Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP): Additional Matching Rules
Twelve more ways for an LDAP directory to decide that two values match, borrowed from X.500.
Zeilenga, K., Ed., "Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP): Additional Matching Rules", RFC 3698, DOI 10.17487/RFC3698, February 2004, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc3698>.
@misc{rfc3698,
series = {Request for Comments},
number = 3698,
howpublished = {RFC 3698},
publisher = {RFC Editor},
doi = {10.17487/RFC3698},
url = {https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc3698},
author = {K. Zeilenga},
title = {{Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP): Additional Matching Rules}},
pagetotal = 9,
year = 2004,
month = feb,
} RFC text
Contents
Network Working Group K. Zeilenga, Ed.
Request for Comments: 3698 OpenLDAP Foundation
Updates: 2798 February 2004
Category: Standards Track
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP):
Additional Matching Rules
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 (2004). All Rights Reserved.
Abstract
This document provides a collection of matching rules for use with
the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). As these matching
rules are simple adaptations of matching rules specified for use with
the X.500 Directory, most are already in wide use.
Table of Contents
1. Background and Intended Use. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2. Matching Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2.1. booleanMatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2.2. caseExactMatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2.3. caseExactOrderingMatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.4. caseExactSubstringsMatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.5. caseIgnoreListSubstringsMatch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.6. directoryStringFirstComponentMatch . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.7. integerOrderingMatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.8. keywordMatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.9. numericStringOrderingMatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.10. octetStringOrderingMatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.11. storedPrefixMatch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.12. wordMatch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3. Security Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4. IANA Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
5. Acknowledgments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
6. References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
6.1. Normative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
6.2. Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
7. Author's Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
8. Full Copyright Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1. Background and Intended Use
This document adapts additional X.500 Directory [X.500] matching
rules [X.520] for use with the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol
(LDAP) [RFC3377]. Most of these rules are widely used today on the
Internet, such as in support of the inetOrgPerson [RFC2798] and
Policy Core Information Model [RFC3703] LDAP schemas. The rules are
applicable to many other applications.
This document supersedes the informational matching rules
descriptions provided in RFC 2798 that are now provided in this
document. Specifically, section 2 of this document replaces section
9.3.3 of RFC 2798.
Schema definitions are provided using LDAP description formats
[RFC2252]. Definitions provided here are formatted (line wrapped)
for readability.
2. Matching Rules
2.1. booleanMatch
The booleanMatch rule compares for equality a asserted Boolean value
with an attribute value of BOOLEAN syntax. The rule returns TRUE if
and only if the values are the same, i.e., both are TRUE or both are
FALSE. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.13 NAME 'booleanMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.7 )
The BOOLEAN (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.7) syntax is described in
[RFC2252].
2.2. caseExactMatch
The caseExactMatch rule compares for equality the asserted value with
an attribute value of DirectoryString syntax. The rule is identical
to the caseIgnoreMatch [RFC2252] rule except that case is not
ignored. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.5 NAME 'caseExactMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15 )
The DirectoryString (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15) syntax is
described in [RFC2252].
2.3. caseExactOrderingMatch
The caseExactOrderingMatch rule compares the collation order of the
asserted string with an attribute value of DirectoryString syntax.
The rule is identical to the caseIgnoreOrderingMatch [RFC2252] rule
except that letters are not folded. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.6 NAME 'caseExactOrderingMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15 )
The DirectoryString (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15) syntax is
described in [RFC2252].
2.4. caseExactSubstringsMatch
The caseExactSubstringsMatch rule determines whether the asserted
value(s) are substrings of an attribute value of DirectoryString
syntax. The rule is identical to the caseIgnoreSubstringsMatch
[RFC2252] rule except that case is not ignored. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.7 NAME 'caseExactSubstringsMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.58 )
The SubstringsAssertion (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.58) syntax is
described in [RFC2252].
2.5. caseIgnoreListSubstringsMatch
The caseIgnoreListSubstringMatch rule compares the asserted substring
with an attribute value which is a sequence of DirectoryStrings, but
where the case (upper or lower) is not significant for comparison
purposes. The asserted value matches a stored value if and only if
the asserted value matches the string formed by concatenating the
strings of the stored value. This matching is done according to the
caseIgnoreSubstringsMatch [RFC2252] rule; however, none of the
initial, any, or final values of the asserted value are considered to
match a substring of the concatenated string which spans more than
one of the strings of the stored value. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.12 NAME 'caseIgnoreListSubstringsMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.58 )
The SubstringsAssertion (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.58) syntax is
described in [RFC2252].
2.6. directoryStringFirstComponentMatch
The directoryStringFirstComponentMatch rule compares for equality the
asserted DirectoryString value with an attribute value of type
SEQUENCE whose first component is mandatory and of type
DirectoryString. The rule returns TRUE if and only if the attribute
value has a first component whose value matches the asserted
DirectoryString using the rules of caseIgnoreMatch [RFC2252]. A
value of the assertion syntax is derived from a value of the
attribute syntax by using the value of the first component of the
SEQUENCE. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.31 NAME 'directoryStringFirstComponentMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15 )
The DirectoryString (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15) syntax is
described in [RFC2252].
2.7. integerOrderingMatch
The integerOrderingMatch rule compares the ordering of the asserted
integer with an attribute value of INTEGER syntax. The rule returns
True if the attribute value is less than the asserted value. (Source:
X.520)
( 2.5.13.15 NAME 'integerOrderingMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.27 )
The INTEGER (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.27) syntax is described in
[RFC2252].
2.8. keywordMatch
The keywordMatch rule compares the asserted string with keywords in
an attribute value of DirectoryString syntax. The rule returns TRUE
if and only if the asserted value matches any keyword in the
attribute value. The identification of keywords in an attribute
value and of the exactness of match are both implementation specific.
(Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.33 NAME 'keywordMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15 )
The DirectoryString (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15) syntax is
described in [RFC2252].
2.9. numericStringOrderingMatch
The numericStringOrderingMatch rule compares the collation order of
the asserted string with an attribute value of NumericString syntax.
The rule is identical to the caseIgnoreOrderingMatch [RFC2252] rule
except that all space characters are skipped during comparison (case
is irrelevant as characters are numeric). (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.9 NAME 'numericStringOrderingMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.36 )
The NumericString (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.36) syntax is described
in [RFC2252].
2.10. octetStringOrderingMatch
The octetStringOrderingMatch rule compares the collation order of the
asserted octet string with an attribute value of OCTET STRING syntax.
The rule compares octet strings from first octet to last octet, and
from the most significant bit to the least significant bit within the
octet. The first occurrence of a different bit determines the
ordering of the strings. A zero bit precedes a one bit. If the
strings are identical but contain different numbers of octets, the
shorter string precedes the longer string. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.18 NAME 'octetStringOrderingMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.40 )
The OCTET STRING (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.40) syntax is described
in [RFC2252].
2.11. storedPrefixMatch
The storedPrefixMatch rule determines whether an attribute value,
whose syntax is DirectoryString is a prefix (i.e., initial substring)
of the asserted value, without regard to the case (upper or lower) of
the strings. The rule returns TRUE if and only if the attribute
value is an initial substring of the asserted value with
corresponding characters identical except possibly with regard to
case. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.41 NAME 'storedPrefixMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15 )
Note: This rule can be used, for example, to compare values in the
Directory which are telephone area codes with a purported value
which is a telephone number.
The DirectoryString (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15) syntax is
described in [RFC2252].
2.12. wordMatch
The wordMatch rule compares the asserted string with words in an
attribute value of DirectoryString syntax. The rule returns TRUE if
and only if the asserted word matches any word in the attribute
value. Individual word matching is as for the caseIgnoreMatch
[RFC2252] matching rule. The precise definition of a "word" is
implementation specific. (Source: X.520)
( 2.5.13.32 NAME 'wordMatch'
SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15 )
The DirectoryString (1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.15) syntax is
described in [RFC2252].
3. Security Considerations
General LDAP security considerations [RFC3377] is applicable to the
use of this schema. Additional considerations are noted above where
appropriate.
4. IANA Considerations
The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) has updated the LDAP
descriptors registry [RFC3383] as indicated in the following
template:
Subject: Request for LDAP Descriptor Registration Update
Descriptor (short name): see comment
Object Identifier: see comments
Person & email address to contact for further information:
Kurt Zeilenga <kurt@OpenLDAP.org>
Usage: see comments
Specification: RFC 3698
Author/Change Controller: IESG
Comments:
The following descriptors have been added:
NAME Type OID
------------------------ ---- ---------
booleanMatch M 2.5.13.13
caseExactMatch M 2.5.13.5
caseExactOrderingMatch M 2.5.13.6
caseExactSubstringsMatch M 2.5.13.7
caseIgnoreListSubstringsMatch M 2.5.13.12
directoryStringFirstComponentMatch M 2.5.13.31
integerOrderingMatch M 2.5.13.15
keywordMatch M 2.5.13.33
numericStringOrderingMatch M 2.5.13.9
octetStringOrderingMatch M 2.5.13.18
storedPrefixMatch M 2.5.13.41
wordMatch M 2.5.13.32
where Type M is Matching Rule.
This document makes no new OID assignments. It only associates LDAP
matching rule descriptions with existing X.500 matching rules.
5. Acknowledgments
This document borrows from [X.520], an ITU-T Recommendation.
6. References
6.1. Normative References
[RFC2252] Wahl, M., Coulbeck, A., Howes, T. and S. Kille,
"Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (v3): Attribute
Syntax Definitions", RFC 2252, December 1997.
[RFC3377] Hodges, J. and R. Morgan, "Lightweight Directory Access
Protocol (v3): Technical Specification", RFC 3377,
September 2002.
6.2. Informative References
[RFC2798] Smith, M., "The LDAP inetOrgPerson Object Class", RFC
2798, April 2000.
[RFC3383] Zeilenga, K., "IANA Considerations for LDAP", BCP 64
RFC 3383, September 2002.
[RFC3703] Strassner, J., Moore, B., Moats, R. and E. Ellesson,
"Policy Core LDAP Schema", RFC 3703, February 2004.
[X.500] International Telecommunication Union -
Telecommunication Standardization Sector, "The
Directory -- Overview of concepts, models and
services," X.500(1993) (also ISO/IEC 9594-1:1994).
[X.520] International Telecommunication Union -
Telecommunication Standardization Sector, "The
Directory: Selected Attribute Types", X.520(1997).
7. Author's Address
Kurt D. Zeilenga
OpenLDAP Foundation
EMail: Kurt@OpenLDAP.org
8. Full Copyright Statement
Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2004). This document is subject
to the rights, licenses and restrictions contained in BCP 78 and
except as set forth therein, the authors retain all their rights.
This document and the information contained herein are provided on an
"AS IS" basis and THE CONTRIBUTOR, THE ORGANIZATION HE/SHE
REPRESENTS OR IS SPONSORED BY (IF ANY), THE INTERNET SOCIETY AND THE
INTERNET ENGINEERING TASK FORCE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR
IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF
THE INFORMATION HEREIN WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY RIGHTS OR ANY IMPLIED
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
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On this page
§1Background and Intended Use
RFC 3698 adapts additional matching rules from the X.500 Directory (described in X.520) for use with the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). Most of them were already widely used on the Internet, for instance by the inetOrgPerson and Policy Core Information Model LDAP schemas, and the RFC says they apply to many other applications too.
The document also tidies up an earlier one. It supersedes the informational matching rule descriptions that were in RFC 2798: section 2 of this RFC replaces section 9.3.3 of that one. That is why the metadata lists RFC 3698 as updating RFC 2798.
A directory already knew some ways to compare names. This paper writes down twelve more that people were already using, so everyone describes them the same way.
§2How Each Rule Is Defined
A matching rule tells a directory server how to compare an asserted value (what a search asks for) with an attribute value (what is stored). Every rule here gets the same treatment: a short prose definition, a note of its source (X.520), and a schema definition written in the LDAP description format from RFC 2252.
A definition has the form ( 2.5.13.13 NAME 'booleanMatch' SYNTAX 1.3.6.1.4.1.1466.115.121.1.7 ). It carries the rule's OID, its name, and the OID of the syntax it expects for the stored value. The RFC says the line wrapping is only for readability.
The syntaxes used are all described in RFC 2252: BOOLEAN, DirectoryString, SubstringsAssertion, INTEGER, NumericString and OCTET STRING.
Each rule comes with a name tag, a number and a note saying what kind of thing it compares, like a label on a drawer in a filing cabinet.
§2.1Equality and Substring Rules
Several rules decide whether a stored value equals, or contains, what was asked for.
booleanMatchreturns TRUE if and only if both values are TRUE or both are FALSE.caseExactMatchis identical tocaseIgnoreMatchexcept that case is not ignored.caseExactSubstringsMatchis identical tocaseIgnoreSubstringsMatchexcept that case is not ignored.caseIgnoreListSubstringsMatchworks on a stored value that is a sequence of DirectoryStrings. It matches the concatenation of those strings, but no initial, any or final part of the asserted value may span more than one of the stored strings.directoryStringFirstComponentMatchlooks only at the first component of a stored SEQUENCE, which must be a DirectoryString, and compares it usingcaseIgnoreMatch.
Some rules are like asking whether two words are exactly the same, with capital letters counting. Others check whether a small piece of text appears inside a bigger one.
§2.2Ordering Rules
Ordering rules compare which value comes first, which supports greater-than or less-than style searches.
caseExactOrderingMatchis identical tocaseIgnoreOrderingMatchexcept that letters are not folded.integerOrderingMatchreturns True if the attribute value is less than the asserted value.numericStringOrderingMatchis identical tocaseIgnoreOrderingMatchexcept that all space characters are skipped during comparison.octetStringOrderingMatchcompares octets from first to last and bits from most to least significant. The first different bit decides, a zero bit precedes a one bit, and if the strings are otherwise identical the shorter one comes first.
Ordering rules are like lining kids up by height or words up like in a dictionary, so you can tell who goes before whom.
§2.3Keyword, Word and Prefix Rules
Three rules match parts of a stored string rather than the whole of it.
keywordMatchreturns TRUE if and only if the asserted value matches any keyword in the attribute value. How keywords are identified, and how exact the match is, are implementation specific.wordMatchreturns TRUE if and only if the asserted word matches any word in the attribute value, usingcaseIgnoreMatchfor each word. What counts as a word is implementation specific.storedPrefixMatchreturns TRUE if and only if the stored value is an initial substring of the asserted value, ignoring case. Note the direction: the stored value is the prefix.
The RFC gives one example use for storedPrefixMatch: comparing stored telephone area codes with a purported value that is a full telephone number.
These rules look for a single word inside a sentence, or check that a short stored label like an area code is the start of a longer phone number.
§3Security Considerations
The security section is brief. It says that the general LDAP security considerations from RFC 3377 apply to use of this schema, and that additional considerations are noted in the rule descriptions where appropriate. It adds no new security mechanism of its own.
The safety rules for the directory are the ones that already exist. This paper does not add new ones.
§4IANA Registry Updates
IANA updated the LDAP descriptors registry (from RFC 3383) to add all twelve names as Type M, meaning matching rule, each with its OID. The contact and change controller are given as Kurt Zeilenga and the IESG.
The RFC makes no new OID assignments. It only associates LDAP matching rule descriptions with existing X.500 matching rules.
The official list of names got twelve new entries. The numbers were already handed out earlier, so nothing new was invented.
- 2.5.13.13booleanMatch — Equality of BOOLEAN values.
- 2.5.13.5caseExactMatch — Equality of DirectoryStrings, case significant.
- 2.5.13.6caseExactOrderingMatch — Ordering of DirectoryStrings, letters not folded.
- 2.5.13.7caseExactSubstringsMatch — Substring match, case significant.
- 2.5.13.12caseIgnoreListSubstringsMatch — Substring match across a sequence of strings, without spanning.
- 2.5.13.31directoryStringFirstComponentMatch — Equality on the first component of a SEQUENCE.
- 2.5.13.15integerOrderingMatch — Ordering of INTEGER values.
- 2.5.13.33keywordMatch — Matches any keyword in the stored value.
- 2.5.13.9numericStringOrderingMatch — Ordering of NumericStrings, spaces skipped.
- 2.5.13.18octetStringOrderingMatch — Bitwise ordering of OCTET STRINGs.
- 2.5.13.41storedPrefixMatch — Stored value is a prefix of the asserted value.
- 2.5.13.32wordMatch — Matches any word in the stored value.