AAA for Fun and Profit

von Peter Nixon (Suntel Communications)

Dienstag, 02.05.2006, Raum 1A-2, 10:45-11:30 Uhr

Telephony networks by their very nature are typically spread out over large geographic areas, yet require constant, reliable access to authentication databases while generating large amounts of Accounting data which is typically only usefull when aggregated centrally. These two criteria pose a challenge that is infeasible to solve solely with traditional relational databases. While other remote authentication protocols do not have consistent support from hardware vendors, RADIUS support is nearly omni-present in devices ranging from $50 VoIP adapters and wireless access points to $500,000 carrier telephony switches. Commercial and open source VoIP routing and billing systems, Cisco NAC, Microsoft NAP and Trusted Network Connect (TNC) all depend on RADIUS in some form or another. This means that RADIUS servers are more important than ever, and will continued to be deployed in a wide variety of networks allowing edge devices to perform complex queries into large distributed databases and send updates to central accounting stores that perform user management. RADIUS is no longer an obscure protocol used only by Internet Providers for PPP dialup, rather it has become THE core technology for network Authentication, Authorization and Accounting (AAA) for Telcos, VISPs, WISPs, ISPs, Enterprise and End Users alike. Peter will recount some of his experiences implementing RADIUS based AAA solutions for Mobile and VoIP operators, Government Agencies and Fortune 100 enterprises. Whether you run a Telecom Provider, Calling Card service, Wifi Hotspot or corporate intranet, find out how you can use RADIUS to manage identity and simplify AAA processes in your network, giving an enhanced level of security, accountability and reporting.

Über den Autor Peter Nixon:

Peter Nixon is a technologist and entrepreneur with broad experience in IP Telephony network design and deployment. He owns and runs Suntel Communications, a Novell partner company specialising in Linux Solutions for the Enterprise and Telecom market. He is a strong believer in Open Source software and has been using Linux since 1994. He personally contributes to many Open Source projects in his spare time and pays the salary of several programmers devoted to solving problems with Open Source Software deployed for customers. While living in Istanbul, Turkey for the last four years, Peter has deployed leading/bleeding edge technology in some of the more "interesting" surrounding countries and in doing so has pushed many technologies to (and sometimes beyond) the breaking point.