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[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index] Re: iSCSI: More draft-06 commentscomments in text - Thanks, Julo Mark Bakke <mbakke@cisco.com> on 25-05-2001 23:34:07 Please respond to Mark Bakke <mbakke@cisco.com> To: Julian Satran/Haifa/IBM@IBMIL, IPS <ips@ece.cmu.edu> cc: Subject: iSCSI: More draft-06 comments Julian- Here are a few more comments and proposed clarifications on draft-06. I apologize if some of them overlap with comments made already. -- Mark 1.2.4 - We'd like to add a clarification on the use of the keyword "none" versus silently ignoring the key. If a target does not explicitly send back <key>=none, the initiator will not be sure whether the target selected none, or didn't understand the option. On each offered key, there are four choices a target can make: <key>=<some-value> <key>=none <key>=reject <key>=NotUnderstood Given these options, the responding party MUST NOT silently ignore a key. The alternative is to remove the NotUnderstood value and have silently ignoring a key to mean the same thing, although it's probably best to be explicit. BTW, are the reserved words case-sensitive? The following is our understanding of what this section means: 1.2.4 Text Mode Negotiation During login and thereafter some session or connection parameters are negotiated through an exchange of textual information. In "list" negotiation, the offering party sends a list of values for a key in its order of preference. The general format of text negotiation is: Offer-> <key>=<value1>,<value2>,...,<valuen> Answer-> <key>=<valuex> | "none" | "reject" | "NotUnderstood" There are four possible <valuex> answers: <key>=<valuex> The responding party answers with the first value from the list it supports and is allowed to use for the specific initiator. <key>=none The responding party supports none of the values in the list. "none" is also a valid keyword within the Offer, for example: DataDigest=crc-32C,none means that the offering party would prefer using crc-32c, but will accept "none" as well. <key>=reject If a target is not supporting, or not allowed to use with a specific initiator, any of the offered options, it may use the value "reject". The values "none" and "reject" are reserved and must be used only as described here. <key>=NotUnderstood If the responding party did not understand or recognize a key, it must indicate this with NotUnderstood. The values "none", "reject", and "NotUnderstood" are reserved and must be used only as described here. They are case-insensitive. The responding party MUST NOT silently ignore any keys sent by the offering party, and MUST respond with one of the four above options. In "numerical" negotiations, the offering and responding party state a numerical value. The result of the negotiation is key dependent; usually the lower or the higher of the two values is used. +++ in fact (after many debates) the current text reads: 1.1.1 1.1.1 Text Mode Negotiation During login and thereafter some session or connection parameters are negotiated through an exchange of textual information. In "list" negotiation, the offering party sends a list of values for a key in its order of preference. The responding party answers with the first value from the list it supports and is allowed to use for the specific initiator. The value "none" MUST always be used to indicate a missing function. However, none is a valid selection only if it is explicitly offered and MAY be selected by omission (i.e., <key>=none MAY be omitted). If a target is not supporting, or not allowed to use with a specific initiator, any of the offered options, it may use the value "reject". The values "none" and "reject" are reserved and must be used only as described here. Any key not understood is answered with "NotUnderstood". The general format of text negotiation is: Offer-> <key>=<value1>,<value2>,...,<valuen> Answer-> <key>=<valuex>|reject|NotUnderstood In "numerical" negotiations, the offering and responding party state a numerical value. The result of the negotiation is key dependent; frequently the lower or the higher of the two values is used. Although the initiator is the requesting party and controls the request-response initiation and termination the target can offer key=value pairs of its own as part of a sequence and not only in response to an identical key=value pair offered by the initiator. ++++ although this text has no ambiguity there is still a raging debate between the proponents of an always explicit response (Matt and - in some covoluted form Steph - and those like Steve Senum who whould like a hiatus signaling a default. The current text let you set none by default. This can be changed by removing the " and MAY be selected by omission... " +++ 2.1 - Need to say that padding is not included in the length field. Should also specify a MUST for the pad byte value. How about: iSCSI PDUs are padded to an integer number of 4 byte words. The value of the pad bytes must be 0. The pad bytes are not included in the DataSegmentLength field. +++ 2.1 reads now: 1.1 iSCSI PDU Length and Padding iSCSI PDUs are padded to an integer number of 4 byte words. The padding bytes should be 0. The length is handled separately is the length parts: 1.1.1.1 TotalAHSLength Total length of all AHS header segments in 4 byte words including padding if any. 1.1.1.2 DataSegmentLength This is the data segment payload length in bytes (excluding padding). 2.2.1 - Also say here that the length fields do not include the digests. How about: Optional header and data digests protect the integrity and authenticity of header and data, respectively. The digests, if present, are located, respectively, after the header and PDU-specific data and include the padding bytes. The lengths of the digests are not included in the header or data length fields. +++ the PDU outline in 2.2 is clear enough. The negative specification (does not include like) is unbounded. I will include some words in 2.2.1 +++ 2.2.2.5 - TotalAHSLength - How about: Total length of all AHS header segments in 4 byte words including padding if any. This length field does not include header digests. 2.2.2.6 - Need to specify whether DataSegmentLength includes the data digest. How about: This is the data segment payload length in bytes. This length does not include either padding or data digests. 2.2.3.1 - Need clearer description of drop bit: B7 - Drop Bit - if set to one, the implementation may ignore this AHS if it is not understood; if set to zero, the implementation must reject this PDU if this AHS type is not understood. +++ will fix +++ 2.8.3 - Need maximum size for a key name, and a harder maximum for the value; how about adding: Key names MUST NOT exceed 64 characters; key values MUST NOT exceed 255 characters. This would replace the sentence "No key SHOULD contain..." +++ OK except that i'll make it bytes to account (limit) for I18N too. It will read: The data length of a text command or response SHOULD be less than 4096 bytes. Key names MUST NOT exceed 64 bytes. Key values MUST NOT exceed 255 characters. ++++ 2.8.3 - I don't think that we need or want a lot of flexibility with regard to text value representation. In particular, I think that it's up to each key definition whether to use character, decimal, or hexadecimal representations, and that each key definition must pick just one of these for everyone to use. There's just no reason for one implementation to be able to send a key in one format, and another implementation to be able to send the same key in another format; that will just make interoperability harder. We would like to see he statement about characters strings and binary numbers tightened up to read: Character strings are represented as plain UTF-8 text. Numeric values with maximum values less than 32 bits should be represented as decimal numbers, but may be represented in hex if documented for the particular key. All binary values greater than 32 bits must be represented in hexadecimal. Hexadecimal numbers are case-insensitive; either upper or lower case must be accepted. The use of either decimal or hexadecimal (but not both) is specified separately for each key. As this format is then implied, no prefixes such as "0x" are necessary. +++ Numbers are often copied from various sources. Why should we limit them? There is no real gain and implementations will have anyhow to have both conversions+++ 2.8.3 - (not its string representation) - I think that the limit should be on the string representation, not on the converted value. ++???+++ 2.8.3 - We need to have the discussion on whether text commands and responses are done all in software, and whether the size of a text response really matters. We'll bring this up on the list separately. +++ go ahead +++ 2.10 - Login command - Need to put an X in the first bit of the message header for the restart bit. +++ will fix +++ 2.18.2 - If you want a useful example of a SCSI event, here's one that could be added: One example using the SCSI Asynchronous Event would report that LUN data has changed if, for instance, a new LUN is added to the target. Here is what the sense data would contain: senseData[0] = 0x71; // Error code. senseData[2] = 0x06; // Sense key: UNIT ATTENTION senseData[12]= 0x3F; // ASC (REPORTED LUNS DATA HAS CHANGED) senseData[13]= 0x0E; // ASCQ The DataSegmentLength in this example would be 14 (decimal). +++ do we need an example? ++++ Appendices - It would be nice to use a different numbering scheme that starts over with each appendix; such as A.1, A.2, B.1, etc. Is this a limitation of the word doc? +++ I have a tool problem here ... and was unable to fix it up to now (Word!) +++ B.01 - Need to specify bit reflection and byte ordering for the CRC-32C. Should add an example message and the expected CRC for interoperability purposes. I can put together a message if you like. +++ I don't know what reflection is. If bit and byte ordering are specified do we need something more or is it a software specific issue +++ B.03 - Should have an example for a target that doesn't support authentication and an initiator that insists on authentication. +++ Will consider - however it looks like a case of reject for which there are examples +++ B.03 - This section should be broken into separate headings for SRP, CHAP, etc. to make them easier to find. +++ I will try but I am not sure I'll manage an unfriendly tool +++ B.03 - (p 108) A lot of fields are shown as numbers; this section should specify which numbers are in hex and which (if any) are in decimal. +++ ??? +++ B.03 - SRP uses "U=" for the name key; CHAP uses "N=" for its name key. They could be made the same for consistency, but it's not really a problem. +++ I think we took the names from the referred RFCs - but we will check again +++ E - Should explicitly define what "Who" means in the intro to appendix E. (e.g. who == which role can send the key). Perhaps "role" would be a better word. +++ I'll replace it with "Who can send:" +++ E - The login and digest keys are missing from appendix E; I think it would be worth describing all of the keys here. +++ They are all in the security appendix +++ E - Each key should describe the exact format of its value, and state whether it is a hex, decimal, UTF-8 string, etc. +++ I really don't see a need to limit further freedom of expression :-) +++ E.23 - DataPDULength - we need to clarify that if a session has negotiated a DataPDULength, that the initiator and target MUST NOT send data PDUs of less than this length, except for the last PDU (or only PDU) of a command. This is what an implementation is likely to do anyway, and will make it practical to keep the iSCSI data CRC end-to-end, since the data CRC covers a PDU, and not a command's worth of data. +++ you mean a data sequence (on R2T there can be several)? I assume most of implementation will do that for efficiency reasons but why should we mandate it? +++ -- Mark A. Bakke Cisco Systems mbakke@cisco.com 763.398.1054
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