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In-Flight IPv6 Extension Header Insertion Considered Harmful
draft-smith-6man-in-flight-eh-insertion-harmful-00

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This is an older version of an Internet-Draft whose latest revision state is "Expired".
Author Mark Smith
Last updated 2019-10-08
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draft-smith-6man-in-flight-eh-insertion-harmful-00
Internet Engineering Task Force                                 M. Smith
Internet-Draft                                           October 8, 2019
Intended status: Best Current Practice
Expires: April 10, 2020

      In-Flight IPv6 Extension Header Insertion Considered Harmful
           draft-smith-6man-in-flight-eh-insertion-harmful-00

Abstract

   In the past few years, as well as currently, there have and are a
   number of proposals to insert IPv6 Extension Headers into existing
   IPv6 packets while in flight.  This contradicts explicit prohibition
   of this type of IPv6 packet proccessing in the IPv6 standard.  This
   memo describes the possible failures that can occur with EH
   insertion, the harm they can cause, and the existing model that is
   and should continue to be used to add new information to an existing
   IPv6 and other packets.

Status of This Memo

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

   Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
   Task Force (IETF).  Note that other groups may also distribute
   working documents as Internet-Drafts.  The list of current Internet-
   Drafts is at https://datatracker.ietf.org/drafts/current/.

   Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
   and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any
   time.  It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference
   material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."

   This Internet-Draft will expire on April 10, 2020.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2019 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
   document authors.  All rights reserved.

   This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
   Provisions Relating to IETF Documents
   (https://trustee.ietf.org/license-info) in effect on the date of
   publication of this document.  Please review these documents
   carefully, as they describe your rights and restrictions with respect
   to this document.  Code Components extracted from this document must

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   include Simplified BSD License text as described in Section 4.e of
   the Trust Legal Provisions and are provided without warranty as
   described in the Simplified BSD License.

Table of Contents

   1.  Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
     1.1.  Requirements Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
   2.  Terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
   3.  In-Flight Extension Header Insertion Defined  . . . . . . . .   3
     3.1.  In-Flight Insertion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
     3.2.  In-Flight Removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
   4.  EH Removal Failure Causes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     4.1.  Implementation Bugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     4.2.  Partial Node Failure  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     4.3.  Operator Configuration Error  . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
   5.  Single Point of Failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
   6.  MUST Remove is Aspirational . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
   7.  Harm  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
     7.1.  Violates RFC8200 and All Of Its Ancestors.  . . . . . . .   5
     7.2.  Ignores Source Address Field Semantics  . . . . . . . . .   5
     7.3.  Breaks ICMPv6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
       7.3.1.  Breaks PMTUD  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
     7.4.  Breaks IPsec  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
     7.5.  May Confuse Destination Node  . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
     7.6.  May Cause Faults in Subsequent Transit Networks . . . . .   6
     7.7.  Implementation Complexity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
   8.  Be conservative in what you send, ... . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
   9.  Solution: Encapsulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
     9.1.  IPv6 Tunnelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   8
     9.2.  MPLS  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   8
   10. In-Flight Insertion Considered Harmful  . . . . . . . . . . .   9
   11. Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   9
   12. Acknowledgements  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   9
   13. Change Log [RFC Editor please remove] . . . . . . . . . . . .   9
   14. References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   9
     14.1.  Normative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   9
     14.2.  Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
   Author's Address  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10

1.  Introduction

1.1.  Requirements Language

   The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT",
   "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this
   document are to be interpreted as described in RFC 2119 [RFC2119].

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2.  Terminology

   o  In-Flight - the state of a packet while it is travelling throught
      the network between its original source IPv6 and final destination
      IPv6 hosts.  The packet will be being forwarded along a series of
      hops along a set of IPv6 routers interconnecting the source and
      destination IPv6 hosts.

   o

3.  In-Flight Extension Header Insertion Defined

3.1.  In-Flight Insertion

   At a point somewhere along the path an IPv6 [RFC8200] packet travels
   between the packet's source IPv6 host, identified in the packet's
   Source Address field, and the packet's final IPv6 destination host,
   identified in the packet's Destination Address field, the packet is
   split apart after the IPv6 fixed header and before the packet
   payload.  Then, one or more new Extension Headers (EHs) [RFC8200] are
   inserted between those two existing packet parts.  The new EH or EHs
   may be the sole EH or EHs in the packet after insertion, or it, or
   they, may be inserted at the start, within, or after the packet's set
   of original EHs.

   The packet's original source and Destination Address field values are
   left unchanged when EH insertion takes place.  It is likely that
   other immutable fields of the IPv6 header are also left unchanged,
   with possible exception to the immutable Next Header field [RFC8200]
   if the inserted EH or EHs are inserted directly after the IPv6 fixed
   header.

   For IPv6 tunnel packets [RFC2473], where they may be two or more
   instances of an IPv6 fixed header throughout the packet, EH insertion
   could be occurring between any of the IPv6 fixed headers and their
   respective following payloads, although it is most likey to occur
   after the first of the IPv6 fixed header, commonly known as the
   (outer) tunnel header.

   An example of where this in-flight EH insertion may take place is
   when a packet enters a transit BGP autonomous system network
   [RFC4271] along its path across the Internet.

3.2.  In-Flight Removal

   At some later point along the IPv6 packet's path towards its final
   destination, the packet is somehow determined to need to have the
   prevously inserted EH removed.  The packet is again split apart, at

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   the point where the one or more inserted EHs exists, and then the
   inserted EH or EHs are removed.  The packet is then reassembled, and
   sent further towards its final destination.

   Again, the packet's original source and Destination Address field
   values are left unchanged when EH removal takes place.  As with
   insertion, the likely only IPv6 fixed header field modified during EH
   removal would be the immutable Next Header field.

   An example of where this in-flight EH removal would take place is
   when a packet leaves a transit BGP autonomous system network that has
   previously inserted one or more EHs.

4.  EH Removal Failure Causes

4.1.  Implementation Bugs

   Despite being configured to remove the inserted one or more EHs, an
   implementation bug could cause some or all packets not to have the
   inserted EH or EHs removed.

4.2.  Partial Node Failure

   Even though the software or firmware that is to perform EH removal is
   bug free, it is possible that a hardware fault could cause EH removal
   to not occur, while packets are still sent towards their final
   destinaton.  This could occur because the hardware fault that does
   not cause the node to entirely fail, only partially performing some
   of its functions..

4.3.  Operator Configuration Error

   Due to human error, the function to remove the inserted EH or EHs may
   be misconfigured.  Consequently, the inserted EH or EHs may not be
   removed for some or all packets.

   When the packets to have the EH(s) removed are transit packets,
   meaning these packets are likely leaving the operator's own network,
   and entering another operator's network, it is less likely that the
   packets leaving are inspected to ensure the EH removal function has
   been configured correctly.  It is common to assume that if traffic is
   leaving the local network in the expected volumes, then the traffic
   is being processed correctly by the egress network device.  This can
   be because the equipment, time and effort to validate this egressing
   traffic can be very expensive when traffic volumes are in the 10s or
   perhaps 100s of gigabits per second.

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   The receiving network will also not detect or be able to detect that
   the inserted EHs have not been removed, as the inserted EH or EHs
   will appear to have been placed in the packet by the IPv6 host
   identified in the packet's Source Address field.

5.  Single Point of Failure

   When functions that inspect or modify packets beyond standard IP
   packet forwarding are performed at the edge of a network, such as a
   network firewall or a Network Address Translation, it is typical for
   there to only be one device performing that will perform this
   function at the packets' exit from the network.  It is rare to have
   two devices in-line or in series that are performing this same
   inspection or modification, providing redundancy for the function
   should it fail to be performed correctly at the first function
   instance.

   In a scenario where EHs are to be removed, it is likely that the
   device that is to perform EH removal will be a single point of
   failure.

6.  MUST Remove is Aspirational

   RFCs/IDs say the inserted EH MUST be removed at the EH insertion
   boundary, and then use that to say it is a safe operation.  This is
   ignoring the reality of all of the above possible causes of an
   inserted EH failing to be removed.  Such a MUST statement is no more
   than aspirational - it is a theoretically true statement in 100% of
   cases, but in practice cannot ever be assured to be true in 100% of
   cases, due to the removal failure causes, described previously.

7.  Harm

7.1.  Violates RFC8200 and All Of Its Ancestors.

   (RFC8200 EH processing text quote)

   RFC 2460 and ancestors back to RFC 1883 text quote.

7.2.  Ignores Source Address Field Semantics

7.3.  Breaks ICMPv6

7.3.1.  Breaks PMTUD

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7.4.  Breaks IPsec

7.5.  May Confuse Destination Node

7.6.  May Cause Faults in Subsequent Transit Networks

   If inserted EH is not removed, and the packet travels into another
   subsequent transit network, that subsequent transit network may have
   an alternative interpretation of the inserted EH, causing a fault.

   The subsequent transit network, if using EH insertion, would likely
   blindly insert another instance of the EH, resulting in a packet with
   two EHs.  At network egress, the incorrect EH may removed, which
   would also still leave a remaining inserted EH to travel into further
   subsequent networks.  A directly subsequent network that is also
   performing EH insertion is unlikely to act as a sanitser for EHs that
   were inserted by previous upstream networks.

7.7.  Implementation Complexity

   IPv6 uses a packet's Destination Address to determine the point where
   forwarding across the network stops, and processing up the protocol
   stack at a destination host starts.

   In other words, the Destination Address of a packet identifies the
   point in the network where processing of the packet starts going
   beyond the IPv6 fixed header, and where the intention of the packet
   processing stops being limited to forwarding towards the packet's
   destination.

   This is the fundamental distinction between an IPv6 router and a
   host; an IPv6 router forwards packets with non-local addresses
   [RFC8200], while an IPv6 host, with that holds address that matches a
   packet's Destination Address, processes the packet locally, with
   processing occuring beyond the IPv6 packet's fixed header.  Note that
   these definitions of IPv6 router and host are functional; a router as
   a device implements both IPv6 router and host functions - the
   device's forwarding plane implementing the IPv6 router function, and
   the device's control plane implementing IPv6 host functions.

   This means that all IPv6 addresses that appear in an IPv6 packet's
   Source Address and Destination Address field are, without exception,
   host addresses.

   The decision as to whether to process the packet beyond the fixed
   header or not is binary and simple - does the current node holding
   the packet possess the IPv6 address recorded in the Destination
   Address field of the packet?

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   Identifying packets that have had EH's inserted, to then remove and
   process the EH, is much more complex than the simple, Destination
   Address match selector.  The EH chain inside each packet has to be
   processed to find the EH that was inserted, should it exist.

8.  Be conservative in what you send, ...

   i.e. Postel's law

   "Be conservative in what you send, ..." is saying try to avoid
   sending anything that the receiver may not be expecting and that may
   confuse the receiver.  The "be liberal in what you accept" is
   advising robustness to attempt to tolerate a sender that has failed
   to be conservative.

   In-flight EH insertion violates the conservative sender part, because
   [RFC8200] compliant receivers are not expecting to receive EHs in a
   packet that were not placed there by the device identified in the
   packet's Source Address field.  A device performing in-flight EH
   insertion is intentionally not being conservative with what it is
   sending, in comparison to the scope of what an [RFC8200] compliant
   receiver expects to receive.

9.  Solution: Encapsulation

   In the Internet Protocol Architecture [RFC1122][RFC6272], adding new
   information to an existing protocol data unit is achieved through
   encapsulation.  The new information is recorded in a new header and
   possibly a new trailer, which are then used to surround or enclose
   the existing protocol data unit, similar to how an envelope is used
   to enclose the contents of a letter in the physical mail system.

   In addition to other new information, the new encapsulation header
   records the source of that new information.  For the link-layer that
   is the source node's link-layer address; for the IP layer it is
   either the IPv4 or IPv6 source host's address; and for the transport
   layer, it is the source transport layer port, or some other transport
   layer source entity identifier.

   The new encapsulation also records the destination entity or entities
   that is or are intended to receive and process the new information.
   For the link-layer, the destination node's link-layer address, or a
   single group address that identifies a set of link-layer nodes; for
   the IP layer, the IPv4 or IPv6 destination host, or a single group
   address that identifies a set of hosts; and for the transport layer,
   the destination transport layer port or other transport layer
   destination entity identifier.

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   The source and destination entity identification in the encapsulation
   header provides unambiguous and explicit identification of both which
   entity created and sent the new information, and which entity or
   entities are to process the new information.

9.1.  IPv6 Tunnelling

   If additional IPv6 information is to be added to an existing IPv6
   packet while it is in-flight, such as a new Extenstion Header, then a
   new IPv6 header is required.  This new IPv6 header will unambiguously
   record the identity of the IPv6 host that has added the new IPv6
   information in the Source Address field, and will unambigously record
   the identity of the IPv6 host (or group of hosts) that is to process
   the added IPv6 information in the Destination Address field.  A new
   IPv6 packet is created using the new IPv6 header, followed by the new
   supplimentary information, followed by the existing IPv6 packet,
   appearing in the payload field of the new packet.  IPv6-in-IPv6
   encapsulation is commonly known as "tunneling", and is specified in
   [RFC2473], which includes showing how new information added via
   Extension Headers occurs. [intarea-tunnels] provides more discussion
   of IP tunneling in the context of the Internet Architecture.

   Conceptually, IPv6-in-IPv6 tunneling is a form of link-layer
   encapsulation from the perspective of the existing (and eventually
   inner) IPv6 packet.  It just happens to be a coincidence that the
   outer link-layer encapsulation header and other new information (i.e.
   Extension Headers) has the same protocol format and field sematics as
   the existing, inner IPv6 packet.

9.2.  MPLS

   Despite using terms such as "label imposition" or "label swapping",
   MPLS [RFC3031] also follows this encapsulation model to add new
   information, via labels, to an existing in-flight protocol data unit,
   such as an IPv6 packet.  In-flight insertion of MPLS labels never
   occurs.

   At each hop through the MPLS network where labels are processed, at
   devices known as Label Switching Routers (LSRs), upon egress from the
   LSR, a new link-layer header is created that both unambiguously
   identifies the current LSR in the link-layer Source Address field,
   and unambiguously identifies the next LSR (or set of LSRs) that is to
   process the set of labels that are encoded in the link-layer protocol
   data unit sent by the current LSR.  The labels are encoded following
   this new header, and then the original packet follows in the link-
   layer payload field.

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   If in-flight MPLS label insertion were to be actually occurring, then
   it would mean that as a packet was label switched across a set of
   LSRs along a Label Switched Path (LSP), the link-layer header Source
   Address would not change across the LSP - it would remain as the
   Source Address of the LSR at the head end of the LSP, regardless of
   how many subsequent LSRs the packet is label switched through.

   In-flight MPLS label insertion would also mean that the Destination
   Address in the link-layer header would also not change as the packet
   is label switched along the LSP.  It would remain unchanged
   regardless of how many LSRs the packet traverses, and would likely
   identify the final LSR at the tail end of the LSP.

   If MPLS had used an in-flight insertion model, then MPLS would have
   likely suffered from problems similar to those described above that
   can occur with IPv6 EH insertion.

10.  In-Flight Insertion Considered Harmful

   More generally, insertion within an existing, in-flight packet at any
   location within the packet is considered harmful.  EH insertion, as
   described and discussed previously, is a more specific instance of a
   harmful practise.

11.  Security Considerations

12.  Acknowledgements

   Review and comments were provided by YOUR NAME HERE!

   This memo was prepared using the xml2rfc tool.

13.  Change Log [RFC Editor please remove]

   draft-smith-6man-in-flight-eh-insertion-harmful-00, initial version,
   2019-09-XX

14.  References

14.1.  Normative References

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

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   [RFC8200]  Deering, S. and R. Hinden, "Internet Protocol, Version 6
              (IPv6) Specification", STD 86, RFC 8200,
              DOI 10.17487/RFC8200, July 2017,
              <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8200>.

14.2.  Informative References

   [RFC2473]  Conta, A. and S. Deering, "Generic Packet Tunneling in
              IPv6 Specification", RFC 2473, DOI 10.17487/RFC2473,
              December 1998, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2473>.

Author's Address

   Mark Smith
   PO BOX 521
   HEIDELBERG, VIC  3084
   AU

   Email: markzzzsmith@gmail.com

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