ISO/IEC 8825-1:2015

INTERNATIONAL ISO/IEC
STANDARD 8825-1
Fifth edition
2015-11-15

Information technology — ASN.1
encoding rules: Specification of Basic
Encoding Rules (BER), Canonical
Encoding Rules (CER) and Distinguished
Encoding Rules (DER)
Technologies de l'information — Règles de codage ASN.1:
Spécification des règles de codage de base (BER), des règles de
codage canoniques (CER) et des règles de codage distinctives (DER)






Reference number
ISO/IEC 8825-1:2015(E)
©
ISO/IEC 2015

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ISO/IEC 8825-1:2015(E)
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ii © ISO/IEC 2015 – All rights reserved

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ISO/IEC 8825-1:2015(E)

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical
Commission) form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are members of
ISO or IEC participate in the development of International Standards through technical committees
established by the respective organization to deal with particular fields of technical activity. ISO and IEC
technical committees collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other international organizations, governmental
and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO and IEC, also take part in the work. In the field of information
technology, ISO and IEC have established a joint technical committee, ISO/IEC JTC 1.
International Standards are drafted in accordance with the rules given in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The main task of the joint technical committee is to prepare International Standards. Draft International
Standards adopted by the joint technical committee are circulated to national bodies for voting. Publication as
an International Standard requires approval by at least 75 % of the national bodies casting a vote.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent
rights. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
This fifth edition cancels and replaces the fourth edition of ISO/IEC 8825-1:2008 which has been technically
revised. It also incorporates ISO/IEC 8825-1:2008/Cor.1:2012 and ISO/IEC 8825-5:2008.Cor.2:2014.
ISO/IEC 8825-1 was prepared by Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information technology,
Subcommittee SC 6, Telecommunications and information exchange between systems, in collaboration with
ITU-T. The identical text is published as ITU-T X.690 (08/2015).
© ISO/IEC 2015 – All rights reserved iii

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I n t e r n a t i o n a l T e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n U n i o n


ITU-T X.690
(08/2015)
TELECOMMUNICATION
STANDARDIZATION SECTOR
OF ITU

SERIES X: DATA NETWORKS, OPEN SYSTEM
COMMUNICATIONS AND SECURITY
OSI networking and system aspects – Abstract Syntax
Notation One (ASN.1)


Information technology – ASN.1 encoding rules:
Specification of Basic Encoding Rules (BER),
Canonical Encoding Rules (CER) and
Distinguished Encoding Rules (DER)

Recommendation ITU-T X.690

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ITU-T X-SERIES RECOMMENDATIONS
DATA NETWORKS, OPEN SYSTEM COMMUNICATIONS AND SECURITY

PUBLIC DATA NETWORKS
Services and facilities X.1–X.19
Interfaces X.20–X.49
Transmission, signalling and switching X.50–X.89
Network aspects X.90–X.149
Maintenance X.150–X.179
Administrative arrangements X.180–X.199
OPEN SYSTEMS INTERCONNECTION
Model and notation X.200–X.209
Service definitions X.210–X.219
Connection-mode protocol specifications X.220–X.229
Connectionless-mode protocol specifications X.230–X.239
PICS proformas X.240–X.259
Protocol Identification X.260–X.269
Security Protocols X.270–X.279
Layer Managed Objects X.280–X.289
Conformance testing X.290–X.299
INTERWORKING BETWEEN NETWORKS
General X.300–X.349
Satellite data transmission systems X.350–X.369
IP-based networks X.370–X.379
MESSAGE HANDLING SYSTEMS X.400–X.499
DIRECTORY X.500–X.599
OSI NETWORKING AND SYSTEM ASPECTS
Networking X.600–X.629
Efficiency X.630–X.639
Quality of service X.640–X.649
Naming, Addressing and Registration X.650–X.679
Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1) X.680–X.699
OSI MANAGEMENT
Systems management framework and architecture X.700–X.709
Management communication service and protocol X.710–X.719
Structure of management information X.720–X.729
Management functions and ODMA functions X.730–X.799
SECURITY X.800–X.849
OSI APPLICATIONS
Commitment, concurrency and recovery X.850–X.859
Transaction processing X.860–X.879
Remote operations X.880–X.889
Generic applications of ASN.1 X.890–X.899
OPEN DISTRIBUTED PROCESSING X.900–X.999
INFORMATION AND NETWORK SECURITY X.1000–X.1099
SECURE APPLICATIONS AND SERVICES X.1100–X.1199
CYBERSPACE SECURITY X.1200–X.1299
SECURE APPLICATIONS AND SERVICES X.1300–X.1399
CYBERSECURITY INFORMATION EXCHANGE X.1500–X.1599
CLOUD COMPUTING SECURITY X.1600–X.1699

For further details, please refer to the list of ITU-T Recommendations.

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INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO/IEC 8825-1
RECOMMENDATION ITU-T X.690
Information technology – ASN.1 encoding rules:
Specification of Basic Encoding Rules (BER), Canonical Encoding Rules (CER) and
Distinguished Encoding Rules (DER)



Summary
Recommendation ITU-T X.690 | ISO/IEC 8825-1 defines a set of Basic Encoding Rules (BER) that may be applied to
values of types defined using the ASN.1 notation. Application of these encoding rules produces a transfer syntax for such
values. It is implicit in the specification of these encoding rules that they are also used for decoding. This
Recommendation | International Standard defines also a set of Distinguished Encoding Rules (DER) and a set of
Canonical Encoding Rules (CER) both of which provide constraints on the Basic Encoding Rules (BER). The key
difference between them is that DER uses the definite length form of encoding while CER uses the indefinite length
form. DER is more suitable for the small encoded values, while CER is more suitable for the large ones. It is implicit in
the specification of these encoding rules that they are also used for decoding.


History
*
Edition Recommendation Approval Study Group Unique ID
1.0 ITU-T X.690 1994-07-01 7 11.1002/1000/3046
1.1 ITU-T X.690 (1994) Technical Cor. 1 1995-11-21 7 11.1002/1000/3283
1.2 ITU-T X.690 (1994) Technical Cor. 2 1997-12-12 7 11.1002/1000/4182
1.3 ITU-T X.690 (1994) Technical Cor. 3 1997-12-12 7 11.1002/1000/4183
2.0 ITU-T X.690 1997-12-12 7 11.1002/1000/4447
2.1 ITU-T X.690 (1997) Technical Cor. 1 1999-06-18 7 11.1002/1000/4705
2.2 ITU-T X.690 (1997) Amd. 1 1999-06-18 7 11.1002/1000/4704
2.3 ITU-T X.690 (1997) Technical Cor. 2 2001-02-02 7 11.1002/1000/5335
3.0 ITU-T X.690 2002-07-14 17 11.1002/1000/6089
3.1 ITU-T X.690 (2002) Amd. 1 2003-10-29 17 11.1002/1000/7021
3.2 ITU-T X.690 (2002) Amd. 2 2006-06-13 17 11.1002/1000/8838
3.3 ITU-T X.690 (2002) Technical Cor. 1 2007-05-29 17 11.1002/1000/9108
4.0 ITU-T X.690 2008-11-13 17 11.1002/1000/9608
4.1 ITU-T X.690 (2008) Cor. 1 2011-10-14 17 11.1002/1000/11378
4.2 ITU-T X.690 (2008) Cor. 2 2014-03-01 17 11.1002/1000/12147
5.0 ITU-T X.690 2015-08-13 17 11.1002/1000/12483




*
To access the Recommendation, type the URL http://handle.itu.int/ in the address field of your web browser, followed by the
Recommendation's unique ID. For example, http://handle.itu.int/11.1002/1000/11830-en.
 Rec. ITU-T X.690 (08/2015) i

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FOREWORD
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is the United Nations specialized agency in the field of
telecommunications, information and communication technologies (ICTs). The ITU Telecommunication
Standardization Sector (ITU-T) is a permanent organ of ITU. ITU-T is responsible for studying technical,
operating and tariff questions and issuing Recommendations on them with a view to standardizing
telecommunications on a worldwide basis.
The World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA), which meets every four years,
establishes the topics for study by the ITU-T study groups which, in turn, produce Recommendations on
these topics.
The approval of ITU-T Recommendations is covered by the procedure laid down in WTSA Resolution 1.
In some areas of information technology which fall within ITU-T's purview, the necessary standards are
prepared on a collaborative basis with ISO and IEC.



NOTE
In this Recommendation, the expression "Administration" is used for conciseness to indicate both a
telecommunication administration and a recognized operating agency.
Compliance with this Recommendation is voluntary. However, the Recommendation may contain certain
mandatory provisions (to ensure, e.g., interoperability or applicability) and compliance with the
Recommendation is achieved when all of these mandatory provisions are met. The words "shall" or some
other obligatory language such as "must" and the negative equivalents are used to express requirements. The
use of such words does not suggest that compliance with the Recommendation is required of any party.




INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
ITU draws attention to the possibility that the practice or implementation of this Recommendation may
involve the use of a claimed Intellectual Property Right. ITU takes no position concerning the evidence,
validity or applicability of claimed Intellectual Property Rights, whether asserted by ITU members or others
outside of the Recommendation development process.
As of the date of approval of this Recommendation, ITU had not received notice of intellectual property,
protected by patents, which may be required to implement this Recommendation. However, implementers
are cautioned that this may not represent the latest information and are therefore strongly urged to consult the
TSB patent database at http://www.itu.int/ITU-T/ipr/.



 ITU 2015
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, by any means whatsoever, without the
prior written permission of ITU.
ii Rec. ITU-T X.690 (11/2015)

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CONTENTS
Page
Introduction . v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references. 1
2.1 Identical Recommendations | International Standards . 1
2.2 Additional references . 1
3 Definitions . 1
4 Abbreviations . 2
5 Notation . 2
6 Convention . 2
7 Conformance . 3
8 Basic encoding rules . 3
8.1 General rules for encoding . 3
8.2 Encoding of a boolean value . 6
8.3 Encoding of an integer value . 6
8.4 Encoding of an enumerated value . 7
8.5 Encoding of a real value . 7
8.6 Encoding of a bitstring value. 8
8.7 Encoding of an octetstring value . 9
8.8 Encoding of a null value . 10
8.9 Encoding of a sequence value . 10
8.10 Encoding of a sequence-of value. 10
8.11 Encoding of a set value . 10
8.12 Encoding of a set-of value . 11
8.13 Encoding of a choice value . 11
8.14 Encoding of a value of a prefixed type . 11
8.15 Encoding of an open type . 12
8.16 Encoding of an instance-of value . 12
8.17 Encoding of a value of the embedded-pdv type . 12
8.18 Encoding of a value of the external type . 12
8.19 Encoding of an object identifier value. 13
8.20 Encoding of a relative object identifier value . 14
8.21 Encoding of an OID internationalized resource identifier value . 14
8.22 Encoding of a relative OID internationalized resource identifier value . 15
8.23 Encoding for values of the restricted character string types . 15
8.24 Encoding for values of the unrestricted character string type . 17
8.25 Encoding for values of the useful types . 17
8.26 Encoding for values of the TIME type and the useful time types . 17
9 Canonical encoding rules . 17
9.1 Length forms . 18
9.2 String encoding forms . 18
9.3 Set components . 18
10 Distinguished encoding rules. 18
10.1 Length forms . 18
10.2 String encoding forms . 18
10.3 Set components . 19
11 Restrictions on BER employed by both CER and DER . 19
11.1 Boolean values . 19
11.2 Unused bits . 19
11.3 Real values . 19
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11.4 GeneralString values . 19
11.5 Set and sequence components with default value . 20
11.6 Set-of components . 20
11.7 GeneralizedTime . 20
11.8 UTCTime . 20
11.9 The TIME type and the useful time types. 21
12 Use of BER, CER and DER in transfer syntax definition . 21
Annex A – Example of encodings . 23
A.1 ASN.1 description of the record structure . 23
A.2 ASN.1 description of a record value . 23
A.3 Representation of this record value . 23
Annex B – Identification of Encoding Rules . 25
Annex C – Illustration of real value encoding . 26























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Introduction
Rec. ITU-T X.680 | ISO/IEC 8824-1, Rec. ITU-T X.681 | ISO/IEC 8824-2, Rec. ITU-T X.682 | ISO/IEC 8824-3,
Rec. ITU-T X.683 | ISO/IEC 8824-4 (Abstract Syntax Notation One or ASN.1) together specify a notation for the
definition of abstract syntaxes, enabling application standards to define the types of information they need to transfer. It
also specifies a notation for the specification of values of a defined type.
This Recommendation | International Standard defines encoding rules that may be applied to values of types defined
using the ASN.1 notation. Application of these encoding rules produces a transfer syntax for such values. It is implicit
in the specification of these encoding rules that they are also to be used for decoding.
There may be more than one set of encoding rules that can be applied to values of types that are defined using the
ASN.1 notation. This Recommendation | International Standard defines three sets of encoding rules, called basic
encoding rules, canonical encoding rules and distinguished encoding rules. Whereas the basic encoding rules give the
sender of an encoding various choices as to how data values may be encoded, the canonical and distinguished encoding
rules select just one encoding from those allowed by the basic encoding rules, eliminating all of the sender's options.
The canonical and distinguished encoding rules differ from each other in the set of restrictions that they place on the
basic encoding rules.
The distinguished encoding rules is more suitable than the canonical encoding rules if the encoded value is small
enough to fit into the available memory and there is a need to rapidly skip over some nested values. The canonical
encoding rules is more suitable than the distinguished encoding rules if there is a need to encode values that are so large
that they cannot readily fit into the available memory or it is necessary to encode and transmit a part of a value before
the entire value is available. The basic encoding rules is more suitable than the canonical or distinguished encoding
rules if the encoding contains a set value or set-of value and there is no need for the restrictions that the canonical and
distinguished encoding rules impose. This is due to the memory and CPU overhead that the latter encoding rules exact
in order to guarantee that set values and set-of values have just one possible encoding.
Annex A gives an example of the application of the basic encoding rules. It does not form an integral part of this
Recommendation | International Standard.
Annex B summarizes the assignment of object identifier and OID internationalized resource identifier values made in
this Recommendation | International Standard. It does not form an integral part of this Recommendation | International
Standard.
Annex C gives examples of applying the basic encoding rules for encoding reals. It does not form an integral part of this
Recommendation | International Standard.










  Rec. ITU-T X.690 (08/2015) v

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ISO/IEC 8825-1:2015 (E)
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD
ITU-T RECOMMENDATION
Information technology – ASN.1 encoding rules:
Specification of Basic Encoding Rules (BER),
Canonical Encoding Rules (CER)
and Distinguished Encoding Rules (DER)
1 Scope
This Recommendation | International Standard specifies a set of basic encoding rules that may be used to derive the
specification of a transfer syntax for values of types defined using the notation specified in Rec. ITU-T X.680 |
ISO/IEC 8824-1, Rec. ITU-T X.681 | ISO/IEC 8824-2, Rec. ITU-T X.682 | ISO/IEC 8824-3, and Rec. ITU-T X.683 |
ISO/IEC 8824-4, collectively referred to as Abstract Syntax Notation One or ASN.1. These basic encoding rules are
also to be applied for decoding such a transfer syntax in order to identify the data values being transferred. It also
specifies a set of canonical and distinguished encoding rules that restrict the encoding of values to just one of the
alternatives provided by the basic encoding rules.
2 Normative references
The following Recommendations and International Standards contain provisions which, through reference in this text,
constitute provisions of this Recommendation | International Standard. At the time of publication, the editions indicated
were valid. All Recommendations and Standards are subject to revision, and parties to agreements based on this
Recommendation | International Standard are encouraged to investigate the possibility of applying the most recent
edition of the Recommendations and Standards listed below. Members of IEC and ISO maintain registers of currently
valid International Standards. The Telecommunication Standardization Bureau of the ITU maintains a list of currently
valid ITU-T Recommendations.
NOTE – This Recommendation | International Standard is based on ISO/IEC 10646:2003. It cannot be applied using later
versions of this standard.
2.1 Identical Recommendations | International Standards
– Recommendation ITU-T X.680 (2015) | ISO/IEC 8824-1:2015, Information technology – Abstract
Syntax Notation One (ASN.1): Specification of basic notation.
– Recommendation ITU-T X.681 (2015) | ISO/IEC 8824-2:2015, Information technology – Abstract
Syntax Notation One (ASN.1): Information object specification.
– Recommendation ITU-T X.682 (2015) | ISO/IEC 8824-3:2015, Information technology – Abstract
Syntax Notation One (ASN.1): Constraint specification.
– Recommendation ITU-T X.683 (2015) | ISO/IEC 8824-4:2015, Information technology – Abstract
Syntax Notation One (ASN.1): Parameterization of ASN.1 specifications.
2.2 Additional references
– ISO International Register of Coded Character Sets to be used with Escape Sequences.
– ISO/IEC 2022:1994, Information technology – Character code structure and extension techniques.
– ISO/IEC 2375:2003, Information technology – Procedure for registration of escape sequences and
coded character sets.
– ISO 6093:1985, Information processing – Representation of numerical values in character strings for
information interchange.
– ISO/IEC 6429:1992, Information technology – Control functions for coded character sets.
– ISO/IEC 10646:2003, Information technology – Universal Multiple-Octet Coded Character Set (UCS).
3 Definitions
For the purposes of this Recommendation | International Standard, the definitions of Rec. ITU-T X.200 |
ISO/IEC 7498-1 and Rec. ITU-T X.680 | ISO/IEC 8824-1 and the following definitions apply.
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ISO/IEC 8825-1:2015 (E)
3.1 canonical encoding: A complete encoding of an abstract value obtained by the application of encoding rules
that have no implementation-dependent options. Such rules result in the definition of a 1-1 mapping between
unambiguous and unique encodings and values in the abstract syntax.
3.2 constructed encoding: A data value encoding in which the contents octets are the complete encoding of
one or more data values.
3.3 contents octets: That part of a data value encoding which represents a particular value, to distinguish it
from other values of the same type.
3.4 data value: Information specified as the value of a type; the type and the value are defined using ASN.1.
3.5 dynamic conformance: A statement of the requirement for an implementation to adhere to the
prescribed behaviour in an instance of communication.
3.6 encoding (of a data value): The complete sequence of octets used to represent the data value.
3.7 end-of-contents octets: Part of a data value encoding, occurring at its end, which is used to determine
the end of the encoding.
NOTE – Not all encodings require end-of-contents octets.
3.8 identifier octets: Part of a data value encoding which is used to identify the type of the value.
NOTE – Some ITU-T Recommendations use the term "data element" for this sequence of octets, but the term is not used in this
Recommendation | International Standard, as other Recommendations | International Standards use it to mean "data value".
3.9 length octets: Part of a data value encoding following the identifier octets which is used to determine the
end of the encoding.
3.10 primitive encoding: A data value encoding in which the contents octets directly represent the value.
3.11 receiver: An implementation decoding the octets produced by a sender, in order to identify the data value
which was encoded.
3.12 sender: An implementation encoding a data value for transfer.
3.13 static conformance: A statement of the requirement for support by an implementation of a valid set of
features from among the defined features.
3.14 trailing 0 bit: A 0 in the last position of a bitstring value.
NOTE – The 0 in a bitstring value consisting of a single 0 bit is a trailing 0 bit. Its removal produces an empty bitstring.
4 Abbreviations
For the purposes of this Recommendation | International Standard, the following abbreviations apply:
ASN.1 Abstract Syntax Notation One
BER Basic Encoding Rules of ASN.1
CER Canonical Encoding Rules of ASN.1
DER Distinguished Encoding Rules of ASN.1
ULA Upper Layer Architecture
UTF8 Universal Transformation Function 8-bit (see ISO/IEC 10646, Annex D)
5 No
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