feat(mesh): add MLS-Lite lightweight encryption for constrained links

MLS-Lite provides group encryption without full MLS overhead:
- Pre-shared group secret (QR code, NFC, or MLS epoch export)
- ChaCha20-Poly1305 symmetric encryption (same as MLS app messages)
- Per-message nonce from epoch + sequence
- Replay protection via sliding window
- Optional Ed25519 signatures

Wire overhead: ~41 bytes without signature, ~105 with signature
(vs ~174 bytes for MeshEnvelope V1)

Tradeoffs vs full MLS:
- No automatic post-compromise security (manual key rotation)
- No automatic forward secrecy (only per-epoch)
- Keys are pre-shared, not negotiated

Designed for SF12 LoRa where MLS KeyPackages are impractical.
This commit is contained in:
2026-03-30 23:48:25 +02:00
parent 9cbf824db6
commit a055706236
2 changed files with 551 additions and 0 deletions

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@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ pub mod announce_protocol;
pub mod broadcast;
pub mod envelope;
pub mod envelope_v2;
pub mod mls_lite;
pub mod identity;
pub mod link;
pub mod mesh_router;

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@@ -0,0 +1,550 @@
//! MLS-Lite: Lightweight symmetric encryption for constrained mesh links.
//!
//! MLS-Lite provides group encryption without the overhead of full MLS:
//! - Pre-shared group secret (exchanged out-of-band: QR code, NFC, voice)
//! - ChaCha20-Poly1305 symmetric encryption (same as MLS application messages)
//! - Per-message nonce derived from epoch + sequence
//! - Replay protection via sequence numbers
//! - Optional Ed25519 signatures for sender authentication
//!
//! # Security Properties
//!
//! - **Confidentiality**: ChaCha20-Poly1305 (256-bit key)
//! - **Integrity**: Poly1305 MAC
//! - **Replay protection**: Sequence numbers
//! - **Sender authentication (optional)**: Ed25519 signatures
//!
//! # NOT Provided (vs full MLS)
//!
//! - Automatic post-compromise security (requires manual key rotation)
//! - Automatic forward secrecy (only per-epoch, not per-message)
//! - Key agreement (keys are pre-shared)
//!
//! # Wire Format
//!
//! See [`MlsLiteEnvelope`] for the compact envelope structure.
use chacha20poly1305::{
aead::{Aead, KeyInit},
ChaCha20Poly1305, Nonce,
};
use hkdf::Hkdf;
use rand::RngCore;
use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
use sha2::Sha256;
use std::collections::HashMap;
use crate::address::MeshAddress;
use crate::identity::MeshIdentity;
/// Maximum replay window size (track last N sequence numbers per sender).
const REPLAY_WINDOW_SIZE: usize = 64;
/// MLS-Lite group state.
pub struct MlsLiteGroup {
/// 8-byte group identifier.
group_id: [u8; 8],
/// Current epoch (incremented on key rotation).
epoch: u16,
/// 32-byte symmetric encryption key (derived from group_secret + epoch).
encryption_key: [u8; 32],
/// 7-byte nonce prefix (derived from group_secret).
nonce_prefix: [u8; 7],
/// Next sequence number for sending.
next_seq: u32,
/// Replay protection: track seen (sender_addr, seq) pairs.
replay_window: HashMap<MeshAddress, ReplayWindow>,
}
/// Sliding window for replay detection.
struct ReplayWindow {
/// Highest sequence number seen.
max_seq: u32,
/// Bitmap of seen sequence numbers in window.
seen: u64,
}
impl ReplayWindow {
fn new() -> Self {
Self { max_seq: 0, seen: 0 }
}
/// Check if sequence number is valid (not replayed).
/// Returns true if valid, false if replayed or too old.
fn check_and_update(&mut self, seq: u32) -> bool {
if seq == 0 {
// Seq 0 is always allowed once (first message)
if self.max_seq == 0 && self.seen == 0 {
self.seen = 1;
return true;
}
}
if seq > self.max_seq {
// New highest sequence
let shift = (seq - self.max_seq).min(64);
self.seen = self.seen.checked_shl(shift as u32).unwrap_or(0);
self.seen |= 1; // Mark current as seen
self.max_seq = seq;
true
} else if self.max_seq - seq >= REPLAY_WINDOW_SIZE as u32 {
// Too old
false
} else {
// Within window — check bitmap
let idx = (self.max_seq - seq) as u32;
let bit = 1u64 << idx;
if self.seen & bit != 0 {
false // Already seen
} else {
self.seen |= bit;
true
}
}
}
}
/// Result of decryption.
#[derive(Debug)]
pub enum DecryptResult {
/// Successfully decrypted plaintext.
Success(Vec<u8>),
/// Decryption failed (wrong key, corrupted, etc).
DecryptionFailed,
/// Replay detected (sequence number already seen).
ReplayDetected,
/// Signature verification failed.
SignatureFailed,
}
impl MlsLiteGroup {
/// Create a new MLS-Lite group from a pre-shared secret.
///
/// The `group_secret` should be at least 32 bytes of high-entropy data.
/// It can be:
/// - Randomly generated and shared via QR code
/// - Derived from a password via Argon2id
/// - Exported from a full MLS group's epoch secret
pub fn new(group_id: [u8; 8], group_secret: &[u8], epoch: u16) -> Self {
let (encryption_key, nonce_prefix) = Self::derive_keys(group_secret, &group_id, epoch);
Self {
group_id,
epoch,
encryption_key,
nonce_prefix,
next_seq: 0,
replay_window: HashMap::new(),
}
}
/// Derive encryption key and nonce prefix from group secret and epoch.
fn derive_keys(group_secret: &[u8], group_id: &[u8; 8], epoch: u16) -> ([u8; 32], [u8; 7]) {
let salt = b"quicprochat-mls-lite-v1";
let hk = Hkdf::<Sha256>::new(Some(salt), group_secret);
// Include epoch in the info to get different keys per epoch
let mut info = Vec::with_capacity(10);
info.extend_from_slice(group_id);
info.extend_from_slice(&epoch.to_be_bytes());
let mut okm = [0u8; 39]; // 32 bytes key + 7 bytes nonce prefix
hk.expand(&info, &mut okm)
.expect("HKDF expand should not fail with valid length");
let mut key = [0u8; 32];
let mut prefix = [0u8; 7];
key.copy_from_slice(&okm[..32]);
prefix.copy_from_slice(&okm[32..39]);
(key, prefix)
}
/// Rotate to a new epoch with a new group secret.
pub fn rotate(&mut self, new_secret: &[u8], new_epoch: u16) {
let (key, prefix) = Self::derive_keys(new_secret, &self.group_id, new_epoch);
self.encryption_key = key;
self.nonce_prefix = prefix;
self.epoch = new_epoch;
self.next_seq = 0;
self.replay_window.clear();
}
/// Encrypt a plaintext payload.
///
/// Returns `(ciphertext, nonce_suffix, seq)`.
/// The ciphertext includes the 16-byte Poly1305 tag.
pub fn encrypt(&mut self, plaintext: &[u8]) -> anyhow::Result<(Vec<u8>, [u8; 5], u32)> {
let seq = self.next_seq;
self.next_seq = self.next_seq.wrapping_add(1);
// Build nonce: 7-byte prefix + 5-byte suffix (1 byte random + 4 byte seq)
let mut nonce_suffix = [0u8; 5];
rand::thread_rng().fill_bytes(&mut nonce_suffix[..1]);
nonce_suffix[1..].copy_from_slice(&seq.to_be_bytes());
let mut nonce_bytes = [0u8; 12];
nonce_bytes[..7].copy_from_slice(&self.nonce_prefix);
nonce_bytes[7..].copy_from_slice(&nonce_suffix);
let nonce = Nonce::from_slice(&nonce_bytes);
let cipher = ChaCha20Poly1305::new_from_slice(&self.encryption_key)
.expect("key length is 32 bytes");
let ciphertext = cipher
.encrypt(nonce, plaintext)
.map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("encryption failed: {e}"))?;
Ok((ciphertext, nonce_suffix, seq))
}
/// Decrypt a ciphertext.
///
/// `sender_addr` is used for replay detection.
pub fn decrypt(
&mut self,
ciphertext: &[u8],
nonce_suffix: &[u8; 5],
sender_addr: MeshAddress,
) -> DecryptResult {
// Extract sequence number from nonce suffix
let seq = u32::from_be_bytes([
nonce_suffix[1],
nonce_suffix[2],
nonce_suffix[3],
nonce_suffix[4],
]);
// Replay check
let window = self.replay_window.entry(sender_addr).or_insert_with(ReplayWindow::new);
if !window.check_and_update(seq) {
return DecryptResult::ReplayDetected;
}
// Build nonce
let mut nonce_bytes = [0u8; 12];
nonce_bytes[..7].copy_from_slice(&self.nonce_prefix);
nonce_bytes[7..].copy_from_slice(nonce_suffix);
let nonce = Nonce::from_slice(&nonce_bytes);
let cipher = ChaCha20Poly1305::new_from_slice(&self.encryption_key)
.expect("key length is 32 bytes");
match cipher.decrypt(nonce, ciphertext) {
Ok(plaintext) => DecryptResult::Success(plaintext),
Err(_) => DecryptResult::DecryptionFailed,
}
}
/// Current epoch.
pub fn epoch(&self) -> u16 {
self.epoch
}
/// Group ID.
pub fn group_id(&self) -> &[u8; 8] {
&self.group_id
}
}
/// Compact MLS-Lite envelope for constrained links.
///
/// # Wire overhead (approximate)
///
/// - Version: 1 byte
/// - Flags: 1 byte
/// - Group ID: 8 bytes
/// - Sender addr: 4 bytes (truncated further for constrained)
/// - Seq: 4 bytes
/// - Epoch: 2 bytes
/// - Nonce suffix: 5 bytes
/// - Ciphertext: variable (payload + 16 byte tag)
/// - Signature (optional): 64 bytes
///
/// **Minimum overhead without signature: ~41 bytes**
/// **Minimum overhead with signature: ~105 bytes**
#[derive(Clone, Debug, Serialize, Deserialize)]
pub struct MlsLiteEnvelope {
/// Format version (0x03 for MLS-Lite).
pub version: u8,
/// Flags: bit 0 = has_signature, bits 1-2 = priority.
pub flags: u8,
/// 8-byte group identifier.
pub group_id: [u8; 8],
/// 4-byte truncated sender address (first 4 bytes of MeshAddress).
pub sender_addr: [u8; 4],
/// Sequence number.
pub seq: u32,
/// Key epoch.
pub epoch: u16,
/// 5-byte nonce suffix.
pub nonce: [u8; 5],
/// Encrypted payload (includes 16-byte Poly1305 tag).
pub ciphertext: Vec<u8>,
/// Optional Ed25519 signature (64 bytes).
#[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]
pub signature: Option<[u8; 64]>,
}
/// MLS-Lite envelope version byte.
const MLS_LITE_VERSION: u8 = 0x03;
impl MlsLiteEnvelope {
/// Create a new MLS-Lite envelope (without signature).
pub fn new(
identity: &MeshIdentity,
group: &mut MlsLiteGroup,
plaintext: &[u8],
sign: bool,
) -> anyhow::Result<Self> {
let (ciphertext, nonce, seq) = group.encrypt(plaintext)?;
let sender_full = MeshAddress::from_public_key(&identity.public_key());
let mut sender_addr = [0u8; 4];
sender_addr.copy_from_slice(&sender_full.as_bytes()[..4]);
let flags = if sign { 0x01 } else { 0x00 };
let mut envelope = Self {
version: MLS_LITE_VERSION,
flags,
group_id: *group.group_id(),
sender_addr,
seq,
epoch: group.epoch(),
nonce,
ciphertext,
signature: None,
};
if sign {
let signable = envelope.signable_bytes();
let sig = identity.sign(&signable);
envelope.signature = Some(sig);
}
Ok(envelope)
}
/// Bytes to sign (everything except signature).
fn signable_bytes(&self) -> Vec<u8> {
let mut buf = Vec::with_capacity(32 + self.ciphertext.len());
buf.push(self.version);
buf.push(self.flags);
buf.extend_from_slice(&self.group_id);
buf.extend_from_slice(&self.sender_addr);
buf.extend_from_slice(&self.seq.to_le_bytes());
buf.extend_from_slice(&self.epoch.to_le_bytes());
buf.extend_from_slice(&self.nonce);
buf.extend_from_slice(&self.ciphertext);
buf
}
/// Verify signature (if present) using sender's full public key.
pub fn verify_signature(&self, sender_public_key: &[u8; 32]) -> bool {
match &self.signature {
None => true, // No signature to verify
Some(sig) => {
let signable = self.signable_bytes();
quicprochat_core::IdentityKeypair::verify_raw(sender_public_key, &signable, sig)
.is_ok()
}
}
}
/// Whether this envelope has a signature.
pub fn has_signature(&self) -> bool {
self.flags & 0x01 != 0
}
/// Serialize to CBOR.
pub fn to_wire(&self) -> Vec<u8> {
let mut buf = Vec::new();
ciborium::into_writer(self, &mut buf).expect("CBOR serialization should not fail");
buf
}
/// Deserialize from CBOR.
pub fn from_wire(bytes: &[u8]) -> anyhow::Result<Self> {
let env: Self = ciborium::from_reader(bytes)?;
if env.version != MLS_LITE_VERSION {
anyhow::bail!("unexpected MLS-Lite version: {}", env.version);
}
Ok(env)
}
}
#[cfg(test)]
mod tests {
use super::*;
fn test_identity() -> MeshIdentity {
MeshIdentity::generate()
}
#[test]
fn encrypt_decrypt_roundtrip() {
let secret = b"super secret group key material!";
let group_id = [0x01, 0x02, 0x03, 0x04, 0x05, 0x06, 0x07, 0x08];
let mut alice_group = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
let mut bob_group = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
let plaintext = b"hello from alice";
let (ciphertext, nonce, _seq) = alice_group.encrypt(plaintext).expect("encrypt");
let alice_addr = MeshAddress::from_bytes([0xAA; 16]);
match bob_group.decrypt(&ciphertext, &nonce, alice_addr) {
DecryptResult::Success(pt) => assert_eq!(pt, plaintext),
other => panic!("expected Success, got {other:?}"),
}
}
#[test]
fn replay_detection() {
let secret = b"replay test key material here!!!";
let group_id = [0x11; 8];
let mut alice_group = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
let mut bob_group = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
let (ciphertext, nonce, _seq) = alice_group.encrypt(b"msg1").expect("encrypt");
let alice_addr = MeshAddress::from_bytes([0xAA; 16]);
// First decrypt succeeds
match bob_group.decrypt(&ciphertext, &nonce, alice_addr) {
DecryptResult::Success(_) => {}
other => panic!("first decrypt should succeed, got {other:?}"),
}
// Replay attempt fails
match bob_group.decrypt(&ciphertext, &nonce, alice_addr) {
DecryptResult::ReplayDetected => {}
other => panic!("replay should be detected, got {other:?}"),
}
}
#[test]
fn different_epochs_different_keys() {
let secret = b"epoch rotation test material!!!";
let group_id = [0x22; 8];
let mut group_e0 = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
let mut group_e1 = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 1);
let (ciphertext_e0, nonce_e0, _) = group_e0.encrypt(b"epoch 0").expect("encrypt");
// Decrypt with wrong epoch should fail
let sender = MeshAddress::from_bytes([0xBB; 16]);
match group_e1.decrypt(&ciphertext_e0, &nonce_e0, sender) {
DecryptResult::DecryptionFailed => {}
other => panic!("wrong epoch should fail decryption, got {other:?}"),
}
}
#[test]
fn envelope_with_signature() {
let id = test_identity();
let secret = b"envelope signature test material";
let group_id = [0x33; 8];
let mut group = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
let envelope = MlsLiteEnvelope::new(&id, &mut group, b"signed message", true)
.expect("create envelope");
assert!(envelope.has_signature());
assert!(envelope.verify_signature(&id.public_key()));
// Wrong key should fail
let wrong_key = [0x42u8; 32];
assert!(!envelope.verify_signature(&wrong_key));
}
#[test]
fn envelope_without_signature() {
let id = test_identity();
let secret = b"unsigned envelope test material!";
let group_id = [0x44; 8];
let mut group = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
let envelope = MlsLiteEnvelope::new(&id, &mut group, b"no sig", false)
.expect("create envelope");
assert!(!envelope.has_signature());
assert!(envelope.signature.is_none());
}
#[test]
fn envelope_cbor_roundtrip() {
let id = test_identity();
let secret = b"cbor roundtrip test material!!!!";
let group_id = [0x55; 8];
let mut group = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
let envelope = MlsLiteEnvelope::new(&id, &mut group, b"roundtrip", true)
.expect("create envelope");
let wire = envelope.to_wire();
let restored = MlsLiteEnvelope::from_wire(&wire).expect("deserialize");
assert_eq!(envelope.version, restored.version);
assert_eq!(envelope.flags, restored.flags);
assert_eq!(envelope.group_id, restored.group_id);
assert_eq!(envelope.sender_addr, restored.sender_addr);
assert_eq!(envelope.seq, restored.seq);
assert_eq!(envelope.epoch, restored.epoch);
assert_eq!(envelope.nonce, restored.nonce);
assert_eq!(envelope.ciphertext, restored.ciphertext);
assert_eq!(envelope.signature, restored.signature);
}
#[test]
fn measure_mls_lite_overhead() {
let id = test_identity();
let secret = b"overhead measurement test secret";
let group_id = [0x66; 8];
let mut group = MlsLiteGroup::new(group_id, secret, 0);
println!("=== MLS-Lite Wire Overhead (CBOR) ===");
// Without signature
let env_no_sig = MlsLiteEnvelope::new(&id, &mut group, b"", false)
.expect("create");
let wire_no_sig = env_no_sig.to_wire();
// Overhead = wire - payload - 16 byte tag
let overhead_no_sig = wire_no_sig.len() - 16; // tag is in ciphertext
println!("No signature, 0B payload: {} bytes (overhead: {})", wire_no_sig.len(), overhead_no_sig);
// With signature
let env_sig = MlsLiteEnvelope::new(&id, &mut group, b"", true)
.expect("create");
let wire_sig = env_sig.to_wire();
let overhead_sig = wire_sig.len() - 16;
println!("With signature, 0B payload: {} bytes (overhead: {})", wire_sig.len(), overhead_sig);
// 10-byte payload without sig
let env_10 = MlsLiteEnvelope::new(&id, &mut group, b"hello mesh", false)
.expect("create");
let wire_10 = env_10.to_wire();
println!("No signature, 10B payload: {} bytes", wire_10.len());
// Compare to MeshEnvelope V1
let v1_env = crate::envelope::MeshEnvelope::new(
&id,
&[0x77; 32],
b"hello mesh".to_vec(),
3600,
5,
);
let v1_wire = v1_env.to_wire();
println!("MeshEnvelope V1, 10B payload: {} bytes", v1_wire.len());
println!("MLS-Lite savings (no sig): {} bytes", v1_wire.len() as i32 - wire_10.len() as i32);
assert!(overhead_no_sig < 50, "MLS-Lite overhead without sig should be under 50 bytes");
assert!(overhead_sig < 120, "MLS-Lite overhead with sig should be under 120 bytes");
}
}