Hi Ted,

Some responses inline.

On May 31, 2012, at 4:43 PM, Ted Lemon wrote:

> There are still a few problems with this draft.   The first is that it uses a 
> nonstandard and somewhat odd encoding to deliver the URI and Lifetime values. 
>   These should simply be delivered as separate options, leaving out the whole 
> Luritype complication.    The argument might be raised that the Luritype 
> field provides some sort of future-proofing, but this future-proofing can as 
> easily be attained with another DHCP option code, so it's unnecessary.

My understanding is that the option is encoded this way both for extensibility 
and because the Valid-For parameter is solely a property of the URI. Surely 
this is not the only instance of a DHCP option with a sub-option? 

It may have been before I was paying attention, but I get the impression that 
related ground has already been trod in DHC, given that it also came up in 
GEOPRIV. http://www.ietf.org/mail-archive/web/geopriv/current/msg08451.html

> 
> Secondly, this text ought to be expanded:
> 
>> The choice of the Valid-For value is a policy decision for the 
>> operator of the DHCP server.  Like location URIs themselves, it can 
>> be statically configured on the DHCP server or provisioned 
>> dynamically (via an out-of-band exchange with a Location Information
>> Server) as requests for location URIs are received.
> 
> To:
> 
>> The choice of the Valid-For value is a policy decision for the 
>> operator of the DHCP server.  Like location URIs themselves, it can 
>> be statically configured on the DHCP server or provisioned 
>> dynamically (via an out-of-band exchange with a Location Information
>> Server) as requests for location URIs are received.   DHCP server
>> operators are advised not to configure a valid-for lifetime that is
>> greater than half the minimum configured lifetime for DHCP leases,
>> since this could result in stale configuration information on the
>> DHCP client and potential loss of service.
> 

I'm not sure the additional text is necessary given that there is an entire 
paragraph explaining considerations for servers in setting the Valid-For value. 
Furthermore, I don't see how "potential loss of service" is possible. We're 
talking about a URI with an expiration. When it expires, location recipients 
will no longer have access to the client's location, but it otherwise doesn't 
affect recipients' ability to use any "service" whatsoever.

> 
> Thirdly, this text is simply wrong, and indeed specifically contradicted by 
> RFC3396:
> 
>>   Per [RFC2131], subsequent LocationURI Options, which are 
>>   non-concatenated, overwrite the previous value.
> 
> I don't think this is a huge problem, but I think the text should say this:
> 
>> It is not meaningful to configure multiple LocationURI options.   DHCPv4 
>> servers and clients conforming to RFC3396 will not permit this; DHCPv6 
>> servers and clients can be configured this way, but the behavior when so 
>> configured is undefined.   Therefore, DHCPv6 server operators are cautioned 
>> not to configure more than one such option.

Works for me.

> 
> Section 3.2 suggests that options shouldn't contain certain potentially 
> harmful values, but this is a toothless restriction, since an attacker can 
> simply ignore it.   In order for it to be effective, Section 3.2 should 
> insist that DHCP clients reject forbidden URI formats.   Of course, this too 
> is somewhat toothless, since any list of forbidden URI formats will 
> necessarily fail to mention any future potentially harmful URIs that could 
> arise.   It would be better to list which URIs _are_ permitted, and require 
> the client to reject any URI that is not permitted.   The document is already 
> set up to do this, but doesn't _actually_ do it, so fixing this should be 
> quite easy.

In 3.3, I suggest replacing the following:

"This section specifies which URI types are acceptable as a location
   URI scheme (or type) for this DHCP Option:"

with

"URIs carried by this DHCP Option MUST have one of the following URI schemes:"

Thanks,
Alissa

> 
> Sorry for not catching all of this sooner—the previous review of the document 
> was rudely interrupted by the Paris IETF meeting... :)
> 
> Aside from these objections, which I think are easy to address, I have no 
> problem with the document proceeding.


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