Initialization, Provisioning and Management of CMs

Initialization, Provisioning and Management of CMs

During initialization, the CM goes through a number of steps before becoming fully operational on the DOCSIS
network. The full initialization sequence is detailed in Section 10, but at a high level comprises four fundamental
stages: 1) topology resolution and physical layer initialization, 2) authentication and encryption initialization, 3) IP
initialization, and 4) registration (MAC layer initialization).

In the first stage, topology resolution and physical layer initialization, the CM acquires a single downstream channel
(either via a stored last-known-good channel, or by scanning the downstream channel map) and receives broadcast
information from the CMTS that provides it with enough information to identify what set of downstream channels
are available to it, as well as what upstream channels might be available. The CM then attempts to initialize the
upstream physical layer by "ranging" on a selected upstream channel. Via a series of attempts and alternative
channel selections, the CM succeeds in contacting the CMTS and completing the ranging process. At this point, the
CMTS has located the CM in the plant topology (i.e., is aware of what downstream channels and upstream channels
physically reach the CM) and has established two way communication via a single downstream/upstream channel
pair. While this section has referred to the first stage in terms of physical layer initialization, a provisional MAC
layer initialization has been performed, with the full initialization of the MAC layer being deferred to the final stage.

The second stage, authentication and encryption initialization, involves the CM sending its X.509 digital certificate
(including the CM’s RSA public key) to the CMTS for validation. If the CM has sent a valid certificate, the CMTS
will respond with a message that triggers the exchange of AES (or DES) encryption keys that are used to encrypt
the upstream and downstream data transmissions from this point forward. This "Early Authentication and
Encryption" can be disabled. If so, the CM will attempt authentication and encryption initialization after the
registration stage. The details of the authentication and encryption initialization process are provided in [DOCSIS
SECv3.0].

In the third stage, IP initialization, the CM acquires an IP address in the Cable Operator address space, as well as the
current time-of-day, and a binary configuration file. DOCSIS 3.0 defines use of IP version 4 and IP version 6 and
four provisioning modes: IPv4 Only, IPv6 Only, Alternate, and Dual-stack. For IPv4 Only provisioning, the CM
uses DHCPv4 to acquire an IPv4 address and operational related parameters. To facilitate compatibility with
existing provisioning systems, this process is identical to the DOCSIS 2.0 CM provisioning process. For IPv6 Only
provisioning, the CM uses DHCPv6 to acquire an IPv6 address and operational parameters. The CM uses the IPv6
address to obtain the current time-of-day and a configuration file. For Alternate Provisioning Mode (APM) the CM
combines the first two provisioning modes, IPv6 Only and IPv4 Only, in sequential order, attempting IPv6
provisioning first and, if this fails, attempting IPv4 provisioning next. In the first three provisioning modes, IPv6
Only, IPv4 Only, and APM, the CM operates with only one IP address type (v4 or v6) at any given time, and thus
these modes are called single-stack modes. For Dual-stack Provisioning Mode (DPM), the CM acquires both IPv6
and IPv4 addresses and parameters through DHCPv6 and DHCPv4 almost simultaneously, prioritizing the use of
the IPv6 address for time-of-day and configuration file acquisition. In this mode, the CM makes both the IPv4 and
the IPv6 addresses available for management.

The fourth stage, registration, involves a three-way handshake between the CM and the CMTS in which the CM
passes certain contents of the configuration file to the CMTS, the CMTS validates the contents, reserves or activates
MAC layer resources based on the service provisioning information that it received, and communicates MAC layer
identifiers back to the CM. Once the CM acknowledges receipt of the CMTS’s response, the MAC layer
initialization is complete.

After the CM completes initialization, it is a manageable network element in the operator’s IP network. The CM
supports SNMP (as mentioned above), and responds to queries directed to the IP (v4 or v6) address that it acquired
during initialization. DOCSIS 3.0 also supports a dual-stack operational mode in which the CM is manageable via
both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses simultaneously. This mode is initialized (i.e., the CM acquires a second IP address)
after the CM is operational. This feature is also intended to help provide a streamlined migration from IPv4 to IPv6
in DOCSIS networks.