Mesh Key Distributor Proactive Key Push Protocol
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Solution Overview
Problem
In multi-hop wireless mesh networks, there is a need to efficiently and promptly distribute derived keys from a mesh key distributor to peer mesh stations to ensure secure communication, as existing methods are computationally demanding and delay-prone.
Innovation Solution
A method where a mesh station includes a peer list in key agreement protocol messages to the mesh key distributor, which derives and delivers top-level keys, and then initiates a key push protocol to ensure each peer receives a unique key, facilitating early key establishment and secure peer link formation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a mesh station includes a peer list in key agreement protocol messages to enable proactive key distribution, then secure peer link establishment is accelerated, but key distribution complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mesh station includes a peer list in the key agreement protocol message (SAP) before actual key distribution occurs. This preliminary action allows the key distributor to proactively derive and push keys to all peers in advance, rather than waiting for each peer to request keys individually, thus accelerating key distribution while maintaining manageable complexity through centralized control
Solution Approach 2:
The key distributor acts as an intermediary that receives the peer list from the mesh station, derives keys for all peers centrally, and then pushes keys to each peer. This intermediary approach simplifies the overall system by centralizing the computationally intensive key derivation process at the distributor, avoiding the need for complex distributed key generation across multiple nodes
2Reliability
If the mesh key distributor derives and delivers top-level keys to each peer station, then secure communication is ensured, but computational demand and round trip time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The key distributor proactively pushes derived keys to peers immediately after derivation, rather than waiting for peer requests. This preliminary action eliminates unnecessary round trips between the distributor and peers, reducing latency while ensuring that keys are delivered securely and promptly for immediate use in communication
Solution Approach 2:
The system maintains continuous key availability by having the distributor derive and push keys as part of the normal key agreement protocol flow. This continuous process ensures that keys are always available when needed for secure communication, eliminating gaps where communication might be delayed while key requests are processed
Data Source
AI summary
A mesh station applying for access to a network includes a list of peer stations in messages of an authenticated key establishment protocol. A mesh key distributor derives a key delivery key and generates a top level key, and then delivers the top level key to the mesh station. Following the key establishment protocol, the mesh key distributor also creates pairwise keys for use between the mesh station and the peer stations listed in its peer list. The list of peers permits the identifier for the peer to be bound into the derived key, which helps ensure that the key used between each pair of peers is unique. Once the mesh key distributor finishes creating a key for one of the stations on the peer list, the mesh key distributor sends a message to the peer to initiate a key push.