Zero Configuration Networking (zeroconf)

This Working Group did not meet


In addition to this official charter maintained by the IETF Secretariat, there is additional information about this working group on the Web at:

       http://www.zeroconf.org -- Additional ZEROCONF Web Page
NOTE: This charter is a snapshot of the 59th IETF Meeting in Seoul, Korea. It may now be out-of-date.

Last Modified: 2004-01-29

Chair(s):
Erik Guttman <erik.guttman@sun.com>
Internet Area Director(s):
Thomas Narten <narten@us.ibm.com>
Margaret Wasserman <margaret@thingmagic.com>
Internet Area Advisor:
Thomas Narten <narten@us.ibm.com>
Mailing Lists:
General Discussion: zeroconf@merit.edu
To Subscribe: zeroconf-request@merit.edu
In Body: subscribe zeroconf your_email_address
Archive: http://www.merit.edu/mail.archives/zeroconf/
Description of Working Group:
Working group issue tracking: http://www.drizzle.org/~aboba/ZEROCONF/issues.html

The goal of the Zero Configuration Networking (ZEROCONF) Working Group is to enable networking in the absence of configuration and administration. Zero configuration networking is required for environments where administration is impractical or impossible, such as in the home or small office, embedded systems 'plugged together' as in an automobile, or to allow impromptu networks as between the devices of strangers on a train.

ZEROCONF will make networking as easy as possible, but no easier. In some cases other considerations may dominate ease of use. For example, network security requires some configuration which may not be as easy as the unacceptable alternative of 'no security.'

The working group was orginally chartered to develop a requirements specification for host and application operation in environments lacking configuration. The areas for consideration included:

* Interface Configuration (IP address, network prefix, gateway router)

* Name-to-Address Translation

* Service Discovery

* Automatic allocation of Multicast Addresses

* Sufficient security features to prevent networks from being any less secure than networks which do not use ZEROCONF protocols

The ZEROCONF WG could not come to a consensus regarding these requirements. A ZEROCONF requirements document will not be published by this working group.

This WG will produce one protocol specification, describing automatic generation and assignment of link-local IPv4 addresses in environments lacking host configuration (static or using DHCP). The document will describe existing practice as well as define recommendations for future implementations.

Goals and Milestones:
Done  Submit internet-draft to be considered as an Informational RFC on Requirements for Zero Configuration Networking.
Done  Submit Automatic Address Configuration for IPv4 to be considered as a Standards Track RFC.
Mar 04  Submit Revised Automatic Address Configuration for IPv4 draft which has passed WG last call to the IESG for consideration as a Standards Track RFC
Internet-Drafts:
  • - draft-ietf-zeroconf-ipv4-linklocal-13.txt
  • No Request For Comments

    Current Meeting Report

    None received.

    Slides

    None received.