Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol for IPv6 (DHCPv6)
RFC 3315
| Document | Type |
RFC
- Proposed Standard
(July 2003)
Errata
Obsoleted by RFC 8415
Was
draft-ietf-dhc-dhcpv6
(dhc WG)
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Authors | Michael Carney , Charles E. Perkins , Bernie Volz , Ted Lemon , Jim Bound | ||
| Last updated | 2020-01-21 | ||
| RFC stream | Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) | ||
| Formats | |||
| Additional resources | Mailing list discussion | ||
| IESG | Responsible AD | Dr. Thomas Narten | |
| Send notices to | (None) |
RFC 3315
RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 In most instances, the server will send a Reply in response to a client message. This Reply message MUST always contain the Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID and the Client Identifier option from the client message if one was present. In most Reply messages, the server includes options containing configuration information for the client. The server must be aware of the recommendations on packet sizes and the use of fragmentation in section 5 of RFC 2460. If the client included an Option Request option in its message, the server includes options in the Reply message containing configuration parameters for all of the options identified in the Option Request option that the server has been configured to return to the client. The server MAY return additional options to the client if it has been configured to do so. 18.2.1. Receipt of Request Messages When the server receives a Request message via unicast from a client to which the server has not sent a unicast option, the server discards the Request message and responds with a Reply message containing a Status Code option with the value UseMulticast, a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID, the Client Identifier option from the client message, and no other options. When the server receives a valid Request message, the server creates the bindings for that client according to the server's policy and configuration information and records the IAs and other information requested by the client. The server constructs a Reply message by setting the "msg-type" field to REPLY, and copying the transaction ID from the Request message into the transaction-id field. The server MUST include a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID and the Client Identifier option from the Request message in the Reply message. If the server finds that the prefix on one or more IP addresses in any IA in the message from the client is not appropriate for the link to which the client is connected, the server MUST return the IA to the client with a Status Code option with the value NotOnLink. If the server cannot assign any addresses to an IA in the message from the client, the server MUST include the IA in the Reply message with no addresses in the IA and a Status Code option in the IA containing status code NoAddrsAvail. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 49] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 For any IAs to which the server can assign addresses, the server includes the IA with addresses and other configuration parameters, and records the IA as a new client binding. The server includes a Reconfigure Accept option if the server wants to require that the client accept Reconfigure messages. The server includes other options containing configuration information to be returned to the client as described in section 18.2. If the server finds that the client has included an IA in the Request message for which the server already has a binding that associates the IA with the client, the client has resent a Request message for which it did not receive a Reply message. The server either resends a previously cached Reply message or sends a new Reply message. 18.2.2. Receipt of Confirm Messages When the server receives a Confirm message, the server determines whether the addresses in the Confirm message are appropriate for the link to which the client is attached. If all of the addresses in the Confirm message pass this test, the server returns a status of Success. If any of the addresses do not pass this test, the server returns a status of NotOnLink. If the server is unable to perform this test (for example, the server does not have information about prefixes on the link to which the client is connected), or there were no addresses in any of the IAs sent by the client, the server MUST NOT send a reply to the client. The server ignores the T1 and T2 fields in the IA options and the preferred-lifetime and valid-lifetime fields in the IA Address options. The server constructs a Reply message by setting the "msg-type" field to REPLY, and copying the transaction ID from the Confirm message into the transaction-id field. The server MUST include a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID and the Client Identifier option from the Confirm message in the Reply message. The server includes a Status Code option indicating the status of the Confirm message. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 50] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 18.2.3. Receipt of Renew Messages When the server receives a Renew message via unicast from a client to which the server has not sent a unicast option, the server discards the Renew message and responds with a Reply message containing a Status Code option with the value UseMulticast, a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID, the Client Identifier option from the client message, and no other options. When the server receives a Renew message that contains an IA option from a client, it locates the client's binding and verifies that the information in the IA from the client matches the information stored for that client. If the server cannot find a client entry for the IA the server returns the IA containing no addresses with a Status Code option set to NoBinding in the Reply message. If the server finds that any of the addresses are not appropriate for the link to which the client is attached, the server returns the address to the client with lifetimes of 0. If the server finds the addresses in the IA for the client then the server sends back the IA to the client with new lifetimes and T1/T2 times. The server may choose to change the list of addresses and the lifetimes of addresses in IAs that are returned to the client. The server constructs a Reply message by setting the "msg-type" field to REPLY, and copying the transaction ID from the Renew message into the transaction-id field. The server MUST include a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID and the Client Identifier option from the Renew message in the Reply message. The server includes other options containing configuration information to be returned to the client as described in section 18.2. 18.2.4. Receipt of Rebind Messages When the server receives a Rebind message that contains an IA option from a client, it locates the client's binding and verifies that the information in the IA from the client matches the information stored for that client. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 51] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 If the server cannot find a client entry for the IA and the server determines that the addresses in the IA are not appropriate for the link to which the client's interface is attached according to the server's explicit configuration information, the server MAY send a Reply message to the client containing the client's IA, with the lifetimes for the addresses in the IA set to zero. This Reply constitutes an explicit notification to the client that the addresses in the IA are no longer valid. In this situation, if the server does not send a Reply message it silently discards the Rebind message. If the server finds that any of the addresses are no longer appropriate for the link to which the client is attached, the server returns the address to the client with lifetimes of 0. If the server finds the addresses in the IA for the client then the server SHOULD send back the IA to the client with new lifetimes and T1/T2 times. The server constructs a Reply message by setting the "msg-type" field to REPLY, and copying the transaction ID from the Rebind message into the transaction-id field. The server MUST include a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID and the Client Identifier option from the Rebind message in the Reply message. The server includes other options containing configuration information to be returned to the client as described in section 18.2. 18.2.5. Receipt of Information-request Messages When the server receives an Information-request message, the client is requesting configuration information that does not include the assignment of any addresses. The server determines all configuration parameters appropriate to the client, based on the server configuration policies known to the server. The server constructs a Reply message by setting the "msg-type" field to REPLY, and copying the transaction ID from the Information-request message into the transaction-id field. The server MUST include a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID in the Reply message. If the client included a Client Identification option in the Information-request message, the server copies that option to the Reply message. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 52] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 The server includes options containing configuration information to be returned to the client as described in section 18.2. If the Information-request message received from the client did not include a Client Identifier option, the server SHOULD respond with a Reply message containing any configuration parameters that are not determined by the client's identity. If the server chooses not to respond, the client may continue to retransmit the Information-request message indefinitely. 18.2.6. Receipt of Release Messages When the server receives a Release message via unicast from a client to which the server has not sent a unicast option, the server discards the Release message and responds with a Reply message containing a Status Code option with value UseMulticast, a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID, the Client Identifier option from the client message, and no other options. Upon the receipt of a valid Release message, the server examines the IAs and the addresses in the IAs for validity. If the IAs in the message are in a binding for the client, and the addresses in the IAs have been assigned by the server to those IAs, the server deletes the addresses from the IAs and makes the addresses available for assignment to other clients. The server ignores addresses not assigned to the IA, although it may choose to log an error. After all the addresses have been processed, the server generates a Reply message and includes a Status Code option with value Success, a Server Identifier option with the server's DUID, and a Client Identifier option with the client's DUID. For each IA in the Release message for which the server has no binding information, the server adds an IA option using the IAID from the Release message, and includes a Status Code option with the value NoBinding in the IA option. No other options are included in the IA option. A server may choose to retain a record of assigned addresses and IAs after the lifetimes on the addresses have expired to allow the server to reassign the previously assigned addresses to a client. 18.2.7. Receipt of Decline Messages When the server receives a Decline message via unicast from a client to which the server has not sent a unicast option, the server discards the Decline message and responds with a Reply message containing a Status Code option with the value UseMulticast, a Server Identifier option containing the server's DUID, the Client Identifier option from the client message, and no other options. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 53] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 Upon the receipt of a valid Decline message, the server examines the IAs and the addresses in the IAs for validity. If the IAs in the message are in a binding for the client, and the addresses in the IAs have been assigned by the server to those IAs, the server deletes the addresses from the IAs. The server ignores addresses not assigned to the IA (though it may choose to log an error if it finds such an address). The client has found any addresses in the Decline messages to be already in use on its link. Therefore, the server SHOULD mark the addresses declined by the client so that those addresses are not assigned to other clients, and MAY choose to make a notification that addresses were declined. Local policy on the server determines when the addresses identified in a Decline message may be made available for assignment. After all the addresses have been processed, the server generates a Reply message and includes a Status Code option with the value Success, a Server Identifier option with the server's DUID, and a Client Identifier option with the client's DUID. For each IA in the Decline message for which the server has no binding information, the server adds an IA option using the IAID from the Release message and includes a Status Code option with the value NoBinding in the IA option. No other options are included in the IA option. 18.2.8. Transmission of Reply Messages If the original message was received directly by the server, the server unicasts the Reply message directly to the client using the address in the source address field from the IP datagram in which the original message was received. The Reply message MUST be unicast through the interface on which the original message was received. If the original message was received in a Relay-forward message, the server constructs a Relay-reply message with the Reply message in the payload of a Relay Message option (see section 22.10). If the Relay-forward messages included an Interface-id option, the server copies that option to the Relay-reply message. The server unicasts the Relay-reply message directly to the relay agent using the address in the source address field from the IP datagram in which the Relay-forward message was received. 19. DHCP Server-Initiated Configuration Exchange A server initiates a configuration exchange to cause DHCP clients to obtain new addresses and other configuration information. For example, an administrator may use a server-initiated configuration exchange when links in the DHCP domain are to be renumbered. Other Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 54] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 examples include changes in the location of directory servers, addition of new services such as printing, and availability of new software. 19.1. Server Behavior A server sends a Reconfigure message to cause a client to initiate immediately a Renew/Reply or Information-request/Reply message exchange with the server. 19.1.1. Creation and Transmission of Reconfigure Messages The server sets the "msg-type" field to RECONFIGURE. The server sets the transaction-id field to 0. The server includes a Server Identifier option containing its DUID and a Client Identifier option containing the client's DUID in the Reconfigure message. The server MAY include an Option Request option to inform the client of what information has been changed or new information that has been added. In particular, the server specifies the IA option in the Option Request option if the server wants the client to obtain new address information. If the server identifies the IA option in the Option Request option, the server MUST include an IA option that contains no other sub-options to identify each IA that is to be reconfigured on the client. Because of the risk of denial of service attacks against DHCP clients, the use of a security mechanism is mandated in Reconfigure messages. The server MUST use DHCP authentication in the Reconfigure message. The server MUST include a Reconfigure Message option (defined in section 22.19) to select whether the client responds with a Renew message or an Information-Request message. The server MUST NOT include any other options in the Reconfigure except as specifically allowed in the definition of individual options. A server sends each Reconfigure message to a single DHCP client, using an IPv6 unicast address of sufficient scope belonging to the DHCP client. If the server does not have an address to which it can send the Reconfigure message directly to the client, the server uses a Relay-reply message (as described in section 20.3) to send the Reconfigure message to a relay agent that will relay the message to the client. The server may obtain the address of the client (and the Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 55] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 appropriate relay agent, if required) through the information the server has about clients that have been in contact with the server, or through some external agent. To reconfigure more than one client, the server unicasts a separate message to each client. The server may initiate the reconfiguration of multiple clients concurrently; for example, a server may send a Reconfigure message to additional clients while previous reconfiguration message exchanges are still in progress. The Reconfigure message causes the client to initiate a Renew/Reply or Information-request/Reply message exchange with the server. The server interprets the receipt of a Renew or Information-request message (whichever was specified in the original Reconfigure message) from the client as satisfying the Reconfigure message request. 19.1.2. Time Out and Retransmission of Reconfigure Messages If the server does not receive a Renew or Information-request message from the client in REC_TIMEOUT milliseconds, the server retransmits the Reconfigure message, doubles the REC_TIMEOUT value and waits again. The server continues this process until REC_MAX_RC unsuccessful attempts have been made, at which point the server SHOULD abort the reconfigure process for that client. Default and initial values for REC_TIMEOUT and REC_MAX_RC are documented in section 5.5. 19.2. Receipt of Renew Messages The server generates and sends a Reply message to the client as described in sections 18.2.3 and 18.2.8, including options for configuration parameters. The server MAY include options containing the IAs and new values for other configuration parameters in the Reply message, even if those IAs and parameters were not requested in the Renew message from the client. 19.3. Receipt of Information-request Messages The server generates and sends a Reply message to the client as described in sections 18.2.5 and 18.2.8, including options for configuration parameters. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 56] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 The server MAY include options containing new values for other configuration parameters in the Reply message, even if those parameters were not requested in the Information-request message from the client. 19.4. Client Behavior A client receives Reconfigure messages sent to the UDP port 546 on interfaces for which it has acquired configuration information through DHCP. These messages may be sent at any time. Since the results of a reconfiguration event may affect application layer programs, the client SHOULD log these events, and MAY notify these programs of the change through an implementation-specific interface. 19.4.1. Receipt of Reconfigure Messages Upon receipt of a valid Reconfigure message, the client responds with either a Renew message or an Information-request message as indicated by the Reconfigure Message option (as defined in section 22.19). The client ignores the transaction-id field in the received Reconfigure message. While the transaction is in progress, the client silently discards any Reconfigure messages it receives. DISCUSSION: The Reconfigure message acts as a trigger that signals the client to complete a successful message exchange. Once the client has received a Reconfigure, the client proceeds with the message exchange (retransmitting the Renew or Information-request message if necessary); the client ignores any additional Reconfigure messages until the exchange is complete. Subsequent Reconfigure messages cause the client to initiate a new exchange. How does this mechanism work in the face of duplicated or retransmitted Reconfigure messages? Duplicate messages will be ignored because the client will begin the exchange after the receipt of the first Reconfigure. Retransmitted messages will either trigger the exchange (if the first Reconfigure was not received by the client) or will be ignored. The server can discontinue retransmission of Reconfigure messages to the client once the server receives the Renew or Information-request message from the client. It might be possible for a duplicate or retransmitted Reconfigure to be sufficiently delayed (and delivered out of order) to arrive at the client after the exchange (initiated by the original Reconfigure) has been completed. In this case, the client would initiate a redundant exchange. The likelihood of delayed and out Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 57] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 of order delivery is small enough to be ignored. The consequence of the redundant exchange is inefficiency rather than incorrect operation. 19.4.2. Creation and Transmission of Renew Messages When responding to a Reconfigure, the client creates and sends the Renew message in exactly the same manner as outlined in section 18.1.3, with the exception that the client copies the Option Request option and any IA options from the Reconfigure message into the Renew message. 19.4.3. Creation and Transmission of Information-request Messages When responding to a Reconfigure, the client creates and sends the Information-request message in exactly the same manner as outlined in section 18.1.5, with the exception that the client includes a Server Identifier option with the identifier from the Reconfigure message to which the client is responding. 19.4.4. Time Out and Retransmission of Renew or Information-request Messages The client uses the same variables and retransmission algorithm as it does with Renew or Information-request messages generated as part of a client-initiated configuration exchange. See sections 18.1.3 and 18.1.5 for details. If the client does not receive a response from the server by the end of the retransmission process, the client ignores and discards the Reconfigure message. 19.4.5. Receipt of Reply Messages Upon the receipt of a valid Reply message, the client processes the options and sets (or resets) configuration parameters appropriately. The client records and updates the lifetimes for any addresses specified in IAs in the Reply message. 20. Relay Agent Behavior The relay agent MAY be configured to use a list of destination addresses, which MAY include unicast addresses, the All_DHCP_Servers multicast address, or other addresses selected by the network administrator. If the relay agent has not been explicitly configured, it MUST use the All_DHCP_Servers multicast address as the default. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 58] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 If the relay agent relays messages to the All_DHCP_Servers multicast address or other multicast addresses, it sets the Hop Limit field to 32. 20.1. Relaying a Client Message or a Relay-forward Message A relay agent relays both messages from clients and Relay-forward messages from other relay agents. When a relay agent receives a valid message to be relayed, it constructs a new Relay-forward message. The relay agent copies the source address from the header of the IP datagram in which the message was received to the peer-address field of the Relay-forward message. The relay agent copies the received DHCP message (excluding any IP or UDP headers) into a Relay Message option in the new message. The relay agent adds to the Relay-forward message any other options it is configured to include. 20.1.1. Relaying a Message from a Client If the relay agent received the message to be relayed from a client, the relay agent places a global or site-scoped address with a prefix assigned to the link on which the client should be assigned an address in the link-address field. This address will be used by the server to determine the link from which the client should be assigned an address and other configuration information. The hop-count in the Relay-forward message is set to 0. If the relay agent cannot use the address in the link-address field to identify the interface through which the response to the client will be relayed, the relay agent MUST include an Interface-id option (see section 22.18) in the Relay-forward message. The server will include the Interface-id option in its Relay-reply message. The relay agent fills in the link-address field as described in the previous paragraph regardless of whether the relay agent includes an Interface-id option in the Relay-forward message. 20.1.2. Relaying a Message from a Relay Agent If the message received by the relay agent is a Relay-forward message and the hop-count in the message is greater than or equal to HOP_COUNT_LIMIT, the relay agent discards the received message. The relay agent copies the source address from the IP datagram in which the message was received from the client into the peer-address field in the Relay-forward message and sets the hop-count field to the value of the hop-count field in the received message incremented by 1. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 59] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 If the source address from the IP datagram header of the received message is a global or site-local address (and the device on which the relay agent is running belongs to only one site), the relay agent sets the link-address field to 0; otherwise the relay agent sets the link-address field to a global or site-local address assigned to the interface on which the message was received, or includes an Interface-ID option to identify the interface on which the message was received. 20.2. Relaying a Relay-reply Message The relay agent processes any options included in the Relay-reply message in addition to the Relay Message option, and then discards those options. The relay agent extracts the message from the Relay Message option and relays it to the address contained in the peer-address field of the Relay-reply message. If the Relay-reply message includes an Interface-id option, the relay agent relays the message from the server to the client on the link identified by the Interface-id option. Otherwise, if the link-address field is not set to zero, the relay agent relays the message on the link identified by the link-address field. 20.3. Construction of Relay-reply Messages A server uses a Relay-reply message to return a response to a client if the original message from the client was relayed to the server in a Relay-forward message or to send a Reconfigure message to a client if the server does not have an address it can use to send the message directly to the client. A response to the client MUST be relayed through the same relay agents as the original client message. The server causes this to happen by creating a Relay-reply message that includes a Relay Message option containing the message for the next relay agent in the return path to the client. The contained Relay-reply message contains another Relay Message option to be sent to the next relay agent, and so on. The server must record the contents of the peer-address fields in the received message so it can construct the appropriate Relay-reply message carrying the response from the server. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 60] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 For example, if client C sent a message that was relayed by relay agent A to relay agent B and then to the server, the server would send the following Relay-Reply message to relay agent B: msg-type: RELAY-REPLY hop-count: 1 link-address: 0 peer-address: A Relay Message option, containing: msg-type: RELAY-REPLY hop-count: 0 link-address: address from link to which C is attached peer-address: C Relay Message option: <response from server> When sending a Reconfigure message to a client through a relay agent, the server creates a Relay-reply message that includes a Relay Message option containing the Reconfigure message for the next relay agent in the return path to the client. The server sets the peer-address field in the Relay-reply message header to the address of the client, and sets the link-address field as required by the relay agent to relay the Reconfigure message to the client. The server obtains the addresses of the client and the relay agent through prior interaction with the client or through some external mechanism. 21. Authentication of DHCP Messages Some network administrators may wish to provide authentication of the source and contents of DHCP messages. For example, clients may be subject to denial of service attacks through the use of bogus DHCP servers, or may simply be misconfigured due to unintentionally instantiated DHCP servers. Network administrators may wish to constrain the allocation of addresses to authorized hosts to avoid denial of service attacks in "hostile" environments where the network medium is not physically secured, such as wireless networks or college residence halls. The DHCP authentication mechanism is based on the design of authentication for DHCPv4 [4]. 21.1. Security of Messages Sent Between Servers and Relay Agents Relay agents and servers that exchange messages securely use the IPsec mechanisms for IPv6 [7]. If a client message is relayed through multiple relay agents, each of the relay agents must have established independent, pairwise trust relationships. That is, if messages from client C will be relayed by relay agent A to relay Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 61] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 agent B and then to the server, relay agents A and B must be configured to use IPSec for the messages they exchange, and relay agent B and the server must be configured to use IPSec for the messages they exchange. Relay agents and servers that support secure relay agent to server or relay agent to relay agent communication use IPsec under the following conditions: Selectors Relay agents are manually configured with the addresses of the relay agent or server to which DHCP messages are to be forwarded. Each relay agent and server that will be using IPsec for securing DHCP messages must also be configured with a list of the relay agents to which messages will be returned. The selectors for the relay agents and servers will be the pairs of addresses defining relay agents and servers that exchange DHCP messages on the DHCPv6 UDP ports 546 and 547. Mode Relay agents and servers use transport mode and ESP. The information in DHCP messages is not generally considered confidential, so encryption need not be used (i.e., NULL encryption can be used). Key management Because the relay agents and servers are used within an organization, public key schemes are not necessary. Because the relay agents and servers must be manually configured, manually configured key management may suffice, but does not provide defense against replayed messages. Accordingly, IKE with preshared secrets SHOULD be supported. IKE with public keys MAY be supported. Security policy DHCP messages between relay agents and servers should only be accepted from DHCP peers as identified in the local configuration. Authentication Shared keys, indexed to the source IP address of the received DHCP message, are adequate in this application. Availability Appropriate IPsec implementations are likely to be available for servers and for relay agents in more featureful devices used in enterprise and Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 62] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 core ISP networks. IPsec is less likely to be available for relay agents in low end devices primarily used in the home or small office markets. 21.2. Summary of DHCP Authentication Authentication of DHCP messages is accomplished through the use of the Authentication option (see section 22.11). The authentication information carried in the Authentication option can be used to reliably identify the source of a DHCP message and to confirm that the contents of the DHCP message have not been tampered with. The Authentication option provides a framework for multiple authentication protocols. Two such protocols are defined here. Other protocols defined in the future will be specified in separate documents. Any DHCP message MUST NOT include more than one Authentication option. The protocol field in the Authentication option identifies the specific protocol used to generate the authentication information carried in the option. The algorithm field identifies a specific algorithm within the authentication protocol; for example, the algorithm field specifies the hash algorithm used to generate the message authentication code (MAC) in the authentication option. The replay detection method (RDM) field specifies the type of replay detection used in the replay detection field. 21.3. Replay Detection The Replay Detection Method (RDM) field determines the type of replay detection used in the Replay Detection field. If the RDM field contains 0x00, the replay detection field MUST be set to the value of a monotonically increasing counter. Using a counter value, such as the current time of day (for example, an NTP- format timestamp [9]), can reduce the danger of replay attacks. This method MUST be supported by all protocols. 21.4. Delayed Authentication Protocol If the protocol field is 2, the message is using the "delayed authentication" mechanism. In delayed authentication, the client requests authentication in its Solicit message, and the server replies with an Advertise message that includes authentication Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 63] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 information. This authentication information contains a nonce value generated by the source as a message authentication code (MAC) to provide message authentication and entity authentication. The use of a particular technique based on the HMAC protocol [8] using the MD5 hash [16] is defined here. 21.4.1. Use of the Authentication Option in the Delayed Authentication Protocol In a Solicit message, the client fills in the protocol, algorithm and RDM fields in the Authentication option with the client's preferences. The client sets the replay detection field to zero and omits the authentication information field. The client sets the option-len field to 11. In all other messages, the protocol and algorithm fields identify the method used to construct the contents of the authentication information field. The RDM field identifies the method used to construct the contents of the replay detection field. The format of the Authentication information is: 0 1 2 3 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 +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | DHCP realm | | (variable length) | . . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | key ID | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | | HMAC-MD5 | | (128 bits) | | | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ DHCP realm The DHCP realm that identifies the key used to generate the HMAC-MD5 value. key ID The key identifier that identified the key used to generate the HMAC-MD5 value. HMAC-MD5 The message authentication code generated by applying MD5 to the DHCP message using the key identified by the DHCP realm, client DUID, and key ID. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 64] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 The sender computes the MAC using the HMAC generation algorithm [8] and the MD5 hash function [16]. The entire DHCP message (setting the MAC field of the authentication option to zero), including the DHCP message header and the options field, is used as input to the HMAC- MD5 computation function. DISCUSSION: Algorithm 1 specifies the use of HMAC-MD5. Use of a different technique, such as HMAC-SHA, will be specified as a separate protocol. The DHCP realm used to identify authentication keys is chosen to be unique among administrative domains. Use of the DHCP realm allows DHCP administrators to avoid conflict in the use of key identifiers, and allows a host using DHCP to use authenticated DHCP while roaming among DHCP administrative domains. 21.4.2. Message Validation Any DHCP message that includes more than one authentication option MUST be discarded. To validate an incoming message, the receiver first checks that the value in the replay detection field is acceptable according to the replay detection method specified by the RDM field. Next, the receiver computes the MAC as described in [8]. The entire DHCP message (setting the MAC field of the authentication option to 0) is used as input to the HMAC-MD5 computation function. If the MAC computed by the receiver does not match the MAC contained in the authentication option, the receiver MUST discard the DHCP message. 21.4.3. Key Utilization Each DHCP client has a set of keys. Each key is identified by <DHCP realm, client DUID, key id>. Each key also has a lifetime. The key may not be used past the end of its lifetime. The client's keys are initially distributed to the client through some out-of-band mechanism. The lifetime for each key is distributed with the key. Mechanisms for key distribution and lifetime specification are beyond the scope of this document. The client and server use one of the client's keys to authenticate DHCP messages during a session (until the next Solicit message sent by the client). Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 65] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 21.4.4. Client Considerations for Delayed Authentication Protocol The client announces its intention to use DHCP authentication by including an Authentication option in its Solicit message. The server selects a key for the client based on the client's DUID. The client and server use that key to authenticate all DHCP messages exchanged during the session. 21.4.4.1. Sending Solicit Messages When the client sends a Solicit message and wishes to use authentication, it includes an Authentication option with the desired protocol, algorithm and RDM as described in section 21.4. The client does not include any replay detection or authentication information in the Authentication option. 21.4.4.2. Receiving Advertise Messages The client validates any Advertise messages containing an Authentication option specifying the delayed authentication protocol using the validation test described in section 21.4.2. Client behavior, if no Advertise messages include authentication information or pass the validation test, is controlled by local policy on the client. According to client policy, the client MAY choose to respond to an Advertise message that has not been authenticated. The decision to set local policy to accept unauthenticated messages should be made with care. Accepting an unauthenticated Advertise message can make the client vulnerable to spoofing and other attacks. If local users are not explicitly informed that the client has accepted an unauthenticated Advertise message, the users may incorrectly assume that the client has received an authenticated address and is not subject to DHCP attacks through unauthenticated messages. A client MUST be configurable to discard unauthenticated messages, and SHOULD be configured by default to discard unauthenticated messages if the client has been configured with an authentication key or other authentication information. A client MAY choose to differentiate between Advertise messages with no authentication information and Advertise messages that do not pass the validation test; for example, a client might accept the former and discard the latter. If a client does accept an unauthenticated message, the client SHOULD inform any local users and SHOULD log the event. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 66] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 21.4.4.3. Sending Request, Confirm, Renew, Rebind, Decline or Release Messages If the client authenticated the Advertise message through which the client selected the server, the client MUST generate authentication information for subsequent Request, Confirm, Renew, Rebind or Release messages sent to the server, as described in section 21.4. When the client sends a subsequent message, it MUST use the same key used by the server to generate the authentication information. 21.4.4.4. Sending Information-request Messages If the server has selected a key for the client in a previous message exchange (see section 21.4.5.1), the client MUST use the same key to generate the authentication information throughout the session. 21.4.4.5. Receiving Reply Messages If the client authenticated the Advertise it accepted, the client MUST validate the associated Reply message from the server. The client MUST discard the Reply if the message fails to pass the validation test and MAY log the validation failure. If the Reply fails to pass the validation test, the client MUST restart the DHCP configuration process by sending a Solicit message. If the client accepted an Advertise message that did not include authentication information or did not pass the validation test, the client MAY accept an unauthenticated Reply message from the server. 21.4.4.6. Receiving Reconfigure Messages The client MUST discard the Reconfigure if the message fails to pass the validation test and MAY log the validation failure. 21.4.5. Server Considerations for Delayed Authentication Protocol After receiving a Solicit message that contains an Authentication option, the server selects a key for the client, based on the client's DUID and key selection policies with which the server has been configured. The server identifies the selected key in the Advertise message and uses the key to validate subsequent messages between the client and the server. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 67] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 21.4.5.1. Receiving Solicit Messages and Sending Advertise Messages The server selects a key for the client and includes authentication information in the Advertise message returned to the client as specified in section 21.4. The server MUST record the identifier of the key selected for the client and use that same key for validating subsequent messages with the client. 21.4.5.2. Receiving Request, Confirm, Renew, Rebind or Release Messages and Sending Reply Messages The server uses the key identified in the message and validates the message as specified in section 21.4.2. If the message fails to pass the validation test or the server does not know the key identified by the 'key ID' field, the server MUST discard the message and MAY choose to log the validation failure. If the message passes the validation test, the server responds to the specific message as described in section 18.2. The server MUST include authentication information generated using the key identified in the received message, as specified in section 21.4. 21.5. Reconfigure Key Authentication Protocol The Reconfigure key authentication protocol provides protection against misconfiguration of a client caused by a Reconfigure message sent by a malicious DHCP server. In this protocol, a DHCP server sends a Reconfigure Key to the client in the initial exchange of DHCP messages. The client records the Reconfigure Key for use in authenticating subsequent Reconfigure messages from that server. The server then includes an HMAC computed from the Reconfigure Key in subsequent Reconfigure messages. Both the Reconfigure Key sent from the server to the client and the HMAC in subsequent Reconfigure messages are carried as the Authentication information in an Authentication option. The format of the Authentication information is defined in the following section. The Reconfigure Key protocol is used (initiated by the server) only if the client and server are not using any other authentication protocol and the client and server have negotiated to use Reconfigure messages. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 68] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 21.5.1. Use of the Authentication Option in the Reconfigure Key Authentication Protocol The following fields are set in an Authentication option for the Reconfigure Key Authentication Protocol: protocol 3 algorithm 1 RDM 0 The format of the Authentication information for the Reconfigure Key Authentication Protocol is: 0 1 2 3 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 +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | Type | Value (128 bits) | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | . . . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ Type Type of data in Value field carried in this option: 1 Reconfigure Key value (used in Reply message). 2 HMAC-MD5 digest of the message (used in Reconfigure message). Value Data as defined by field. 21.5.2. Server considerations for Reconfigure Key protocol The server selects a Reconfigure Key for a client during the Request/Reply, Solicit/Reply or Information-request/Reply message exchange. The server records the Reconfigure Key and transmits that key to the client in an Authentication option in the Reply message. The Reconfigure Key is 128 bits long, and MUST be a cryptographically strong random or pseudo-random number that cannot easily be predicted. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 69] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 To provide authentication for a Reconfigure message, the server selects a replay detection value according to the RDM selected by the server, and computes an HMAC-MD5 of the Reconfigure message using the Reconfigure Key for the client. The server computes the HMAC-MD5 over the entire DHCP Reconfigure message, including the Authentication option; the HMAC-MD5 field in the Authentication option is set to zero for the HMAC-MD5 computation. The server includes the HMAC-MD5 in the authentication information field in an Authentication option included in the Reconfigure message sent to the client. 21.5.3. Client considerations for Reconfigure Key protocol The client will receive a Reconfigure Key from the server in the initial Reply message from the server. The client records the Reconfigure Key for use in authenticating subsequent Reconfigure messages. To authenticate a Reconfigure message, the client computes an HMAC-MD5 over the DHCP Reconfigure message, using the Reconfigure Key received from the server. If this computed HMAC-MD5 matches the value in the Authentication option, the client accepts the Reconfigure message. 22. DHCP Options Options are used to carry additional information and parameters in DHCP messages. Every option shares a common base format, as described in section 22.1. All values in options are represented in network byte order. This document describes the DHCP options defined as part of the base DHCP specification. Other options may be defined in the future in separate documents. Unless otherwise noted, each option may appear only in the options area of a DHCP message and may appear only once. If an option does appear multiple times, each instance is considered separate and the data areas of the options MUST NOT be concatenated or otherwise combined. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 70] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 22.1. Format of DHCP Options The format of DHCP options is: 0 1 2 3 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-code | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | option-data | | (option-len octets) | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code An unsigned integer identifying the specific option type carried in this option. option-len An unsigned integer giving the length of the option-data field in this option in octets. option-data The data for the option; the format of this data depends on the definition of the option. DHCPv6 options are scoped by using encapsulation. Some options apply generally to the client, some are specific to an IA, and some are specific to the addresses within an IA. These latter two cases are discussed in sections 22.4 and 22.6. 22.2. Client Identifier Option The Client Identifier option is used to carry a DUID (see section 9) identifying a client between a client and a server. The format of the Client Identifier option is: 0 1 2 3 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_CLIENTID | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ . . . DUID . . (variable length) . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_CLIENTID (1). option-len Length of DUID in octets. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 71] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 DUID The DUID for the client. 22.3. Server Identifier Option The Server Identifier option is used to carry a DUID (see section 9) identifying a server between a client and a server. The format of the Server Identifier option is: 0 1 2 3 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_SERVERID | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ . . . DUID . . (variable length) . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_SERVERID (2). option-len Length of DUID in octets. DUID The DUID for the server. 22.4. Identity Association for Non-temporary Addresses Option The Identity Association for Non-temporary Addresses option (IA_NA option) is used to carry an IA_NA, the parameters associated with the IA_NA, and the non-temporary addresses associated with the IA_NA. Addresses appearing in an IA_NA option are not temporary addresses (see section 22.5). Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 72] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 The format of the IA_NA option is: 0 1 2 3 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_IA_NA | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | IAID (4 octets) | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | T1 | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | T2 | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | . IA_NA-options . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_IA_NA (3). option-len 12 + length of IA_NA-options field. IAID The unique identifier for this IA_NA; the IAID must be unique among the identifiers for all of this client's IA_NAs. The number space for IA_NA IAIDs is separate from the number space for IA_TA IAIDs. T1 The time at which the client contacts the server from which the addresses in the IA_NA were obtained to extend the lifetimes of the addresses assigned to the IA_NA; T1 is a time duration relative to the current time expressed in units of seconds. T2 The time at which the client contacts any available server to extend the lifetimes of the addresses assigned to the IA_NA; T2 is a time duration relative to the current time expressed in units of seconds. IA_NA-options Options associated with this IA_NA. The IA_NA-options field encapsulates those options that are specific to this IA_NA. For example, all of the IA Address Options carrying the addresses associated with this IA_NA are in the IA_NA-options field. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 73] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 An IA_NA option may only appear in the options area of a DHCP message. A DHCP message may contain multiple IA_NA options. The status of any operations involving this IA_NA is indicated in a Status Code option in the IA_NA-options field. Note that an IA_NA has no explicit "lifetime" or "lease length" of its own. When the valid lifetimes of all of the addresses in an IA_NA have expired, the IA_NA can be considered as having expired. T1 and T2 are included to give servers explicit control over when a client recontacts the server about a specific IA_NA. In a message sent by a client to a server, values in the T1 and T2 fields indicate the client's preference for those parameters. The client sets T1 and T2 to 0 if it has no preference for those values. In a message sent by a server to a client, the client MUST use the values in the T1 and T2 fields for the T1 and T2 parameters, unless those values in those fields are 0. The values in the T1 and T2 fields are the number of seconds until T1 and T2. The server selects the T1 and T2 times to allow the client to extend the lifetimes of any addresses in the IA_NA before the lifetimes expire, even if the server is unavailable for some short period of time. Recommended values for T1 and T2 are .5 and .8 times the shortest preferred lifetime of the addresses in the IA that the server is willing to extend, respectively. If the "shortest" preferred lifetime is 0xffffffff ("infinity"), the recommended T1 and T2 values are also 0xffffffff. If the time at which the addresses in an IA_NA are to be renewed is to be left to the discretion of the client, the server sets T1 and T2 to 0. If a server receives an IA_NA with T1 greater than T2, and both T1 and T2 are greater than 0, the server ignores the invalid values of T1 and T2 and processes the IA_NA as though the client had set T1 and T2 to 0. If a client receives an IA_NA with T1 greater than T2, and both T1 and T2 are greater than 0, the client discards the IA_NA option and processes the remainder of the message as though the server had not included the invalid IA_NA option. Care should be taken in setting T1 or T2 to 0xffffffff ("infinity"). A client will never attempt to extend the lifetimes of any addresses in an IA with T1 set to 0xffffffff. A client will never attempt to use a Rebind message to locate a different server to extend the lifetimes of any addresses in an IA with T2 set to 0xffffffff. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 74] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 22.5. Identity Association for Temporary Addresses Option The Identity Association for the Temporary Addresses (IA_TA) option is used to carry an IA_TA, the parameters associated with the IA_TA and the addresses associated with the IA_TA. All of the addresses in this option are used by the client as temporary addresses, as defined in RFC 3041 [12]. The format of the IA_TA option is: 0 1 2 3 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_IA_TA | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | IAID (4 octets) | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | . IA_TA-options . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_IA_TA (4). option-len 4 + length of IA_TA-options field. IAID The unique identifier for this IA_TA; the IAID must be unique among the identifiers for all of this client's IA_TAs. The number space for IA_TA IAIDs is separate from the number space for IA_NA IAIDs. IA_TA-options Options associated with this IA_TA. The IA_TA-Options field encapsulates those options that are specific to this IA_TA. For example, all of the IA Address Options carrying the addresses associated with this IA_TA are in the IA_TA-options field. Each IA_TA carries one "set" of temporary addresses; that is, at most one address from each prefix assigned to the link to which the client is attached. An IA_TA option may only appear in the options area of a DHCP message. A DHCP message may contain multiple IA_TA options. The status of any operations involving this IA_TA is indicated in a Status Code option in the IA_TA-options field. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 75] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 Note that an IA has no explicit "lifetime" or "lease length" of its own. When the valid lifetimes of all of the addresses in an IA_TA have expired, the IA can be considered as having expired. An IA_TA option does not include values for T1 and T2. A client MAY request that the lifetimes on temporary addresses be extended by including the addresses in a IA_TA option sent in a Renew or Rebind message to a server. For example, a client would request an extension on the lifetime of a temporary address to allow an application to continue to use an established TCP connection. The client obtains new temporary addresses by sending an IA_TA option with a new IAID to a server. Requesting new temporary addresses from the server is the equivalent of generating new temporary addresses as described in RFC 3041. The server will generate new temporary addresses and return them to the client. The client should request new temporary addresses before the lifetimes on the previously assigned addresses expire. A server MUST return the same set of temporary address for the same IA_TA (as identified by the IAID) as long as those addresses are still valid. After the lifetimes of the addresses in an IA_TA have expired, the IAID may be reused to identify a new IA_TA with new temporary addresses. This option MAY appear in a Confirm message if the lifetimes on the temporary addresses in the associated IA have not expired. 22.6. IA Address Option The IA Address option is used to specify IPv6 addresses associated with an IA_NA or an IA_TA. The IA Address option must be encapsulated in the Options field of an IA_NA or IA_TA option. The Options field encapsulates those options that are specific to this address. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 76] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 The format of the IA Address option is: 0 1 2 3 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_IAADDR | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | | IPv6 address | | | | | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | preferred-lifetime | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | valid-lifetime | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ . . . IAaddr-options . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_IAADDR (5). option-len 24 + length of IAaddr-options field. IPv6 address An IPv6 address. preferred-lifetime The preferred lifetime for the IPv6 address in the option, expressed in units of seconds. valid-lifetime The valid lifetime for the IPv6 address in the option, expressed in units of seconds. IAaddr-options Options associated with this address. In a message sent by a client to a server, values in the preferred and valid lifetime fields indicate the client's preference for those parameters. The client may send 0 if it has no preference for the preferred and valid lifetimes. In a message sent by a server to a client, the client MUST use the values in the preferred and valid lifetime fields for the preferred and valid lifetimes. The values in the preferred and valid lifetimes are the number of seconds remaining in each lifetime. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 77] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 A client discards any addresses for which the preferred lifetime is greater than the valid lifetime. A server ignores the lifetimes set by the client if the preferred lifetime is greater than the valid lifetime and ignores the values for T1 and T2 set by the client if those values are greater than the preferred lifetime. Care should be taken in setting the valid lifetime of an address to 0xffffffff ("infinity"), which amounts to a permanent assignment of an address to a client. An IA Address option may appear only in an IA_NA option or an IA_TA option. More than one IA Address Option can appear in an IA_NA option or an IA_TA option. The status of any operations involving this IA Address is indicated in a Status Code option in the IAaddr-options field. 22.7. Option Request Option The Option Request option is used to identify a list of options in a message between a client and a server. The format of the Option Request option is: 0 1 2 3 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_ORO | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | requested-option-code-1 | requested-option-code-2 | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | ... | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_ORO (6). option-len 2 * number of requested options. requested-option-code-n The option code for an option requested by the client. A client MAY include an Option Request option in a Solicit, Request, Renew, Rebind, Confirm or Information-request message to inform the server about options the client wants the server to send to the client. A server MAY include an Option Request option in a Reconfigure option to indicate which options the client should request from the server. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 78] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 22.8. Preference Option The Preference option is sent by a server to a client to affect the selection of a server by the client. The format of the Preference option is: 0 1 2 3 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_PREFERENCE | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | pref-value | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_PREFERENCE (7). option-len 1. pref-value The preference value for the server in this message. A server MAY include a Preference option in an Advertise message to control the selection of a server by the client. See section 17.1.3 for the use of the Preference option by the client and the interpretation of Preference option data value. 22.9. Elapsed Time Option 0 1 2 3 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_ELAPSED_TIME | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | elapsed-time | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_ELAPSED_TIME (8). option-len 2. elapsed-time The amount of time since the client began its current DHCP transaction. This time is expressed in hundredths of a second (10^-2 seconds). A client MUST include an Elapsed Time option in messages to indicate how long the client has been trying to complete a DHCP message exchange. The elapsed time is measured from the time at which the client sent the first message in the message exchange, and the Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 79] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 elapsed-time field is set to 0 in the first message in the message exchange. Servers and Relay Agents use the data value in this option as input to policy controlling how a server responds to a client message. For example, the elapsed time option allows a secondary DHCP server to respond to a request when a primary server has not answered in a reasonable time. The elapsed time value is an unsigned, 16 bit integer. The client uses the value 0xffff to represent any elapsed time values greater than the largest time value that can be represented in the Elapsed Time option. 22.10. Relay Message Option The Relay Message option carries a DHCP message in a Relay-forward or Relay-reply message. The format of the Relay Message option is: 0 1 2 3 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_RELAY_MSG | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | . DHCP-relay-message . . . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_RELAY_MSG (9) option-len Length of DHCP-relay-message DHCP-relay-message In a Relay-forward message, the received message, relayed verbatim to the next relay agent or server; in a Relay-reply message, the message to be copied and relayed to the relay agent or client whose address is in the peer-address field of the Relay-reply message Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 80] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 22.11. Authentication Option The Authentication option carries authentication information to authenticate the identity and contents of DHCP messages. The use of the Authentication option is described in section 21. The format of the Authentication option is: 0 1 2 3 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_AUTH | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | protocol | algorithm | RDM | | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | | | replay detection (64 bits) +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | auth-info | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | . authentication information . . (variable length) . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_AUTH (11) option-len 11 + length of authentication information field protocol The authentication protocol used in this authentication option algorithm The algorithm used in the authentication protocol RDM The replay detection method used in this authentication option Replay detection The replay detection information for the RDM authentication information The authentication information, as specified by the protocol and algorithm used in this authentication option Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 81] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 22.12. Server Unicast Option The server sends this option to a client to indicate to the client that it is allowed to unicast messages to the server. The format of the Server Unicast option is: 0 1 2 3 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_UNICAST | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | | | server-address | | | | | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_UNICAST (12). option-len 16. server-address The IP address to which the client should send messages delivered using unicast. The server specifies the IPv6 address to which the client is to send unicast messages in the server-address field. When a client receives this option, where permissible and appropriate, the client sends messages directly to the server using the IPv6 address specified in the server-address field of the option. When the server sends a Unicast option to the client, some messages from the client will not be relayed by Relay Agents, and will not include Relay Agent options from the Relay Agents. Therefore, a server should only send a Unicast option to a client when Relay Agents are not sending Relay Agent options. A DHCP server rejects any messages sent inappropriately using unicast to ensure that messages are relayed by Relay Agents when Relay Agent options are in use. Details about when the client may send messages to the server using unicast are in section 18. 22.13. Status Code Option This option returns a status indication related to the DHCP message or option in which it appears. The format of the Status Code option is: Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 82] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 0 1 2 3 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_STATUS_CODE | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | status-code | | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | . . . status-message . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_STATUS_CODE (13). option-len 2 + length of status-message. status-code The numeric code for the status encoded in this option. The status codes are defined in section 24.4. status-message A UTF-8 encoded text string suitable for display to an end user, which MUST NOT be null-terminated. A Status Code option may appear in the options field of a DHCP message and/or in the options field of another option. If the Status Code option does not appear in a message in which the option could appear, the status of the message is assumed to be Success. 22.14. Rapid Commit Option The Rapid Commit option is used to signal the use of the two message exchange for address assignment. The format of the Rapid Commit option is: 0 1 2 3 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_RAPID_COMMIT | 0 | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_RAPID_COMMIT (14). option-len 0. A client MAY include this option in a Solicit message if the client is prepared to perform the Solicit-Reply message exchange described in section 17.1.1. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 83] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 A server MUST include this option in a Reply message sent in response to a Solicit message when completing the Solicit-Reply message exchange. DISCUSSION: Each server that responds with a Reply to a Solicit that includes a Rapid Commit option will commit the assigned addresses in the Reply message to the client, and will not receive any confirmation that the client has received the Reply message. Therefore, if more than one server responds to a Solicit that includes a Rapid Commit option, some servers will commit addresses that are not actually used by the client. The problem of unused addresses can be minimized, for example, by designing the DHCP service so that only one server responds to the Solicit or by using relatively short lifetimes for assigned addresses. 22.15. User Class Option The User Class option is used by a client to identify the type or category of user or applications it represents. The format of the User Class 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_USER_CLASS | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ . . . user-class-data . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_USER_CLASS (15). option-len Length of user class data field. user-class-data The user classes carried by the client. The information contained in the data area of this option is contained in one or more opaque fields that represent the user class or classes of which the client is a member. A server selects configuration information for the client based on the classes identified in this option. For example, the User Class option can be used to configure all clients of people in the accounting department Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 84] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 with a different printer than clients of people in the marketing department. The user class information carried in this option MUST be configurable on the client. The data area of the user class option MUST contain one or more instances of user class data. Each instance of the user class data is formatted as follows: +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-...-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | user-class-len | opaque-data | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-...-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ The user-class-len is two octets long and specifies the length of the opaque user class data in network byte order. A server interprets the classes identified in this option according to its configuration to select the appropriate configuration information for the client. A server may use only those user classes that it is configured to interpret in selecting configuration information for a client and ignore any other user classes. In response to a message containing a User Class option, a server includes a User Class option containing those classes that were successfully interpreted by the server, so that the client can be informed of the classes interpreted by the server. 22.16. Vendor Class Option This option is used by a client to identify the vendor that manufactured the hardware on which the client is running. The information contained in the data area of this option is contained in one or more opaque fields that identify details of the hardware configuration. The format of the Vendor Class 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_VENDOR_CLASS | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | enterprise-number | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ . . . vendor-class-data . . . . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_VENDOR_CLASS (16). option-len 4 + length of vendor class data field. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 85] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 enterprise-number The vendor's registered Enterprise Number as registered with IANA [6]. vendor-class-data The hardware configuration of the host on which the client is running. The vendor-class-data is composed of a series of separate items, each of which describes some characteristic of the client's hardware configuration. Examples of vendor-class-data instances might include the version of the operating system the client is running or the amount of memory installed on the client. Each instance of the vendor-class-data is formatted as follows: +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-...-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | vendor-class-len | opaque-data | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-...-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ The vendor-class-len is two octets long and specifies the length of the opaque vendor class data in network byte order. 22.17. Vendor-specific Information Option This option is used by clients and servers to exchange vendor-specific information. The format of the Vendor-specific Information 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_VENDOR_OPTS | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | enterprise-number | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ . . . option-data . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_VENDOR_OPTS (17) option-len 4 + length of option-data field enterprise-number The vendor's registered Enterprise Number as registered with IANA [6]. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 86] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 option-data An opaque object of option-len octets, interpreted by vendor-specific code on the clients and servers The definition of the information carried in this option is vendor specific. The vendor is indicated in the enterprise-number field. Use of vendor-specific information allows enhanced operation, utilizing additional features in a vendor's DHCP implementation. A DHCP client that does not receive requested vendor-specific information will still configure the host device's IPv6 stack to be functional. The encapsulated vendor-specific options field MUST be encoded as a sequence of code/length/value fields of identical format to the DHCP options field. The option codes are defined by the vendor identified in the enterprise-number field and are not managed by IANA. Each of the encapsulated options is formatted as follows: 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 +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | opt-code | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ . . . option-data . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ opt-code The code for the encapsulated option. option-len An unsigned integer giving the length of the option-data field in this encapsulated option in octets. option-data The data area for the encapsulated option. Multiple instances of the Vendor-specific Information option may appear in a DHCP message. Each instance of the option is interpreted according to the option codes defined by the vendor identified by the Enterprise Number in that option. 22.18. Interface-Id Option The relay agent MAY send the Interface-id option to identify the interface on which the client message was received. If a relay agent receives a Relay-reply message with an Interface-id option, the relay agent relays the message to the client through the interface identified by the option. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 87] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 The format of the Interface ID option is: 0 1 2 3 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_INTERFACE_ID | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ . . . interface-id . . . +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_INTERFACE_ID (18). option-len Length of interface-id field. interface-id An opaque value of arbitrary length generated by the relay agent to identify one of the relay agent's interfaces. The server MUST copy the Interface-Id option from the Relay-Forward message into the Relay-Reply message the server sends to the relay agent in response to the Relay-Forward message. This option MUST NOT appear in any message except a Relay-Forward or Relay-Reply message. Servers MAY use the Interface-ID for parameter assignment policies. The Interface-ID SHOULD be considered an opaque value, with policies based on exact match only; that is, the Interface-ID SHOULD NOT be internally parsed by the server. The Interface-ID value for an interface SHOULD be stable and remain unchanged, for example, after the relay agent is restarted; if the Interface-ID changes, a server will not be able to use it reliably in parameter assignment policies. 22.19. Reconfigure Message Option A server includes a Reconfigure Message option in a Reconfigure message to indicate to the client whether the client responds with a Renew message or an Information-request message. The format of this option is: 0 1 2 3 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_RECONF_MSG | option-len | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | msg-type | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 88] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 option-code OPTION_RECONF_MSG (19). option-len 1. msg-type 5 for Renew message, 11 for Information-request message. The Reconfigure Message option can only appear in a Reconfigure message. 22.20. Reconfigure Accept Option A client uses the Reconfigure Accept option to announce to the server whether the client is willing to accept Reconfigure messages, and a server uses this option to tell the client whether or not to accept Reconfigure messages. The default behavior, in the absence of this option, means unwillingness to accept Reconfigure messages, or instruction not to accept Reconfigure messages, for the client and server messages, respectively. The following figure gives the format of the Reconfigure Accept option: 0 1 2 3 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_RECONF_ACCEPT | 0 | +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ option-code OPTION_RECONF_ACCEPT (20). option-len 0. 23. Security Considerations The threat to DHCP is inherently an insider threat (assuming a properly configured network where DHCPv6 ports are blocked on the perimeter gateways of the enterprise). Regardless of the gateway configuration, however, the potential attacks by insiders and outsiders are the same. Use of manually configured preshared keys for IPsec between relay agents and servers does not defend against replayed DHCP messages. Replayed messages can represent a DOS attack through exhaustion of processing resources, but not through mis-configuration or exhaustion of other resources such as assignable addresses. One attack specific to a DHCP client is the establishment of a malicious server with the intent of providing incorrect configuration information to the client. The motivation for doing so may be to Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 89] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 mount a "man in the middle" attack that causes the client to communicate with a malicious server instead of a valid server for some service such as DNS or NTP. The malicious server may also mount a denial of service attack through misconfiguration of the client that causes all network communication from the client to fail. There is another threat to DHCP clients from mistakenly or accidentally configured DHCP servers that answer DHCP client requests with unintentionally incorrect configuration parameters. A DHCP client may also be subject to attack through the receipt of a Reconfigure message from a malicious server that causes the client to obtain incorrect configuration information from that server. Note that although a client sends its response (Renew or Information-request message) through a relay agent and, therefore, that response will only be received by servers to which DHCP messages are relayed, a malicious server could send a Reconfigure message to a client, followed (after an appropriate delay) by a Reply message that would be accepted by the client. Thus, a malicious server that is not on the network path between the client and the server may still be able to mount a Reconfigure attack on a client. The use of transaction IDs that are cryptographically sound and cannot easily be predicted will also reduce the probability that such an attack will be successful. The threat specific to a DHCP server is an invalid client masquerading as a valid client. The motivation for this may be for theft of service, or to circumvent auditing for any number of nefarious purposes. The threat common to both the client and the server is the resource "denial of service" (DoS) attack. These attacks typically involve the exhaustion of available addresses, or the exhaustion of CPU or network bandwidth, and are present anytime there is a shared resource. In the case where relay agents add additional options to Relay Forward messages, the messages exchanged between relay agents and servers may be used to mount a "man in the middle" or denial of service attack. This threat model does not consider the privacy of the contents of DHCP messages to be important. DHCP is not used to exchange authentication or configuration information that must be kept secret from other networks nodes. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 90] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 DHCP authentication provides for authentication of the identity of DHCP clients and servers, and for the integrity of messages delivered between DHCP clients and servers. DHCP authentication does not provide any privacy for the contents of DHCP messages. The Delayed Authentication protocol described in section 21.4 uses a secret key that is shared between a client and a server. The use of a "DHCP realm" in the shared key allows identification of administrative domains so that a client can select the appropriate key or keys when roaming between administrative domains. However, the Delayed Authentication protocol does not define any mechanism for sharing of keys, so a client may require separate keys for each administrative domain it encounters. The use of shared keys may not scale well and does not provide for repudiation of compromised keys. This protocol is focused on solving the intradomain problem where the out-of-band exchange of a shared key is feasible. Because of the opportunity for attack through the Reconfigure message, a DHCP client MUST discard any Reconfigure message that does not include authentication or that does not pass the validation process for the authentication protocol. The Reconfigure Key protocol described in section 21.5 provides protection against the use of a Reconfigure message by a malicious DHCP server to mount a denial of service or man-in-the-middle attack on a client. This protocol can be compromised by an attacker that can intercept the initial message in which the DHCP server sends the key to the client. Communication between a server and a relay agent, and communication between relay agents, can be secured through the use of IPSec, as described in section 21.1. The use of manual configuration and installation of static keys are acceptable in this instance because relay agents and the server will belong to the same administrative domain and the relay agents will require other specific configuration (for example, configuration of the DHCP server address) as well as the IPSec configuration. 24. IANA Considerations This document defines several new name spaces associated with DHCPv6 and DHCPv6 options: - Message types - Status codes - DUID Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 91] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 - Option codes IANA has established a registry of values for each of these name spaces, which are described in the remainder of this section. These name spaces will be managed by the IANA and all will be managed separately from the name spaces defined for DHCPv4. New multicast addresses, message types, status codes, and DUID types are assigned via Standards Action [11]. New DHCP option codes are tentatively assigned after the specification for the associated option, published as an Internet Draft, has received expert review by a designated expert [11]. The final assignment of DHCP option codes is through Standards Action, as defined in RFC 2434 [11]. This document also references three name spaces in section 21 that are associated with the Authentication Option (section 22.11). These name spaces are defined by the authentication mechanism for DHCPv4 in RFC 3118 [4]. The authentication name spaces currently registered by IANA will apply to both DHCPv6 and DHCPv4. In the future, specifications that define new Protocol, Algorithm and RDM mechanisms will explicitly define whether the new mechanisms are used with DHCPv4, DHCPv6 or both. 24.1. Multicast Addresses Section 5.1 defines the following multicast addresses, which have been assigned by IANA for use by DHCPv6: All_DHCP_Relay_Agents_and_Servers address: FF02::1:2 All_DHCP_Servers address: FF05::1:3 Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 92] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 24.2. DHCP Message Types IANA has recorded the following message types (defined in section 5.3). IANA will maintain the registry of DHCP message types. SOLICIT 1 ADVERTISE 2 REQUEST 3 CONFIRM 4 RENEW 5 REBIND 6 REPLY 7 RELEASE 8 DECLINE 9 RECONFIGURE 10 INFORMATION-REQUEST 11 RELAY-FORW 12 RELAY-REPL 13 Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 93] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 24.3. DHCP Options IANA has recorded the following option-codes (as defined in section 22). IANA will maintain the registry of DHCP option codes. OPTION_CLIENTID 1 OPTION_SERVERID 2 OPTION_IA_NA 3 OPTION_IA_TA 4 OPTION_IAADDR 5 OPTION_ORO 6 OPTION_PREFERENCE 7 OPTION_ELAPSED_TIME 8 OPTION_RELAY_MSG 9 OPTION_AUTH 11 OPTION_UNICAST 12 OPTION_STATUS_CODE 13 OPTION_RAPID_COMMIT 14 OPTION_USER_CLASS 15 OPTION_VENDOR_CLASS 16 OPTION_VENDOR_OPTS 17 OPTION_INTERFACE_ID 18 OPTION_RECONF_MSG 19 OPTION_RECONF_ACCEPT 20 Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 94] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 24.4. Status Codes IANA has recorded the status codes defined in the following table. IANA will manage the definition of additional status codes in the future. Name Code Description ---------- ---- ----------- Success 0 Success. UnspecFail 1 Failure, reason unspecified; this status code is sent by either a client or a server to indicate a failure not explicitly specified in this document. NoAddrsAvail 2 Server has no addresses available to assign to the IA(s). NoBinding 3 Client record (binding) unavailable. NotOnLink 4 The prefix for the address is not appropriate for the link to which the client is attached. UseMulticast 5 Sent by a server to a client to force the client to send messages to the server. using the All_DHCP_Relay_Agents_and_Servers address. 24.5. DUID IANA has recorded the following DUID types (as defined in section 9.1). IANA will manage the definition of additional DUID types in the future. DUID-LLT 1 DUID-EN 2 DUID-LL 3 25. Acknowledgments Thanks to the DHC Working Group and the members of the IETF for their time and input into the specification. In particular, thanks also for the consistent input, ideas, and review by (in alphabetical order) Bernard Aboba, Bill Arbaugh, Thirumalesh Bhat, Steve Bellovin, A. K. Vijayabhaskar, Brian Carpenter, Matt Crawford, Francis Dupont, Richard Hussong, Kim Kinnear, Fredrik Lindholm, Tony Lindstrom, Josh Littlefield, Gerald Maguire, Jack McCann, Shin Miyakawa, Thomas Narten, Erik Nordmark, Jarno Rajahalme, Yakov Rekhter, Mark Stapp, Matt Thomas, Sue Thomson, Tatuya Jinmei and Phil Wells. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 95] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 Thanks to Steve Deering and Bob Hinden, who have consistently taken the time to discuss the more complex parts of the IPv6 specifications. And, thanks to Steve Deering for pointing out at IETF 51 in London that the DHCPv6 specification has the highest revision number of any Internet Draft. 26. References 26.1. Normative References [1] Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate Requirement Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119, March 1997. [2] Crawford, M., "Transmission of IPv6 Packets over Ethernet Networks", RFC 2464, December 1998. [3] Deering, S. and R. Hinden, "Internet Protocol, Version 6 (IPv6) Specification", RFC 2460, December 1998. [4] Droms, R., Ed. and W. Arbaugh, Ed., "Authentication for DHCP Messages", RFC 3118, June 2001. [5] Hinden, R. and S. Deering, "IP Version 6 Addressing Architecture", RFC 2373, July 1998. [6] IANA. Private Enterprise Numbers. http://www.iana.org/assignments/enterprise-numbers.html. [7] Kent, S. and R. Atkinson, "Security Architecture for the Internet Protocol", RFC 2401, November 1998. [8] Krawczyk, H., Bellare, M. and R. Canetti, "HMAC: Keyed-Hashing for Message Authentication", RFC 2104, February 1997. [9] Mills, D., "Network Time Protocol (Version 3) Specification, Implementation", RFC 1305, March 1992. [10] Mockapetris, P., "Domain names - implementation and specification", RFC 1035, November 1987. [11] Narten, T. and H. Alvestrand, "Guidelines for Writing an IANA Considerations Section in RFCs", BCP 26, RFC 2434, October 1998. [12] Narten, T. and R. Draves, "Privacy Extensions for Stateless Address Autoconfiguration in IPv6", RFC 3041, January 2001. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 96] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 [13] Narten, T., Nordmark, E. and W. Simpson, "Neighbor Discovery for IP Version 6 (IPv6)", RFC 2461, December 1998. [14] Plummer, D.C., "Ethernet Address Resolution Protocol: Or converting network protocol addresses to 48.bit Ethernet address for transmission on Ethernet hardware", STD 37, RFC 826, November 1982. [15] Postel, J., "User Datagram Protocol", STD 6, RFC 768, August 1980. [16] Rivest, R., "The MD5 Message-Digest Algorithm", RFC 1321, April 1992. [17] Thomson, S. and T. Narten, "IPv6 Stateless Address Autoconfiguration", RFC 2462, December 1998. 26.2. Informative References [18] Alexander, S. and R. Droms, "DHCP Options and BOOTP Vendor Extensions", RFC 2132, March 1997. [19] Droms, R., "Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol", RFC 2131, March 1997. [20] R. Droms, Ed. DNS Configuration options for DHCPv6. April 2002. Work in Progress. [21] A. K. Vijayabhaskar. Time Configuration Options for DHCPv6. May 2002. Work in Progress. [22] Vixie, P., Ed., Thomson, S., Rekhter, Y. and J. Bound, "Dynamic Updates in the Domain Name System (DNS UPDATE)", RFC 2136, April 1997. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 97] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 A. Appearance of Options in Message Types The following table indicates with a "*" the options are allowed in each DHCP message type: Client Server IA_NA Option Pref Time Relay Auth. Server ID ID IA_TA Request Msg. Unica. Solicit * * * * * Advert. * * * * * Request * * * * * * Confirm * * * * * Renew * * * * * * Rebind * * * * * Decline * * * * * * Release * * * * * * Reply * * * * * * Reconf. * * * * Inform. * (see note) * * * R-forw. * * R-repl. * * NOTE: Only included in Information-Request messages that are sent in response to a Reconfigure (see section 19.4.3). Status Rap. User Vendor Vendor Inter. Recon. Recon. Code Comm. Class Class Spec. ID Msg. Accept Solicit * * * * * Advert. * * * * * Request * * * * Confirm * * * Renew * * * * Rebind * * * * Decline * * * Release * * * Reply * * * * * * Reconf. * Inform. * * * * R-forw. * * * * R-repl. * * * * Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 98] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 B. Appearance of Options in the Options Field of DHCP Options The following table indicates with a "*" where options can appear in the options field of other options: Option IA_NA/ IAADDR Relay Relay Field IA_TA Forw. Reply Client ID * Server ID * IA_NA/IA_TA * IAADDR * ORO * Preference * Elapsed Time * Relay Message * * Authentic. * Server Uni. * Status Code * * * Rapid Comm. * User Class * Vendor Class * Vendor Info. * Interf. ID * * Reconf. MSG. * Reconf. Accept * Note: "Relay Forw" / "Relay Reply" options appear in the options field of the message but may only appear in these messages. Chair's Address The working group can be contacted via the current chair: Ralph Droms Cisco Systems 1414 Massachusetts Avenue Boxborough, MA 01719 Phone: (978) 936-1674 EMail: rdroms@cisco.com Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 99] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 Authors' Addresses Jim Bound Hewlett Packard Corporation ZK3-3/W20 110 Spit Brook Road Nashua, NH 03062-2698 USA Phone: +1 603 884 0062 EMail: Jim.Bound@hp.com Bernie Volz 116 Hawkins Pond Road Center Harbor, NH 03226-3103 USA Phone: +1-508-259-3734 EMail: volz@metrocast.net Ted Lemon Nominum, Inc. 950 Charter Street Redwood City, CA 94043 USA EMail: Ted.Lemon@nominum.com Charles E. Perkins Communications Systems Lab Nokia Research Center 313 Fairchild Drive Mountain View, California 94043 USA Phone: +1-650 625-2986 EMail: charles.perkins@nokia.com Mike Carney Sun Microsystems, Inc 17 Network Circle Menlo Park, CA 94025 USA Phone: +1-650-786-4171 EMail: michael.carney@sun.com Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 100] RFC 3315 DHCP for IPv6 July 2003 Full Copyright Statement Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2003). All Rights Reserved. This document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to others, and derivative works that comment on or otherwise explain it or assist in its implementation may be prepared, copied, published and distributed, in whole or in part, without restriction of any kind, provided that the above copyright notice and this paragraph are included on all such copies and derivative works. However, this document itself may not be modified in any way, such as by removing the copyright notice or references to the Internet Society or other Internet organizations, except as needed for the purpose of developing Internet standards in which case the procedures for copyrights defined in the Internet Standards process must be followed, or as required to translate it into languages other than English. The limited permissions granted above are perpetual and will not be revoked by the Internet Society or its successors or assigns. This document and the information contained herein is provided on an "AS IS" basis and THE INTERNET SOCIETY AND THE INTERNET ENGINEERING TASK FORCE DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF THE INFORMATION HEREIN WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY RIGHTS OR ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. Acknowledgement Funding for the RFC Editor function is currently provided by the Internet Society. Droms, et al. Standards Track [Page 101]