Hosting an IETF Meeting

NOTE: This web page was written a number of years ago, and the specifics are probably out of date. However, it does provide information that is valuable to those considering hosting an IETF Meeting. If there IS interest, send a note to the IETF Secretariat.

A more up-to-date document is also available for the technical folks who will actually be designing and implementing the IETF Terminal Room. This document is currently an Internet-Draft, but the information is invaluable. Click here to access this document.

It has been a long standing tradition of the IETF to have its terminal room and social event hosted by a company, research center, or university who has actively participated in past meetings. The relationship between the Host Group and the IETF Secretariat has significantly contributed to the overall success of each meeting.

Hosting the terminal room at the IETF meeting primarily involves working with the IETF Secretariat in choosing a desireable location (city) for the meeting itself, providing a terminal room to be used by meeting attendees, and providing the means for multicasting of working groups and plenary sessions. Though optional, the Host Group has traditionally planned a social function. Organizing a social event is entirely up to the Host Group. The Secretariat is available to provide guidance on the social event.

Funding is NOT provided to the IETF Host Group. The Host is responsible for all costs associated with setting up the terminal room, from establishing internet connectivity to providing the necessary equipment. The Host is responsible for contacting local vendors. Many of the resources are typically "donated" (loaned without fee) by various providers and vendors.

Specific details for the terminal room are listed later in this document, however there are a few guidelines which should be mentioned. While it is natural to expect each successive host to want to "outshine" previous hosts this "oneupmansship" should be kept within reasonable bounds. We do not want to discourage individuals or organizations from volunteering because they feel they cannot surpass the efforts of former hosts. The terminal room is adequately furnished if it contains between 60 and 75 workstations/terminals, along with accommodations for between 75-100 "you bring 'em" ports which will support a combination of MAC and DOS devices.

In return for hosting the terminal room/social event, the Host receives public acknowledgment by the IETF, and will be given the opportunity to make a technical presentation to the IETF. Usually, this presentation focuses on technical activity (research, experimental, deployment, etc.) being done by the Host Group, and can include an overview on special connection methods or new features being provided in the terminal room. Note that this is a technical presentation and NOT an opportunity for wide-spread marketing to the IETF.

Additionally, members of the Host Group who are actively involved in the set-up of the terminal room (actual number to be negotiated with the IETF Secretariat) and company officers/mangers (up to five) will receive complimentary registration to attend the IETF meeting. These individuals should register for the IETF meeting. They will receive a pre-printed name badge, may request a complimentary copy of the Proceedings and are asked to sign the rosters in the working group and BOF sessions they attend. The Host POC must provide the Secretariat with the names of these individuals. Provision may also be made for student volunteers (actual number to be negotiated with the IETF Secretariat). Student volunteers should also register, will receive a pre-printed name badge, but will not receive a complimentary copy of the Proceedings. Student volunteers should also sign the rosters for the working group and BOF sessions they attend.

NOTE: It is STRONGLY recommended that a representative of the Host Group attend an IETF, ideally two meetings prior to the one they are hosting. This is an opportunity to see an IETF from the "support side" perspective. This is also an excellent time to understand the use of the terminal room, its set up and what users typically expect from the terminal room.

Meeting Location Selection

The Host Group is asked to provide assistance to the IETF Secretariat with regard to location selection of the meeting. Typical requirements of the meeting site Meeting Site Selection Requirements are located in this document. The Hosts approach to the Hotel should be investigative only. The Host Group is NOT responsible for negotiating the contract with the hotel, or making any of the arrangements to support the IETF meeting; these arrangements will be handled by the IETF Secretariat.

Terminal Room

Perhaps the most important service performed by the Host Group is to provide a Terminal Room for the attendees, with 24 Hour access beginning the Sunday prior to the meeting and continuing through the following Friday. The Secretariat will make every attempt to ensure the Host has access to the room on the Friday before the meeting. For a list of suggested equipment, see Attachment A.

Providing this service generally involves two distinct activities: setting up the room itself and establishing connectivity to the Internet. This requires working closely with the technical staffs at the site (hotel) and with the local phone company (and probably a long distance carrier). The cost of the room itself is typically covered under the terms of contract negotiated with the hotel, by the Secretariat. When this is not feasible the Host is expected to cover the cost.

Internet Connectivity

Connectivity should be established between the the hotel site and the Internet proper. At an absolute minimum, there should be a T1 link to the Internet, though a T3 link is strongly preferred. Establishing connectivity typically requires a router at the meeting site linked via the local phone companies telephone system, and probably a long distance carrier (depending on the site of the hotel and the location of the Internet pop).

Connectivity can also be provided with technology other than phone company lines, such as microwave or line-of-site laser links.

The leased line is installed by the phone company. The installation procedure is very much like getting a new telephone line installed in a residence (phone company lays wire from their nearest connection point though the hotel to the terminal room; there are a total of four wires being installed). The hotel might become confused and think that you just want another telephone line; they're wrong. The installation doesn't need to be destructive since the telephone company can just run loose wires through the lowered ceiling to the terminal room and then drop some to the floor.

The phone company deals with the details of getting everything between the Hotel and the Internet connection site where they will install the other end of the leased line.

Ideally, the routers and modems are provided (at no charge) by vendors. The leased line may be donated by the carrier. There is a small possibility that an insurance policy will be required, especially if the equipment loaned to the Local Host is not insured by the provider. Again, this is a cost of providing the terminal room and is the responsibility of the Host Group.

Equipment

The Terminal room is used by attendees to read/write/send e-mail, access the web, write or edit documents, and to print documents. Terminal room equipment is made up of terminals, workstations, printers, and other system-wide devices such as lan servers, terminal servers, the router itself, etc. Generally, all the components in the equipment room are linked together by a local LAN network

The use of Ethernet allows attendees who bring their own computers with an Ethernet adapter to connect directly into the local network. Of course, providing this capability requires some number of available taps for these devices. Other users who do not have the ability to connect directly to the Ethernet may desire IP connectivity via SLIP (Serial Line IP) or PPP (Point to Point protocol).

"Extras" may also be provided as part of the equipment room system configuration. At a previous IETF meeting, for example, a DECstation 3100 was used as a local e-mail server with guest accounts. This was done primarily to allow attendees whose home site did NOT have an interactive connection to the Internet to send and receive e-mail. Another "extra" provided included a SPARCstation and DECstation which were available solely to support software demonstrations (use of which had been previously arranged with the demonstrators who contacted the Local Host group).

Printers

The Host should providw laser printers with the capability of printing Postscript documents. If possible, three laser printers would be desirable, if for no other reason than to provide a backup should one fail as well as sharing the printing load.

Printers should be shareable as part of the local system configuration. This is most commonly achieved by the use of a server on one of the host machines. If workstations are used, they are often connected via NFS (Network File System). Printing from a terminal is provided by guest logins to the printer server.

One final note on providing printers: there should also be a supply of replacement printer paper and extra toner cartridges! It would be greatly appreciated by the IETF attendees (especially the Working Group Chairs and those making presentations) if viewgraph material is provided, which would allow users to "print" their materials as overheads.

Workstations and Terminals

The terminal room should have a number of terminal devices. At a minimum, a single "server" machine, preferably UNIX, is needed to provide FTP and printer access. If this computer is configured so many people can telnet to it, simple terminals can be leveraged for greater capability.

Between 60-75 workstations/terminals should be made available for IETF attendee use, along with accommodations for between 75-100 "you bring 'em" ports which will support a combination of MAC and DOS devices.

Many users desire devices with X-windows capability (Digital VT1200s, SPARCstations, NCDs, etc.). Also desirable is a TCP/IP capable terminal server configured for full network access. The terminal server can be used to support non-workstation devices (basic data terminals like VT100s or tty compatible, and perhaps have ports available for attendees with portable PCs, permitting them to connect their PC to the local network.

The highly desirable capability, which will depend a great deal on the site hotel's phone system, is to provide access to the terminal server (reserved ports) from user's hotel rooms (via the hotel's internal phone lines). The primary advantage of this access method is that it supports Internet connectivity from user's hotel rooms when the terminal room is closed, or when all the available terminals and workstations are in use.

PCs

Often, a full network accessible Unix machine is not needed to satisfy an attendee's need for computer resources. A DOS PC and Macintosh are very useful as stand alone processors, as long as they can direct printing output to one of the printers. If these PCs also have TELNET software capability, they can double as terminals with network access.

The increasing use in the number of portable PCs in use by IETF meeting attendees is another reason for providing PC resources, especially when the portables do not have the hardware capability to take advantage of lan taps on a thinwire link to the local net. More significant is the desire to have disk readers available for attendees. Many wish to merely insert their own disks into a PC for uploading or printing purposes.

Room Environment

Again, the Host Group is responsible for making arrangements with the hotel for the use of the room (which may include a fee, though typically this fee is waived when the entire block of reserved rooms are used by IETF attendees). Because the Secretariat must make special arrangements for access to the terminal outside the normal meeting dates, it is necessary for the Host Group to identify the terminal room prior to the signing of the Contract. Once all parties are satisfied with the choice of the terminal room, the Contract will be finalized and signed.

The location of the terminal room at the hotel/meeting site should be in close proximity to the IETF "area" near the registration area or near the meeting rooms. Another consideration for the location of the terminal room is where the phone lines to be used for establishing connectivity with the Internet terminate and if connectivity can be extended from the demarcation point to the physical room itself.

Depending on the equipment to be provided or included, the Local Host Group needs to work closely with the hotel/site staff to insure such things as an adequate amount of electrical power, power outlets, room environment (temperature/AC, air flow, lighting, etc.), If possible, there should be a hotel phone in the room as well. In some cases, the hotel has required that additional power be added to the room chosen to be the terminal room for the meeting. The cost of adding the power is the responsibility of the Host Group.

When planning what is to be in the terminal room and determining what size room is required, remember to include furniture such as tables, chairs, equipment stands or platforms, floor space for equipment not located on tables (processors, terminal servers, routers), etc.

User Instructions/documentation

For each device that will be used by an IETF attendee, there should be a printed sheet with step-by-step instructions for using the device. These instructions should cover everything from how to power up and local login, how to configure device, terminal drivers, how to load and use software packages, how to establish Internet connection, how to [send to] print, how to change printer, etc.

Also, IP numbers are often assigned for the duration of the meeting for PPP and Ethernet IP users. If applicable, note the IP address as well as the node name on each device.

Demonstrations

All on-site demonstrations must be approved by the Secretariat. The determination will be based entirely on the subject matter and its applicability to the IETF. The opinion of the IESG may be solicited as well. Approval must be also given by local host, if, the individual giving the demo asks to use Terminal Room resources (i.e., equipment, power and/or space). The local host may decline to accommodate requests to support demonstrations on-site, especially if there is no physical room, facilities or personnel available to support the effort.

Room Configuration

The Host Group is responsible for setting up and connecting all equipment in the terminal room, establishing the Internet link, and configuring all devices. This activity also includes verifying that the devices and equipment are all functioning properly and ready for use.

Ideally, this function should be COMPLETED by Sunday afternoon, prior to the commencement of the IETF meeting function. The room MUST be ready for use by 7 AM on Monday morning.

The Host Group is also responsible for supplying personnel as required. A technical support individual should be present to answer questions, provide help in using the equipment and/or software, and assisting with configurations. The support function also includes monitoring the local system (lan itself, lan servers, routers, terminal servers, printers, data communication lines, etc.) and resolving problems as they occur (either resolving themselves or contacting the vendors/equipment providers). Also includes replenishing supplies such as printer paper, and replacing the toner cartridge in the printer when necessary.

The Host Group is also responsible for access control. This includes locking up the room at night and opening it in the morning if necessary. Ideally, the terminal room is available on a 24 hour basis. If there is a requirement for someone to be in the room whenever it is open, for either security or support reasons, the Host Group is responsible for providing that resource.

During one meeting, arrangements were made with the hotel staff to keep the key to the terminal room available for anyone displaying the IETF name tag. The last person to leave the room typically locks it up and returns the key to the hotel staff (front desk).

Social Activities

Again, scheduling a social event is entirely up to the Local Host. If there is to be a social event, it is strongly recommended that the event accommodate at least 100 individuals, though it would be ideal if the event was flexible enough to accommodate any number of meeting attendees. Please keep in mind the increased participation of internationals. The social event should be inclusive in tone and sensitive to cultural differences.

The local Host Group is responsible for handling ALL arrangements. This includes notifications and announcements, handling registrations and reservations, collection of fees (not more than $35.00), generation and distribution of receipts, arranging and/or providing transportation if necessary, and answering questions. The Secretariat does typically review the social event to determine its appropriateness.

Though not required, it is desirable that the Local Host prepare and make copies of a "fact sheet" for the local area; a one page sheet for attendees describing or listing places to go and how to get there (with admission prices if applicable). This could include restaurants (with cost ranges, description of specialties and atmosphere, etc.), bars, pubs, shows, tourist attractions, etc. If done, copies should be ready for distribution starting at the Sunday evening social event (which is NOT handled by the Local Host Group).

Press

Although members of the press are often granted access to the IETF they must register first and receive a pre-printed name badge which is distinguished from regular badges by an orange banner at the bottom of the badge that reads "PRESS." The local host is not authorized to grant permission for local press to attend the IETF. Any members of the press requesting permission from the local host should be directed to the Secretariat. In addition, the local host may not schedule Press Conferences without notifying the Secretariat before hand. The Secretariat alone determines whether a Press Conference is appropriate.