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Re: NAT etc. (was: Spam Control Considered Harmful)

  • From: bmanning
  • Date: Sat Nov 01 16:18:33 1997
  • Posted-date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 13:14:35 -0800 (PST)

> Havard said:
> 
> > ...which brings me to think if it isn't so that Secure DNS (at
> > least as currently specified) and widespread deployment of NAT
> > boxes which fiddle with the contents of DNS reply/request packets
> > isn't exactly a properly working combination.  As I understand it
> > you can have NAT or Secure DNS with e.g. signed A records but you
> > can't (easily?) have both.
> 
> This is a misdirected concern.  DNS clients inside a NAT cloud are
> already proscribed from seeing DNS data from other NAT clouds or from
> the Internet itself.  The NAT technology has to strip off DNSSEC stuff
> when it imports data but it tends to strip off DNS delegation and
> authority data as well, and tends to alter the address and mail exchange
> records.  NAT borders are already DNS endpoints, with or without DNSSEC.
> Whether and how to regenerate external DNS inside a NAT cloud is a matter
> of NAT implementation, but the fact that it's _regenerated_, not forwarded
> or recursed, is a design constant.

	(While I have replied to Paul, this raving is for everyones
	general amusment.   - bill)


	I think this is correct.  However, this line of thinking 
	when seen in the light of end2end IPSEC seems to indicate that
	NAT/Firewall technologies mandate a regenerated security
	"envelope" at the NAT/Firwall edge.  This tends to be what 
	corporations/governments want, while others tend toward 
	the endpoints being indivdually oriented.  I, for one, (and
	I expect I'm in the minority here) don't want to hand my keys 
	over to BBSS, Sprint, GTE, WCOM, the FBI, the Governement of
	France... so they can decrypt the packets that I am sending
	to you.

	So, while I agree that NAT/Firewall techniques are an approch
	to dealing with heirarchy/scaling issues, I think that MJR
	was right. NAT/Firewalls are bandaids to be used until we have
	reasonable endsystem/endsystem IP security.

	If you really buy off on the catanet arguement, then there is
	no need to reuse IP. FIDOnet, TCP on PPPover(mediaofchoice),
	DECnet adnausa are available and you win with application transparency.

	Jumping through all those hoops to make NATs work "seamlessly"
	is a glittering bauble.  Lots of interesting knots to go untangle
	as folks rework and undo one of the basic assumptions behind IP
	which is a single, common addressing space.  And its really an
	admission of failure.  

	Too many people saying, "Its too hard to make true end2end work,
	(even across the existant IP (thats IPv4 for you Sean) space) so
	we must carve it up into tiny bits that each party can claim as
	their very own."

	Buying into NATs dooms people to live in thier private hells.
	
	Embrace Brigadoon. 

--bill