A UPnP extension for enabling user authentication and authorization in pervasive systems

Thiago Sales,Angelo Perkusich,Leandro Sales,Hyggo Almeida

doi:10.1007/s13173-010-0022-2

Abstract

Abstract The Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) specification defines a set of protocols for promoting pervasive network connectivity of computers and intelligent devices or appliances. Nowadays, the UPnP technology is becoming popular due to its robustness to connect devices and the large number of developed applications. One of the major drawbacks of UPnP is the lack of user authentication and authorization mechanisms. Thus, control points, those devices acting as clients on behalf of a user, and UPnP devices cannot communicate based on user information. This paper introduces an extension of the UPnP specification called UPnP-UP, which allows user authentication and authorization mechanisms for UPnP devices and applications. These mechanisms provide the basis to develop customized and secure UPnP pervasive services, maintaining backward compatibility with previous versions of UPnP.

Highlights

In recent years, the wide dissemination of mobile devices with wireless technologies has allowed the conception of pervasive computing solutions [2]
This paper introduces UPnP-UP (Universal Plug and Play—User Profile), an extension of the UPnP technology that enables user authentication and authorization for UPnP devices and applications, providing the basis to develop customized and secure UPnP services
This paper presented an extension of the UPnP technology to enable user authentication and authorization mechanisms for the UPnP connectivity architecture

Summary

Introduction

The wide dissemination of mobile devices with wireless technologies has allowed the conception of pervasive computing solutions [2]. Due to its robustness and still simple networking architecture, the Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) technology [3] is a promising solution to provide pervasive services for a new generation of electronic devices. A UPnP network is a collection of interconnected computers, network appliances, and consumer electronic devices that use standard protocols to discover, advertise, and access network services. The goal is to provide an easy-to-use framework for creating tools to support the communication of network-based devices. UPnP supports communication between devices such as cell phones and internet tablets, and conventional peripherals, such as printers and wireless household electronic gadgets for controlling appliances, lights, doors, and curtains

Methods

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Discussion

Conclusion