RFC 2977 (rfc2977) - Page 2 of 27


Mobile IP Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting Requirements



Alternative Format: Original Text Document



RFC 2977               Mobile IP AAA Requirements           October 2000


   An agent in a foreign domain, being called on to provide access to a
   resource by a mobile user, is likely to request or require the client
   to provide credentials which can be authenticated before access to
   resources is permitted.  The resource may be as simple as a conduit
   to the Internet, or may be as complex as access to specific private
   resources within the foreign domain.  Credentials can be exchanged in
   many different ways, all of which are beyond the scope of this
   document.  Once authenticated, the mobile user may be authorized to
   access services within the foreign domain.  An accounting of the
   actual resources may then be assembled.

   Mobile IP is a technology that allows a network node ("mobile node")
   to migrate from its "home" network to other networks, either within
   the same administrative domain, or to other administrative domains.
   The possibility of movement between domains which require AAA
   services has created an immediate demand to design and specify AAA
   protocols.  Once available, the AAA protocols and infrastructure will
   provide the economic incentive for a wide-ranging deployment of
   Mobile IP. This document will identify, describe, and discuss the
   functional and performance requirements that Mobile IP places on AAA
   protocols.

   The formal description of Mobile IP can be found in [13,12,14,17].

   In this document, we have attempted to exhibit requirements in a
   progressive fashion.  After showing the basic AAA model for Mobile
   IP, we derive requirements as follows:

   -  requirements based on the general model
   -  requirements based on providing IP service for mobile nodes
   -  requirements derived from specific Mobile IP protocol needs

   Then, we exhibit some related AAA models and describe requirements
   derived from the related models.

2. Terminology

   This document frequently uses the following terms in addition to
   those defined in RFC 2002 [13]:

      Accounting   The act of collecting information on resource usage
                   for the purpose of trend analysis, auditing, billing,
                   or cost allocation.








Glass, et al.                Informational