Internet-Draft

Internet-Draft
Name	Internet-Draft
Abbreviation	I-D
Organization	Internet Engineering Task Force
Status	Working document
Related	Request for Comments

Internet-Draft. An Internet-Draft (I-D) is a working document published by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as part of its standards development process. It serves as a preliminary, non-permanent publication for technical proposals, protocol specifications, and best practice guidelines intended for the Internet. These drafts are subject to review, revision, and potential adoption as official standards through the IETF's consensus-driven procedures.

Overview

Internet-Drafts are the primary vehicle for developing technical specifications within the IETF and its associated bodies, such as the Internet Architecture Board (IAB) and the Internet Research Task Force (IRTF). They are not formal publications but rather transient documents that capture the evolving work of working groups or individual contributors. The concept is integral to the Internet standards process, providing a transparent forum for technical debate and refinement before a specification is considered mature. The development ethos aligns with the IETF's cultural principles, often summarized by the phrase "rough consensus and running code," a philosophy championed by early figures like David D. Clark.

Development process

The development of an Internet-Draft typically begins with an individual submission or is initiated within an IETF working group. Authors, who may be researchers from institutions like MIT or engineers from companies like Cisco Systems, submit the draft to the IETF Secretariat. It is then published in the IETF's online repository. The draft undergoes extensive review and discussion on mailing lists, such as those managed by the IETF Datatracker, and during face-to-face meetings at events like IETF 101. Key to the process is achieving consensus, guided by Area Directors and Working Group Chairs, with significant influence from the broader community, including participants from Google, Microsoft, and Juniper Networks.

Structure and format

Internet-Drafts follow a strict format defined by RFC 7322 and its successors. They must include sections like an abstract, status of the memo, and detailed technical content. The documents are authored using a plain-text markup language, historically XML2RFC, and are rendered into a consistent output. A standard header includes the draft name, authors, and intended RFC stream, such as the Standards Track, Best Current Practice, or Experimental stream. The format ensures interoperability with the IETF's toolchain and archives, including the RFC Editor and the IETF Tools website.

Lifecycle and expiration

An Internet-Draft has a maximum lifespan of six months before it automatically expires and is removed from the primary repository. To remain active, authors must submit a revised version. This expiration mechanism, managed by the IETF Secretariat, prevents the accumulation of stale proposals. A draft's lifecycle can end in several ways: it may expire without update, be withdrawn by its authors, be abandoned by a working group, or successfully progress to publication as an RFC. The IETF Datatracker tool publicly tracks these states, from "Active" to "Replaced" or "Expired."

Relationship to RFCs

The primary destination for a successful Internet-Draft is publication as a Request for Comments (RFC). Upon approval by the relevant Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG) and final editing by the RFC Editor, the draft is assigned an RFC number and published in the permanent RFC Series. However, not all drafts become RFCs; many are abandoned or serve only as discussion documents. The relationship is formalized in the process outlined in BCP 9, which governs the Internet Standards Process. Notable RFCs that originated as drafts include RFC 2616 and the QUIC transport protocol specification.

Usage and impact

Internet-Drafts are widely used for prototyping new protocols and standards that shape the global Internet. They have been the foundation for critical technologies like Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) enhancements, Transport Layer Security (TLS) versions, and the IPv6 protocol suite. Beyond the IETF, drafts inform the work of other standards bodies like the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and regulatory discussions at forums such as the Internet Governance Forum. Their impact is evident in the infrastructure operated by Internet service providers and content platforms like Netflix and Cloudflare, which implement IETF-derived standards to ensure interoperability and security across networks.

Category:Internet standards Category:Internet Engineering Task Force Category:Technical communication