RE: A web of directories

[tgindin@xxxxxxxxxx]

Andrew Probert <AndrewP@rotek.com.au> on 02/22/99 05:45:44 PM

To:   "'Kurn, David'" <david.kurn@compaq.com>, "'Bob Jueneman'"
      <BJUENEMAN@novell.com>, Tom Gindin/Watson/IBM
cc:   ietf-pkix@imc.org
Subject:  RE: A web of directories





Comments inline

Andew Probert
Rotek Consulting   http://www.rotek.com.au
a Division of Secure Network Solutions
Tel  +61 3 9690 8877
Fax +61 3 9690 8171



> -----Original Message-----
> From:   Kurn, David [SMTP:david.kurn@compaq.com]
> Sent:   Tuesday, February 23, 1999 7:02 AM
> To:     'Bob Jueneman'; tgindin@us.ibm.com
> Cc:     ietf-pkix@imc.org
> Subject:     RE: A web of directories
>
> Bob et al
>
> Nice generalization.  Of course, you have just re-invented a URI (or is
it
> URL), so why not in general allow the syntax:
>
>
>
<name-of-protocol>://<ip-address-and-maybe-portno>/<stuff-interpreted-by-t
> he
> -server
>
> as the access to the certificate lookup service.  Obvious candidates are
> ldap: http: https:
>
> with "ldap:" probably being the default.
>
[Andrew Probert]  The syntax needs to be broader than URI if you go down
this path i.e. to also hold reference to X.500/IP server i.e. hostname (or
IP), portnumber, tsap, ssap, psap.

[Tom Gindin]  The simplest syntax is probably
NetworkApplicationLocation    ::=  CHOICE
{    UniformResourceID        IA5String,
     presentationAddress PresentationAddress
}
hostname and IP are included in URI and all 3 SAP's in PresentationAddress.
The choices have distinct tags, so no context-specific stuff is necessary.
>  I have a problem with presuming any kind of default directory pointer
(in
> general) because you have no idea where or who will be using your
> certificates.  As a metaphor, consider that I send you a snail-mail
> message,
> and list on the top-left of the envelope a return address like:
>
>   123 First Street
>   Springfield
>
     [Andrew Probert]  That's why we need global namespaces for global
electronic commerce!
     [Tom Gindin]  Of course we need global namespaces for global
electronic commerce.  We have a number of candidates: X.500 with common
name based on organization, X.500 with personal name based on organization,
X.500 with physical delivery addresses, RFC-822, or URI's (including
RFC-822)?  All of these are global namespaces, and I haven't counted X.400
separately from X.500.

-- snip --