RFC 2245 (rfc2245) - Page 1 of 5

Anonymous SASL Mechanism

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Network Working Group                                          C. Newman
Request for Comments: 2245                                      Innosoft
Category: Standards Track                                  November 1997


                        Anonymous SASL Mechanism

Status of this Memo

   This document specifies an Internet standards track protocol for the
   Internet community, and requests discussion and suggestions for
   improvements.  Please refer to the current edition of the "Internet
   Official Protocol Standards" (STD 1) for the standardization state
   and status of this protocol.  Distribution of this memo is unlimited.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (1997).  All Rights Reserved.

Abstract

   It is common practice on the Internet to permit anonymous access to
   various services.  Traditionally, this has been done with a plain
   text password mechanism using "anonymous" as the user name and
   optional trace information, such as an email address, as the
   password.  As plaintext login commands are not permitted in new IETF
   protocols, a new way to provide anonymous login is needed within the
   context of the SASL [SASL] framework.

1. Conventions Used in this Document

   The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", and "MAY"
   in this document are to be interpreted as defined in "Key words for
   use in RFCs to Indicate Requirement Levels" [KEYWORDS].

2. Anonymous SASL mechanism

   The mechanism name associated with anonymous access is "ANONYMOUS".
   The mechanism consists of a single message from the client to the
   server.  The client sends optional trace information in the form of a
   human readable string.  The trace information should take one of
   three forms: an Internet email address, an opaque string which does
   not contain the '@' character and can be interpreted by the system
   administrator of the client's domain, or nothing.  For privacy
   reasons, an Internet email address should only be used with
   permission from the user.





Newman                      Standards Track
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