AAA - Authorization, Authentication and Accounting

This module is a proof of concept (PoC) hack of a AAA framework, it is meant to be a source for discussion, nothing more.

It is meant to communicate a particular concept of how an AAA framework might work, and really only the concepts illustrated here should be discussed, not the specific code.

CAVEAT

This is not meant to be production ready in any way, shape, or form. Did I mention that before? Cool, we are good, you may proceed.

Model

For the purposes of this demo, here is a description of the data models used in this PoC.

Keys

Keys are the base level of entry, they are a tuple of an id, in the form of a stringified UUID, and a key which is some kind of digital signature, the simplest form being a SHA of the id + some secret value, the more complex form being a packet of encrypted data.

Keys have no expiration, but they can be revoked. Though the process of revoking them is not (yet) specified.

Tokens

Tokens are used for all subsequent entry layers, they are also a tuple, but containing different elements. The first item is a timestamp of when the token was issued, and the second item is again a digital signature, the simplest form being a SHA of the timestamp + some secret value, the more complex form being a packet of encrypted data. (Yes, if your brain said "HMAC", then you are smellin' what I am cookin').

AAA

This is a rough overview of how the three A layers interact and how they are implemented.

Authentication

This part of the trio is done via a combination of the AAA::Model::* classes and the AAA::Web::Resource::* classes, which provide a means of generating and validating keys and tokens.

Authorization

This part of the trio is done primarily via AAA::Web::Middleware::Auth which, given a scope of either APIKey or Token, will manage the protected realms.

Accounting

Currently this part of the trio is sketched out kind of poorly. The accounting itself is done via AAA::Web::Middleware::SimpleStats and the reporting of those stats is done via AAA::Web::Resource::SimpleStat resource.

Examples

Simple Example

First start the services.

  plackup -I lib/ -p 3000 root/services.psgi

Next start up the AAA proxy server making sure to let it know where to find the services.

  export SERVICES_REALM="http://0:3000"; 
  plackup -I lib/ -p 5000 root/simple/aaa.psgi

Now poke it with a client:

  export API_KEY=$(curl -v http://0:5000/api-key)
  export TOKEN=$(curl -v http://0:5000/token -H "Authorization: APIKey $API_KEY")

  curl -v http://0:5000/ -H "Authorization: APIKey $API_KEY" -H "Authorization: Token $TOKEN"

Complex Example