protocol
A method or protocol that implements overlay forwarding.
Overlay methods include encapsulation and address
transformation.
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Overlay instructions
A set of instructions that are specific to an overlay method
Instructions can describe how the method is used and optional
protocol extensions or security parameters to use with the
overlay method.
Overlay termination
The processing done at the terminal endpoint of an overlay
protocol used in overlay forwarding.
AMS router (AMS-R)
A node that contains all or a shard of the addressing mapping
system database. An AMS-R node serves mapping system
information to AMS forwarding nodes. An AMS router will often
act as a packet router that performs overlay forwarding for
addresses that it manages in the mapping system.
AMS forwarders (AMS-F)
A node that performs overlay forwarding and/or overlay
termination. An AMS forwarder contains a mapping cache to
facilitate overlay forwarding. End hosts may participate in
the address mapping system as a specialized type of a
forwarder.
Addressing Mapping Routing Protocol (AMRP)
A protocol used amongst AMS routers to synchronize the address
mapping system database.
Addressing Mapping Forwarder Protocol (AMFP)
A control protocol run between AMS routers and AMS forwarders
that is used to manage mapping caches in AMS forwarders.
Firewall and Service Tickets (FAST)
A protocol in which packets carry "tickets" in extension
headers. Tickets provide arbitrary information about how a
network processes packets.
Hidden aggregation
A method to encode aggregation in network addresses where the
aggregation is visible to trusted devices within a network,
but is transparent to external observers of the addresses.
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2 Architecture
This section describes the architecture of the Address Mapping
System.
2.1 Reference topology
The diagram below provides a generic reference topology for AMS.
+------------+ ___________ +------------+
| AMS-R | ( Shared ) | AMS-R |
| AMS router +-------( Database )-------+ AMS router |
+------+-----+ (___________) +------+-----+
| |
+-------+--+----------+ +----------+--+-------+
| | | | | |
+---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +-------+
| AMS-F | | AMS-F | | AMS-F | | AMS-F | | AMS-F | | AMS-F |
| | | | | Server| | | | | | Server|
+-------+ +-------+ +-------+ +-------+ +-------+ +-------+
| | | |
End hosts End hosts End hosts End hosts
2.2 Functional components
There are two fundamental types of nodes in the AMS architecture:
AMS-R: AMS routers
AMS-F: AMS forwarders
2.3 AMS router (AMS-R)
AMS routers are deployed within the network infrastructure and
collectively contain the address mapping database for an address
mapping system domain. The database may be sharded across some number
of routers for scalability. AMS routers that maintain the database or
a shard may be replicated for scalability and availability. AMS
routers share and synchronize mapping information amongst themselves
using an Address Mapping Routing Protocol (AMRP, see section 3).
AMS routers have three primary functions:
o Serving mapping information
o Overlay forwarding
o Sending redirects
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2.3.1 Serving mapping information
AMS routers serve mapping information to AMS forwarders via the
Address Mapping Forwarder Protocol (AMFP, see section 4). Mapping
information is provided by a request/reply protocol, a push
mechanism, or mapping redirects.
2.3.2 Overlay forwarding
An AMS router may perform overlay forwarding for the destination
addresses it serves in the address mapping system database. Network
routing is configured so that packets with identifier addresses
served by an AMS-R will be routed to that AMS-R.
AMS routers are considered authoritative for the portion of the
mapping database that they serve. For instance, if a packet with an
identifier address is routed to an AMS-R then, either a mapping is
found and the packet is forwarded via overlay forwarding, or the
packet is dropped. In this sense, AMS routers can be thought of as
anchor points when they are forwarding packets (using 3GPP
terminology).
An AMS router can send mapping redirects to AMS forwarders in order
to inform them of a direct path they can take to a destination. A
redirect is sent to the upstream AMS forwarder of the source which
can be determined by a mapping query the source address. When an AMS
forwarder receives a redirect, it can create a mapping cache entry
and apply overlay forwarding on subsequent packets to directly send
to the destination instead routing packets through a AMS router.
2.3.3 AMS router operation
The operation of a forwarding AMS router is:
1) Packet are routed to the AMS-R
2) For each received packet, a lookup on the destination address
is performed in the mapping system database
3) If a matching mapping entry is found in the address mapping
system database:
o The packet is forwarded over a network overlay per the
returned locator and ancillary information
o Optionally, a mapping redirect is sent to an AMS forwarder
that is in that path from the source of the packet
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4) Else, the packet is dropped
2.4 AMS forwarder (AMS-F)
As indicated in the reference topology, forwarding nodes may deployed
near the point of device attachment (e.g. base station, eNodeB) of
user devices (e.g. UEs).
End hosts may act as AMS forwarders. These could be servers that
provide overlay forwarding and termination on behalf of VMs or
containers for virtualization. Since the source of packets is local
on a host that is an AMS forwarder, there may be some datapath
optimizations that can be applied.
AMS forwarders may have two functions:
o Overlay termination which is restoring packets with original
identifier addresses
o Optional overlay forwarding to destinations based on a mapping
cache
2.4.1 Overlay termination
AMS forwarders perform overlay termination. In other words, they are
typically the target node of a locator. Overlay termination is the
process of removing or undoing the overlay processing that was
previously done. If the overlay method is encapsulation, the overlay
termination processing is to decapsulate the packet. If the overlay
method is address transformation, such as in ILA, the overlay
termination processing is to transform addresses back to their
original values before overlay processing. Once the overlay
processing is undone, an AMS forwarder forwards the resultant packet
to its final destination.
2.4.2 Overlay forwarding
An AMS forwarder may perform overlay forwarding to send packets
directly to the destination using a cache of address mappings. The
mapping cache of an AMS forwarder may be managed as a working set
cache. As a cache there must be methods to populate, evict, and
timeout entries. A cache is considered an optimization, so the system
should be functional without it being used (e.g. if the cache has no
entries).
The operation of overlay forwarding in an AMS forwarder is:
1) Receive packets from downstream nodes
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2) Lookup up packet's destination address in the mapping cache
3) If a match is found in the mapping cache then forward the
packet over a network overlay per the returned locator and
instructions
4) Else, forward the unmodified packet in the network per normal
routing
5) An AMS router may send a mapping redirect in response to a
packet that had been forwarded by the AMS forwarder. In
response, the forwarder may create a mapping cache entry based
on the contents of the redirect and use the entry to send
directly to a destination for subsequent packets.
3 Address Mapping Router Protocol (AMRP)
AMS routers must synchronize the contents of the address mapping
system database. When a change occurs to an address mapping, for
instance a mobile device has moved to a new location, the AMS routers
managing the shard that contains the identifier must be synchronized
in as little convergence time as possible.
There are a number of options to use or have been used to implement
an AMS mapping router protocol. This document highlights some
alternatives, but does not prescribe a particular protocol.
3.1 Key/value database
A key/value database, such as a NoSQL database like Redis, can
implement an address mapping routing protocol. The idea of the
database is that each mapping shard is a distributed database
instance with some number of replicas. When a write is done in the
database, the change is propagated throughout all of the replicas for
the shard using the standard database replication mechanisms. Mapping
information is written to the database using a common database API
that can require authenticated write permissions. Each AMS router can
read the database for the associated shard to perform its function.
3.2 BGP
BGP can be used to propagate mapping information amongst AMS routers
as simple routes. [BGPOLAY] describes a scalable method for using BGP
in overlay networks. [BGPILA] describes a method to distribute
identifier to locator information using Multiprotocol Extensions for
BGP-4.
3.3 GTP
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GPRS tunneling protocol (GTP) is the primary protocol for control and
user plane in 4G and has been adopted in 5G service based
architecture where control and user plane is separated. GTP tunnels
are data plane encapsulation programmed for subscribers as point to
point segments between the network elements from enodeB to SGW
(Serving Gateway) to PGW (Packet Gateway) in 4G and gnodeB (5G base
station) to UPF (User Plane Function) in 5G.
AMS scheme allows to migrate the GTP Anchors like PGW and UPF to open
the network distributed application for mobility.
4 Address Mapping Forwarder Protocol (AMFP)
The Address Mapping Forwarder Protocol (AMFP) is a control plane
protocol that provides address to address mappings. Clients of the
AMFP include AMS forwarders with mapping caches, so AMFP includes
primitives for mapping cache management.
AMFP is primarily used between AMS forwarders and AMS routers. The
purpose of the protocol is to populate and maintain the mapping cache
in AMS forwarders.
AMFP defines mapping redirects, a request/response protocol, and a
push mechanism to populate the mapping cache. AMFP runs over TCP to
leverage reliability, statefulness implied by established
connections, ordering, and security in the form of TLS. Secure
redirects are facilitated by the use of TCP.
AMFP messages are sent over the TCP stream and must be delineated by
a receiver. Different versions of AMS are allowed and the version
used for communication is negotiated by Hello messages.
4.1 Common header format
All AMFP messages begin with a two octet common header:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Type | Length |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
The contents of the common header are:
o Type: Indicates the type of message. A type 0 message is a Hello
message. Types greater than zero are interpreted per the
negotiated version.
o Length: Length of the message in 32-bit words not including the
first four bytes of the message. All AMFP messages are multiples
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of four bytes in length and the message length includes the two
bytes for the common header. The length field is computed as
(message_length / 4) - 1, so the minimum message size is four and
the maximum size is 16,384 bytes.
Following the two octet common header is variable length data that is
specific to the negotiated version and type the message.
4.2 Hello messages
Hello messages indicate the versions of AMFP that a node supports. A
Hello message MUST be sent by each side as the first message in the
connection.
The format of an AMFP Hello message is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 0 | 1 |R| Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Versions |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
The contents of the Hello message are:
o Type = 0. This is indicates the type is a Hello message.
o Length = 1. Indicates eight byte length.
o Router bit: Indicates the sender is an AMS router. If the sender
is an AMS forwarder this bit is cleared.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero on transmit.
o Versions: A bit map of supported versions. Bit 0 refers to
version 0, bit 1 refers to version 1, etc. If a bit is set then
the corresponding version is supported by a node.
Version numbers are from 0 to 31. Version 0-15 will defined by IANA,
and versions 16 to 31 are user defined. This document describes
version 0 of AMFP.
4.3 Version negotiation
The first message sent by each side of an AMFP connection is a Hello
message. Hello messages indicate the set of AMFP versions that a node
supports.
When a host receives an AMFP Hello message, it determines which
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version is negotiated. The negotiated version is the maximum version
number supported by both sides. For instance, if a node advertises
that versions 0,1,3, and 4 are supported and receives a peer Hello
message with versions 1 and 2 indicated as being supported; then the
negotiated version is 1 since that is the greatest version supported
by both sides. The peer host will also determine that 1 is the
negotiated version.
If there is no common version supported between peers, that is their
sets of supported versions are disjoint, then version negotiation
fails. The connection MUST be terminated and error message SHOULD be
logged.
If both sides set the router bit or both clear the router bit in a
Hello message, then this is an error and the connection MUST be
terminated and error message SHOULD be logged. Both sides cannot have
the same role in an AMFP session.
If the first message received on a connection is not a Hello message,
then that is an error so the connection MUST be terminated and an
error MAY be logged. If a second Hello message is received on a
connection, then that is also considered an error so the connection
MUST be terminated and an error MAY be logged.
5 AMFP Version 0
This section describes the message types and operation of version 0
of AMFP.
5.1 Message types
The message types in version 0 of AMFP are:
o Parameters (Type = 1)
o Map request (Type = 2)
o Map information (Type = 3)
o Compressed map information (Type = 4)
o Locator unreachable (Type = 5)
o Cache occupancy (Type = 6)
5.2 Parameters message
A Parameters message contains AMFP related parameters. The parameters
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are encodes in TLVs. A Parameters message MUST be sent by each side
as the first message after the AMFP version negotiation is completed.
The format of an AMFP Parameters message is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 1 | Length | Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| |
~ TLVs ~
| |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
The contents of the Parameters message are:
o Type = 1. This is indicates a Parameters message.
o Length: Set to the length of the TLVs divided by four.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
o TLVs: A list of TLVs that describe capabilities or requested
options.
The format of a TLV is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Type | Length | |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ +
| |
~ Data ~
| |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type: Type of the TLV.
o Length: Length of the TLV 32-bit units not include the first four
bytes of the TLV. The minimum length of a TLV is four bytes and
the maximum length is 1024 bytes.
The table below lists the Parameters TLVs defined in this document.
The "Length" column indicates any length requirements on TLVs, and
the "Sender" column indicates whether the TLV can be sent by the
router, forwarder, or both sides.
Type Length Sender Meaning
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---------------------------------------------------------------------
0 RESERVED
1 4 Either side Supported identifier types
2 4 Either side Supported locator types
3 variable Either side Supported overlay methods
4 4 Router Default overlay method
5 8 Router Default timeout
6 4 Router Default priority
7 4 Router Default weight
8 variable Router Default instructions
9-127 UNASSIGNED (assignable by IANA)
128-255 User defined
5.2.1 Supported identifier types
This TLV provides the identifier types that a node supports. The TLV
can be sent by either an AMS-R or an AMS-F. The format of the TLV is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 1 | 0 | IDTypes |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type = 1
o Length: Set to 0 to indicate four bytes length.
o IDTypes: A bitmap that indicates supported identifier types. The
position in the bitmap corresponds to the defined values for
identifier type. Identifier types are defined below.
If the supported identifier types TLV is not received then a node
assumes that supported identifier types by a peer is unknown.
5.2.2 Supported locator types
This TLV provides the locator types that a node supports. The TLV can
be sent by either and AMS-R or an AMS-F. The format of the TLV is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 2 | 0 | LocTypes |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type = 2
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o Length: Set to 0 to indicate four bytes length.
o LocTypes: A bitmap that indicates supported locator types. The
position in the bitmap corresponds to the defined values for
locator types. Locator types are defined below.
If the supported locator types TLV is not received then a node
assumes that supported locator types by a peer is unknown.
5.2.3 Supported overlay methods
This TLV provides the overlay methods that a node supports. The TLV
can be sent by either an AMS-R or an AMS-F. The format of the TLV is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 3 | Length | Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| |
~ Overlay methods ~
| |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type = 3
o Length: Set to length of the overlay methods bitmap divided by
four. The overlay methods bitmap is padded with zeroes if
necessary to align message length to four bytes.
o Overlay methods: A variable length bit map that indicates
overlay methods. The position in the bitmap corresponds to the
defined values for the various overlay methods. Overlay methods
are defined in section 10.
If the supported overlay methods TLV is not received then a node
assumes that supported overlay methods in a peer is unknown.
5.2.4 Default overlay method
This TLV provides the default overlay method in reported mapping
information when the method is not explicitly provided in a mapping
information message. The format of the TLV is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 4 | 0 | OvMethod | Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
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Fields are:
o Type = 4
o Length = 0, indicating four bytes length
o OvMethod: Indicates the default overlay method to be used when
sending to a locator.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
Only AMS routers send this TLV. If the TLV is received by an AMS
router it is considered an error.
The default overlay method SHOULD be negotiated. If it's not
negotiated then the default method is undefined.
5.2.5 Default timeout
This TLV provides the default timeout for reported mapping
information when the timeout is not explicitly provided in a mapping
information message.
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 5 | 1 | Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Timeout |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type = 5
o Length = 1, indicating eight bytes length
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
o Timeout: The default time to live for the identifier information
in seconds.
Only AMS routers send this TLV. If the TLV is received by an AMS
router it is considered an error.
If the default timeout is not negotiated then the assumed default is
300 seconds (five minutes).
5.2.6 Default priority
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This TLV provides the default overlay priority in reported mapping
information when the priority is not explicitly provided in a mapping
information message. The format of the TLV is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 6 | 0 | Priority | Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type = 6
o Length = 0, indicating four bytes length
o Priority: Default relative priority of a locator. Locators with
higher priority values have preference to be used. Locators that
have the same priority may be used for load balancing.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
Only AMS routers send this TLV. If the TLV is received by a router it
is considered an error.
If the default priority is not negotiated then the assumed default
value is zero.
5.2.7 Default weight
This TLV provides the default weight in reported mapping information
when the weight is not explicitly provided in a mapping information
message. The format of the TLV is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 7 | 0 | Weight | Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type = 7
o Length = 0, indicating four bytes length
o Weight: Relative weight assigned to each locator. In the case
that locators have the same priority the weights are used to
control how traffic is distributed. A weight of zero indicates no
weight and the mapping is not used unless all locators for the
same priority have a weight of zero.
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o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
Only AMS routers send this TLV. If the TLV is received by a router it
is considered an error.
If the default weight is not negotiated then the assumed default
value is zero.
5.2.8 Default instructions
This TLV provides the default overlay specific instructions in
reported mapping information when instructions are not explicitly
provided in a mapping information message. The format of the TLV is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 8 | Length | OvMethod | Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| |
~ Instructions ~
| |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type = 8
o Length: Set to length of instructions divided by four.
o OvMethod: Indicates the overlay method associated with the
instructions.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
o Instructions: Data with format and semantics that are specific to
an overlay method and describe options for the method and how the
overlay method is used.
Only AMS routers send this TLV. If the TLV is received by a router it
is considered an error. The TLV may sent multiple times for different
overlay methods.
If default instructions are not negotiated then the assumed default
value is no instructions.
5.3 Map Request message
A Map Request message is sent by an AMS forwarder to an AMS router to
request mapping information for a list of identifiers. The format of
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a Map Request message is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 2 | Length |IDType | Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+\
| | |
~ Identifier ~ ent
| | |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+/
The contents of the Map Request message are:
o Type = 2. This is indicates a Map Request message
o Length: Message length is set to size of an identifier times the
number of identifiers in the list. The Length field is computed
as (identifier_size * number_of_identifiers) / 4.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
o IDType: Identifier type. Specifies the identifier type. This also
implies the length of each identifier in the request list.
Identifier types are defined below.
o Identifier: An identifier of type indicated by IDType. The size
of an identifier is specified by the type.
The Identifier field is repeated for each identifier in the list. The
number of identifiers being requested is (message_length - 4) /
(identifier_size).
This message MUST only be sent by an AMS forwarder. If an AMS
forwarder receives a Map Request message it is considered an error.
5.4 Map Information message
A Map Information message is sent by an AMS router to provide mapping
information. In addition to providing locators for an identifier, the
message also contains the overlay method to use and related
instructions for sending to an identifier.
A Map Information message is composed of a four byte header followed
by a set of identifier records. Each identifier record describes
mapping information for one identifier. An identifier record is
composed of a four byte header, an identifier, and a set of locator
entries. Each locator entry provides the information about one
locator used to reach the identifier. A locator entry is composed of
a four byte header that includes the overlay method to use, the
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locator, and optional instructions specific to the overlay method for
the locator.
The identifier record is repeated for each mapping being reported and
the locator entry is repeated for each locator being reported for an
identifier. Both records and entries are variable length. The total
number of identifiers being reported is determined by parsing the
message.
The format of a Map Information message is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 3 | Length | Reason| Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ <-+
|IDType | Record timeout | Num locator | \
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ |
| | |
~ Identifier ~ |
| | r
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+\ e
|LocType| Ilen | OvMethod | Weight | Prio | Rsvd | | c
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | o
| | e r
~ Locator ~ n d
| | t |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ r |
| | y |
~ Instructions ~ | |
| |/ |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+<--+
The contents of the Map Information message header are:
o Type = 3. This indicates a Map Information message
o Length: Set to the sum of lengths of all the identifier records
in the message divided by four. The length of an identifier
record is four bytes plus the sum of all the lengths of locator
entries in the record. The length of a locator entry is four plus
the size of a locator plus the length of the instruction field.
o Reason: Specifies the reason that the message was sent. Reasons
are:
o 0: Map reply to a map request
o 1: Redirect
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o 2: Push map information
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
The contents of an identifier record are:
o IDType: Identifier type. Specifies the identifier type. This also
implies the length of each identifier in the list. Identifier
types are defined below.
o Record timeout: The time to live for the identifier information
in seconds. A value of zero indicates the default value is used.
o Num locator: Number of locators (entries) being reported for an
identifier.
o Identifier: An identifier of type specified in IDType.
The contents of a locator entry are:
o LocType: Locator type. Specifies the locator type. This also
implies the length of each locator in the list. Locator types are
defined below.
o Ilen: Length in 32-bit words of optional instructions in the
entry (length of the instructions field). Instructions are
overlay method specific and can describe options or how the
overlay is used. The instructions length is from zero to sixty
bytes.
o OvMethod: The overlay method to use for sending to the identifier
using the given locator. This is an indication of the
encapsulation method (e.g. GUE, GTP, LISP, etc.) or address
transformation method (e.g. ILA). Specific values are listed in
section 10.
o Weight: Relative weights assigned to each locator. In the case
that locators have the same priority the weights are used to
control how traffic is distributed. A weight of zero indicates no
weight and the mapping is not used unless all locators for the
same priority have a weight of zero.
o Prio: Relative priority of a locator. Locators with higher
priority values have preference to be used. Locators that have
the same priority may be used for load balancing.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending
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o Locator: A locator of type specified in LocType.
o Instructions: Optional data with format and semantics that are
specific to an overlay method and can describe options for the
method and how the overlay method is used. Ilen indicates the
length of the field.
This message MUST only be sent by an AMS router. If an AMS router
receives a Map Information message it is considered an error.
5.5 Compressed Map Information message
The Compressed Map Information message may be sent as an efficient
alternative to the Map Information message. The Compressed Map
Information can be used when all these conditions are met:
o There is only locator provided for each identifier
o The identifier type and locator type are common for all the
mappings reported in the message
o The priority, weight, overlay method, record timeout, and overlay
instructions are the default values negotiated for the AMFP
session
A Compressed Map Information message is composed of a four byte
header followed by a list of identifier/locator pairs.
The identifier/locator pairs are repeated for each mapping being
reported. The total number of identifiers being reported can computed
as (message_length - 4) / (identifier_size + locator_size).
The format of the Compressed Map Information message header is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 4 | Length | Reason|IDType |LocType| Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ \
| | |
~ Identifier ~ e
| | n
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ t
| | |
~ Locator | |
| |/
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
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The contents of the Compressed Map Information message header are:
o Type = 4. This indicates a Compressed Map Information message
o Length: Set to the sum of lengths of the identifier/locator pairs
in the message divided by four
o Reason: Specifies the reason that the message was sent. Reasons
are:
o 0: Map reply to a map request
o 1: Redirect
o 2: Push map information
o IDType: Identifier type. Specifies the identifier type. This also
implies the length of each identifier in the list. Identifier
types are defined below.
o LocType: Locator type. Specifies the locator type. This also
implies the length of each locator in the list. Locator types are
defined below.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending
o Identifier: An identifier of type specified in IdType.
o Locator: A locator of type specified in LocType.
This message MUST only be sent by an AMS router. If an AMS router
receives a Compressed Map Information message it is considered an
error.
5.6 Locator Unreachable message
A locator Unreachable message is sent by AMS routers to AMS
forwarders in the event that a locator or locators are known to no
longer be reachable. The format of a Locator Unreachable message is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 5 | Length | Rsvd |LocType| Rsvd |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+\
| | |
~ Locator ~ ent
| | |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+/
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The fields of the locator unreachable message are:
o Type = 5. This indicates a Locator Unreachable message.
o Length: Set to the size of the locator times the number of
locators in the list divided by four.
o LocType: Specifies the locator type. This also implies the length
of each locator in the list. Locator types are defined below.
o Rsvd: Reserved bits. Must be set to zero when sending.
o Locator: A locator of type indicated by LocType. The size of a
locator is specified by the type.
The Locator field is repeated for each locator in the list. The
number of locators being reported is (message_length - 4) /
(locator_size).
This message MUST only be sent by an AMS router. If an AMS router
receives a Locator Unreachable message it is considered an error.
5.7 Identifier and locator types
Identifier and locator values used in IDType and LocType fields of
AMCP messages are:
o 0: Null value, 0 bit value. This indicates that absence of
locator or identifier information.
o 1: IPv6 address, 128 bit value
o 2: IPv4 address, 32 bit value
o 3: 32 bit index
o 4: 64 bit index
o 5: ILA value. A 64 bit value that represent a canonical ILA
identifier when used in an IDType field and a canonical ILA
locator when used in a LocType field.
Note that the types for index values are used to index into tables
for locators or identifiers.
5.8 Cache Occupancy message
This message provides the mapping cache size and occupancy of an AMS
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forwarder. This serves as a hint that a router can use when pushing
cache entries. The format of a Cache Occupancy message is:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| 6 | 4 | Pressure |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Number entries in use |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Maximum entries |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Number bytes in use |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Maximum bytes |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Fields are:
o Type = 6. This indicates a Cache Occupancy message.
o Length = 4, indicating twenty bytes length
o Pressure: Indicates relative pressure the cache is under. The
higher the number, the greater the pressure.
o Number entries in use: Approximate number of cache entries in the
forwarder cache.
o Maximum entries: Approximate maximum number of cache entries in
the forwarder cache. Zero indicates no reported information.
o Number bytes in use: Approximate number of bytes used in the
forwarder cache.
o Maximum bytes: Approximate maximum number of bytes in the
forwarder cache. Zero indicates no reported information.
If the cache size is not reported by a forwarder, then a router may
assume local default values configured for the domain. Note that the
protocol allows the forwarder to report cache occupancy and limits in
several ways. Routers MAY use this information to modify the rate of
pushing mapping entries or sending redirects.
This message is only sent by AMS forwarders. If an AMS forwarder
receives a Cache Occupancy message then it is considered an error.
5.9 Operation
This section describes the operation of AMFP.
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5.9.1 Populating an mapping cache
AMS forwarders can maintain a cache of identifier to locator
mappings. There are three means for populating this cache:
o Redirects
o Mapping request/reply
o Pushed mappings
Redirects are RECOMMNDED as the primary means of dynamically
obtaining mapping information. Request/reply and push mappings may be
used in limited circumstances, however generally these techniques
don't scale and are susceptible to DOS attack.
AMS forwarders (and AMS routers as well) are work conserving, they do
not hold packets that are pending mapping resolution. If a node does
not have a mapping for a destination in its cache then the packet is
forwarded into the network; the packet should be processed by an AMS
router and sent to the proper destination node.
5.9.2 Redirects
An AMS router can send redirects in conjunction with forwarding
packets. Redirects are Mapping Information or Compressed Mapping
Information messages sent to AMS forwarders in order to inform them
of a direct AMS path. A redirect is sent to the upstream AMS
forwarder of the source which is determined by a lookup in the
mapping system on the source address of the packet being forwarded.
The found locator is used to infer the address of the AMS forwarder.
Note that this technique assumes a symmetric path towards the source.
5.9.2.1 Proactive push with redirect
In addition to sending an AMFP redirect to the AMS forwarder, an AMS
router MAY send an AMFP push to the AMS forwarder associated with the
destination to inform it of the identifier to locator mapping for the
source address in a packet. This is an optimization to push the
mapping entry that can be used in the reverse direction of
communications. In order to do this, the AMS router performs a
mapping lookup on the source address (which should already be done to
perform the redirect). An AMFP push message is then sent to the
forwarding node or host based on its locator.
5.9.2.2 Redirect rate limiting
An AMS router SHOULD rate limit the number of redirects it sends to a
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forwarder for each redirected address. The rate limit SHOULD be
configurable. The default rate limit SHOULD be to send no more than
one redirect to a forwarder per second per redirected identifier. If
a mapping change is detected the the rate limiting SHOULD be reset so
that redirects for a new mapping can be sent immediately.
5.9.3 Map request/reply
An AMS forwarder may send a Map Request message to obtain mapping
information for a locator. If the receiving AMS router has the
mapping information, it responds with a Map Information or Compressed
Map Information message. If the router does not have a mapping entry
for the requested identifier, it MAY reply with a locator type of
Null.
Map requests are NOT RECOMMENDED as the primary means to dynamically
populate entries in a mapping cache. The problem with this technique
is that an AMS forwarder may generate a map request for each new
destination that it gets from a downstream end host. A downstream end
host could launch a Denial of Service (DOS) attack whereby it sends
packets with random destination addresses that require a mapping
lookup. In the worst case scenario, the forwarder would send a map
request for every packet received. Rate limiting the sending of map
requests does not mitigate the problem since that would prevent the
cache from getting mappings for legitimate destinations.
5.9.4 Push mappings
An AMS router may push mappings to an AMS forwarder without being
requested to do so. This mechanism could be used to pre-populate a
mapping cache. Pre-populating the cache might be done if the network
has a very small number of identifiers or there are a set of
identifiers that are likely to be used for forwarding in most AMS
forwarders (identifiers for common services in the network for
instance). When an AMS router detects a changed mapping, the locator
changes for instance, a new mapping can be pushed to the AMS
forwarders.
The push model is NOT RECOMMENDED as a primary means to populate a
mapping cache since it does not scale. Conceivably, one could
implement a pub/sub model and track of all AMS mappings and to which
nodes the mapping information was provided. When a mapping changes,
mapping information could be sent to those nodes that expressed
interest. Such a scheme will not scale in deployments that have many
mappings.
5.9.5 Cache maintenance
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This section describes maintenance of a mapping cache.
5.9.5.1 Timeouts
A node SHOULD apply the timeout for a mapping entry that was
indicated in a Map Information message or as negotiated default. If
the timeout fires then the mapping entry is removed. Subsequent
packets may cause an AMS router to send a redirect so that the
mapping entry gets repopulated in the cache.
The RECOMMENDED default timeout for identifiers is five minutes. If a
node sends a map request to refresh a mapping, the RECOMMENDED
default is to send the request ten seconds before the the mapping
expires.
5.9.5.2 Cache refresh
In order to avoid cycling a mapping entry with a redirect after a
mapping that times out, a node MAY try to refresh the mapping before
timeout. This should only be done if the cache entry has been used to
forward a packet during the timeout interval.
A cache refresh is performed by sending a Map Request for an
identifier before its cache entry expires. If a Map Information
message is received for the identifier, then the timeout can be reset
and there are no other side effects.
5.9.6 AMS forwarder processing
If an AMS forwarder receives to its local address (i.e. a locator
address) a packet that has undergone overlay forwarding, it will
perform overlay termination. It will check its local mapping database
to determine if the identifier revealed in the packet after overlay
termination is local. If the identifier is local, the forwarder will
forward the packet on to its destination which is either a downstream
node that the forwarder has a route to, or a local VM or container in
the case that the forwarder is an end host.
If the identifier is not local then the AMS forwarder forwards the
packet back into the network after overlay termination. This may
happen if an end node has moved to be attached to a different AMS
forwarder and the new locator has not yet been propagated to all AMS
nodes. The packet should traverse an AMS router which can send a
mapping redirect back the source's AMS forwarder as described above.
To avoid infinite loop in this process, the forwarder must decrement
the TTL in the packet being forwarded.
When a node migrates its point of attachment from one forwarder to
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another, the local mapping on the old node is removed so that any
packets that are received and destined to the migrated identifier are
re-injected without using an overlay method. A "negative" mapping
with timeout may also be set ensure that the node is able to infer
the destination address is a proper identifier for the mapping domain
(e.g. would be needed with foreign identifiers).
5.9.7 Locator unreachable handling
When connectivity to a locator is loss, the address mapping system
should detect this. A Locator Unreachable message MAY be sent by AMS
routers to AMS forwarders to inform them that a locator is no longer
reachable. Each forwarder SHOULD remove any cache entries using that
locator and MAY send a map request for the affected identifiers.
5.9.8 Control connections
AMS forwarders must create AMFP connections to all the AMS routers
that might provide routing information. In a simple network there may
be just one router to connect to. In a more complex network with AMS
routers for a sharded and replicated mapping system database there
may be many. A list of AMS routers to connect to is provided to each
AMS forwarder. This list could be provided by configuration, a shared
database, or an external protocol to AMFP.
Conceivably, the number of AMS routers in a network that might report
mapping information could be quite large (into the thousands). If
managing a large number of connections in AMS forwarders is
problematic, AMS router proxies could be used to consolidate
connections as illustrated below:
+-------+ +-------+ +-------+ +-------+ +-------+
| AMS-R | | AMS-R | | AMS-R | | AMS-R | | AMS-R |
+---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+
| | | | |
| +-+------------+-------------+-+ |
+----------+ AMFP +----------+
| PROXY |
+----------+ +----------+
| +-+------------+-------------+-+ |
| | | | |
+---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +-------+
| AMS-F | | AMS-F | | AMS-H | | AMS-F | | AMS-F |
+---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+
In the above diagram a single AMS router proxy serves five AMS
routers and five AMS forwarders. The proxy creates one connection to
each AMS router and each AMS forwarder creates one connection to the
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proxy.
5.9.9 Protocol errors
If a protocol error is encountered in processing AMFP messages then a
node MUST terminate the connection. It SHOULD log an error and MAY
attempt to restart the connection. There are no error messages
defined in AMFP.
Protocol errors include mismatch of length for the message type or a
Parameters TLV, unknown message type or Parameters TLV type, reserved
bits not set to zero, unknown identifier type or locator type,
unknown reason, unknown overlay method or instructions, loss of
message synchronization in a TCP stream, or a message or parameters
TLV was received that is inappropriate for the AMFP role. Note that
if the end of a message does not end on field or record or message
boundary this also considered a protocol error.
6 Stateless mapping optimization using FAST
An alternative to requiring a mapping lookup on each packet is to
encode the mapping information in packets themselves. This can be
achieved by encoding mapping information in Firewall and Service
Tickets [FAST]. The basic concept is that mapping information is
encoded in FAST tickets which are attached in packets at end hosts
and interpreted by the network. Tickets are associated with flows and
are set in all the packets for the flow. Ticket reflection ensures
that packets sent in the return path of a flow include a ticket.
6.1 Firewall and Service Tickets encoding
FAST tickets are encoded in Hop-by-Hop options. The format of a FAST
ticket in a Hop-by-Hop option is:
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Option Type | Opt Data Len | Prop | Rsvd | Type |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| |
~ Ticket ~
| |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
[FAST] suggests a simple and efficient encoding of a Service Profile
Index:
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Option Type | Opt Data Len | Prop | Rsvd | Type |
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+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Expiration time |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Service Profile Index |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
This format can be amended to include address mapping encoding.
6.2 Address mapping encoding
A locator address can be directly encoded in a ticket. Different
address types can be used. A ticket with expiration time, service
profile and locator address may have format:
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Option Type | Opt Data Len | Prop |LocType| Type |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Expiration time |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Service Profile Index |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| |
~ Locator ~
| |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Pertinent fields are:
o LocType: Specifies the locator type. This also implies the
length the locator in the list. Locator types are defined above.
o Service Profile Index: Can encode the overlay method and a
limited set of instructions for overlay forwarding.
o Locator: A locator of type indicated by LocType. The size of a
locator is specified by the type.
A network may have a comparatively small number of locators. For
instance, a mobile provider might associate each eNodeB with a
locator and there may only be a few thousand of these. In this case,
the border routers might maintain a table of locator addresses that
can simply be indexed by number in a small range. Similarly, the
backend server in the layer 4 load balancing case might also be
indicated by an index into a table of backend servers.
6.3 Reference topology
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As show in the reference topology below, FAST routers and AMS
forwarders are involved in the stateless mapping datapath. AMS
routers are not directly involved in the data path, however they
serve the mapping information to be encoded into FAST tickets.
FAST routers interpret tickets and perform overlay forwarding. AMS
forwarders terminate overlay forwarding. Note that an AMS forwarder
and FAST router would be co-located so that a node processes FAST
tickets and does AMS forwarding base on that.
Internet
|
+-----------+---------+
| FAST | AMS-F |
| router | |
+-----------+---------+
|
+-----------+---------+ _____|_____ +------------+---------+
| FAST | AMS-F | ( ) | FAST | AMS-F |
| router | +----( Network )----+ router | |
+-----------+---------+ (___________) +------------+---------+
|
+----------+----------+
| | |
+---+---+ +---+---+ +---+---+
| AMS-F | | AMS-F | | AMS-F |
+-------+ +-------+ +-------+
| |
End hosts End hosts
6.4 Operation
This section describes the operation of encoding mapping entries in
FAST tickets.
6.4.1 Ticket requests
Applications request FAST tickets from a ticket agent in the network
local to the application. The ticket agent can return a ticket for
the application to use in its data packets. The ticket includes
information that is parsed by elements in the issuing network. The
ticket information may include routing information. For example, if
the application is on a mobile device, the network may provide a
ticket that has a locator indicating the current location of the
device.
[FAST] describes the process of an application requesting tickets and
setting them in packets. An application will not normally need to
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make any special requests for routing information and the use of
routing information is expected to be transparent to the application.
6.4.2 Qualified locators
There are two possibilities for locator information in a ticket:
o The locator is fully qualified.
o The locator is not qualified.
6.4.2.1 Fully qualified locators
If a locator is qualified then the issued ticket contains the
locator for the end node. If the locator changes, that is the node
moves, then a new ticket will need to be issued to the application.
6.4.2.2 Unqualified locators
If the locator is not qualified, then the locator information in the
issued ticket contains a "not set" value. For instance, in the case
the locator type is an index then the "not set" value may be -1 (all
ones). The AMS forwarder in the upstream path of an end node may
write a locator value into the locator information to make it
qualified; most often this would just be its own locator value in
cases where it is the first upstream hop of an end device that
coincides with an AMS forwarder that provides location in the
network. The implication is that this will be the locator used in the
network overlay on the return path to reach the end node. Note that
to write a locator into to a ticket requires that the ticket is in a
modifiable Hop-by-Hop option.
6.4.3 AMS forwarder processing and FAST
Once an application has been issued a ticket with mapping information
it will set the ticket in all packets sent to the peer node. The
first hop upstream router, which might also be an AMS forwarder, in
the FAST domain parses the ticket.
If the ticket contains a qualified locator, the first hop node may
validate it (as part of FAST ticket validation). If the ticket has
unqualified locator information, the first hop node may set it to a
qualified locator value in the packet. As described above, the
locator information written is likely to be that corresponding to the
locator of the first hop device which is an AMS forwarder.
6.4.4 Transit to the peer
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Beyond the first hop router to the ultimate peer destination, no
processing of mapping information in a ticket should be needed.
Intervening networks and routers should deliver the ticket to the
destination host unchanged.
At the peer host, the procedures described in [FAST] are followed to
save the received ticket in a flow context and to reflect it in
subsequent packets. As with other reflected tickets, one containing
mapping information is treated as an opaque value that is not parsed
or modified by the peer or any network outside of the origin network.
Packets sent by a peer will include reflected tickets for a flow. No
processing of reflected mapping information in a ticket should be
needed until the packet reaches the origin network of the ticket.
Intervening networks and routers should deliver the ticket to the
destination origin network unchanged.
6.4.5 Ingress into the origin network
At a border FAST router for the origin network, tickets are parsed
and the encoded services are applied. If a ticket contains mapping
information then the FAST router uses the information to perform
overlay forwarding to the destination (the function of an AMS-F).
Note that the FAST router performs no map query and does not need to
maintain a mapping cache.
The service parameters contained in the ticket may provide additional
instructions about how the packet is to be sent over the network
overlay. For instance, the service parameters might indicate the
packet is encrypted or to use some extensions of an encapsulation
protocol.
6.4.6 Overlay termination
When a forwarded packet is received at the targeted AMS-F, normal
procedures for overlay termination and forwarding the packet on to
its destination are done.
At the end host, received reflected tickets are validated for
acceptance as described in [FAST]. This is done by comparing the
received ticket to that which was sent on the corresponding flow.
6.4.7 Fallback
The proposal described here is considered an optimization. Routing
information in FAST tickets is not intended to completely replace a
routing infrastructure. In particular, this solution relies on
several parties to implement protocols correctly. For instance, the
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use of extension headers requires that they can be successfully sent
through a network. As reported in [RFC7872], Internet support for
forwarding packets with extension headers is not yet ubiquitous.
Therefore, a fallback is required when encoding mapping information
in FAST is not viable for a flow. The fallback in AMS is to route
packets through AMS routers.
6.4.8 Mobile events
When a mobile node moves and its locator changes, it is desirable to
converge to using the new locator as a quickly as possible. With
tickets that contain locator information, a modified ticket needs to
be sent to a peer host.
If an application was issued a ticket with qualified locator
information then a new ticket needs to be issued. This can be done by
the application receiving a signal that a mobile event has occurred
causing it to make new ticket requests for established flows.
If an application has a ticket with an unqualified locator then the
network should start writing the new locator information into packets
that are sent by the application after the mobile event. This should
be transparent to the application.
Note that in either case, in order to update the tickets that a peer
is reflecting, the application needs to send packets to the peer that
includes an updated ticket. There is no guarantee when an application
may send packets, so there is the possibility of a window where the
peer node is sending reflected tickets with outdated locator
information. The window should be limited by the expiration time of a
ticket (see below), however it is recommended to implement mechanisms
to avoid communication blackholes. For instance, a "care of address"
mapping entry could be installed at the old locator node to forward
to the new one. Such solutions are also used to mitigate database
convergence time or cache synchronization time.
6.4.9 Expired tickets
FAST typically expects ticket to have an expiration time. If a ticket
is received before the expiration time and is otherwise valid, then
the packet is forwarded per the services indicated by the ticket. If
a packet is received with an expired ticket, it might still be
accepted subject to rate limiting. Accepting expired tickets is
useful in the case that a connection goes idle and after some time
the remote peer starts to send packets.
For tickets that are expired and contain mapping information, a FAST
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node should ignore the mapping information and take the fallback
path. When an application sends new packets, it can include a fresh
ticket so that the fast path is taken on subsequent packets. Ignoring
the mapping information in expired tickets puts an upper bound on the
window that outdated information can be used.
7 Privacy in Internet addresses
This section discusses the interaction between the address mapping
system and privacy in Internet addressing. The address mapping
system can facilitate strong privacy in Internet addressing.
[ADDRPRIV] discusses privacy in addressing.
7.1 Criteria for privacy in addressing
Per [ADDRPRIV], the ideal criteria for IPv6 addresses that provide
strong privacy are:
o Addresses are composed of a global routing prefix and a suffix
that is internal to an organization or provider. This is the
same property for IP addresses [RFC4291].
o The registry and organization of an address can be determined by
the network prefix. This is true for any global address. The
organizational bits in the address should have minimal hierarchy
to prevent inference. It might be reasonable to have an internal
prefix that divides identifiers based on broad geographic
regions, but detailed information such as location, department
in an enterprise, or device type should not be encoded in a
globally visible address.
o Given two addresses and no other information, the desired
properties of correlating them are:
o It can be inferred if they belong to the same organization
and registry. This is true for any two global IP addresses.
o It may be inferred that they belong to the same broad
grouping, such as a geographic region, if the information is
encoded in the organizational bits of the address.
o No other correlation can be established. It cannot be
inferred that the IP addresses address the same node, the
addressed nodes reside in the same subnet, rack, or
department, or that the nodes for the two addresses have any
geographic proximity to one another.
o Geographic location of a node cannot be deduced from an address
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with accuracy.
o Given two observed addresses, no strong correlations can be
drawn. In particular it must not be possible to correlate that
two different flows originate from the same user.
7.2 Achieving strong privacy
Strong privacy in addressing can be achieved by using a different
randomly generated identifier source address for each flow.
Conceptually, this would entail that the network creates and assigns
a unique and untrackable address to a host for every flow created by
the host.
In this scheme, each host would be assigned many addresses which are
non-topological in the local network to both promote privacy and
mobility. An identifier-locator protocol with an address mapping
system can provide reachability. This would entail that the
addressing mapping system contains a mapping entry for each ephemeral
address.
In large networks this solution presents an obvious scaling problem.
Assigning an address per connection is a potential scaling problem on
two accounts:
o The amount of state needed in the address mapping system is
significant.
o Bulk host address assignment is inefficient.
7.3 Scaling network state
The amount of state necessary to assign each flow its own unique
source IP address is equivalent, or at least proportional, to the
amount of state needed for Carrier Grade NAT [RFC2663]-- basically
this is one state element for every connection in the network. So in
one sense this solution should scale as well as NAT has.
7.3.1 Hidden aggregation
A possible solution to reduce state is to make addresses aggregable,
but use an aggregation method that is known only by the network
provider and hidden to the rest of the world. The network could use a
reversible hash or encryption function to create addresses. This
method is called "hidden aggregation".
The input to an address generation function includes a group
identifier, a secret key, and a generation index.
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The address generation function may have the form:
Address = Func(key, group_ident, gen)
Where "key" is secret to network, "group_ident" is a group identifier
for an aggregated set of addresses (for instance, the set of
addresses for a device), and "gen" is generation number 0,1,2,... N.
The generation value is changed for each invocation to create
different addresses for assignment to a node.
When a network ingress node is forwarded a packet it performs the
inverse function on an address.
The inverse function has the form:
(group_ident, gen) = FuncInv(key, Address)
The returned group_ident value is used as the identifier in the
mapping lookup for a locator address. In this manner, the network can
generate many addresses to assign to a node where they all share a
single entry in the mapping system.
7.3.2 Address format
A possible address format for hidden aggregation is shown below.
<------------ 64 bits ----------><--- 32 bits ---><--- 32 bits --->
+-------------------------------+----------------+----------------+
| Provider prefix | Key selector | Address bits |
+-------------------------------+----------------+----------------+
Note the that provider prefix is not hidden, so the address does
identify the network provider of a user. Key selector is an index
into a table of keys. A key table should have at least 2^16 entries
that are randomly generated and securely shared amongst AMS routers.
Hosts can be assigned addresses in blocks based on a key, however the
same key should be used for different hosts assignments and end hosts
should be assigned blocks from different keys.
The address bits are used to create unique addresses per key. A
decoded address may contain a magic value to verify the hash
function.
Keys should be rotated periodically. Addresses assigned using a
particular key will therefore have an expiration, the default
expiration time should be one week (assuming one of 2^16 keys in
table are rotated each minute).
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7.3.3 Practicality of hidden aggregation methods
The premise of hidden aggregation is that only trusted devices in the
network are able to decode the aggregation hidden within IPv6
addresses. This implies that the network must keep secrets about the
process. In the above examples, the secrets are keys used in the hash
or encryption. The security of the key is then paramount, so
techniques for key management, rotation, and using different key sets
for obfuscation are pertinent.
To perform a mapping lookup a node must apply the inverse address
generation function to map addresses to their group identifiers. This
lookup would occur in the critical data path so performance is
important. Encryption and hashing are notoriously time consuming and
computationally complex functions.
Some possible mitigating factors for performance impact are:
o The input to address generation functions is a small amount of
data and has fixed size. The input is a key (presumably 128 or
256 bits), part of all of an IPv6 address (128 bits), and a
generation number (sixteen to twenty-four bits should work).
o Given that the input is fixed size, specialized hardware might
be used to optimize performance of the inverse address
generation function. For instance, modern CPUs include
instructions to perform crypto. Since the keys used in these
functions are secret to the network and there are relatively few
of them, they might be preloaded into a crypto engine to reduce
setup costs.
o The output of an inverse address generation function is
cacheable. A cache on a device could contain address to locator
mappings. When the inverse function and lookup on a group
identifier are performed, a mapping of address to the discovered
locator could be created in the cache. The node could then map
addresses in subsequent packets sent on the same flow to the
proper locator by looking up the address in the cache.
7.4 Scaling bulk address assignment
Assigning multiple addresses without aggregation is difficult to
scale. Conceptually, each address would need to be individually
specified in an assignment sent to a host.
DHCPv6 might allow bulk singleton address assignment. As stated in
[RFC7934]:
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Most DHCPv6 clients only ask for one non-temporary address, but
the protocol allows requesting multiple temporary and even
multiple non- temporary addresses, and the server could choose to
provide multiple addresses. ... The maximum number of IPv6
addresses that can be provided in a single DHCPv6 packet, given a
typical MTU of 1500 bytes or smaller, is approximately 30.
8 Address Mapping System in 5G networks
The section describes applying AMS for use in 5G networks. AMS is
instantiated as a function in the 5G services architecture described
in [3GPP15].
8.1 Architecture
The figure below depicts the use of AMS in a 5G reference point
architecture. AMS is logically a network function and AMS interfaces
to the 5G control plane via service based interfaces.
Service Based Interfaces
----+-----+----+----+----+----+----+--------+----+--------
| | | | | | | | |
+---+---+ | +--+--+ | +--+--+ | +--+--+ +--+--+ |
| NSSF+ | | | NRF | | | DSF | | | UDM | | NEF | |
+-------+ | +-----+ | +-----+ | +-----+ +-----+ |
| | | |
+----+--+ +--+--+ +---+--+ +-------------+--+
| AMF | | PCF | | AUSF | |AMS CP-SMF/GTPC |
+---+-+-+ +-----+ +------+ +-+-----+--------+ ^
+-------+ | | | | |
| 5G UE |-+ | +-----+ | +- N4 -+
+---+---+ | N2 | | |
| | +-----+----+ +---+---+ V +----+
| | +------| AMS-F/R |--| AMS-R |------| DN |
| | | N3 +-+---+--+-+ +-+-----+ +----+
| | | | | | |
| +-+------+---+ +---+ +------+
+-----| gNB | N9 N9
| +------------+
| +-----+----+ +---+---+ +----+
| +------| UPF |--| UPF |------| DN |
| | N3 +-+---+--+-+ +-+-----+ +----+
| | | | | |
| +----------+-+ +---+ +------+
+-----| gNB | N9 N9
+------------+
AMS is used over the N3 and N9 interface. Address mappings in the
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downlink from the data network are done by an AMS-R. Transformations
for edge traffic can be done by an AMS-F close to the gNB or by an
AMS-R in the case of a cache miss.
The control interface into AMS is via N4 interface that interacts
with 5G network services. AMS Control Plane node (AMS-CP) uses
RESTful APIs to make requests to network services (see section 8.3).
An AMS-CP receives notifications when devices enter the network,
leave it, or move within the network. The AMS-CP writes the address
mapping entries accordingly.
An AMS-CP communicates with other AMS-CPs, AMS-Fs, and AMS-Rs in the
same address system mapping domain via control protocols that are
independent of the 5G control plane. The address mapping database is
shared amongst AMS-CP and AMS-Rs utilizing underlying distributed
database technology deployed.
8.2 Protocol layering
The diagram below illustrates the protocol layers of packets sent
over various data plane interfaces in the downlink direction of data
network to a mobile node. Note that this assumes the topology shown
above where GTP-U is used over N3 and IP routing is used on N9.
---> ---> --->
DN to AMS-R AMS-R to AMS-F AMS-F to gNB gNB to UE
+-----------+ +-----------+ +------------+ +------------+
| Applic. | | Applic. | | Applic. | | Applic. |
+-----------+ +-----------+ +------------+ +------------+
| L4 | | L4 | | L4 | | L4 |
+-----------+ +-----------+ +------------+ +------------+
| IP | | IP | | IP | | PDU Layer |
+-----------+ | +-----------+ | +------------+ +------------+
| L2 | | | L2 | | | GTP-U | | AN Protocol|
+-----------+ | +-----------+ | +------------+ | Layers |
| | | UDP/IP | | |
N6 <--N9 --> N3 +------------+ +------------+
| L2 |
+------------+
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AMS and protocol layers in the Downlink core are depicted below.
<--- <--- <---
AMS-H to VM AMS-F to AMS-H gNB to AMS-F UE to gNB
+-----------+ +-----------+ +-----------+ +-----------+
| Applic. | | Applic. | | Applic. | | Applic. |
+-----------+ +-----------+ +-----------+ +-----------+
| L4 | | L4 | | L4 | | L4 |
+-----------+ +-----------+ +-----------+ +-----------+
| IP | | IP | | IP | | PDU Layer |
+-----------+ | +-----------+ | +-----------+ +-----------+
| L2 | | | Overlay | | | GTP-U | |AN Protocol|
+-----------+ | +-----------+ | +-----------+ | Layers |
| | UDP/IP | | | UDP/IP | | |
| +-----------+ +-----------+
| L2 | | L2 |
+-----------+ +-----------+
8.3 Control plane between AMS and the network
AMS is a consumer of several 5G network services. The service
operations of interest to AMS are:
o Nudm (Unified Data Management): Provides subscriber information.
o Nsmf (Service Managment Function): Provides information about
PDU sessions.
o Namf (Core Access and Mobility Function): Provides notifications
of mobility events.
AMS-CP subscribes to notifications from network services. These
notifications drive changes in the address mapping table. The service
interfaces reference a UE by UE ID (SUPI or IMSI-Group Identifier),
this is used as the key in the AMS identifier database to map UEs to
addresses and identifier groups. Point of attachment is given by gNB
ID, this is used as the key in the AMS locator database to map a gNB
to an AMS-F and its locator.
8.4 AMS and network slices
The figure below illustrates the use of network slices with AMS.
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----+-------------------------------------+--------------------
| |
+-------------------------+ +----------------------------+
| +--------+ Slice | | +-------------+ Slice |
| | SMF |-----+ #1 | | | AMS-CP |----+ #2|
| +---+----+ | | | +-----------+-+ | |
| N4 | | N4 | | | | | |
| +---+--+ +--+----+ | | +--------+ | +--+----+ | +----+
| | UPF | | UPF | | | | AMS-F | | | AMS-R | |---| DN |
| +-------+ +-------+ | | +--------+ | +-------+ | +----+
+-------------------------+ +--------------|-------------+
| |
+--+-+ +------------|-------------+
| DN | | | Slice |
+----+ | +------+----+ #3 |
| | | |
| +-------+ +-------+ | +----+
+-----+ | | AMS-F | | AMS-R | |---| DN |
| MEC |----| +-------+ +-------+ | +----+
+-----+ +--------------------------+
In this figure, slice #1 illustrates legacy use of UPFs without AMS
in a slice. AMS can be deployed incrementally or in parts of the
network. As demonstrated, the use of network slices can provide
domain isolation for this.
Slice #2 supports AMS. Some number of AMS-Fs and AMS-Rs are deployed.
Address transformations are performed over the N9 interface. AMS-Rs
would be deployed at the N6 interface to perform address
transformations on packets received from a data network. AMS-Fs will
be deployed deeper in the network at one side of the N3 interface.
AMS-Fs may be supplemented by AMS-Rs that are deployed in the
network. AMS-CP manages the mapping database within the slice.
Slice #3 shows another slice that supports AMS. In this scenario, the
slice is for Mobile Edge Computing. The slice contains AMS-Rs and
AMS-Fs, and as illustrated, it may also contain end hosts that run
directly on edge computing servers. Note in this example, one AMS-CP,
and hence one address mapping domain, is shared between slice #2 and
slice #3. Alternatively, the two slices could each have their own
AMS-CP and define separate address mapping domains.
8.5 AMS in 4G networks
The 4G architecture in 3GPP implements an address mapping system that
is consistent with the architecture described in this document.
Serving gateways have the role of AMS routers and GTP-C is the AMS
routing protocol in 3GPP. 3GPP is based on an anchored routing model,
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however the protocol can be augmented with AMS forwarders to achieve
anchorless routing bypass. Note that this can be done as an
incremental addition to the 3GPP model, and in particular the core
model and protocols of 3GPP, including GTP-C and GTP-U, require no
change. The addition of AMS forwarders and mapping caches is done as
an optimization for handling critical, low latency applications.
8.6 Overlay forwarding methods in 5G networks
As described in section 2.4, AMS forwarders may be implemented on
servers. For instance, a mobile network may have server farms that
provide VMs for running services close to users. For both performance
and feasibility, it may be preferable for such servers to use an
alternative overlay method than GTP. This document highlights that
Generic UDP Encapsulation (UE) or Identifier Locator Addressing (ILA)
may be good alternatives. GUE is a generic and extensible
encapsulation protocol with good performance, ILA is
identifier/locator split protocol that works with IPv6 and has very
good performance.
9 Security Considerations
AMFP must have protection against message forgery. In particular
secure redirects and mapping information message are required to
prevent attacks by spoofing messages and illegitimately redirecting
packets. This security is provided by using TCP connections so that
origin of the messages is never ambiguous.
Transport Layer Security (TLS) [RFC5246] MAY be used to provide
secrecy, authentication, and integrity check for AMFP messages. The
TCP Authentication Option [RFC5925] MAY be used to provide
authentication for AMFP messages.
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10 IANA Considerations
TBD
11 Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Dirk von Hugo for contributions to
this document.
12 References
12.1 Normative References
[RFC8200] Deering, S. and R. Hinden, "Internet Protocol, Version 6
(IPv6) Specification", STD 86, RFC 8200, DOI
10.17487/RFC8200, July 2017, <https://www.rfc-
editor.org/info/rfc8200>.
[RFC4291] Hinden, R. and S. Deering, "IP Version 6 Addressing
Architecture", RFC 4291, February 2006.
12.2 Informative References
[RFC7348] Mahalingam, M., Dutt, D., Duda, K., Agarwal, P., Kreeger,
L., Sridhar, T., Bursell, M., and C. Wright, "Virtual
eXtensible Local Area Network (VXLAN): A Framework for
Overlaying Virtualized Layer 2 Networks over Layer 3
Networks", RFC 7348, DOI 10.17487/RFC7348, August 2014,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7348>.
[RFC6830] Farinacci, D., Fuller, V., Meyer, D., and D. Lewis, "The
Locator/ID Separation Protocol (LISP)", RFC 6830, DOI
10.17487/RFC6830, January 2013, <https://www.rfc-
editor.org/info/rfc6830>.
[RFC6740] RJ Atkinson and SN Bhatti, "Identifier-Locator Network
Protocol (ILNP) Architectural Description", RFC 6740, DOI
10.17487/RFC6740, November 2012, <https://www.rfc-
editor.org/info/rfc6740>.
[RFC4941] Narten, T., Draves, R., and S. Krishnan, "Privacy
Extensions for Stateless Address Autoconfiguration in
IPv6", RFC 4941, DOI 10.17487/RFC4941, September 2007,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc4941>.
[RFC6462] Cooper, A., "Report from the Internet Privacy Workshop",
RFC 6462, DOI 10.17487/RFC6462, January 2012,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc6462>.
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[RFC7721] Cooper, A., Gont, F., and D. Thaler, "Security and
Privacy Considerations for IPv6 Address Generation
Mechanisms", RFC 7721, DOI 10.17487/RFC7721, March 2016,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7721>.
[RFC7872] Gont, F., Linkova, J., Chown, T., and W. Liu,
"Observations on the Dropping of Packets with IPv6
Extension Headers in the Real World", RFC 7872, DOI
10.17487/RFC7872, June 2016, <https://www.rfc-
editor.org/info/rfc7872>.
[RFC2663] Srisuresh, P. and M. Holdrege, "IP Network Address
Translator (NAT) Terminology and Considerations", RFC
2663, DOI 10.17487/RFC2663, August 1999,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2663>.
[RFC7934] Colitti, L., Cerf, V., Cheshire, S., and D. Schinazi,
"Host Address Availability Recommendations", BCP 204, RFC
7934, DOI 10.17487/RFC7934, July 2016, <https://www.rfc-
editor.org/info/rfc7934>.
[RFC5246]] Dierks, T. and E. Rescorl, "The Transport Layer Security
(TLS) Protocol Version 1.2", RFC 5246, DOI
10.17487/RFC5246, August 2008, <https://www.rfc-
editor.org/info/rfc5246>.
[RFC5925] Touch, J., Mankin, A., and R. Bonica, "The TCP
Authentication Option", RFC 5925, DOI 10.17487/RFC5925,
June 2010, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc5925>.
[GUE] Herbert, T., Yong, L., and Zia, O., "Generic UDP
Encapsulation" draft-ietf-intarea-gue-06
[GENEVE] Gross, J., Ed., Ganga, I. Ed., and Sridhar, T., "Geneve:
Generic Network Virtualization Encapsulation", draft-
ietf-nvo3-geneve-08
[GTP] 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), "3GPP TS
29.060", <www.3gpp.org/dynareport/29060.htm>
[ILA] Herbert, T., and Lapukhov, P., Privacy issues in
ID/locator separation systems <draft-nordmark-id-loc-
privacy-00>
[NFV] ETSI Industry Specification Group (ISG) NFV, "ETSI GS NFV
003 V1.2.1: Network Functions Virtualisation (NFV);
Terminology for Main Concepts in NFV," 2014.
<http://www.etsi.org/deliver/etsi gs/NFV/001
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099/003/01.02.01 60/gs NFV003v010201p.pdf>.
[ADDRPRIV] Herbert, T., "Privacy in IPv6 Network Prefix Assignment",
draft-herbert-ipv6-prefix-address-privacy-00
[IDLOCPRIV] Nordmark, E., "Privacy issues in ID/locator separation
systems", draft-nordmark-id-loc-privacy-00
[3GPP15] 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), "3GPP -
Release 15", <http://www.3gpp.org/release-15>
[BGPOLAY] Templin, F., Saccone, G., Dawra, G., Lindem, A., Moreno,
V., "A Simple BGP-based Mobile Routing System for the
Aeronautical Telecommunications Network", draft-templin-
atn-bgp-08.txt
[BGPILA] Lapukhov, P., "Use of BGP for dissemination of ILA
mapping information" draft-lapukhov-bgp-ila-afi-02
[FAST] Herbert, T., "Firewall and Service Tickets", draft-
herbert-fast-03
Authors' Addresses
Tom Herbert
Quantonium
Santa Clara, CA
USA
Email: tom@quantonium.net
Vikram Siwach
Email: vsiwach@gmail.com
T. Herbert Expires August 25, 2019 [Page 52]
