MSC4072: Handling devices with no one-time keys in /keys/claim

proposals/4072-exhausted_devices_in_key_claim_response.md

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+# MSC4072: Handling devices with no one-time keys in `/keys/claim`
+
+Currently, the specification for [`POST
+/_matrix/client/v3/keys/claim`](https://spec.matrix.org/v1.8/client-server-api/#post_matrixclientv3keysclaim)
+is unclear about how devices which have no remaining one-time keys should be
+handled. It is however explicit that unknown devices be omitted
+from the response, and in practice Synapse (at least) treats both scenarios the
+same.
+
+This requires clients to keep a record of which devices were included in the
+request. This MSC proposes that such devices be included in the response.
+
+## Background
+
+Suppose Alice wishes to send an encrypted message to Bob. To do so, she must
+share the message decryption key over peer-to-peer encrypted channels with each
+of Bob's devices. To establish an encrypted channel with a given device, Alice
+must claim a
+[one-time key](https://spec.matrix.org/v1.8/client-server-api/#one-time-and-fallback-keys)
+(or fallback key) for that device. To do so, she makes a request to [`POST
+/_matrix/client/v3/keys/claim`](https://spec.matrix.org/v1.8/client-server-api/#post_matrixclientv3keysclaim).
+
+However, suppose that Bob rarely uses one of his devices. (For example, it may
+be a mobile device he rarely switches on; or it may be a web session he forgot
+to log out of.) Suppose also that this device does not support fallback
+keys. In this scenario, there may be no one-time keys left to be claimed.
+
+The Matrix specification is unclear about how `/keys/claim` should behave in
+this situation. In practice, Synapse omits the device from the response.
+
+A second scenario concerns Alice attempting to claim a one-time-key for a
+device (or user) which no longer exists. (This can happen in various
+circumstances, the most likely being a network outage leading to a delay in
+Bob's server sending the federation request telling Alice's sever that Bob has
+logged out on a given device.) In this case, the specification is explicit that
+the device be omitted from the response.
+
+Therefore, in order to avoid making a (potentially slow) `/keys/claim` request
+for every message that Alice sends, her client must remember exactly which
+devices were included in the request. This is not impossible, but can be
+slightly fiddly to do in a way that does not cause memory leaks.
+
+## Proposal
+
+For every user and device mentioned in the `one_time_keys` object in the
+request for [`POST
+/_matrix/client/v3/keys/claim`](https://spec.matrix.org/v1.8/client-server-api/#post_matrixclientv3keysclaim)
+and [`POST
+/_matrix/federation/v1/user/keys/claim`](https://spec.matrix.org/v1.8/server-server-api/#post_matrixfederationv1userkeysclaim),
+the response must contain *exactly one of*:
+
+ * An entry in `one_time_keys` for that user and device. If the device is
+   either unknown or has no remaining one-time keys or fallback key, the entry
+   should be an empty object (instead of the map from algorithm name to key
+   which indicates a successful claim).
+
+ * In the case of `/_matrix/client/v3/keys/claim` only: an entry in `failures`
+   corresponding to the server name for the requested user.
+
+A server handling a request to `/_matrix/client/v3/keys/claim` and making an
+outgoing federation request to `/_matrix/federation/v1/user/keys/claim` must
+itself ensure the response object is correctly populated for any remote users
+(otherwise a single misbehaving server in the room may cause problems for the
+entire room).
+
+For clarity: servers remain free to reject an entire request with a 40x error
+if the request is malformed in some way, such as containing a malformed user
+ID. This is not affected by this MSC.
+
+## Potential issues
+
+1. This MSC proposes to make a modification to the specified response of
+   `/keys/claim` without having clients opt into the new behaviour (such as via
+   a new endpoint version). In theory, it is possible that this could break
+   existing clients; however this seems unlikely.
+
+2. A client has no way of telling whether a server is following this proposal,
+   or the legacy behaviour.
+
+   This is not seen as a significant problem. If a client assumes that the
+   server follows this proposal but it does not, we simply get the existing
+   behaviour - i.e., the client makes a `/keys/claim` request on every outgoing
+   message, which is a little slow but does not significantly affect functionality.
+
+## Alternatives
+
+### Status Quo
+
+It is of course possible to remember the requested devices on the client side,
+which would make this proposal redundant.
+
+This turns out to be particularly fiddly for the `matrix-sdk-crypto` crate
+within
+[`matrix-rust-sdk`](https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-rust-sdk). In this
+model:
+
+ * The client calls
+   [`get_missing_sessions`](https://matrix-org.github.io/matrix-rust-sdk/matrix_sdk_crypto/struct.OlmMachine.html#method.get_missing_sessions)
+   which will generate a `/keys/claim` request for the relevant devices at that
+   point in time.
+
+ * The client makes the corresponding HTTP request.
+
+ * The client returns the results of the HTTP request via
+   [`mark_request_as_sent`](https://matrix-org.github.io/matrix-rust-sdk/matrix_sdk_crypto/struct.OlmMachine.html#method.mark_request_as_sent).
+
+There is therefore no direct correlation between generating the request and
+handling the response on the Rust side. The Rust side could remember the
+devices included in the `/keys/claim` request, but there is no guarantee that
+the client will ever actually call `mark_request_as_sent`; indeed, if the
+HTTP request fails for any reason, there will be no such call.
+
+So it would be easy to introduce a memory leak in this way. A correct
+implementation might involve some sort of expiring map, or more substantial
+changes to the API of `matrix-sdk-crypto`. In any case it is likely to be
+non-trivial compared with changing the behaviour on the server side.
+
+### Variations in response shape
+
+There exist various alternatives in how devices with no one-time keys are
+represented in the response. None seem significantly superior to simply
+returning an empty object.
+
+### Client opt-in
+
+If this proposal is found to cause breaking changes, it may be necessary to
+have clients opt-in to the new behaviour in some way (such as with a new
+endpoint version). This is not currently believed to be necessary.
+
+### Extensions to `/keys/query`
+
+[`POST
+/_matrix/client/v3/keys/query`](https://spec.matrix.org/v1.8/client-server-api/#post_matrixclientv3keysquery)
+suffers related problems (in particular, unknown devices are again omitted from
+the result). We might consider extending the proposal to that endpoint.
+
+However, whilst the two responses appear similar, the endpoints are used in
+quite different ways and it is not obvious that solutions relevant to
+`/keys/claim` are automatically relevant to `/keys/query`. This proposal
+therefore does not suggest any changes to the behaviour of `/keys/query`.
+
+## Security considerations
+
+None foreseen.
+
+## Unstable prefix
+
+No new identifiers are proposed; it is proposed that servers implementing this
+proposal simply do so on the existing endpoints.
+
+## Dependencies
+
+None.