Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) over IEEE 802 Networks
How SNMP management messages can ride straight inside Ethernet frames, with no IP underneath.
Schoenwaelder, J. and T. Jeffree, "Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) over IEEE 802 Networks", RFC 4789, DOI 10.17487/RFC4789, November 2006, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc4789>.
@misc{rfc4789,
series = {Request for Comments},
number = 4789,
howpublished = {RFC 4789},
publisher = {RFC Editor},
doi = {10.17487/RFC4789},
url = {https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc4789},
author = {J. Schoenwaelder and T. Jeffree},
title = {{Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) over IEEE 802 Networks}},
pagetotal = 9,
year = 2006,
month = nov,
} RFC text
Contents
Network Working Group J. Schoenwaelder
Request for Comments: 4789 International University Bremen
Obsoletes: 1089 T. Jeffree
Updates: 3417 Consultant
Category: Standards Track November 2006
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) over IEEE 802 Networks
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 IETF Trust (2006).
Abstract
This document specifies how Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)
messages can be transmitted directly over IEEE 802 networks.
This document obsoletes RFC 1089.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction ....................................................2
1.1. Key Words ..................................................2
2. Definitions .....................................................3
3. SNMP over IEEE 802 Networks .....................................4
3.1. Serialization ..............................................4
3.2. Well-known Values ..........................................4
3.3. IEEE 802.3 Frame Format ....................................5
4. Relationship to Other MIB Modules ...............................5
5. IANA Considerations .............................................6
6. Security Considerations .........................................6
7. Acknowledgments .................................................7
8. References ......................................................7
8.1. Normative References .......................................7
8.2. Informative References .....................................7
1. Introduction
This document specifies how Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)
messages can be transmitted directly over IEEE 802 networks. For a
detailed overview of the documents that describe the Internet-
Standard management framework, please refer to section 7 of RFC 3410
[RFC3410]. This document supplements the standard SNMP transport
mappings defined in RFC 3417 [RFC3417].
This document obsoletes RFC 1089.
Managed objects are accessed via a virtual information store, termed
the Management Information Base or MIB. MIB objects are generally
accessed through the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP).
Objects in the MIB are defined using the mechanisms defined in the
Structure of Management Information (SMI). This memo specifies a MIB
module that is compliant to the SMIv2, which is described in STD 58,
RFC 2578 [RFC2578], STD 58, RFC 2579 [RFC2579] and STD 58, RFC 2580
[RFC2580].
1.1. Key Words
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 RFC 2119 [RFC2119].
2. Definitions
SNMP-IEEE802-TM-MIB DEFINITIONS ::= BEGIN
IMPORTS
MODULE-IDENTITY, OBJECT-IDENTITY, snmpModules, snmpDomains
FROM SNMPv2-SMI;
snmpIeee802TmMib MODULE-IDENTITY
LAST-UPDATED "200611210000Z"
ORGANIZATION "IETF Operations and Management Area"
CONTACT-INFO
"Juergen Schoenwaelder (Editor)
International University Bremen
P.O. Box 750 561
28725 Bremen, Germany
Phone: +49 421 200-3587
EMail: j.schoenwaelder@iu-bremen.de
Send comments to <ietfmibs@ops.ietf.org>."
DESCRIPTION
"This MIB module defines the SNMP over IEEE 802
transport mapping.
Copyright (C) The IETF Trust (2006). This version
of this MIB module is part of RFC 4789; see the RFC
itself for full legal notices."
REVISION "200611210000Z"
DESCRIPTION
"The initial version, published as RFC 4789."
::= { snmpModules 21 }
snmpIeee802Domain OBJECT-IDENTITY
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
"The SNMP over IEEE 802 networks transport domain. The
corresponding transport address is of type MacAddress
as defined in the SNMPv2-TC module (RFC 2579)."
REFERENCE "RFC 2579"
::= { snmpDomains 6 }
END
3. SNMP over IEEE 802 Networks
This is an optional transport mapping. The need to carry SNMP
directly over an 802 LAN transport in order to allow for the
management of simple devices was identified in applications like the
Two-Port Media Access Control (MAC) Relay, which is being developed
in IEEE 802.1 as project P802.1aj [802.1aj].
SNMP over IEEE 802 networks has some inherent restrictions. Using
the SNMP over IEEE 802 transport mapping restricts messages to a
single logical IEEE 802 LAN, bridged LAN or VLAN. Furthermore, only
a single SNMP engine can be addressed on a given IEEE 802 network
interface. In particular, command generators and notification
receivers, as well as command responders and notification
originators, must share a single transport endpoint.
3.1. Serialization
SNMP messages are serialized, as described in Section 8 of RFC 3417
[RFC3417]. The resulting serialized message is shipped in the data
portion of an IEEE LAN MAC frame.
3.2. Well-known Values
Serialized SNMP messages are sent in IEEE 802.3 frames with an
Ethernet type field of 33100 (hexadecimal 814C).
When serialized SNMP messages are sent in IEEE 802.3 frames (and in
other IEEE 802 MAC frame types that can natively represent Ethernet
type values), an Ethernet type field value of 33100 (hexadecimal
814C) MUST be used as the link layer protocol identifier. In IEEE
802 LANs that use LLC as the means of link layer protocol
identification, such as IEEE 802.11 Wireless LANs, the SNAP
encapsulation method described in subclause 10.5 "Encapsulation of
Ethernet frames over LLC" in [IEEE802] MUST be used.
When an SNMP entity uses this transport mapping, it MUST be capable
of accepting SNMP messages up to and including 484 octets in size.
It is RECOMMENDED that implementations be capable of accepting
messages of up to 1472 octets in size. Implementation of larger
values is encouraged whenever possible.
3.3. IEEE 802.3 Frame Format
0 1
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Destination |
+- -+
| Ethernet |
+- -+
| Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Source |
+- -+
| Ethernet |
+- -+
| Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
|1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0|
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| SNMP |
+- -+
/ message ... /
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
(Each tic mark represents one bit.)
4. Relationship to Other MIB Modules
Several core SNMP MIB modules use TDomain/TAddress pairs to identify
SNMP transport endpoints. The SNMP-TARGET-MIB [RFC3413] uses
TDomain/TAddress pairs to identify targets that can be used as
notification receivers. TDomain/TAddress pairs are used by the
NOTIFICATION-LOG-MIB [RFC3014] to record the source from which a
notification was received. The ENTITY-MIB [RFC4133] uses TDomain/
TAddress pairs to provide the transport endpoint of logical entities.
The MIB module contained in this document introduces the object
identifier constant snmpIeee802Domain. This constant can be assigned
to an object of type TDomain to identify an SNMP over IEEE 802
endpoint, in which case the corresponding TAddress will have a value
that conforms to the MacAddress textual convention. By providing
these definitions, it is possible to use the generic MIB modules to
refer to SNMP over IEEE 802 endpoints.
5. IANA Considerations
IANA made a MIB OID assignment under the snmpModules branch for the
SNMP-IEEE802-TM-MIB module.
IANA assigned an OID value below snmpDomains for the transport
domain. This first required the setup of a registry for OIDs under
snmpDomains. At the point of this writing, the following assignments
already exist:
Prefix: iso.org.dod.internet.snmpv2.snmpDomains (1.3.6.1.6.1)
Decimal Name Description References
------- ---- ----------- ----------
1 snmpUDPDomain SNMP over UDP [RFC3417]
2 snmpCLNSDomain SNMP over CLNS [RFC3417]
3 snmpCONSDomain SNMP over CONS [RFC3417]
4 snmpDDPDomain SNMP over DDP [RFC3417]
5 snmpIPXDomain SNMP over IPX [RFC3417]
The following assigment has been made:
Decimal Name Description References
------- ---- ----------- ----------
6 snmpIeee802Domain SNMP over IEEE 802 RFC 4789
For new assignments, a specification is required as per [RFC2434].
6. Security Considerations
This module does not define any management objects. Instead, it
defines an OBJECT-IDENTIFIER which may be used by other MIB modules
to identify an SNMP transport mapping. Meaningful security
considerations can only be written in the MIB modules that define
management objects. The MIB module in this document has therefore no
impact on the security of the Internet.
SNMPv1 and SNMPv2c messages are not considered secure. It is
recommended that the implementors consider the use of SNMPv3 messages
and the security features as provided by the SNMPv3 framework.
Specifically, the use of the User-based Security Model STD 62, RFC
3414 [RFC3414] and the View-based Access Control Model STD 62, RFC
3415 [RFC3415] is recommended.
It is then a customer/user responsibility to ensure that the SNMP
entity giving access to a MIB is properly configured to give access
to the objects only to those principals (users) that have legitimate
rights to indeed GET or SET (change) them.
7. Acknowledgments
The original SNMP over Ethernet definition was written by Marty
Schoffstall, Chuck Davin, Mark Fedor, and Jeff Case, and published as
RFC 1089 [RFC1089].
Bert Wijnen and Dan Romascanu provided guidance on many aspects of
this revised specification. David Harrington provided useful
comments that improved the presentation.
8. References
8.1. Normative References
[RFC2119] Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate
Requirement Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119, March 1997.
[RFC2578] McCloghrie, K., Perkins, D., and J. Schoenwaelder,
"Structure of Management Information Version 2 (SMIv2)",
STD 58, RFC 2578, April 1999.
[RFC2579] McCloghrie, K., Perkins, D., and J. Schoenwaelder,
"Textual Conventions for SMIv2", STD 58, RFC 2579, April
1999.
[RFC2580] McCloghrie, K., Perkins, D., and J. Schoenwaelder,
"Conformance Statements for SMIv2", STD 58, RFC 2580,
April 1999.
[RFC3417] Presuhn, R., Ed., "Transport Mappings for the Simple
Network Management Protocol (SNMP)", STD 62, RFC 3417,
December 2002.
[IEEE802] "IEEE Standard for Local Area Networks: Overview and
Architecture", IEEE Std. 802-2001.
[RFC2434] Narten, T. and H. Alvestrand, "Guidelines for Writing an
IANA Considerations Section in RFCs", BCP 26, RFC 2434,
October 1998.
8.2. Informative References
[RFC3410] Case, J., Mundy, R., Partain, D., and B. Stewart,
"Introduction and Applicability Statements for Internet-
Standard Management Framework", RFC 3410, December 2002.
[RFC3413] Levi, D., Meyer, P., and B. Stewart, "Simple Network
Management Protocol (SNMP) Applications", STD 62, RFC
3413, December 2002.
[RFC3414] Blumenthal, U. and B. Wijnen, "User-based Security Model
(USM) for version 3 of the Simple Network Management
Protocol (SNMPv3)", STD 62, RFC 3414, December 2002.
[RFC3415] Wijnen, B., Presuhn, R., and K. McCloghrie, "View-based
Access Control Model (VACM) for the Simple Network
Management Protocol (SNMP)", STD 62, RFC 3415, December
2002.
[RFC3014] Kavasseri, R., "Notification Log MIB", RFC 3014, November
2000.
[RFC4133] Bierman, A. and K. McCloghrie, "Entity MIB (Version 3)",
RFC 4133, August 2005.
[RFC1089] Schoffstall, M., Davin, C., Fedor, M., and J. Case, "SNMP
over Ethernet", RFC 1089, February 1989.
[802.1aj] P802.1aj/D1.4 Draft Standard for Local and Metropolitan
Area Networks - Virtual Bridged Local Area Networks -
Amendment 08: Two-Port Media Access Control (MAC) Relay,
IEEE 802.1 Working Group, June 2006, Work in Progress.
Authors' Addresses
Juergen Schoenwaelder
International University Bremen
Campus Ring 1
28725 Bremen
Germany
Phone: +49 421 200-3587
EMail: j.schoenwaelder@iu-bremen.de
Tony Jeffree
Consultant
11a Poplar Grove
Sale, Cheshire, M33 3AX
United Kingdom
Phone: +44-161-973-4278
EMail: tony@jeffree.co.uk
Full Copyright Statement
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AI ELI5
On this page
§1Introduction
RFC 4789 specifies how SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) messages can be sent directly over IEEE 802 networks. It supplements the standard SNMP transport mappings in RFC 3417 and obsoletes RFC 1089, the original SNMP over Ethernet definition.
The document also contains a small MIB module written in SMIv2. It defines no managed objects. It only defines identifiers so that other MIB modules can refer to this transport.
Devices on a network are checked on by a manager using a special language called SNMP. This note says that language can be spoken right on the local wire.
§3Where the Mapping Applies and Its Limits
This is an optional transport mapping. The need was identified for managing simple devices, in applications like the Two-Port Media Access Control (MAC) Relay being developed in IEEE 802.1 as project P802.1aj.
The RFC lists inherent restrictions. Messages stay within a single logical IEEE 802 LAN, bridged LAN or VLAN. Only a single SNMP engine can be addressed on a given IEEE 802 network interface, so command generators and notification receivers, as well as command responders and notification originators, must share a single transport endpoint.
Notes passed this way only reach kids in the same classroom. And each desk has only one mailbox for everything coming in and going out.
§3.1Serialization and Well-known Values
SNMP messages are serialized as described in Section 8 of RFC 3417. The serialized message is carried in the data portion of an IEEE LAN MAC frame.
In IEEE 802.3 frames, and other 802 frame types that can natively carry Ethernet type values, the Ethernet type 33100 (hexadecimal 814C) MUST be used as the link layer protocol identifier. In IEEE 802 LANs that use LLC to identify the protocol, such as IEEE 802.11 wireless LANs, the SNAP encapsulation method from subclause 10.5 of IEEE 802 MUST be used.
An entity using this mapping MUST be able to accept messages up to and including 484 octets. It is RECOMMENDED that implementations accept messages up to 1472 octets, and larger values are encouraged whenever possible.
Every package gets a special sticker, 814C, that tells the network it holds a management message. Everyone must be able to take small packages, and ideally bigger ones too.
§3.3The IEEE 802.3 Frame Layout
The frame the RFC draws has four parts in order: the destination Ethernet address, the source Ethernet address, a 16-bit type field holding the value for SNMP, and then the SNMP message itself. The type field is shown in the diagram as the bits 1000000101001100, which is 814C.
No IP header or UDP header appears in this layout. The management message sits directly after the Ethernet type.
The frame is an envelope: who it is for, who it is from, a sticker saying what is inside, and then the message.
§4The Transport Domain and Other MIB Modules
Several core SNMP MIB modules use TDomain/TAddress pairs to identify transport endpoints. The SNMP-TARGET-MIB uses them for notification receivers, the NOTIFICATION-LOG-MIB records the source of a notification with them, and the ENTITY-MIB uses them for the endpoint of logical entities.
The module in this RFC introduces the object identifier constant snmpIeee802Domain. It can be assigned to a TDomain object to identify an SNMP over IEEE 802 endpoint. The matching TAddress then conforms to the MacAddress textual convention, so the endpoint is simply a MAC address.
Other management tools keep address books. This note adds a new kind of entry whose address is a hardware address on the local network.
§5IANA Assignments
IANA made a MIB OID assignment under the snmpModules branch for the SNMP-IEEE802-TM-MIB module. IANA also assigned an OID value below snmpDomains for the transport domain, which first required setting up a registry for OIDs under snmpDomains (prefix 1.3.6.1.6.1).
The new domain, snmpIeee802Domain, took value 6, after five existing entries for UDP, CLNS, CONS, DDP and IPX. New assignments require a specification, as per RFC 2434.
A librarian keeps a numbered list of transports. This one was added as number six.
- 1snmpUDPDomain — SNMP over UDP (RFC 3417).
- 2snmpCLNSDomain — SNMP over CLNS (RFC 3417).
- 3snmpCONSDomain — SNMP over CONS (RFC 3417).
- 4snmpDDPDomain — SNMP over DDP (RFC 3417).
- 5snmpIPXDomain — SNMP over IPX (RFC 3417).
- 6snmpIeee802Domain — SNMP over IEEE 802, assigned by RFC 4789.
§6Security Considerations
The module defines no management objects, only an OBJECT-IDENTIFIER, so the RFC says it has no impact on the security of the Internet. Meaningful security considerations can only be written in the MIB modules that define management objects.
SNMPv1 and SNMPv2c messages are not considered secure. Implementors are advised to consider SNMPv3 messages, specifically the User-based Security Model (RFC 3414) and the View-based Access Control Model (RFC 3415). It is the customer's or user's responsibility to configure the SNMP entity so that only principals with legitimate rights can GET or SET the objects.
The old versions of SNMP are like talking out loud in a crowd. The newer version adds secret codes and a list of who may do what.