Network Working Group                                          L. Berger
Request for Comments: 5250                                          LabN
Obsoletes: 2370                                               I. Bryskin
Category: Standards Track                                           Adva
                                                               A. Zinin
                                                         Alcatel-Lucent
                                                              R. Coltun
                                                   Acoustra Productions
                                                              July 2008


                      The OSPF Opaque LSA Option

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.

Abstract

  This document defines enhancements to the OSPF protocol to support a
  new class of link state advertisements (LSAs) called Opaque LSAs.
  Opaque LSAs provide a generalized mechanism to allow for the future
  extensibility of OSPF.  Opaque LSAs consist of a standard LSA header
  followed by application-specific information.  The information field
  may be used directly by OSPF or by other applications.  Standard OSPF
  link-state database flooding mechanisms are used to distribute Opaque
  LSAs to all or some limited portion of the OSPF topology.

  This document replaces RFC 2370 and adds to it a mechanism to enable
  an OSPF router to validate Autonomous System (AS)-scope Opaque LSAs
  originated outside of the router's OSPF area.
















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Table of Contents

  1. Introduction ....................................................3
     1.1. Organization of This Document ..............................3
     1.2. Acknowledgments ............................................3
  2. Conventions Used in This Document ...............................4
  3. The Opaque LSA ..................................................4
     3.1. Flooding Opaque LSAs .......................................5
     3.2. Modifications to the Neighbor State Machine ................6
  4. Protocol Data Structures ........................................7
     4.1. Additions to the OSPF Neighbor Structure ...................8
  5. Inter-Area Considerations .......................................8
  6. Management Considerations .......................................9
  7. Backward Compatibility ..........................................9
  8. Security Considerations .........................................9
  9. IANA Considerations ............................................11
  10. References ....................................................12
     10.1. Normative References .....................................12
     10.2. Informative References ...................................12
  Appendix A. OSPF Data formats .....................................13
     A.1. The Options Field .........................................13
     A.2. The Opaque LSA ............................................14





























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1.  Introduction

  Over the last several years, the OSPF routing protocol [OSPF] has
  been widely deployed throughout the Internet.  As a result of this
  deployment and the evolution of networking technology, OSPF has been
  extended to support many options; this evolution will obviously
  continue.

  This document defines enhancements to the OSPF protocol to support a
  new class of link state advertisements (LSAs) called Opaque LSAs.
  Opaque LSAs provide a generalized mechanism to allow for the future
  extensibility of OSPF.  The information contained in Opaque LSAs may
  be used directly by OSPF or indirectly by some application wishing to
  distribute information throughout the OSPF domain.  The exact use of
  Opaque LSAs is beyond the scope of this document.

  Opaque LSAs consist of a standard LSA header followed by a 32-bit
  aligned application-specific information field.  Like any other LSA,
  the Opaque LSA uses the link-state database distribution mechanism
  for flooding this information throughout the topology.  The link-
  state type field of the Opaque LSA identifies the LSA's range of
  topological distribution.  This range is referred to as the flooding
  scope.

  It is envisioned that an implementation of the Opaque option provides
  an application interface for 1) encapsulating application-specific
  information in a specific Opaque type, 2) sending and receiving
  application-specific information, and 3) if required, informing the
  application of the change in validity of previously received
  information when topological changes are detected.

1.1.  Organization of This Document

  This document first defines the three types of Opaque LSAs followed
  by a description of OSPF packet processing.  The packet processing
  sections include modifications to the flooding procedure and to the
  neighbor state machine.  Appendix A then gives the packet formats.

1.2.  Acknowledgments

  We would like to thank Acee Lindem for his detailed review and useful
  feedback.  The handling of AS-scope Opaque LSAs described in this
  document is taken from "Validation of OSPF AS-scope opaque LSAs"
  (April 2006).







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2.  Conventions Used in This Document

  The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT",
  "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this
  document are to be interpreted as described in [RFC2119].

3.  The Opaque LSA

  Opaque LSAs are types 9, 10, and 11 link state advertisements.
  Opaque LSAs consist of a standard LSA header followed by a 32-bit
  aligned application-specific information field.  Standard link-state
  database flooding mechanisms are used for distribution of Opaque
  LSAs.  The range of topological distribution (i.e., the flooding
  scope) of an Opaque LSA is identified by its link-state type.  This
  section documents the flooding of Opaque LSAs.

  The flooding scope associated with each Opaque link-state type is
  defined as follows.

  o  Link-state type-9 denotes a link-local scope.  Type-9 Opaque LSAs
     are not flooded beyond the local (sub)network.

  o  Link-state type-10 denotes an area-local scope.  Type-10 Opaque
     LSAs are not flooded beyond the borders of their associated area.

  o  Link-state type-11 denotes that the LSA is flooded throughout the
     Autonomous System (AS).  The flooding scope of type-11 LSAs are
     equivalent to the flooding scope of AS-External (type-5) LSAs.
     Specifically, type-11 Opaque LSAs are 1) flooded throughout all
     transit areas, 2) not flooded into stub areas or Not-So-Stubby
     Areas (NSSAs), see [NSSA], from the backbone, and 3) not
     originated by routers into their connected stub areas or NSSAs.
     As with type-5 LSAs, if a type-11 Opaque LSA is received in a stub
     area or NSSA from a neighboring router within the stub area or
     NSSA, the LSA is rejected.

  The link-state ID of the Opaque LSA is divided into an Opaque type
  field (the first 8 bits) and a type-specific ID (the remaining 24
  bits).  The packet format of the Opaque LSA is given in Appendix A.
  Section 7 describes Opaque type allocation and assignment.

  The responsibility for proper handling of the Opaque LSA's flooding
  scope is placed on both the sender and receiver of the LSA.  The
  receiver must always store a valid received Opaque LSA in its link-
  state database.  The receiver must not accept Opaque LSAs that
  violate the flooding scope (e.g., a type-11 (domain-wide) Opaque LSA





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  is not accepted in a stub area or NSSA).  The flooding scope affects
  both the synchronization of the link-state database and the flooding
  procedure.

  The following describes the modifications to these procedures that
  are necessary to insure conformance to the Opaque LSA's Scoping
  Rules.

3.1.  Flooding Opaque LSAs

  The flooding of Opaque LSAs MUST follow the rules of flooding scope
  as specified in this section.  Section 13 of [OSPF] describes the
  OSPF flooding procedure.  Those procedures MUST be followed as
  defined except where modified in this section.  The following
  describes the Opaque LSA's type-specific flooding restrictions.

  o  If the Opaque LSA is type-9 (the flooding scope is link-local) and
     the interface that the LSA was received on is not the same as the
     target interface (e.g., the interface associated with a particular
     target neighbor), the Opaque LSA MUST be discarded and not
     acknowledged.  An implementation SHOULD keep track of the IP
     interface associated with each Opaque LSA having a link-local
     flooding scope.

  o  If the Opaque LSA is type-10 (the flooding scope is area-local)
     and the area associated with the Opaque LSA (as identified during
     origination or from a received LSA's associated OSPF packet
     header) is not the same as the area associated with the target
     interface, the Opaque LSA MUST be discarded and not acknowledged.
     An implementation SHOULD keep track of the OSPF area associated
     with each Opaque LSA having an area-local flooding scope.

  o  If the Opaque LSA is type-11 (the LSA is flooded throughout the
     AS) and the target interface is associated with a stub area or
     NSSA, the Opaque LSA MUST NOT be flooded out the interface.  A
     type-11 Opaque LSA that is received on an interface associated
     with a stub area or NSSA MUST be discarded and not acknowledged
     (the neighboring router has flooded the LSA in error).

  When opaque-capable routers and non-opaque-capable OSPF routers are
  mixed together in a routing domain, the Opaque LSAs are typically not
  flooded to the non-opaque-capable routers.  As a general design
  principle, optional OSPF advertisements are only flooded to those
  routers that understand them.

  An opaque-capable router learns of its neighbor's opaque capability
  at the beginning of the "Database Exchange Process" (see Section 10.6
  of [OSPF] regarding receiving Database Description packets from a



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  neighbor in state ExStart).  A neighbor is opaque-capable if and only
  if it sets the O-bit in the Options field of its Database Description
  packets; the O-bit SHOULD NOT be set and MUST be ignored when
  received in packets other than Database Description packets.  Using
  the O-bit in OSPF packets other than Database Description packets
  will result in interoperability issues.  The setting of the O-bit is
  a "SHOULD NOT" rather than a "MUST NOT" to remain compatible with
  earlier specifications.

  In the next step of the Database Exchange process, Opaque LSAs are
  included in the Database summary list that is sent to the neighbor
  (see Sections 3.2 below and 10.3 of [OSPF]) when the neighbor is
  opaque capable.

  When flooding Opaque LSAs to adjacent neighbors, an opaque-capable
  router looks at the neighbor's opaque capability.  Opaque LSAs are
  only flooded to opaque-capable neighbors.  To be more precise, in
  Section 13.3 of [OSPF], Opaque LSAs MUST be placed on the link-state
  retransmission lists of opaque-capable neighbors and MUST NOT be
  placed on the link-state retransmission lists of non-opaque-capable
  neighbors.  However, when sending Link State Update packets as
  multicasts, a non-opaque-capable neighbor may (inadvertently) receive
  Opaque LSAs.  The non-opaque-capable router will then simply discard
  the LSA (see Section 13 of [OSPF] regarding receiving LSAs having
  unknown LS types).

  Information contained in received Opaque LSAs SHOULD only be used
  when the router originating the LSA is reachable.  As mentioned in
  [OSPFv3], reachability validation MAY be done less frequently than
  every SPF calculation.  Additionally, routers processing received
  Opaque LSAs MAY choose to give priority to processing base OSPF LSA
  types over Opaque LSA types.

3.2.  Modifications to the Neighbor State Machine

  The state machine as it exists in Section 10.3 of [OSPF] remains
  unchanged except for the action associated with State: ExStart,
  Event: NegotiationDone, which is where the Database summary list is
  built.  To incorporate the Opaque LSA in OSPF, this action is changed
  to the following.

   State(s):  ExStart

      Event:  NegotiationDone







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  New state:  Exchange

     Action:  The router MUST list the contents of its entire area
              link-state database in the neighbor Database summary
              list.  The area link-state database consists of the
              Router LSAs, Network LSAs, Summary LSAs, type-9 Opaque
              LSAs, and type-10 Opaque LSAs contained in the area
              structure, along with AS External and type-11 Opaque LSAs
              contained in the global structure.  AS External and
              type-11 Opaque LSAs MUST be omitted from a virtual
              neighbor's Database summary list.  AS External LSAs and
              type-11 Opaque LSAs MUST be omitted from the Database
              summary list if the area has been configured as a stub
              area or NSSA (see Section 3.6 of [OSPF]).

              Type-9 Opaque LSAs MUST be omitted from the Database
              summary list if the interface associated with the
              neighbor is not the interface associated with the Opaque
              LSA (as noted upon reception).

              Any advertisement whose age is equal to MaxAge MUST be
              omitted from the Database summary list.  It MUST instead
              be added to the neighbor's link-state retransmission
              list.  A summary of the Database summary list will be
              sent to the neighbor in Database Description packets.
              Only one Database Description Packet is allowed to be
              outstanding at any one time.  For more detail on the
              sending and receiving of Database Description packets,
              see Sections 10.6 and 10.8 of [OSPF].

4.  Protocol Data Structures

  The Opaque option is described herein in terms of its operation on
  various protocol data structures.  These data structures are included
  for explanatory uses only.  They are not intended to constrain an
  implementation.  In addition to the data structures listed below,
  this specification references the various data structures (e.g., OSPF
  neighbors) defined in [OSPF].

  In an OSPF router, the following item is added to the list of global
  OSPF data structures described in Section 5 of [OSPF]:

  o  Opaque capability.  Indicates whether the router is running the
     Opaque option (i.e., capable of storing Opaque LSAs).  Such a
     router will continue to interoperate with non-opaque-capable OSPF
     routers.





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4.1.  Additions to the OSPF Neighbor Structure

  The OSPF neighbor structure is defined in Section 10 of [OSPF].  In
  an opaque-capable router, the following items are added to the OSPF
  neighbor structure:

  o  Neighbor Options.  This field was already defined in the OSPF
     specification.  However, in opaque-capable routers, there is a new
     option that indicates the neighbor's Opaque capability.  This new
     option is learned in the Database Exchange process through
     reception of the neighbor's Database Description packets and
     determines whether Opaque LSAs are flooded to the neighbor.  For a
     more detailed explanation of the flooding of the Opaque LSA, see
     Section 3 of this document.

5.  Inter-Area Considerations

  As defined above, link-state type-11 Opaque LSAs are flooded
  throughout the Autonomous System (AS).  One issue related to such
  AS-scoped Opaque LSAs is that there must be a way for OSPF routers in
  remote areas to check availability of the LSA originator.
  Specifically, if an OSPF router originates a type-11 LSA and, after
  that, goes out of service, OSPF routers located outside of the
  originator's OSPF area have no way of detecting this fact and may use
  the stale information for a considerable period of time (up to 60
  minutes).  This could prove to be suboptimal for some applications
  and may result in others not functioning.

  Type-9 Opaque LSAs and type-10 Opaque LSAs do not have this problem
  as a receiving router can detect if the advertising router is
  reachable within the LSA's respective flooding scope.  In the case of
  type-9 LSAs, the originating router must be an OSPF neighbor in
  Exchange state or greater.  In the case of type-10 Opaque LSAs, the
  intra-area SPF calculation will determine the advertising router's
  reachability.

  There is a parallel issue in OSPF for the AS-scoped AS External LSAs
  (type-5 LSAs).  OSPF addresses this by using AS border information
  advertised in AS boundary router (ASBR) Summary LSAs (type-4 LSAs);
  see Section 16.4 of [OSPF].  This same mechanism is reused by this
  document for type-11 Opaque LSAs.

  To enable OSPF routers in remote areas to check availability of the
  originator of link-state type-11 Opaque LSAs, the originators
  advertise themselves as ASBRs.  This will enable routers to track the
  reachability of the LSA originator either directly via the SPF
  calculation (for routers in the same area) or indirectly via type-4
  LSAs originated by ABRs (for routers in other areas).  It is



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  important to note that per [OSPF], this solution does not apply to
  OSPF stub areas or NSSAs as AS-scoped Opaque LSAs are not flooded
  into these area types.

  The procedures related to inter-area Opaque LSAs are as follows:

  (1) An OSPF router that is configured to originate AS-scope opaque
      LSAs will advertise itself as an ASBR and MUST follow the
      requirements related to setting of the Options field E-bit in
      OSPF LSA headers as specified in [OSPF].

  (2) When processing a received type-11 Opaque LSA, the router MUST
      look up the routing table entries (potentially one per attached
      area) for the ASBR that originated the LSA.  If no entries exist
      for the ASBR (i.e., the ASBR is unreachable), the router MUST do
      nothing with this LSA.  It also MUST discontinue using all Opaque
      LSAs injected into the network by the same originator whenever it
      is detected that the originator is unreachable.

6.  Management Considerations

  The updated OSPF MIB, [RFC4750], provides explicit support for Opaque
  LSAs and SHOULD be used to support implementations of this document.
  See Section 12.3 of [RFC4750] for details.  In addition to that
  section, implementations supporting [RFC4750] will also include
  Opaque LSAs in all appropriate generic LSA objects, e.g.,
  ospfOriginateNewLsas and ospfLsdbTable.

7.  Backward Compatibility

  The solution proposed in this document introduces no interoperability
  issues.  In the case that a non-opaque-capable neighbor receives
  Opaque LSAs, per [OSPF], the non-opaque-capable router will simply
  discard the LSA.

  Note that OSPF routers that implement [RFC2370] will continue using
  stale type-11 LSAs even when the LSA originator implements the
  inter-area procedures described in Section 6 of this document.

8.  Security Considerations

  There are two types of issues that need be addressed when looking at
  protecting routing protocols from misconfigurations and malicious
  attacks.  The first is authentication and certification of routing
  protocol information.  The second is denial-of-service attacks
  resulting from repetitive origination of the same router
  advertisement or origination of a large number of distinct
  advertisements resulting in database overflow.  Note that both of



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  these concerns exist independently of a router's support for the
  Opaque option.

  To address the authentication concerns, OSPF protocol exchanges are
  authenticated.  OSPF supports multiple types of authentication; the
  type of authentication in use can be configured on a per-network-
  segment basis.  One of OSPF's authentication types, namely the
  Cryptographic authentication option, is believed to be secure against
  passive attacks and provide significant protection against active
  attacks.  When using the Cryptographic authentication option, each
  router appends a "message digest" to its transmitted OSPF packets.
  Receivers then use the shared secret key and received digest to
  verify that each received OSPF packet is authentic.

  The quality of the security provided by the Cryptographic
  authentication option depends completely on the strength of the
  message digest algorithm (MD5 is currently the only message digest
  algorithm specified), the strength of the key being used, and the
  correct implementation of the security mechanism in all communicating
  OSPF implementations.  It also requires that all parties maintain the
  secrecy of the shared secret key.  None of the standard OSPF
  authentication types provide confidentiality.  Nor do they protect
  against traffic analysis.  For more information on the standard OSPF
  security mechanisms, see Sections 8.1, 8.2, and Appendix D of [OSPF].

  Repetitive origination of advertisements is addressed by OSPF by
  mandating a limit on the frequency that new instances of any
  particular LSA can be originated and accepted during the flooding
  procedure.  The frequency at which new LSA instances may be
  originated is set equal to once every MinLSInterval seconds, whose
  value is 5 seconds (see Section 12.4 of [OSPF]).  The frequency at
  which new LSA instances are accepted during flooding is once every
  MinLSArrival seconds, whose value is set to 1 (see Section 13,
  Appendix B, and G.5 of [OSPF]).

  Proper operation of the OSPF protocol requires that all OSPF routers
  maintain an identical copy of the OSPF link-state database.  However,
  when the size of the link-state database becomes very large, some
  routers may be unable to keep the entire database due to resource
  shortages; we term this "database overflow".  When database overflow
  is anticipated, the routers with limited resources can be
  accommodated by configuring OSPF stub areas and NSSAs.  [OVERFLOW]
  details a way of gracefully handling unanticipated database
  overflows.







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  In the case of type-11 Opaque LSAs, this document reuses an ASBR
  tracking mechanism that is already employed in basic OSPF for type-5
  LSAs.  Therefore, applying it to type-11 Opaque LSAs does not create
  any threats that are not already known for type-5 LSAs.

9.  IANA Considerations

  This document updates the requirements for the OSPF Opaque LSA type
  registry.  Three following changes have been made:

  1. References to [RFC2370] have been replaced with references to this
     document.

  2. The Opaque type values in the range of 128-255 have been reserved
     for "Private Use" as defined in [RFC5226].

  3. The reference for Opaque type registry value 1, Traffic
     Engineering LSA, has been updated to [RFC3630].

  The registry now reads:

     Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) Opaque Link-State
     Advertisements (LSA) Option Types

     Registries included below:
     - Opaque Link-State Advertisements (LSA) Option Types

     Registry Name: Opaque Link-State Advertisements (LSA) Option Types
     Reference: [RFC5250]
     Range     Registration Procedures                     Notes
     --------  ------------------------------------------  --------
     0-127     IETF Consensus
     128-255   Private Use

     Registry:
     Value    Opaque Type                                 Reference
     -------  ------------------------------------------  ---------
     1        Traffic Engineering LSA                     [RFC3630]
     2        Sycamore Optical Topology Descriptions      [Moy]
     3        grace-LSA                                   [RFC3623]
     4        Router Information (RI)                     [RFC4970]
     5-127    Unassigned
     128-255  Private Use








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10.  References

10.1.  Normative References

  [DEMD]     Moy, J., "Extending OSPF to Support Demand Circuits", RFC
             1793, April 1995.

  [OSPF]     Moy, J., "OSPF Version 2", STD 54, RFC 2328, April 1998.

  [RFC2119]  Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to indicate
             requirements levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119, March 1997.

  [RFC4750]  Joyal, D., Ed., Galecki, P., Ed., Giacalone, S., Ed.,
             Coltun, R., and F. Baker, "OSPF Version 2 Management
             Information Base", RFC 4750, December 2006.

  [RFC5226]  Narten, T. and H. Alvestrand, "Guidelines for Writing an
             IANA Considerations Section in RFCs", BCP 26, RFC 5226,
             May 2008.

10.2.  Informative References

  [MOSPF]    Moy, J., "Multicast Extensions to OSPF", RFC 1584, March
             1994.

  [NSSA]     Murphy P., "The OSPF Not-So-Stubby Area (NSSA) Option",
             RFC 3101, January 2003.

  [OSPF-MT]  Psenak, P., Mirtorabi, S., Roy, A., Nguyen, L., and P.
             Pillay-Esnault, "Multi-Topology (MT) Routing in OSPF", RFC
             4915, June 2007.

  [OSPFv3]   Coltun, R., Ferguson, D., Moy, J., and A. Lindem, Ed.,
             "OSPF for IPv6", Work in Progress, May 2008.

  [OVERFLOW] Moy, J., "OSPF Database Overflow", RFC 1765, March 1995.

  [RFC2370]  Coltun, R., "The OSPF Opaque LSA Option", RFC 2370, July
             1998.

  [RFC3630]  Katz, D., Kompella, K., and D. Yeund, "Traffic Engineering
             (TE) Extensions to OSPF Version 2", RFC 3630, September
             2003.

  [RFC4576]  Rosen, E., Psenak, P., and P. Pillay-Esnault, "Using a
             Link State Advertisement (LSA) Options Bit to Prevent
             Looping in BGP/MPLS IP Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)",
             RFC 4576, June 2006.



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RFC 5250                 OSPF Opaque LSA Option                July 2008


Appendix A.  OSPF Data Formats

  This appendix describes the format of the Options Field followed by
  the packet format of the Opaque LSA.

A.1.  The Options Field

  The OSPF Options field is present in OSPF Hello packets, Database
  Description packets, and all link state advertisements.  The Options
  field enables OSPF routers to support (or not support) optional
  capabilities, and to communicate their capability level to other OSPF
  routers.  Through this mechanism, routers of differing capabilities
  can be mixed within an OSPF routing domain.

  When used in Hello packets, the Options field allows a router to
  reject a neighbor because of a capability mismatch.  Alternatively,
  when capabilities are exchanged in Database Description packets a
  router can choose not to flood certain link state advertisements to a
  neighbor because of its reduced functionality.  Lastly, listing
  capabilities in link state advertisements allows routers to forward
  traffic around reduced functionality routers by excluding them from
  parts of the routing table calculation.

  All 8 bits of the OSPF Options field have been assigned, although
  only the O-bit is described completely by this document.  Each bit is
  described briefly below.  Routers SHOULD reset (i.e., clear)
  unrecognized bits in the Options field when sending Hello packets or
  Database Description packets and when originating link state
  advertisements.  Conversely, routers encountering unrecognized Option
  bits in received Hello Packets, Database Description packets, or link
  state advertisements SHOULD ignore the capability and process the
  packet/advertisement normally.

               +--------------------------------------+
               | DN | O | DC | EA | N/P | MC | E | MT |
               +--------------------------------------+

                            The Options Field

  MT-bit
       This bit describes the router's multi-topology link-excluding
       capability, as described in [OSPF-MT].

  E-bit
       This bit describes the way AS-External LSAs are flooded, as
       described in Sections 3.6, 9.5, 10.8, and 12.1.2 of [OSPF].





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  MC-bit
       This bit describes whether IP multicast datagrams are forwarded
       according to the specifications in [MOSPF].

  N/P-bit
       This bit describes the handling of Type-7 LSAs, as specified in
       [NSSA].

  DC-bit
       This bit describes the router's handling of demand circuits, as
       specified in [DEMD].

  EA-bit
       This bit describes the router's willingness to receive and
       forward External-Attributes-LSAs.  While defined, the documents
       specifying this bit have all expired.  The use of this bit may
       be deprecated in the future.

  O-bit
       This bit describes the router's willingness to receive and
       forward Opaque LSAs as specified in this document.

  DN-bit
       This bit is used to prevent looping in BGP/MPLS IP VPNs, as
       specified in [RFC4576].

A.2.  The Opaque LSA

  Opaque LSAs are Type 9, 10, and 11 link state advertisements.  These
  advertisements MAY be used directly by OSPF or indirectly by some
  application wishing to distribute information throughout the OSPF
  domain.  The function of the Opaque LSA option is to provide for
  future OSPF extensibility.

  Opaque LSAs contain some number of octets (of application-specific
  data) padded to 32-bit alignment.  Like any other LSA, the Opaque LSA
  uses the link-state database distribution mechanism for flooding this
  information throughout the topology.  However, the Opaque LSA has a
  flooding scope associated with it so that the scope of flooding may
  be link-local (type-9), area-local (type-10), or the entire OSPF
  routing domain (type-11).  Section 3 of this document describes the
  flooding procedures for the Opaque LSA.









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      0                   1                   2                   3
      0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
     +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
     |            LS age             |     Options   |  9, 10, or 11 |
     +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
     |  Opaque Type  |               Opaque ID                       |
     +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
     |                      Advertising Router                       |
     +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
     |                      LS Sequence Number                       |
     +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
     |         LS checksum           |           Length              |
     +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
     |                                                               |
     +                                                               +
     |                      Opaque Information                       |
     +                                                               +
     |                              ...                              |

  Link-State Type

     The link-state type of the Opaque LSA identifies the LSA's range
     of topological distribution.  This range is referred to as the
     flooding scope.  The following explains the flooding scope of each
     of the link-state types.

     o  A value of 9 denotes a link-local scope.  Opaque LSAs with a
        link-local scope MUST NOT be flooded beyond the local
        (sub)network.

     o  A value of 10 denotes an area-local scope.  Opaque LSAs with an
        area-local scope MUST NOT be flooded beyond their area of
        origin.

     o  A value of 11 denotes that the LSA is flooded throughout the
        Autonomous System (e.g., has the same scope as type-5 LSAs).
        Opaque LSAs with AS-wide scope MUST NOT be flooded into stub
        areas or NSSAs.

  Syntax of the Opaque LSA's Link-State ID

     The link-state ID of the Opaque LSA is divided into an Opaque Type
     field (the first 8 bits) and an Opaque ID (the remaining 24 bits).
     See section 7 of this document for a description of Opaque type
     allocation and assignment.






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RFC 5250                 OSPF Opaque LSA Option                July 2008


Authors' Addresses

  Lou Berger
  LabN Consulting, L.L.C.
  EMail: [email protected]

  Igor Bryskin
  ADVA Optical Networking Inc
  7926 Jones Branch Drive
  Suite 615
  McLean, VA  22102
  EMail: [email protected]

  Alex Zinin
  Alcatel-Lucent
  750D Chai Chee Rd #06-06
  Technopark@ChaiChee
  Singapore, 469004
  EMail: [email protected]

  Rob Coltun
  Acoustra Productions
  3204 Brooklawn Terrace
  Chevy Chase, MD  20815
  USA


























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RFC 5250                 OSPF Opaque LSA Option                July 2008


Full Copyright Statement

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