IP Library › Granted Patent US 11,451,560
Granted Patent B2
US 11,451,560 · App. 16/808,114 · Granted Sep 20, 2022

Systems and methods for pre-configuration attestation of network devices

Inventors: Sujal Sheth (Gujarat, IN); Shwetha Subray Bhandari (Bangalore, IN); Eric Voit (Bethesda, MD); William F. Sulzen (Apex, NC); Frank Brockners (Cologne, DE); Selvaraj Mani (Union City, CA); Eliot Lear (Wetzikon, CH)
Assignee: CISCO TECHNOLOGY, INC.
H04L63/126H04L61/5014H04L63/06H04L2101/686
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,451,560
App. No.
16/808,114
Granted
Sep 20, 2022
Kind
B2
Abstract

Systems, methods, and computer-readable media are disclosed for measurement of trustworthiness of network devices prior to their configuration and deployment in a network. In one aspect of the present disclosure, a method for pre-configuration of network devices includes receiving, at a dynamic host configuration server, a first request from a network device for configuration data, the configuration data including at least an IP address; sending, by the dynamic host configuration server, a second request to the network device for attestation information; verifying, by the dynamic host configuration server, the network device based on the attestation information; and assigning, by the dynamic host configuration server, the configuration data to the network device upon verifying the network device.

Claims (50)

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a dynamic host configuration server, a first request from a network device for configuration data, the configuration data including at least an IP address;

sending, by the dynamic host configuration server in response to the receiving, a second request to the network device for attestation information;

verifying, by the dynamic host configuration server, the network device based on the attestation information, the verifying comprising:

sending the attestation information to a verifying component to verify the network device; and

receiving a result of verification of the network device from the verifying component; and

assigning, in response to at least the verification, by the dynamic host configuration server, the configuration data to the network device upon verifying the network device.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein dynamic host configuration server and the network device are IPv6 devices operating based on Dynamic Host Configuration Parameter v6 (DHCPv6) protocol.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein dynamic host configuration server and the network device are IPv4 devices operating based on Dynamic Host Configuration Parameter v4 (DHCPv4) protocol.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein verifying the network device comprises:

receiving a stapled version of the attestation information from the network device, the stapled version of the attestation information being generated by a verifying component by signing the attestation information using a digital key known to both the verifying component and the dynamic host configuration server; and

verifying the stapled version using the digital key to yield a verification result of the network device.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein a verifiable timestamp validates freshness of the attestation information provided by the network device.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein

the first request includes a Manufacturer Usage Description (MUD) fetch Uniform Resource Request (URL), and

assigning the configuration data includes provisioning an Internet of Things (IoT) device for operation on a network.

7. A device comprising:

memory having computer-readable instructions stored therein; and

one or more processors configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to:

receive a first request from a client device for configuration data, the configuration data including at least an IP address;

send, in response to the receive, a second request to the client network device for attestation information;

verify the client network device based on the attestation information, comprising:

send the attestation information to a verifying component to verify the network device; and

receive a result of verification of the network device from the verifying component; and

assign, in response to at least the verify, the configuration data to the client network device upon verifying the client network device.

8. The device of claim 7 , wherein the device and the client network device are IPv6 devices operating based on Dynamic Host Configuration Parameter v6 (DHCPv6) protocol.

9. The device of claim 7 , wherein the device and the client network device are IPv4 devices operating based on Dynamic Host Configuration Parameter v4 (DHCPv4) protocol.

10. The device of claim 7 , wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to verify the client network device by:

receiving a stapled version of the attestation information from the client network device, the stapled version of the attestation information being generated by a verifying component by signing the attestation information using a digital key known to both the verifying component and the dynamic host configuration server; and

verifying the stapled version using the digital key to yield a verification result of the client network device.

11. The device of claim 7 , wherein a verifiable timestamp validates freshness of the attestation information provided by the network device.

12. The device of claim 7 , wherein

the first request includes a Manufacturer Usage Description (MUD) fetch Uniform Resource Request (URL), and

the dynamic host configuration parameter sends the MUD fetch URL to a controller for on-boarding an Internet of Things (IoT) device after verifying the IoT device based on the attestation information.

13. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprising computer-readable instructions, which when executed by one or more processors of a network device, cause the network device to:

receive a first request from a client device for configuration data, the configuration data including at least an IP address;

send, in response to the receive, a second request to the client network device for attestation information;

verify the client network device based on the attestation information, comprising:

send the attestation information to a verifying component to verify the network device; and

receive a result of verification of the network device from the verifying component; and

assign, in response to at least the verify, the configuration data to the client network device upon verifying the client network device.

14. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 13 , wherein the device and the client network device are IPv6 devices operating based on Dynamic Host Configuration Parameter v6 (DHCPv6) protocol.

15. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14 , wherein the device and the client network device are IPv4 devices operating based on Dynamic Host Configuration Parameter v4 (DHCPv4) protocol.

16. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14 , wherein the execution of the computer-readable instructions by the one or more processors further cause the network device to verify the client network device by:

receiving a stapled version of the attestation information from the client network device, the stapled version of the attestation information being generated by a verifying component by signing the attestation information using a digital key known to both the verifying component and the dynamic host configuration server; and

verifying the stapled version using the digital key to yield a verification result of the client network device.

17. The device of claim 7 , wherein

the first network device is an Internet of Things (IoT) device;

the first request includes a Manufacturer Usage Description (MUD) fetch Uniform Resource Request (URL), and

the dynamic host configuration parameter sends the MUD fetch URL to a controller for on-boarding the IoT device after verifying the IoT device based on the attestation information.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 3, 2020
From: SHETH, SUJAL; BHANDARI, SHWETHA SUBRAY; VOIT, ERIC; SULZEN, WILLIAM F.; BROCKNERS, FRANK; MANI, SELVARAJ; LEAR, ELIOT
To: CISCO TECHNOLOGY, INC.
Reel/Frame 051999/0303 →
Continuity (4)
Provisional Application 62830029 · Apr 5, 2019
Provisional Application 62830360 · Apr 5, 2019
Provisional Application 62835979 · Apr 18, 2019
Related Publication 20200322356A1 · Oct 8, 2020