On-Line Versus Off-Line Operation
On-line operation is the situation in which the end-entities are directly connected to the network. Typically, the end-entities are capable of consuming all PKI-related services. Off-line operation enables end-entities to consume at least a subset of the PKI services even though they are not directly connected to the network.
Some techniques (for example, revocation information dissemination using the On-line Certificate Status Protocol) require end-entities to be on-line, in order to perform particular PKI-related operations. These techniques are clearly not suitable for off-line operation (for example, verifying signed e-mail on a laptop during circumstances in which access to the organization's PKI is not ...
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