An Inventory Management Model for Enterprise Networks

Enterprise networks are becoming heterogenous and supporting a variety of device types, such as BYOD vs. enterprise-supplied devices, Internet of things (IoT) devices, IP phones, printers, IP cameras), OT (Operation Technology) devices (e.g., sensors), etc. Also, these networks are designed to support both localized applications and cloud-based applications (e.g., public cloud computing, storage, etc.), or hybrid applications. Also, means to access network resources are not anymore from within specific sites, but access can be granted from anywhere. Dedicated gateways and authorization procedures are being generalized. This trend is observed for the medical, power, manufacturing, or other infrastructure industries. These networks host a large number of multi-vendor IoT or OT devices, with frequent additions and changes. These complex environments often expose unknown safety and reliability blind spots. The endpoints connected to an Enterprise network lack unified modelling and lifecycle management, and different services are modelled, collected, processed, and stored separately. The same category of network device and network endpoints may be (repeatedly) discovered, processed, and stored. Therefore, the inventory is difficult to manage when they are tracked in different places. Maintaining a centralized and up-to-date inventory is a technical enabler in order to implement a coherent control strategy for all endpoint types connected to an Enterprise network. defines a network topology model that can be used for network inventory extensions. The SAP network model provides inventory data associated with Service Attachment Points (SAPs), which maintains an inventory of nodes contained in a network relying upon . For the enterprise networks, the network endpoint and the network context with the endpoints need to be further defined. This document defines a YANG network model for inventory management, which provide consistent representation and reporting of network inventory types. Note: The following needs to be clarified: X. Why This Model Is Needed? <<Include a summary of why existing models do not fit the need>> defines a network topology model that can be used for network inventory extensions. The SAP network model provides inventory data associated with Service Attachment Points (SAPs), which maintains an inventory of nodes contained in a network relying upon . X. Why This Model is Specific to Enterprises? <<include a discussion on the specificity of endpoints>>

The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT", "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "NOT RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this document are to be interpreted as described in BCP 14 when, and only when, they appear in all capitals, as shown here. This document defines the following term: Provides a representation of entities either as a network device, security device or network endpoint device, which include physical or virtual. It provides information related to devices, which could include hardware components, software/firmware information and management information relevant for the device. Network endpoints, physical or virtual, include physical computing equipment, e.g. physical servers in data centers, desktop computers, mobile devices, laptops, printers, sensors, and cloud-based endpoints, such as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) applications, IaaS computing, storage, etc.

The YANG model of network inventory is used to provide abstract interfaces to obtain network inventory under each network management systems or network controllers of different domains of an enterprise. The Enterprise network inventory model is used to provide abstract interfaces to obtain network inventory under each network management systems or network controllers of different domains of an enterprise. shows an example of an enterprise network consisting of two campus network domains. The inventory data in the network can include network infrastructure devices (such as routers, switchs, security devices) and network endpoints (such as IoT/OT devices, servers, laptop, mobile devices). The management systems or network controllers in different domains can automatically collect or discover the inventory by multiple approaches.

With the inventory data collected from the underlying network, the network orchestration system can centrally manage security and network policies related to network endpoints. shows an enterprise network function abstraction, in which centralized network policy management is on top of the network inventory and other network and security functions to achieve a specific set of network outcomes. For example, the use cases can continuously ensure the security of enterprise networks or optimized traffic engineering in order to meet the performance requirements of business critical applications.

The network inventory defined in this document can be further classified into network nodes and network endpoints. The network nodes include network devices (e.g., routers, security devices). The network endpoints include IT devices, IoT devices, OT devices, personal owned devices, or cloud applications. The inventory can be managed with better control by categorizing and organizing them into custom groups based on a set of criteria local to each Enterprise. The network inventory provides a set of common device attributes, configuration information, and network context. Device attributes include both hardware and software data. The hardware data is from IETF hardware YANG which includes hardware specifications, firmware and software versions installed on them, asset-ids, and status. Software data could be license expiry, OS, etc. Examples of configuration information include, but not limited to, IP address, or geo-location information. Network context provides the interconnection relationship between network devices and the location or underlaying devices of the network endpoint to access the network.

Systems that provide network inventory usually involves the following steps: Identification: The first step is to create a detailed inventory of all network devices and network endpoints. The systems should automatically discover each device or endpoint when connected. Tracking: This involves continuously monitoring, including gathering status, identifying new devices in the network,and traffic patterns. By establishing the process, the system gets real-time data on the state of all the inventory.

Policy Management provides policy-based access control on requested resources, such as user, device access, east west communication between network endpoints. Knowing the list of software or hardware/firmware installed on network devices and network endpoints, is useful to understand and maintain the security state and healthy state of a network infrastructure. For example, if an enterprise policy requires the presence of certain software and prohibits the presence of other software, reported software installation information can be used to indicate compliance and non-compliance with these requirements. Software/hardware/firmware installation inventory lists can further be used to determine a network equipment's exposure to attack based on comparison of vulnerability or threat alerts against identified security profile data.

defines "digital twin network" as a virtual representation of the physical network. Such virtual representation of the network is meant to be used to analyze, diagnose, emulate, and then manage the physical network based on data, models, and interfaces. A digital twin network architecture is proposed as follows.

|Functional Models | +---> Digital| | | | Repo- | | +-----+-----^------+ | | Twin | | | | sitory | | | | | | Network| | | | | | +-----v-----+------+ | | Mgmt | | | | <---+ | Basic Models | <---+ | | | | | | +------------------+ | | | | | +--------+ +------------------------+ +--------+ | +--------^----------------------------+-------------------+ | | | data collection | control +--------+----------------------------v-------------------+ | Physical Network | | | +---------------------------------------------------------+]]> The service orchestration system can use digital twin platform to build visual relationship maps for users, networks and endpoints with relationship types and dependencies, and identify potential impacts on configuration management information from incidents, problems, and changes. The inventory model can, for example, be used to emulate several what-if scenario such as the impact of EOL or depletion of a hardware component on the network resilience and service availability.

The following tree diagram provides an overview of the data model for "ietf-network-inventory" module.

+--rw software-component | +--rw software-instance* [software-type version] | +--ro software-type identityref | +--ro version string | +--ro last-changed? yang:date-and-time | +--rw licenses | +--rw license* [name] | +--rw name string | +--ro description? string | +--ro license-filename? string | +--ro active-state? string | +--ro esn? string | +--ro status? string | +--ro issue-date? yang:date-and-time | +--ro expired-date? string | +--ro type? string +--rw geo-location | +--rw reference-frame | | +--rw alternate-system? string {alternate-systems}? | | +--rw astronomical-body? string | | +--rw geodetic-system | | +--rw geodetic-datum? string | | +--rw coord-accuracy? decimal64 | | +--rw height-accuracy? decimal64 | +--rw (location)? | | +--:(ellipsoid) | | | +--rw latitude? decimal64 | | | +--rw longitude? decimal64 | | | +--rw height? decimal64 | | +--:(cartesian) | | +--rw x? decimal64 | | +--rw y? decimal64 | | +--rw z? decimal64 | +--rw velocity | | +--rw v-north? decimal64 | | +--rw v-east? decimal64 | | +--rw v-up? decimal64 | +--rw timestamp? yang:date-and-time | +--rw valid-until? yang:date-and-time +--rw endpoints +--rw endpoint* [endpoint-id] +--rw endpoint-id string +--rw endpoint-type? identityref +--rw endpoint-ip-address? inet:host +--rw endpoint-mac-address? yang:mac-address +--rw hardware-components | +--rw hardware-component* [name] | +--rw name string | +--rw class component-class | +--rw parent? | | -> ../../hardware-component/name | +--ro serial-num? string | +--ro mfg-name? string | +--ro model-name? string +--rw software-component | +--rw software-instance* [software-type version] | +--ro software-type identityref | +--ro version string | +--ro last-changed? yang:date-and-time | +--rw licenses | +--rw license* [name] | +--rw name string | +--ro description? string | +--ro license-filename? string | +--ro active-state? string | +--ro esn? string | +--ro status? string | +--ro issue-date? | | yang:date-and-time | +--ro expired-date? string | +--ro type? string +--rw user* [user-id] | +--rw user-id string +--rw application* [application-id] +--rw application-id string]]>

file="ietf-network-inventory@2022-10-24.yang" module ietf-network-inventory { yang-version 1.1; namespace "urn:ietf:params:xml:ns:yang:ietf-digital-asset-map"; prefix nw-inv; import ietf-yang-schema-mount { prefix yangmnt; reference "RFC 8528: YANG Schema Mount"; } import ietf-network { prefix nw; reference "RFC 8345: A YANG Data Model for Network Topologies"; } import ietf-inet-types { prefix inet; reference "RFC 6991: Common YANG Data Types"; } import ietf-yang-types { prefix yang; reference "RFC 6991: Common YANG Data Types"; } import iana-hardware { prefix ianahw; reference "RFC 8348: A YANG Data Model for Hardware Management"; } import ietf-geo-location { prefix geo; reference "RFC 9179: A YANG Grouping for Geographic Locations"; } organization "IETF OPSAWG (Operations and Management Area Working Group)"; contact "WG Web: WG List: Editor: Bo Wu Editor: Cheng Zhou Editor: Qin Wu Editor: Mohamed Boucadair "; description "This YANG module defines XXX. Copyright (c) 2022 IETF Trust and the persons identified as authors of the code. All rights reserved. Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without modification, is permitted pursuant to, and subject to the license terms contained in, the Revised BSD License set forth in Section 4.c of the IETF Trust's Legal Provisions Relating to IETF Documents (https://trustee.ietf.org/license-info). This version of this YANG module is part of RFC XXXX (https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfcXXXX); see the RFC itself for full legal notices."; revision 2022-10-24 { description "Initial revision."; reference "RFC XXXX: A Network Inventory Management Model for Enterprise Networks "; } identity inventory-software-type { description "Base identity of the software type."; } identity os-software { base inventory-software-type; description "OS software type."; } identity firmware { base inventory-software-type; description "Firmware type."; } identity endpoint-type { description "Base identity for endpoint type."; } identity server { base endpoint-type; description "Identity for computing server device."; } identity vm { base endpoint-type; description "Identity for VM node."; } identity iot_device { base endpoint-type; description "Identity for IoT device."; } identity cell-phone { base endpoint-type; description "Identity for mobile phone."; } identity node-type { description "Base identity for node device type."; } identity hub { base node-type; description "Identity for hub device."; } identity switch { base node-type; description "Identity for switch device."; } identity router { base node-type; description "Identity for router device."; } identity gateway { base node-type; description "Identity for gateway device."; } identity security { base node-type; description "Identity for access-point device."; } identity virtual-gateway { base node-type; description "Identity for virtual gateway device."; } identity virtual-router { base node-type; description "Identity for virtual router device."; } identity virtual-switch { base node-type; description "Identity for virtual switch device."; } identity virtual-security { base node-type; description "Identity for virtual security device."; } identity access-point { base node-type; description "Identity for access-point device."; } typedef software-class { type string; description "Software name for the software component."; } typedef component-class { type union { type identityref { base ianahw:hardware-class; } type software-class; } description "Definition for the type of hardware or software component class."; } /* Groupings */ grouping system-config { description "Grouping for node system configuration."; container system-config { description "Container for system configuration mount-point, e.g. ietf-hardware, ietf-interface, etc."; anydata root { yangmnt:mount-point "root"; description "Mount-point to system configuration, which is applied to a network device or a security device."; } } } grouping software-component { description "Grouping for software components."; container software-component { description "The software components within the device."; list software-instance { key "software-type version"; description "The list of software instances contained within the device."; leaf software-type { type identityref { base inventory-software-type; } config false; description "The type of software."; } leaf version { type string; config false; description "The current version of the software in the device."; } leaf last-changed { type yang:date-and-time; config false; description "The date and time the current version last changed."; } uses license-info; } } } grouping license-info { description "Grouping for license information."; container licenses { description "All license items."; list license { key "name"; description "License item."; leaf name { type string { length "1..31"; } description "License item name."; } leaf license-description { type string { length "1..255"; } config false; description "The description of a license item."; } leaf license-filename { type string { length "5..127"; } config false; description "The name of a license file."; } leaf active-state { type string { length "1..49"; } config false; description "To indicate the license activating state of the system, the value can be 'normal' or 'default'."; } leaf esn { type string { length "1..2047"; } config false; description "The License ESN."; } leaf license-status { type string { length "1..49"; } config false; description "The status of a license item."; } leaf issue-date { type yang:date-and-time; config false; description "The issued date of a license item."; } leaf expired-date { type string { length "1..71"; } config false; description "The expired date of a license item."; } leaf type { type string { length "1..49"; } config false; description "The type of a license item."; } } } } // grouping license-info // Device Management Information /* Main blocks */ augment "/nw:networks/nw:network/nw:node" { description "Augment used to define attach the node configuration"; leaf node-type { type identityref { base node-type; description "Node type."; } } container device-configs { description "Device hardware and interface configuration."; uses system-config; } uses software-component; uses geo:geo-location; container endpoints { description "This container provides a list of network endpoints for management purposes."; list endpoint { key "endpoint-id"; description "The key of the endpoint list."; leaf endpoint-id { type string; description "Endpoint identifier."; } leaf endpoint-type { type identityref { base endpoint-type; description "Endpoint type."; } } leaf endpoint-ip-address { type inet:host; description "The IP address or DNS domain name of the device."; } leaf endpoint-mac-address { type yang:mac-address; description "The MAC address of the device."; } container hardware-components { description "Endpoint hardware information."; list hardware-component { key "name"; description "An entry in this list represents a component."; leaf name { type string; description "The component name."; } leaf class { type component-class; mandatory true; description "An indication of the general hardware type of the component."; } leaf parent { type leafref { path "../../hardware-component/name"; require-instance false; } description "The name of the component that physically contains this component. If this leaf is not instantiated, it indicates that this component is not contained in any other component. In the event that a physical component is contained by more than one physical component, this node contains the name of one of these components. An implementation should use the same name every time this node is instantiated."; } leaf serial-num { type string; config false; description "The vendor-specific serial number string for the component. The preferred value is the serial number string acctually printed on the component itself (if present)."; } leaf mfg-name { type string; config false; description "The name of the manufacturer of this physical component. The preferred value is the manufacturer name string actually printed on the component itself (if present)."; } leaf model-name { type string; config false; description "The vendor-specific model name identifier string associated with this physical component. The preferred value is the customer-visible part number, which may be printed on the component itself. If the model name string associated with the physical component is unknown to the server, then this node is not instantiated."; } } } uses software-component; list user { key "user-id"; description "The user information."; leaf user-id { type string; description "The identifier of the user"; } } list application { key "application-id"; description "The application information."; leaf application-id { type string; description "The identifier of the application"; } } } } } } ]]>



    
      The YANG module specified in this document defines a data schema
      designed to be accessed through network management protocols such as
      NETCONF [RFC6241] or RESTCONF [RFC8040]. The lowest NETCONF layer is the
      secure transport layer, and the required secure transport is Secure
      Shell (SSH) [RFC6242]. The lowest RESTCONF layer is HTTPS, and the
      required secure transport is TLS [RFC8446].

      The Network Configuration Access Control Model (NACM) [RFC8341]
      provides a means of restricting access to specific NETCONF or RESTCONF
      users to a preconfigured subset of all available NETCONF or RESTCONF
      protocol operations and contents. Thus, NACM SHOULD be used to restrict
      the NSF registration from unauthorized users.

      There are a number of data nodes defined in this YANG module that are
      writable, creatable, and deletable (i.e., config true, which is the
      default). These data nodes may be considered sensitive or vulnerable in
      some network environments. Write operations to these data nodes could
      have a negative effect on network and security operations.

      Some of the readable data nodes in this YANG module may be considered
      sensitive or vulnerable in some network environments. It is thus
      important to control read access (e.g., via get, get-config, or
      notification) to these data nodes. These are the subtrees and data nodes
      and their sensitivity/vulnerability: 

      <<<to be completed>>>
    

    
      The model includes sensitive PII data. More to be discussed:
          Data related to BYOD devices

          How to prevent the model is used to track users’
          activity

          ...
        
    

    
      This document registers a URI in the "IETF XML Registry" . Following the format in ,
      the following registration has been made.

      
        
      

      This document registers a YANG module in the "YANG Module Names"
      registry .

      
        
      
    

    
      TBD