Patent · US Expired

Method and apparatus for indexing an inbound security association database

US7434045B1 · kind B1 · utility

39Cited by
0References
18Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateApr 21, 2003
Grant dateOct 7, 2008
Priority date
Expiry dateFeb 12, 2025

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH04L63/20
  • WIPO fieldDigital communication
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

Processes are disclosed in which an index value is generated for locating a security association in a security association database, such as an inbound SAD associated with the IPsec set of protocols. The index value is specified for insertion into a Security Parameter Index (SPI) field of a packet header, such as an IPsec header. For packets that are to be secured according to the policies and protocols identified in the header and the security association and that are transmitted to a particular network device or host, the index value is inserted into the SPI field of the packets by a packet sender. The packet is then parsed by a packet receiver, the index value determined from the SPI and used to identify the security association in the SAD, based solely on the index value determined from the SPI. Hence, a simple and efficient mechanism is provided for fast inbound security association lookups.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.