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Versions: 00 01 02 03 04                                                
   Internet Draft                                             B. Claise
   Document: draft-claise-ipfix-eval-netflow-00.txt       Cisco Systems
   Expires: Mars 2003                                    September 2002


        Evaluation Of NetFlow Version 9 Against IPFIX Requirements

                   <draft-claise-ipfix-eval-netflow-00.txt>


Status of this Memo

   This document is an Internet-Draft and is in full conformance with
   all provisions of Section 10 of [RFC 2026]. Internet-Drafts are
   working documents of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), its
   areas, and its working groups. Note that other groups may also
   distribute working documents as Internet-Drafts.

   Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
   and may be updated, replaced, or obsolete by other documents at any
   time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference
   material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."

   The list of current Internet-Drafts can be accessed at
   http://www.ietf.org/ietf/1id-abstracts.txt

   The list of Internet-Draft Shadow Directories can be accessed at
   http://www.ietf.org/shadow.html

   Distribution of this document is unlimited.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2001). All Rights Reserved.


Abstract

   This document provides an evaluation of the applicability of the NetFlow
   flow record export protocol version 9 as an IPFIX protocol. It compares
   the properties and capabilities of the NetFlow flow record export protocol
   version 9 to the IPFIX requirements [IPFIX-REQ].
   This document is the first version of the draft and should not be
   considered as finished work. Updated version(s) will soon follow with



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   changes introduced by the publication of the new requirement draft version
   6 [IPFIX-REQ6], and with the English syntax and grammar corrections.



        Table of Contents

   1. Introduction...................................................3
   2. Architectural Considerations...................................5
      2.1 NetFlow Protocol Overview..................................6
      2.2 General Applicability......................................6
        2.2.1 Flow Definition......................................6
        2.2.2 Observation Point....................................7
        2.2.3 The Metering Process and the Flow Record.............7
        2.2.4 The Exporting Process................................7
        2.2.5 The Collecting Process...............................7
      2.3 Architectural Differences..................................8
   3. Item Level Compliance Evaluation...............................9
      3.1 Terminology (section 2)....................................9
        3.1.1 IP Traffic Flow (2.1)................................9
        3.1.2 Observation Point (2.2)..............................9
        3.1.3 Metering Process (2.3)..............................10
        3.1.4 Flow Record (2.4)...................................10
        3.1.5 Exporting Process (2.5).............................10
        3.1.6 Collecting Process (2.6)............................10
      3.2 Applications Requiring IP Flow Information Export (3).....10
      3.3 Distinguishing Flows (4)..................................11
        3.3.1 Interface (4.1).....................................11
        3.3.2 IP Header Fields (4.2)..............................11
        3.3.3 Transport Header Fields (4.3).......................11
        3.3.4 MPLS (4.4)..........................................11
        3.3.5 DiffServ Code Point (4.5)...........................11
        3.3.6 Header Compression and Encryption (4.6).............11
      3.4 Metering Process (5)......................................11
        3.4.1 Reliability (5.1)...................................12
        3.4.2 Sampling (5.2)......................................12
        3.4.3 Overload Behavior (5.3).............................12
        3.4.4 Timestamps (5.4)....................................13
        3.4.5 Time Synchronization (5.5)..........................13
        3.4.6 Flow Expiration (5.6)...............................13
        3.4.7 Multicast (5.7).....................................14
        3.4.8 Ignore Port Copy (5.8)..............................14
      3.5 Data Export (6)...........................................14
        3.5.1 Information Model (6.1).............................14
        3.5.2 Data Model (6.2)....................................15
        3.5.3 Data Transfer (6.3).................................15
          3.5.3.1 Congestion Awareness (6.3.1)....................15
          3.5.3.2 Reliability (6.3.2).............................15


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          3.5.3.3 Security (6.3.3)................................15
        3.5.4 Regular Reporting Interval (6.4)....................16
        3.5.5 Notification on Specific Events (6.5)...............16
        3.5.6 Anonymization (6.6).................................16
      3.6 Configuration (7).........................................16
        3.6.1 Configuration of the Metering Process (7.1).........16
        3.6.2 Configuration of the Exporting Process (7.2)........16
      3.7 General Requirements Compliance (8).......................16
        3.7.1 Openness (8.1)......................................16
        3.7.2 Scalability Concerning the Number of Exporting Processes
        (8.2) 16
        3.7.3 Several Collecting Processes (8.3)..................17
   4. Security Considerations.......................................17
   5. References....................................................17
   6. Author's Address..............................................18
   7. Full Copyright Statement......................................18


1. Introduction

   This document provides an evaluation of the applicability of the NetFlow
   flow record export protocol version 9 as an IPFIX protocol. First, the
   general NetFlow architecture is introduced and its application to the
   communication between an IPFIX exporting process and an IPFIX collecting
   process is discussed in Section 2. Section 3 discusses in detail, to which
   degree requirements stated in [IPFIX-REQ] are met.

   This document uses the terminology defined in [IPFIX-REQ].

   Note that the generic term NetFlow refers to multiple different notions:
   the metering process, the exporting process and the export protocol, as
   defined in the IPFIX terminology section of [IPFIX-REQ].
   Even if the metering process and exporting process form a single NetFlow
   process on the Cisco Systems devices, this document will sometimes refer
   to NetFlow metering process and NetFlow exporting process for the sake of
   clarity. But the export protocol will always be referred to as the NetFlow
   flow record export protocol version 9.

   -  How and where is it documented?

   All documentation related to NetFlow can be found at:
   http://www.cisco.com/go/netflow

   More specifically, the ôNetFlow Services Solutions Guideö covers a NetFlow
   overview, the basic and advanced concepts, the explanation of the


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   different versions along with the data types exported, some configuration
   examples, etc. For reference, see:
   http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/cisintwk/intsolns/netflsol/nfwhite
   .htm

   The new flexible and extensible NetFlow flow record export version 9 is
   described in the IETF draft "Cisco Systems NetFlow Services Export Version
   9" [NETFLOW9], as well as in the following document:
   http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/cc/pd/iosw/prodlit/ntfo_wp.htm

   -  Are there concrete plans for standardizing it?

   The way to standardize NetFlow is via the IETF IPFIX Working Group.
   In parallel, Cisco Systems intention is to produce an Information RFC out
   of [NETFLOW9].

   -  Is standardization already in progress?

   No other standardization than the participation to the IETF IPFIX Working
   Group is currently taking place.

   -  Is it proprietary to a certain company?

   NetFlow is a proprietary protocol from Cisco Systems.

   -  Does it include any technology protected by patents?

   NetFlow is protected by the following patent:
   United States Patent 6,243,667 Kerr, et al. June 5, 2001

   Abstract:
   The invention provides a method and system for switching in networks
   responsive to message flow patterns. A message "flow" is defined to
   comprise a set of packets to be transmitted between a particular source
   and a particular destination. When routers in a network identify a new
   message flow, they determine the proper processing for packets in that
   message flow and cache that information for that message flow. Thereafter,
   when routers in a network identify a packet which is part of that message
   flow, they process that packet according to the proper processing for
   packets in that message flow. The proper processing may include a
   determination of a destination port for routing those packets and a
   determination of whether access control permits routing those packets to
   their indicated destination.


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   Nevertheless, Cisco Systems has no intention to use this patent to prevent
   other vendors to implement a NetFlow-like solution.

   An Intellectual Property Right message has been sent to the IETF rfc-
   editor team to post a similar message at http://www.ietf.org/ipr.html

   -  Is it already implemented?

   The NetFlow flow record export protocol version 9 protocol is currently at
   the stage of the Early Field Test, while NetFlow flow record export
   versions 1, 5, 7 and 8 have been implemented for years now.

   -  Is it already in commercial use?

   Some Cisco Systems partners are currently developing NetFlow Collectors
   (the correct term is ôcollecting processö according to [IPFIX-REQ]) able
   to receive NetFlow version 9 flow records.
   While many different companies or organizations have already implemented
   NetFlow Collectors for the previous NetFlow flow record export protocols
   versions. Ex: Concord Communications, Hewlett Packard, Narus, Xacct,
   Portal, Apogee Networks, Infovista, etc. to name just a few.

   -  Is it available from more than one source?

   As the inventor of NetFlow, Cisco Systems is the only company implementing
   this new version 9 on its devices. But, if we speak of the previous
   NetFlow flow record export protocol versions, then the majority of our
   competitors implemented those versions.

   -  Is it already widely used?

   The new NetFlow flow record export protocol version 9 is in Early Field
   Test right now, while the previous NetFlow flow record export versions
   have been implemented by our competitors. As a consequence, NetFlow is
   widely used through out the industry.


2. Architectural Considerations

   This section introduces the architecture of the NetFlow and suggests a way
   of applying it to the communication between an IPFIX exporting process and
   an IPFIX collecting process.



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2.1 NetFlow Protocol Overview

   This section discusses the most recent evolution of the NetFlow flow
   record export protocol, which is known as Version 9. The distinguishing
   feature of the NetFlow Version 9 format compared to the previous versions,
   is that it is template based. Template is a collection of fields along
   with the description of their structure and semantics.

   This approach gives the following advantages:

   - The template mechanism being flexible, allows the export of the
   required fields alone from the IP Flows to the collecting process.
   This helps to reduce the exported flow data volume, and possible
   memory savings at the metering process and collecting process.
   Sending the required information only, reduces the network load too.

   - Using the template mechanism, new fields can be added to NetFlow
   export records without changing the structure of export record
   format. With the previous NetFlow flow record export versions,
   adding a new field in the flow record implied a new version of the
   export protocol format and a new version of the collecting process
   that supports the parsing of this new export protocol format.

   - Templates which are sent to the collecting process contains the
   structural information about the exported Flow Records fields. So,
   even if the collecting process does not understand the semantics of
   new fields, it can still interpret the Flow Record.

   - Even if the NetFlow flow record export protocol version 9 has been
   created with a IP flow record background in mind, note that
   Information Model can be extended with any data types and could
   potentially serve any reporting purposes. E.g. the NetFlow metering
   process configuration.


2.2 General Applicability


2.2.1 Flow Definition

   A NetFlow flow is identified as a unidirectional stream of packets between
   a given source and destinationùboth defined by a network-layer IP address


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   and transport-layer source and destination port numbers. Typically in case
   of ingress NetFlow, a flow is identified as the combination of the
   following seven key fields: source IP address, destination IP address,
   source port number, destination port number, layer 3 protocol type, ToS
   byte, input logical interface (ifIndex). In case of egress NetFlow, a flow
   is identified as the combination of the following seven key fields: source
   IP address, destination IP address, source port number, destination port
   number, layer 3 protocol type, ToS byte, output logical interface
   (ifIndex).

   These seven key fields define a unique flow. If a new observed packet
   contains a different set of these seven key fields, then this packet will
   create a new flow. Note that a flow contains other accounting fields (such
   as the number of packets, number of bytes, the BGP AS, etc).

2.2.2 Observation Point
   NetFlow is enabled in most case per interface (per port), sometimes per
   subinterface. On specific device, NetFlow is enabled for the entire
   platform.

2.2.3 The Metering Process and the Flow Record
   NetFlow operates by creating a NetFlow cache that contains the information
   for all active flows. A flow record is maintained within the NetFlow cache
   for all active flows. Each flow record in the NetFlow cache contains key
   fields that can be later used for exporting to a collecting process.

2.2.4 The Exporting Process
   The NetFlow enabled platform checks the NetFlow cache once per second and
   expires the flow if no more traffic of that flow is observed. Once
   expired, the flow records are directly exported to the collecting process.
   To achieve efficiency in terms of processing at the Exporter while
   handling high volume of export, the NetFlow export packet is encapsulated
   into UDP [UDP] datagrams for export to the collecting process.
   Nevertheless NetFlow flow record export protocol version 9 has been
   designed to be transport protocol independent. Hence, it can also operate
   over congestion aware protocols like TCP [TCP] or SCTP [SCTP].


2.2.5 The Collecting Process



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   NetFlow Collector (the collecting process) provides the data
   collection from multiple export devices exporting NetFlow flow
   records. It will process and store the flow records. Some extra
   actions on these flow records could be executed on the collecting
   process but per [IPFIX-REQ], these actions are out of the scope of
   the IPFIX work.



2.3 Architectural Differences

                                 +----------------+   +----------------+
                                 |[*Application 1]| ..|[*Application n]|
                                 +--------+-------+   +-------+--------+
                                          ^                   ^
                                          ~                   ~
                                          +~~~~~~~~~~+~~~~~~~~+
                                                     !
                                                     v
      +----------------------+                +------------------+
      |Device(i)             |                | Collector(j)     |
      |[Obsv Point(s)]       |--------------->| [*Application(s)]|
      |[Metering Process(es)]|          +---->|                  |
      |[Export Process]      |          |     +------------------+
      +----------------------+          .
             ....                       .
      +----------------------+          |
      |Device(m)             |          |
      |[Obsv Point(s)]       |----------+
      |[Metering Process(es)]|
      |[Export Process]      |
      +----------------------+

   Except the terminology difference again described below, there is no
   difference between the NetFlow and IPFIX architecture.
   Note that the generic term NetFlow refers to multiple different notions:
   the metering process, the exporting process and the export protocol, as
   defined in the IPFIX terminology section of [IPFIX-REQ].
   Even if the metering process and exporting process form a single NetFlow
   process on the Cisco Systems devices, this document will sometimes refer
   to NetFlow metering process and NetFlow exporting process for the sake of
   clarity. But the export protocol will always be referred to as the NetFlow
   flow record export protocol version 9.





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3. Item Level Compliance Evaluation

   This section evaluates the compliance of the NetFlow protocol with the
   IPFIX requirements item by item. Requirements are addressed by their
   section numbers and item numbers in [IPFIX-REQ]. For each requirement
   it is explained to what degree protocol NetFlow flow export version 9
   meets the requirement and how this is achieved. The degree of compliancy
   is explicitly stated using five grades:

     -T  Total compliance: The requirement is met completely by the
         protocol specification without any extensions required.

     -E  Extension required for total compliance: The protocol is
         prepared to be extended and it is possible to extend it in a
         way that it meets the requirement. This grade is only
         applicable to protocols that are explicitly open to externally
         defined extensions, such as SNMP is extended by MIB modules or
         DIAMETER is extended by application modules. It is not
         applicable to protocols, where the protocol specification itself
         needs to be extended in order to comply with the requirement.

     -P  Partial compliance: The requirement is met partially by the
         protocol specification.

     -U  Upcoming compliance: The requirement is not met or met
          partially by the protocol specification, but there is a
          concrete plan for an upcoming version of the protocol.

     -F  Failed compliance: The requirement is not met by the protocol
     specification.


3.1 Terminology (section 2)


3.1.1 IP Traffic Flow (2.1)

   Total compliance of NetFlow Flow definition with the IPFIX IP
   Traffic Flow definition.


3.1.2 Observation Point (2.2)




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   Total compliance of NetFlow Observation Point definition with the
   IPFIX Observation Point definition. NetFlow is enabled by interface
   or per subinterface.  NetFlow can be enable on multiple interfaces
   at the same time, e.g. all interfaces belonging to one line card, or
   all the interfaces from the device. On specific device, NetFlow is
   enabled for the entire platform.


3.1.3 Metering Process (2.3)

   Total compliance of NetFlow with the IPFIX Metering Process
   definition, for all aspects: packet header capturing, timestamping,
   sampling, classifying, and maintaining flow records.


3.1.4 Flow Record (2.4)

   Total compliance of NetFlow Flow Record definition with the IPFIX
   Flow Record definition.


3.1.5 Exporting Process (2.5)

   Total compliance of NetFlow Exporting Process with the IPFIX
   Exporting Process definition. The NetFlow Exporting Process may send
   the flow records to 2 different collecting processes.


3.1.6 Collecting Process (2.6)

   Total compliance of NetFlow Collector with the IPFIX collecting
   process definition.


3.2 Applications Requiring IP Flow Information Export (3)

   Total compliance of NetFlow regarding the different applications
   described in [IPFIX-REQ] which require IP flow information export,
   i.e. Usage-based Accounting, Traffic Profiling, Traffic Engineering,
   Attack/Intrusion Detection and QoS Monitoring. Actually, the
   Information Model associated with NetFlow flow record export version
   9 [NETFLOW9] contains all the data types needed to satisfy the
   requirements of the different applications described in this
   section.





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3.3 Distinguishing Flows (4)


3.3.1 Interface (4.1)

   Total Compliance of the interface as a flow distinguisher.
   In case of ingress NetFlow, a flow is identified, amongst other
   fields, by the input logical interface (ifIndex). In case of egress
   NetFlow, a flow is identified, amongst other fields by output
   logical interface (ifIndex).


3.3.2  IP Header Fields (4.2)

    source IP address (MUST): Total Compliance
    destination IP address (MUST): Total Compliance
    protocol type (TCP,UDP,ICMP,...) (MUST): Total Compliance
    IP version number (SHOULD): Upcoming Compliance


3.3.3  Transport Header Fields (4.3)

   Total Compliance of the port numbers of the transport header as a
   flow distinguisher.


3.3.4  MPLS (4.4)

   Total Compliance of the MPLS label a flow distinguisher, if the
   observation point is located at a device supporting Multiprotocol
   Label Switching.


3.3.5  DiffServ Code Point (4.5)

   Partial Compliance, as NetFlow distinguish flow by the TOS field.


3.3.6  Header Compression and Encryption (4.6)

   Total Compliance.


3.4 Metering Process (5)




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3.4.1 Reliability (5.1)

   To be written.


3.4.2  Sampling (5.2)

   ôThe metering process MAY support packet sampling.ö, as defined in
   [IPFIX-REQ]ô. Total Compliance. NetFlow supports packet sampling.

   ôIf sampling is supported the sampling configuration MUST be well
   defined. The sampling configuration includes the sampling method and
   all its parameters.ö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ]. Total compliance.
   See the Options Template from [NETFLOW9]: a template that describes
   the format of the Flow measurement parameters (like the sampling
   algorithm, sampling interval) done at the metering process.

   ôIf the sampling configuration is changed during operation, the new
   sampling configuration with its parameters MUST be indicated to all
   collecting processes receiving the affected flow records. Changing
   the sampling configuration includes: start sampling, stop sampling,
   change sampling method, and change sampling parameter.ô, as defined
   in [IPFIX-REQ]ô. Partial Compliance. NetFlow supports the ôchange
   sampling methodö and ôchange sampling parameterö options.


3.4.3  Overload Behavior (5.3)

   ôIn case of an overload, for example lack of memory or processing
   power, the metering process MAY change its behavior in order to cope
   with the lack of resources.ö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   Total Compliance.

   ôBut in case the overload behavior has an impact on the metering
   process or the exporting process, the overload behavior MUST be
   clearly defined and the collecting process MUST be able to
   distinguish the flow records exported before and after the metering
   process behavior change:ö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   If the metering process configuration is changed, then Total
   Compliance.
   But failed compliance in the following situation: in case the
   NetFlow cache becomes full, the flow records will be expired with a
   smaller timeout! In this specific case, this requirement doesnÆt
   make sense.

   ôIn case of any change of the meter's behavior, all flow records
   metered by the previous behavior MUST be terminated and exported



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   according to the configuration of the exporting process.ö, as
   defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   Total Compliance.

   ôThe metering process MUST not merge the flow records generated with
   the new behavior with the flow records generated with the previous
   behavior.ö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   If the metering process configuration is changed, then Total
   Compliance because a new Template ID for the new configuration will
   be generated.
   But failed compliance in the following situation: in case the
   NetFlow cache becomes full, the flow records will be expired with a
   smaller timeout! In this specific case, this requirement doesnÆt
   make sense.


3.4.4  Timestamps (5.4)

   Total Compliance.


3.4.5  Time Synchronization (5.5)

   The compliance is not relevant as the mechanism used for time
   synchronization is outside the scope of the IPFIX.


3.4.6  Flow Expiration (5.6)

   Total Compliance of the NetFlow flow expiration mechanism with the
   IPFIX requirements.
   The routing device checks the NetFlow cache once per second and expires
   the flow in the following instances:

       1. Transport is completed (TCP FIN or RST).

       2. The flow cache has become full.

       3. The inactive timer has expired after 15 seconds of traffic
          inactivity. This inactive timer is configurable.

       4. The active timer has expired after 30 minutes of traffic activity.
          This active timer is configurable.






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3.4.7 Multicast (5.7)

   Total Compliance of the multicast support with the IPFIX
   requirements.


3.4.8 Ignore Port Copy (5.8)

   To be written.


3.5 Data Export (6)


3.5.1 Information Model (6.1)

   ôThe exporting process MUST be able to report the following
   attributes for each metered flowö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ]:
    1. IP version number: Upcoming Compliance (NetFlow will support
   IPV6)
    2. source IP address: Total Compliance
    3. destination IP address: Total Compliance
    4. IP protocol type (TCP,UDP,ICMP,...) : Total Compliance
    5. source TCP/UDP port number: Total Compliance
    6. destination TCP/UDP port number: Total Compliance
    7. input interface (ifIndex): Total Compliance
    8. output interface (ifIndex): Total Compliance
    9. packet counter: Total Compliance
    10. byte counter: Total Compliance
    11. in case of IPv4, Type of Service: Total Compliance
    12. in case of IPv6, Flow Label: Upcoming Compliance
    13. if BGP is supported at the observation point, BGP AS number:
   Total Compliance
    14. if MPLS is supported at the observation point, MPLS label:
   Total Compliance
    15. if DiffServ is supported at the observation point, DSCP:
   Partial Compliance
    16. timestamp of the first packet of the flow: Total Compliance
    17. timestamp of the last packet of the flow: Total Compliance
    18. if sampling is used, sampling configuration: Total Compliance
    19. unique identifier of the observation point: Total Compliance
   (the ifIndex)
    20. unique identifier of the exporting process: Total Compliance
   (the IP address)

   ôThe exporting process SHOULD be able to report the following
   attributes for each metered flowö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ]:



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     21. multicast replication factor. Total Compliance

   ôThe exporting process MAY be able to report the following
   attributes for each metered flowö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ]:
     22. Time To Live: Extension required for total compliance
     23. IP header flags: Extension required for total compliance
     24. TCP header flags: Total Compliance
     25. dropped packet counter at the observation point: Extension
     required for total compliance
     26. fragmented packet counter: Extension required for total
     compliance


3.5.2 Data Model (6.2)

   ôThe data model MUST be extensibleö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   Total compliance.

   ôThe data model used for exporting flow information MUST be flexible
   concerning the flow attributes contained in flow recordsö, as
   defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   Total compliance.

   ôThe Data Model SHOULD be independent of the underlying transport
   protocol, i.e. the data transferö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   Total compliance.


3.5.3 Data Transfer (6.3)

3.5.3.1   Congestion Awareness (6.3.1)

   ôFor the data transfer, a congestion aware protocol MUST be
   supportedö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   To be written.


3.5.3.2   Reliability (6.3.2)

   Total Compliance. A sequence ID exists per export packet so that the
   collecting process would know if it misses export packets or if
   packets reordering occurred in the network.


3.5.3.3   Security (6.3.3)

   Failed compliance for confidentiality, integrity and authenticity.


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3.5.4 Regular Reporting Interval (6.4)

   Total compliance. For long aging flows, the exporting process
   exports the flow records on regular basis, in order to:
           1. report the flow records periodic accounting information
               to the collecting process
           2. avoid counter wrapping
   This activity timeout is configurable


3.5.5 Notification on Specific Events (6.5)

   Failed compliance.


3.5.6 Anonymization (6.6)

   To be written.


3.6 Configuration (7)


3.6.1 Configuration of the Metering Process (7.1)

   Total Compliance.


3.6.2 Configuration of the Exporting Process (7.2)

   Total Compliance.


3.7 General Requirements Compliance (8)


3.7.1  Openness (8.1)

   Total Compliance.


3.7.2 Scalability Concerning the Number of Exporting Processes (8.2)




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   ôData collection from hundreds of different exporting processes MUST
   be supported.ö, as defined in [IPFIX-REQ].
   Total Compliance.

   ôThe collecting process MUST be able to distinguish several hundred
   exporting processes by their identifiers.ö, as defined in [IPFIX-
   REQ].
   Total Compliance, the identifier being the IP address of the
   exporting process.


3.7.3 Several Collecting Processes (8.3)

   Total Compliance. The exporting process is able to export flow
   information to two different collecting process.


4. Security Considerations

   Security considerations for the IPFIX protocol are covered by the
   comparison against the specific Security requirements in the IPFIX
   requirements document [IPFIX-REQ] where they are specifically
   addressed by sections 6.3.3 and 10.

   The NetFlow flow record export protocol could be run on the top of
   IPSEC [IPSEC] to assure security.


5. References

   [IPFIX-REQ] J. Quittek et al., "Requirements for IP Flow Information
               Export", draft-ietf-ipfix-reqs-05.txt, work in progress,
               July 2002.

   [IPFIX-REQ6] J. Quittek et al., "Requirements for IP Flow Information
               Export", draft-ietf-ipfix-reqs-06.txt, work in progress,
               July 2002.

   [NETFLOW9]  B. Claise et al., "Cisco Systems NetFlow Services Export
               Version 9", draft-bclaise-netflow-9-00.txt, work in progress,
               June 2002.

    [UDP]      J. Postel, "User Datagram Protocol", RFC 768, August
               1980

    [TCP]      "TRANSMISSION CONTROL PROTOCOL DARPA INTERNET PROGRAM


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               PROTOCOL SPECIFICATION", RFC 793, September 1981

   [SCTP]     R. Stewart et al, "Stream Control Transmission Protocol",
              RFC 2960, October 2000

    [IPSEC]    Kent, S., "Security Architecture for the Internet
               Protocol", RFC 2401, Nov. 1998,


6. Author's Address

    Benoit Claise
    Cisco Systems
    De Kleetlaan 6a b1
    1831 Diegem
    Belgium

    Phone: +32 2 704 5622
    Email: bclaise@cisco.com

7. Full Copyright Statement

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2001). All Rights Reserved.

   This document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to
   others, and derivative works that comment on or otherwise explain it
   or assist in its implementation may be prepared, copied, published
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   kind, provided that the above copyright notice and this paragraph are
   included on all such copies and derivative works. However, this
   document itself may not be modified in any way, such as by removing
   the copyright notice or references to the Internet Society or other
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   developing Internet standards in which case the procedures for
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   followed, or as required to translate it into languages other than
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   The limited permissions granted above are perpetual and will not be
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   This document and the information contained herein is provided on an
   "AS IS" basis and THE INTERNET SOCIETY AND THE INTERNET ENGINEERING
   TASK FORCE DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING


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   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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