RADIUS

Description

RADIUS, or Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service, is a widely deployed protocol that enables companies to authenticate, authorize and account for remote users who want access to a system or service from a central network server. RADIUS provides a complete, detailed guide to the underpinnings of the RADIUS protocol. Author Jonathan Hassell brings practical suggestions and advice for implementing RADIUS and provides instructions for using an open-source variation called FreeRADIUS.

Full Description

The subject of security never strays far from the minds of IT workers, for good reason. If there is a network with even just one connection to another network, it needs to be secured. RADIUS, or Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service, is a widely deployed protocol that enables companies to authenticate, authorize and account for remote users who want access to a system or service from a central network server. Originally developed for dial-up remote access, RADIUS is now used by virtual private network (VPN) servers, wireless access points, authenticating Ethernet switches, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) access, and other network access types. Extensible, easy to implement, supported, and actively developed, RADIUS is currently the de facto standard for remote authentication.

RADIUS provides a complete, detailed guide to the underpinnings of the RADIUS protocol, with particular emphasis on the utility of user accounting. Author Jonathan Hassell draws from his extensive experience in Internet service provider operations to bring practical suggestions and advice for implementing RADIUS. He also provides instructions for using an open-source variation called FreeRADIUS.

"RADIUS is an extensible protocol that enjoys the support of a wide range of vendors," says Jonathan Hassell. "Coupled with the amazing efforts of the open source development community to extend RADIUS's capabilities to other applications-Web, calling card security, physical device security, such as RSA's SecureID-RADIUS is possibly the best protocol with which to ensure only the people that need access to a resource indeed gain that access."

This unique book covers RADIUS completely, from the history and theory of the architecture around which it was designed, to how the protocol and its ancillaries function on a day-to-day basis, to implementing RADIUS-based security in a variety of corporate and service provider environments. If you are an ISP owner or administrator, corporate IT professional responsible for maintaining mobile user connectivity, or a web presence provider responsible for providing multiple communications resources, you'll want this book to help you master this widely implemented but little understood protocol.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 An Overview of RADIUS
1. An Overview of AAA
2. Key Points About AAA Architecture
3. The Authorization Framework
4. And Now, RADIUS
Chapter 2 RADIUS Specifics
1. Using UDP versus TCP
2. Packet Formats
3. Packet Types
4. Shared Secrets
5. Attributes and Values
6. Authentication Methods
7. Realms
8. RADIUS Hints
Chapter 3 Standard RADIUS Attributes
1. Attribute Properties
Chapter 4 RADIUS Accounting
1. Key Points in RADIUS Accounting
2. Basic Operation
3. The Accounting Packet Format
4. Accounting Packet Types
5. Accounting-specific Attributes
Chapter 5 Getting Started with FreeRADIUS
1. Introduction to FreeRADIUS
2. Installing FreeRADIUS
3. In-depth Configuration
4. Troubleshooting Common Problems
Chapter 6 Advanced FreeRADIUS
1. Using PAM
2. Proxying and Realms
3. Using the clients.conf File
4. FreeRADIUS with Some NAS Gear
5. Using MySQL with FreeRADIUS
6. Simultaneous Use
7. Monitoring FreeRADIUS
Chapter 7 Other RADIUS Applications
1. RADIUS for Web Authentication
2. Using the LDAP Directory Service
3. Parsing RADIUS Accounting Files
Chapter 8 The Security of RADIUS
1. Vulnerabilities
2. The Extensible Authentication Protocol
3. Compensating for the Deficiencies
4. Modifying the RADIUS Protocol
Chapter 9 New RADIUS Developments
1. Interim Accounting Updates
2. The Apple Remote Access Protocol
3. The Extensible Authentication Protocol
4. Tunneling Protocols
5. New Extensions Attributes
Chapter 10 Deployment Techniques
1. Typical Services
2. RADIUS and Availability
3. Other Things RADIUS

Appendix A Attribute Reference
Colophon

Product Details

Title:

RADIUS

By:

Jonathan Hassell

Publisher:

O'Reilly Media

Formats:

Print
Safari Books Online

Print Release:

October 2002

Pages:

208

Print ISBN:

978-0-596-00322-7

| ISBN 10:

0-596-00322-6

Customer Reviews

About the Author

Jonathan Hassell

Jonathan Hassell is a systems administrator, IT consultant, and industry author residing in Raleigh, NC. He has extensive experience in networking technologies and Internet connectivity and currently runs his own web hosting business, Enable Hosting. He is the author of "RADIUS" for O'Reilly and Associates and is a columnist for WindowsITSecurity.COM and Pinnacle's Linux AppDev newsletter. He has also worked with IBM to develop a tutorial on Apache web server optimization.

View Jonathan Hassell's full profile page.

Colophon

Our look is the result of reader comments, our own experimentation, and feedback from distribution channels. Distinctive covers complement our distinctive approach to technical topics, breathing personality and life into potentially dry subjects. The animal on the cover of RADIUS is a Dolium shell. This shell is that of Orcula Dolium, one of a small family of snails. Dolium live in leaf litter or on mossy rocks on mountains such as the Alps and the Carpathians. Their shells are cylindrical, and they have rounded mouths and teeth. Their color varies from yellowish to reddish brown. Darren Kelly was the production editor and Maureen Dempsey was the copyeditor for RADIUS. Octal Publishing, Inc. provided production services and wrote the index. Sheryl Avruch and Claire Cloutier provided quality control. Interior composition was done by Philip Dangler and Derek Di Matteo.

Hanna Dyer designed the cover of this book, based on a series design by Edie Freedman. The cover image is a 19th-century engraving from the Dover Pictorial Archive. Emma Colby produced the cover layout with QuarkXPress 4.1 using Adobe's ITC Garamond font.

David Futato designed the interior layout. This book was converted to FrameMaker 5.5.6 with a format conversion tool created by Erik Ray, Jason McIntosh, Neil Walls, and Mike Sierra that uses Perl and XMLtechnologies. The text font is Linotype Birka; the heading font is Adobe Myriad Condensed; and the code font is Lucas-Font's TheSans Mono Condensed. The illustrations that appear in the book were produced by Robert Romano and Jessamyn Read using Macromedia FreeHand 9 and Adobe Photoshop 6. The tip and warning icons were drawn by Christopher Bing. This colophon was written by Linley Dolby.

O'Reilly Books & Videos

Securing Public Access to Private Resources

Chapter 1 An Overview of RADIUS

An Overview of AAA

Key Points About AAA Architecture

The Authorization Framework

And Now, RADIUS

Chapter 2 RADIUS Specifics

Using UDP versus TCP

Packet Formats

Packet Types

Shared Secrets

Attributes and Values

Authentication Methods

Realms

RADIUS Hints

Chapter 3 Standard RADIUS Attributes

Attribute Properties

Chapter 4 RADIUS Accounting

Key Points in RADIUS Accounting

Basic Operation

The Accounting Packet Format

Accounting Packet Types

Accounting-specific Attributes

Chapter 5 Getting Started with FreeRADIUS

Introduction to FreeRADIUS

Installing FreeRADIUS

In-depth Configuration

Troubleshooting Common Problems

Chapter 6 Advanced FreeRADIUS

Using PAM

Proxying and Realms

Using the clients.conf File

FreeRADIUS with Some NAS Gear

Using MySQL with FreeRADIUS

Simultaneous Use

Monitoring FreeRADIUS

Chapter 7 Other RADIUS Applications

RADIUS for Web Authentication

Using the LDAP Directory Service

Parsing RADIUS Accounting Files

Chapter 8 The Security of RADIUS

Vulnerabilities

The Extensible Authentication Protocol

Compensating for the Deficiencies

Modifying the RADIUS Protocol

Chapter 9 New RADIUS Developments

Interim Accounting Updates

The Apple Remote Access Protocol

The Extensible Authentication Protocol

Tunneling Protocols

New Extensions Attributes

Chapter 10 Deployment Techniques

Typical Services

RADIUS and Availability

Other Things RADIUS

Appendix A Attribute Reference

Colophon

Jonathan Hassell