Sebastopol, CA--The subject of security is never far from the minds of
IT workers, with good reason. If a network has even one connection to
another network, it is vulnerable and needs to be secured against
unauthorized access. 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 is an extensible protocol that enjoys the support of a wide
range of vendors," says Jonathan Hassell, author of the just-released
RADIUS (O'Reilly, US $34.95). "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 that only the people who need access to a resource
indeed gain that access."
"RADIUS" provides a complete, detailed guide to the underpinnings of
the RADIUS protocol, with particular emphasis on the utility of user
accounting. 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. Topics covered in the book
include:
- The AAA architecture, which serves as the basis of RADIUS
- Packet structure, format, and standard attributes
- Hints and huntgroups
- Realms
- FreeRADIUS setup
- Authenticating against a SQL database
- RADIUS for web authentication
- Integrating LDAP and RADIUS
- Planning for availability
- Performance baselining
This 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.
Additional resources:
RADIUS
Jonathan Hassell
ISBN 0-596-00322-6, 190 pages, $34.95 (US), $54.95 (CAN)
order@oreilly.com
1-800-998-9938; 1-707-827-7000
