DNSSEC Operational Practices, Version 2
RFC 6781

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Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)                        O. Kolkman
Request for Comments: 6781                                    W. Mekking
Obsoletes: 4641                                               NLnet Labs
Category: Informational                                        R. Gieben
ISSN: 2070-1721                                                SIDN Labs
                                                           December 2012

                DNSSEC Operational Practices, Version 2

Abstract

   This document describes a set of practices for operating the DNS with
   security extensions (DNSSEC).  The target audience is zone
   administrators deploying DNSSEC.

   The document discusses operational aspects of using keys and
   signatures in the DNS.  It discusses issues of key generation, key
   storage, signature generation, key rollover, and related policies.

   This document obsoletes RFC 4641, as it covers more operational
   ground and gives more up-to-date requirements with respect to key
   sizes and the DNSSEC operations.

Status of This Memo

   This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is
   published for informational purposes.

   This document is a product of the Internet Engineering Task Force
   (IETF).  It represents the consensus of the IETF community.  It has
   received public review and has been approved for publication by the
   Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG).  Not all documents
   approved by the IESG are a candidate for any level of Internet
   Standard; see Section 2 of RFC 5741.

   Information about the current status of this document, any errata,
   and how to provide feedback on it may be obtained at
   http://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc6781.

Kolkman, et al.               Informational                     [Page 1]
RFC 6781         DNSSEC Operational Practices, Version 2   December 2012

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2012 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
   (http://trustee.ietf.org/license-info) in effect on the date of
   publication of this document.  Please review these documents
   carefully, as they describe your rights and restrictions with respect
   to this document.  Code Components extracted from this document must
   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.

   This document may contain material from IETF Documents or IETF
   Contributions published or made publicly available before November
   10, 2008.  The person(s) controlling the copyright in some of this
   material may not have granted the IETF Trust the right to allow
   modifications of such material outside the IETF Standards Process.
   Without obtaining an adequate license from the person(s) controlling
   the copyright in such materials, this document may not be modified
   outside the IETF Standards Process, and derivative works of it may
   not be created outside the IETF Standards Process, except to format
   it for publication as an RFC or to translate it into languages other
   than English.

Table of Contents

   1. Introduction ....................................................4
      1.1. The Use of the Term 'key' ..................................5
      1.2. Time Definitions ...........................................6
   2. Keeping the Chain of Trust Intact ...............................6
   3. Key Generation and Storage ......................................7
      3.1. Operational Motivation for Zone Signing Keys and
           Key Signing Keys ...........................................8
      3.2. Practical Consequences of KSK and ZSK Separation ..........10
           3.2.1. Rolling a KSK That Is Not a Trust Anchor ...........10
           3.2.2. Rolling a KSK That Is a Trust Anchor ...............11
           3.2.3. The Use of the SEP Flag ............................12
      3.3. Key Effectivity Period ....................................12
      3.4. Cryptographic Considerations ..............................14
           3.4.1. Signature Algorithm ................................14
           3.4.2. Key Sizes ..........................................14
           3.4.3. Private Key Storage ................................16
           3.4.4. Key Generation .....................................17
           3.4.5. Differentiation for 'High-Level' Zones? ............17

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RFC 6781         DNSSEC Operational Practices, Version 2   December 2012

   4. Signature Generation, Key Rollover, and Related Policies .......18
      4.1. Key Rollovers .............................................18
           4.1.1. Zone Signing Key Rollovers .........................18