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# Content
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126 .IX Title "GVPE.PROTOCOL 7"
127 .TH GVPE.PROTOCOL 7 "2013-07-12" "2.24" "GNU Virtual Private Ethernet"
128 .\" For nroff, turn off justification. Always turn off hyphenation; it makes
129 .\" way too many mistakes in technical documents.
130 .if n .ad l
131 .nh
132 .SH "The GNU-VPE Protocols"
133 .IX Header "The GNU-VPE Protocols"
134 .SH "Overview"
135 .IX Header "Overview"
136 \&\s-1GVPE\s0 can make use of a number of protocols. One of them is the \s-1GNU\s0 \s-1VPE\s0
137 protocol which is used to authenticate tunnels and send encrypted data
138 packets. This protocol is described in more detail the second part of this
139 document.
140 .PP
141 The first part of this document describes the transport protocols which
142 are used by \s-1GVPE\s0 to send it's data packets over the network.
143 .SH "PART 1: Transport protocols"
144 .IX Header "PART 1: Transport protocols"
145 \&\s-1GVPE\s0 offers a wide range of transport protocols that can be used to
146 interchange data between nodes. Protocols differ in their overhead, speed,
147 reliability, and robustness.
148 .PP
149 The following sections describe each transport protocol in more
150 detail. They are sorted by overhead/efficiency, the most efficient
151 transport is listed first:
152 .SS "\s-1RAW\s0 \s-1IP\s0"
153 .IX Subsection "RAW IP"
154 This protocol is the best choice, performance-wise, as the minimum
155 overhead per packet is only 38 bytes.
156 .PP
157 It works by sending the \s-1VPN\s0 payload using raw \s-1IP\s0 frames (using the
158 protocol set by \f(CW\*(C`ip\-proto\*(C'\fR).
159 .PP
160 Using raw \s-1IP\s0 frames has the drawback that many firewalls block \*(L"unknown\*(R"
161 protocols, so this transport only works if you have full \s-1IP\s0 connectivity
162 between nodes.
163 .SS "\s-1ICMP\s0"
164 .IX Subsection "ICMP"
165 This protocol offers very low overhead (minimum 42 bytes), and can
166 sometimes tunnel through firewalls when other protocols can not.
167 .PP
168 It works by prepending an \s-1ICMP\s0 header with type \f(CW\*(C`icmp\-type\*(C'\fR and a code
169 of \f(CW255\fR. The default \f(CW\*(C`icmp\-type\*(C'\fR is \f(CW\*(C`echo\-reply\*(C'\fR, so the resulting
170 packets look like echo replies, which looks rather strange to network
171 administrators.
172 .PP
173 This transport should only be used if other transports (i.e. raw \s-1IP\s0) are
174 not available or undesirable (due to their overhead).
175 .SS "\s-1UDP\s0"
176 .IX Subsection "UDP"
177 This is a good general choice for the transport protocol as \s-1UDP\s0 packets
178 tunnel well through most firewalls and routers, and the overhead per
179 packet is moderate (minimum 58 bytes).
180 .PP
181 It should be used if \s-1RAW\s0 \s-1IP\s0 is not available.
182 .SS "\s-1TCP\s0"
183 .IX Subsection "TCP"
184 This protocol is a very bad choice, as it not only has high overhead (more
185 than 60 bytes), but the transport also retries on it's own, which leads
186 to congestion when the link has moderate packet loss (as both the \s-1TCP\s0
187 transport and the tunneled traffic will retry, increasing congestion more
188 and more). It also has high latency and is quite inefficient.
189 .PP
190 It's only useful when tunneling through firewalls that block better
191 protocols. If a node doesn't have direct internet access but a \s-1HTTP\s0 proxy
192 that supports the \s-1CONNECT\s0 method it can be used to tunnel through a web
193 proxy. For this to work, the \f(CW\*(C`tcp\-port\*(C'\fR should be \f(CW443\fR (\f(CW\*(C`https\*(C'\fR), as
194 most proxies do not allow connections to other ports.
195 .PP
196 It is an abuse of the usage a proxy was designed for, so make sure you are
197 allowed to use it for \s-1GVPE\s0.
198 .PP
199 This protocol also has server and client sides. If the \f(CW\*(C`tcp\-port\*(C'\fR is
200 set to zero, other nodes cannot connect to this node directly. If the
201 \&\f(CW\*(C`tcp\-port\*(C'\fR is non-zero, the node can act both as a client as well as a
202 server.
203 .SS "\s-1DNS\s0"
204 .IX Subsection "DNS"
205 \&\fB\s-1WARNING:\s0\fR Parsing and generating \s-1DNS\s0 packets is rather tricky. The code
206 almost certainly contains buffer overflows and other, likely exploitable,
207 bugs. You have been warned.
208 .PP
209 This is the worst choice of transport protocol with respect to overhead
210 (overhead can be 2\-3 times higher than the transferred data), and latency
211 (which can be many seconds). Some \s-1DNS\s0 servers might not be prepared to
212 handle the traffic and drop or corrupt packets. The client also has to
213 constantly poll the server for data, so the client will constantly create
214 traffic even if it doesn't need to transport packets.
215 .PP
216 In addition, the same problems as the \s-1TCP\s0 transport also plague this
217 protocol.
218 .PP
219 Its only use is to tunnel through firewalls that do not allow direct
220 internet access. Similar to using a \s-1HTTP\s0 proxy (as the \s-1TCP\s0 transport
221 does), it uses a local \s-1DNS\s0 server/forwarder (given by the \f(CW\*(C`dns\-forw\-host\*(C'\fR
222 configuration value) as a proxy to send and receive data as a client,
223 and an \f(CW\*(C`NS\*(C'\fR record pointing to the \s-1GVPE\s0 server (as given by the
224 \&\f(CW\*(C`dns\-hostname\*(C'\fR directive).
225 .PP
226 The only good side of this protocol is that it can tunnel through most
227 firewalls mostly undetected, iff the local \s-1DNS\s0 server/forwarder is sane
228 (which is true for most routers, wireless \s-1LAN\s0 gateways and nameservers).
229 .PP
230 Fine-tuning needs to be done by editing \f(CW\*(C`src/vpn_dns.C\*(C'\fR directly.
231 .SH "PART 2: The GNU VPE protocol"
232 .IX Header "PART 2: The GNU VPE protocol"
233 This section, unfortunately, is not yet finished, although the protocol
234 is stable (until bugs in the cryptography are found, which will likely
235 completely change the following description). Nevertheless, it should give
236 you some overview over the protocol.
237 .SS "Anatomy of a \s-1VPN\s0 packet"
238 .IX Subsection "Anatomy of a VPN packet"
239 The exact layout and field lengths of a \s-1VPN\s0 packet is determined at
240 compile time and doesn't change. The same structure is used for all
241 transport protocols, be it \s-1RAWIP\s0 or \s-1TCP\s0.
242 .PP
243 .Vb 3
244 \& +\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+
245 \& | HMAC | TYPE | SRCDST | DATA |
246 \& +\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+
247 .Ve
248 .PP
249 The \s-1HMAC\s0 field is present in all packets, even if not used (e.g. in auth
250 request packets), in which case it is set to all zeroes. The checksum
251 itself is calculated over the \s-1TYPE\s0, \s-1SRCDST\s0 and \s-1DATA\s0 fields in all cases.
252 .PP
253 The \s-1TYPE\s0 field is a single byte and determines the purpose of the packet
254 (e.g. \s-1RESET\s0, \s-1COMPRESSED/UNCOMPRESSED\s0 \s-1DATA\s0, \s-1PING\s0, \s-1AUTH\s0 \s-1REQUEST/RESPONSE\s0,
255 \&\s-1CONNECT\s0 \s-1REQUEST/INFO\s0 etc.).
256 .PP
257 \&\s-1SRCDST\s0 is a three byte field which contains the source and destination
258 node IDs (12 bits each).
259 .PP
260 The \s-1DATA\s0 portion differs between each packet type, naturally, and is the
261 only part that can be encrypted. Data packets contain more fields, as
262 shown:
263 .PP
264 .Vb 3
265 \& +\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+
266 \& | HMAC | TYPE | SRCDST | RAND | SEQNO | DATA |
267 \& +\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-\-+\-\-\-\-\-\-+
268 .Ve
269 .PP
270 \&\s-1RAND\s0 is a sequence of fully random bytes, used to increase the entropy of
271 the data for encryption purposes.
272 .PP
273 \&\s-1SEQNO\s0 is a 32\-bit sequence number. It is negotiated at every connection
274 initialization and starts at some random 31 bit value. \s-1VPE\s0 currently uses
275 a sliding window of 512 packets/sequence numbers to detect reordering,
276 duplication and replay attacks.
277 .PP
278 The encryption is done on \s-1RAND+SEQNO+DATA\s0 in \s-1CBC\s0 mode with zero \s-1IV\s0 (or,
279 equivalently, the \s-1IV\s0 is \s-1RAND+SEQNO\s0, encrypted with the block cipher,
280 unless \s-1RAND\s0 size is decreased or increased over the default value).
281 .SS "The authentication protocol"
282 .IX Subsection "The authentication protocol"
283 Before nodes can exchange packets, they need to establish authenticity of
284 the other side and a key. Every node has a private \s-1RSA\s0 key and the public
285 \&\s-1RSA\s0 keys of all other nodes.
286 .PP
287 A host establishes a simplex connection by sending the other node an \s-1RSA\s0
288 encrypted challenge containing a random challenge (consisting of the
289 encryption and authentication keys to use when sending packets, more
290 random data and \s-1PKCS1_OAEP\s0 padding) and a random 16 byte \*(L"challenge-id\*(R"
291 (used to detect duplicate auth packets). The destination node will respond
292 by replying with an (unencrypted) hash of the decrypted challenge, which
293 will authenticate that node. The destination node will also set the
294 outgoing encryption parameters as given in the packet.
295 .PP
296 When the source node receives a correct auth reply (by verifying the
297 hash and the id, which will expire after 120 seconds), it will start to
298 accept data packets from the destination node.
299 .PP
300 This means that a node can only initiate a simplex connection, telling the
301 other side the key it has to use when it sends packets. The challenge
302 reply is only used to set the current \s-1IP\s0 address of the other side and
303 protocol parameters.
304 .PP
305 This protocol is completely symmetric, so to be able to send packets the
306 destination node must send a challenge in the exact same way as already
307 described (so, in essence, two simplex connections are created per node
308 pair).
309 .SS "Retrying"
310 .IX Subsection "Retrying"
311 When there is no response to an auth request, the node will send auth
312 requests in bursts with an exponential back-off. After some time it will
313 resort to \s-1PING\s0 packets, which are very small (8 bytes + protocol header)
314 and lightweight (no \s-1RSA\s0 operations required). A node that receives ping
315 requests from an unconnected peer will respond by trying to create a
316 connection.
317 .PP
318 In addition to the exponential back-off, there is a global rate-limit on
319 a per-IP base. It allows long bursts but will limit total packet rate to
320 something like one control packet every ten seconds, to avoid accidental
321 floods due to protocol problems (like a \s-1RSA\s0 key file mismatch between two
322 nodes).
323 .PP
324 The intervals between retries are limited by the \f(CW\*(C`max\-retry\*(C'\fR
325 configuration value. A node with \f(CW\*(C`connect\*(C'\fR = \f(CW\*(C`always\*(C'\fR will always retry,
326 a node with \f(CW\*(C`connect\*(C'\fR = \f(CW\*(C`ondemand\*(C'\fR will only try (and re-try) to connect
327 as long as there are packets in the queue, usually this limits the retry
328 period to \f(CW\*(C`max\-ttl\*(C'\fR seconds.
329 .PP
330 Sending packets over the \s-1VPN\s0 will reset the retry intervals as well, which
331 means as long as somebody is trying to send packets to a given node, \s-1GVPE\s0
332 will try to connect every few seconds.
333 .SS "Routing and Protocol translation"
334 .IX Subsection "Routing and Protocol translation"
335 The \s-1GVPE\s0 routing algorithm is easy: there isn't much routing to speak
336 of: When routing packets to another node, \s-1GVPE\s0 tries the following
337 options, in order:
338 .IP "If the two nodes should be able to reach each other directly (common protocol, port known), then \s-1GVPE\s0 will send the packet directly to the other node." 4
339 .IX Item "If the two nodes should be able to reach each other directly (common protocol, port known), then GVPE will send the packet directly to the other node."
340 .PD 0
341 .ie n .IP "If this isn't possible (e.g. because the node doesn't have a \*(C`hostname\*(C' or known port), but the nodes speak a common protocol and a router is available, then \s-1GVPE\s0 will ask a router to ""mediate"" between both nodes (see below)." 4
342 .el .IP "If this isn't possible (e.g. because the node doesn't have a \f(CW\*(C`hostname\*(C'\fR or known port), but the nodes speak a common protocol and a router is available, then \s-1GVPE\s0 will ask a router to ``mediate'' between both nodes (see below)." 4
343 .IX Item "If this isn't possible (e.g. because the node doesn't have a hostname or known port), but the nodes speak a common protocol and a router is available, then GVPE will ask a router to mediate between both nodes (see below)."
344 .ie n .IP "If a direct connection isn't possible (no common protocols) or forbidden (\*(C`deny\-direct\*(C') and there are any routers, then \s-1GVPE\s0 will try to send packets to the router with the highest priority that is connected already \fIand\fR is able (as specified by the config file) to connect directly to the target node." 4
345 .el .IP "If a direct connection isn't possible (no common protocols) or forbidden (\f(CW\*(C`deny\-direct\*(C'\fR) and there are any routers, then \s-1GVPE\s0 will try to send packets to the router with the highest priority that is connected already \fIand\fR is able (as specified by the config file) to connect directly to the target node." 4
346 .IX Item "If a direct connection isn't possible (no common protocols) or forbidden (deny-direct) and there are any routers, then GVPE will try to send packets to the router with the highest priority that is connected already and is able (as specified by the config file) to connect directly to the target node."
347 .IP "If no such router exists, then \s-1GVPE\s0 will simply send the packet to the node with the highest priority available." 4
348 .IX Item "If no such router exists, then GVPE will simply send the packet to the node with the highest priority available."
349 .IP "Failing all that, the packet will be dropped." 4
350 .IX Item "Failing all that, the packet will be dropped."
351 .PD
352 .PP
353 A host can usually declare itself unreachable directly by setting it's
354 port number(s) to zero. It can declare other hosts as unreachable by using
355 a config-file that disables all protocols for these other hosts. Another
356 option is to disable all protocols on that host in the other config files.
357 .PP
358 If two hosts cannot connect to each other because their \s-1IP\s0 address(es)
359 are not known (such as dial-up hosts), one side will send a \fImediated\fR
360 connection request to a router (routers must be configured to act as
361 routers!), which will send both the originating and the destination host
362 a connection info request with protocol information and \s-1IP\s0 address of the
363 other host (if known). Both hosts will then try to establish a direct
364 connection to the other peer, which is usually possible even when both
365 hosts are behind a \s-1NAT\s0 gateway.
366 .PP
367 Routing via other nodes works because the \s-1SRCDST\s0 field is not encrypted,
368 so the router can just forward the packet to the destination host. Since
369 each host uses it's own private key, the router will not be able to
370 decrypt or encrypt packets, it will just act as a simple router and
371 protocol translator.