Passive VPN IP Conflict Detection via Normalized Route Tables
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Managed Security Services Providers (MSSPs) face IP address conflicts when managing virtual private networks (VPNs), leading to miscommunication and resource wastage, as existing solutions are not robust in preemptively identifying and resolving conflicts before they occur.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for passive determination of reserved IP conflicts on VPNs, using Bash scripts to extract configuration information, filter RFC 1918 addresses, expand and normalize network entries, and perform comparisons to identify conflicts, allowing for preemptive resolution through Network Address Translation (NAT) without direct access to customer devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If existing IP conflict detection methods are used, then IP address conflicts can be identified, but conflicts cannot be resolved preemptively before miscommunication occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary extraction of configuration information and route tables from VPN devices, normalizes network entries, and identifies potential IP conflicts before actual miscommunication occurs. This proactive detection allows the MSSP to resolve conflicts preemptively, preventing data misrouting and reducing resolution time.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces an intermediary analysis layer between VPN devices and the network traffic flow. This intermediary extracts configuration data, performs normalization, and identifies conflicts without requiring direct access to customer devices, enabling preemptive resolution while maintaining system independence.
2Measurement precision
If direct access to customer devices is implemented for conflict resolution, then IP conflicts can be resolved accurately, but system complexity and intrusiveness increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses an intermediary approach by extracting configuration information and route tables from VPN device interfaces without requiring direct access to customer endpoint devices. This intermediary layer performs all necessary analysis and conflict identification, maintaining high accuracy while minimizing system complexity and intrusiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts only the necessary configuration information and route tables from VPN devices to perform conflict analysis. By taking out only the required data elements rather than implementing direct device access, the system achieves accurate conflict identification without increasing overall system complexity or requiring intrusive customer device access.
3Reliability
If comprehensive configuration extraction is performed, then all IP conflicts can be identified, but processing time and computational resources increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary extraction of configuration information and route tables, then immediately normalizes network entries and performs iterative comparison. This preliminary action framework enables comprehensive conflict detection while optimizing processing efficiency by structuring the analysis in a systematic, multi-stage approach that avoids redundant computations.
Solution Approach 2:
The conflict detection process is segmented into distinct stages: extraction of configuration information, extraction of route tables, normalization of network entries, and iterative comparison. This segmentation allows each stage to be optimized independently, achieving comprehensive conflict detection while maintaining processing efficiency through structured, modular analysis.
Data Source
AI summary
Passive determination of reserved internet protocol (IP) conflicts on one or more hosted virtual private networks (VPNs) extracts configuration information for a plurality of hosting VPNs to build an aggregated list of IP addresses with mask and associated VPN information. A route table is extracted from a router directing traffic to an appropriate VPN host among the plurality of hosting VPNs, and a sorted list with host/network address, subnet mask, and associated VPN information is generated. The configuration information and the route table is used to expand and normalize a set of network entries.