Patent ID: 8887234

Claim:
A method for Network Service Provider (NSP) service selection and authentication in an IPv6 access network, the IPv6 access network having a subscriber network including at least two terminals, the method comprising: receiving Router Solicitation (RS) messages from a terminal in a subscriber network at an access node, the RS messages including a Network Service Selection and Authentication (NSSA) Information option, the NSSA Information option containing a user's information for network service selection and authentication; extracting, in the access node, the user's information from the NSSA Information option in the RS messages; obtaining, by the access node, authentication through communication with a corresponding Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting (AAA) server; and determining, at the access node, a NSP Information option and a Prefix Information option upon authentication; sending from the access node to the subscriber network Router Advertisement (RA) messages, the RA messages containing the NSP Information option and the Prefix Information option, the NSP Information option containing the address of the NSP edge router and a NSP name, the NSP Information option existing in a pair with the corresponding Prefix Information option in the RA messages such that a second one of the terminals within the subscriber network receives the NSP Information and forms a global IPv6 address associated therewith without authenticating with the NSP.