Network Node Supervisor Module for Rule Compliance Verification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Centralized network technologies face security threats due to the ability of compromised centralized network controllers to modify network configurations, which can undermine the security established by secure boot mechanisms, especially in automotive networks where flexibility and manageability are crucial.
Innovation Solution
A network node with a message handling module, communication module, and supervisor module that controls message sending based on a rule set, receives updates from a controller node, verifies these updates against compliance criteria to ensure security, and only implements changes that comply with defined rule-compliance-criteria, preventing potential security threats.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If centralized network controllers are used to manage and modify network configurations, then network flexibility and manageability are improved, but network security is worsened due to potential compromise of centralized controllers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the centralized network controller into two separate functional entities: a rule generator that creates routing rules and a supervisor module at each network node that verifies rule compliance. This segmentation prevents a single point of compromise while maintaining centralized management capabilities, as the supervisor module locally enforces security policies independent of the remote rule generator.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces rule-compliance-criteria as an intermediary mechanism between the centralized controller and network nodes. These criteria act as a mediator that translates security requirements into verifiable conditions, allowing decentralized verification of centralized control decisions without requiring direct trust in the centralized controller.
2Ease of operation
If centralized controllers can freely modify network configurations, then network manageability is improved, but network integrity is worsened due to potential malicious modifications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary verification of rule compliance before rules are applied to network traffic. The supervisor module checks whether incoming rules from the centralized controller satisfy predefined rule-compliance-criteria before installing them, preventing malicious or incorrect rules from compromising network integrity while allowing easy configuration updates.
Solution Approach 2:
The supervisor module provides feedback to the centralized controller about rule compliance status. When rules fail to meet compliance criteria, the supervisor rejects them and can report the violation, creating a feedback loop that maintains network integrity while preserving centralized management capabilities for valid configurations.
Data Source
AI summary
A network node comprising:a message handling module configured to control the sending of messages to one or more output ports of the network node based on a rule set stored at the network node, the rule set comprising one or more rules;a communication module configured to receive at least one update to the rule set from a controller node, separate from the network node, for changing the rule set;a supervisor module configured to verify that the changes to the rule set instructed by the update comply with at least a first set of rule-compliance-criteria and, if so, the network node is configured to modify the rule set to implement the changes of the update and, if not, the network node is configured not to implement the changes to the rule set.