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Auxiliary Exchange in the IKEv2 Protocol
draft-smyslov-ipsecme-ikev2-aux-00

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This is an older version of an Internet-Draft whose latest revision state is "Replaced".
Author Valery Smyslov
Last updated 2018-01-25
Replaced by draft-ietf-ipsecme-ikev2-intermediate, RFC 9242
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draft-smyslov-ipsecme-ikev2-aux-00
Network Working Group                                         V. Smyslov
Internet-Draft                                                ELVIS-PLUS
Intended status: Standards Track                        January 25, 2018
Expires: July 29, 2018

                Auxiliary Exchange in the IKEv2 Protocol
                   draft-smyslov-ipsecme-ikev2-aux-00

Abstract

   This documents defines a new exchange, called Auxiliary Exchange, for
   the Internet Key Exchange protocol Version 2 (IKEv2).  This exchange
   can be used for transferring large amount of data in the process of
   IKEv2 Security Association (SA) establishment.  Introducing Auxiliary
   Exchange allows to re-use existing IKE Fragmentation mechanism, that
   helps to avoid IP fragmentation of large IKE messages, but cannot be
   used in the initial IKEv2 exchange.

Status of This Memo

   This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the
   provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.

   Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
   Task Force (IETF).  Note that other groups may also distribute
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   Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
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   time.  It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference
   material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."

   This Internet-Draft will expire on July 29, 2018.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2018 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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   (http://trustee.ietf.org/license-info) in effect on the date of
   publication of this document.  Please review these documents
   carefully, as they describe your rights and restrictions with respect
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   include Simplified BSD License text as described in Section 4.e of

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   the Trust Legal Provisions and are provided without warranty as
   described in the Simplified BSD License.

Table of Contents

   1.  Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
   2.  Terminology and Notation  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
   3.  Auxiliary Exchange Details  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
     3.1.  Support for Auxiliary Exchange Negotiation  . . . . . . .   3
     3.2.  Using Auxiliary Exchange  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     3.3.  Keying Material and Authentication  . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     3.4.  IKE Fragmentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
   4.  Interaction with other IKEv2 Extensions . . . . . . . . . . .   5
   5.  Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
   6.  IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
   7.  Acknowledgements  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
   8.  References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
     8.1.  Normative References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
     8.2.  Informative References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
   Author's Address  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7

1.  Introduction

   The Internet Key Exchange protocol version 2 (IKEv2) defined in
   [RFC7296] uses UDP as a transport for its messages.  If size of the
   messages is large enough, IP fragmentation may take place that may
   interfere badly with some network devices.  The problem is described
   in more detail in [RFC7383], which also defines an extension to the
   IKEv2 called IKE Fragmentation.  This extension allows IKE messages
   to be fragmented at IKE level, which eliminates possible issues
   caused by IP fragmentation.  However, the IKE Fragmentation cannot be
   used in the initial IKEv2 exchange, IKE_SA_INIT.  This limitation in
   most cases is not a problem, since the IKE_SA_INIT messages used to
   be small enough to not cause IP fragmentation.

   Recent progress in Quantum Computing has brought a concern that
   classical Diffie-Hellman key exchange methods will become insecure in
   a relatively near future and should be replaced with Quantum Computer
   (QC) resistant ones.  Currently most of QC-resistant key exchange
   methods have large public keys.  If these keys are exchanged in the
   IKE_SA_INIT, then most probably IP fragmentation would take place,
   therefore all the problems caused by it would become inevitable.

   A possible solution would be to use TCP as a transport for IKEv2, as
   described in [RFC8229].  However this approach has significant
   drawbacks and is intended to be a "last resort" when UDP transport is
   blocked by intermediate network devices.

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   This document defines a new exchange for the IKEv2 protocol, called
   Auxiliary Exchange or IKE_AUX.  One or more these exchanges may take
   place right after the IKE_SA_INIT exchange and prior to the IKE_AUTH
   exchange.  These exchanges may be used to exchange large amounts of
   data, which don't fit into the IKE_SA_INIT exchange without causing
   IP fragmentation.  The IKE_AUX messages can be fragmented using IKE
   Fragmentation mechanism.

   While ability to transfer large public keys of QC-resistant methods
   was a primary motivation for the Auxiliary Exchange, its application
   is not limited to this use case.  This exchange may be used whenever
   large messages need to be exchanged before the IKE_AUTH exchange.  It
   is expected that separate specifications will define how and when the
   IKE_AUX exchange is used in the IKEv2.

2.  Terminology and Notation

   The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT",
   "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "NOT RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and
   "OPTIONAL" in this document are to be interpreted as described in BCP
   14 [RFC2119] [RFC8174] when, and only when, they appear in all
   capitals, as shown here.

3.  Auxiliary Exchange Details

3.1.  Support for Auxiliary Exchange Negotiation

   The initiator indicates its support for Auxiliary Exchange by
   including a notification of type AUX_EXCHANGE_SUPPORTED in the
   IKE_SA_INIT request message.  If the responder also supports this
   exchange, it includes this notification in the response message.

  Initiator                              Responder
  -----------                            -----------
  HDR, SAi1, KEi, Ni,
       [N(AUX_EXCHANGE_SUPPORTED)]  -->
                                    <--  HDR, SAr1, KEr, Nr, [CERTREQ],
                                             [N(AUX_EXCHANGE_SUPPORTED)]

   The AUX_EXCHANGE_SUPPORTED is a Status Type IKEv2 notification.  Its
   Notify Message Type is <TBA by IANA>.  Protocol ID and SPI Size are
   both set to 0.  This specification doesn't define any data this
   notification may contain, so the Notification Data is left empty.
   However, other specifications may override this.  Implementations
   MUST ignore the non-empty Notification Data if they don't understand
   its purpose.

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3.2.  Using Auxiliary Exchange

   If both peers indicated their support for Auxiliary Exchange, the
   initiator may use one or more these exchanges to transfer additional
   data, which are not fit into the IKE_SA_INIT exchange.  Using the
   IKE_AUX exchange is optional, the initiator may find it unnecessary
   after completing the IKE_SA_INIT exchange.

   The Auxiliary Exchange is denoted as IKE_AUX, its Exchange Type is
   <TBA by IANA>.

   Initiator                              Responder
   -----------                            -----------
   HDR, ..., SK {...}  -->
                                     <--  HDR, ..., SK {...}

   The initiator may use several IKE_AUX exchanges if necessary.  Since
   initiator's Window Size is initially set to one (Section 2.3 of
   [RFC7296]), These exchanges MUST follow each other and MUST all be
   completed before the IKE_AUTH exchange is initiated.  The IKE SA MUST
   NOT be considered as established until the IKE_AUTH exchange is
   successfully completed.

   The Message IDs for the IKE_AUX exchanges MUST be chosen by the
   standard IKEv2 rule, described in the Section 2.2. of [RFC7296], i.e.
   it is set to 1 for the first IKE_AUX exchange, 2 for the next (if
   any) and so on.  The message ID for the first pair of the IKE_AUTH
   messages is one more than the last IKE_AUX Message ID.

   The content of the IKE_AUX messages depends on the data being
   transferred and will be defined by specifications utilizing this
   exchange.  However, since the main motivation for IKE_AUX is to avoid
   IP fragmentation when large amount of data need to be transferred
   prior to IKE_AUTH, the Encrypted payload SHOULD be present in the
   IKE_AUX messages and payloads containing large data SHOULD be placed
   inside.  This will allow IKE Fragmentation [RFC7383] to take place,
   provided it is supported by the peers and negotiated in the initial
   exchange.

3.3.  Keying Material and Authentication

   The keys SK_e and SK_a for the Encrypted payload in the IKE_AUX
   exchanges are computed in a standard fashion, as defined in the
   Section 2.14 of [RFC7296].  Note that this may be redefined by other
   specifications utilizing the IKE_AUX exchange (e.g. in case the
   IKE_AUX is used to exchange additional keys which must later be
   stirred into the SKEYSEED).

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   The data transferred in the IKE_AUX exchanges must be authenticated
   in the IKE_AUTH exchange.  For this purpose the definition of the
   blob to be signed (or MAC'ed) from the Section 2.15 of [RFC7296] is
   modified as follows in case of at least one IKE_AUX exchange takes
   place:

 InitiatorSignedOctets = RealMessage1 | AUX_I | NonceRData | MACedIDForI
 AUX_I = ICV_INIT_1 | ICV_INIT_2 | ICV_INIT_3 ...

 ResponderSignedOctets = RealMessage2 | AUX_R | NonceIData | MACedIDForR
 AUX_R = ICV_RESP_1 | ICV_RESP_2 | ICV_RESP_3 ...

   ICV_INIT_1, ICV_INIT_2, ICV_INIT_3, etc. represent the content of the
   Integrity Checksum Data field from the Encrypted payloads (or
   Encrypted Fragment payloads) from all the IKE_AUX messages sent by
   the initiator in an order of increasing MessageIDs (and increasing
   Fragment Numbers for the same Message ID).  ICV_RESP_1 | ICV_RESP_2 |
   ICV_RESP_3 etc. are defined similarly for the messages sent by the
   responder.

3.4.  IKE Fragmentation

   If both peers indicated their support for IKE Fragmentation, then
   some additional restrictions are applied to ensure that the values of
   Integrity Checksum Data is unambiguous.  These restrictions MUST be
   applied to the IKE_AUX exchanges only and MAY be lifted once all
   these exchanges are over.

   The responder MUST send the IKE_AUX response in the same form
   (fragmented or not) as the request message.  The initiator MUST NOT
   switch from unfragmented to fragmented request in a single IKE_AUX
   exchange - either the request is sent unfragmented and retransmitted
   until unfragmented response is received (applicable if message size
   is small and no IP fragmentation is expected), or the request is
   fragmented from the beginning of exchange.  The initiator MAY however
   send either fragmented or unfragmented messages in different IKE_AUX
   exchanges.  The initiator SHOULD use IKE Fragmentation if the size of
   request (or the expected size of response) is large enough to cause
   IP fragmentation.  The PMTU discovery for IKE Fragmentation as
   defined in Section 2.5.2 of [RFC7383] MUST NOT be used for the
   IKE_AUX exchanges.

4.  Interaction with other IKEv2 Extensions

   The IKE_AUTH exchanges may be used in the IKEv2 Session Resumption
   [RFC5723] between the IKE_SESSION_RESUME and the IKE_AUTH exchanges.

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5.  Security Considerations

   The data that is transferred by means of the IKE_AUX exchanges is not
   authenticated until the subsequent IKE_AUTH exchange is completed.
   However, if the data is placed inside the Encrypted payload, then it
   is protected from passive eavesdroppers.  In addition the peers can
   be certain that they receives messages from the party he/she
   performed the IKE_SA_INIT with if they can successfully verify the
   Integrity Checksum Data of the Encrypted payload.

   The main application for Auxiliary Exchange is to transfer large
   amount of data before IKE SA is set up without causing IP
   fragmentation.  For that reason it is expected that in most cases IKE
   Fragmentation will be employed in the IKE_AUX exchanges.  Section 5
   of [RFC7383] contains security considerations for IKE Fragmentation.

   Note, that if an attacker was able to break key exchange from the
   IKE_SA_INIT in real time (e.g. by means of Quantum Computer), then
   the security of IKE_AUX would degrage.  In particular, such an
   attacker would be able both to read data contained in the Encrypted
   payload and to forge it.  THe forgery would become evident in the
   IKE_AUTH exchange (provided the attacker caanot break employed
   authentication mechanism), but the ability to inject forged IKE_AUX
   messages with valid ICV would allow the attacker to mount Denial-of-
   Service attack.

6.  IANA Considerations

   This document defines a new Exchange Type in the "IKEv2 Exchange
   Types" registry:

     <TBA>       IKE_AUX

   This document also defines a new Notify Message Types in the "Notify
   Message Types - Status Types" registry:

     <TBA>       AUX_EXCHANGE_SUPPORTED

7.  Acknowledgements

   The idea to use an intermediate exchange between IKE_SA_INIT and
   IKE_AUTH was first suggested by Tero Kivinen.

8.  References

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8.1.  Normative References

   [RFC2119]  Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate
              Requirement Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119,
              DOI 10.17487/RFC2119, March 1997, <https://www.rfc-
              editor.org/info/rfc2119>.

   [RFC8174]  Leiba, B., "Ambiguity of Uppercase vs Lowercase in RFC
              2119 Key Words", BCP 14, RFC 8174, DOI 10.17487/RFC8174,
              May 2017, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8174>.

   [RFC7296]  Kaufman, C., Hoffman, P., Nir, Y., Eronen, P., and T.
              Kivinen, "Internet Key Exchange Protocol Version 2
              (IKEv2)", STD 79, RFC 7296, DOI 10.17487/RFC7296, October
              2014, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7296>.

   [RFC7383]  Smyslov, V., "Internet Key Exchange Protocol Version 2
              (IKEv2) Message Fragmentation", RFC 7383,
              DOI 10.17487/RFC7383, November 2014, <https://www.rfc-
              editor.org/info/rfc7383>.

8.2.  Informative References

   [RFC8229]  Pauly, T., Touati, S., and R. Mantha, "TCP Encapsulation
              of IKE and IPsec Packets", RFC 8229, DOI 10.17487/RFC8229,
              August 2017, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8229>.

   [RFC5723]  Sheffer, Y. and H. Tschofenig, "Internet Key Exchange
              Protocol Version 2 (IKEv2) Session Resumption", RFC 5723,
              DOI 10.17487/RFC5723, January 2010, <https://www.rfc-
              editor.org/info/rfc5723>.

Author's Address

   Valery Smyslov
   ELVIS-PLUS
   PO Box 81
   Moscow (Zelenograd)  124460
   RU

   Phone: +7 495 276 0211
   Email: svan@elvis.ru

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