Subject: WG Action: Source-Specific Multicast (ssm)

From: The IESG <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 25 Jul 2000 07:58:55 -0400

A new working group has been formed in the Routing Area of the IETF.
For additional information, contact the Area Directors
or the WG Chairs.

Source-Specific Multicast (ssm)
-------------------------------

 Current Status: Active Working Group
 
 Chair(s):
     Hugh Holbrook <[email-masked]>
     Supratik Bhattacharyya <[email-masked]>
 
 Routing Area Director(s): 
     David Oran  <[email-masked]>
     Rob Coltun  <[email-masked]>
 
 Routing Area Advisor: 
     Rob Coltun  <[email-masked]>
 
 Mailing Lists: 
     General Discussion:[email-masked]
     To Subscribe:      [email-masked]
         In Body:       subscribe ssm-interest
     Archive:           TBA
 
Description of Working Group:
 
The purpose of the SSM working group is to standardize and clearly
elucidate the definition of source-specific multicast in such a way as
to provide unambiguous semantics to the designers of the protocols and
host interfaces used in conjunction with source-specific multicast.

We intend SSM to be a short-lived, highly-focused working group.  The
working group will handle the following four work items related to
SSM:

1) A concise standards-track RFC that clearly defines the
   source-specific multicast model and its relation to RFC 1112
   multicast.  This document will specify of the host interfaces to be
   used for source-specific multicast, the rules that hosts, routers,
   and protocols must follow when allocating and using source-specific
   addresses.  This document will serve as a reference to RFC authors
   designing protocols and host interfaces that implement SSM.  This
   document will be parented in the Internet Area, although it will be
   a product of this working group.

2) A short standards-track RFC that formally allocates the 232.0.0.0/8
   address space to source-specific multicast.  (Similar to RFC1918 and
   to Admin-Scope.), "ratifying" the IANA allocation and referring to 
   the above document for the semantics of the address range.

3) An informational RFC providing an overview of source-specific
   multicast.  This document will serve as a starting point for parties
   interested in source-specific multicast.

4) SSM can be implemented in routers with slight modifications to the
   PIM-SM protocol and vendors have implementations in progress.  The
   PIM-SM specification will be rewritten to serve as both a PIM-SM and 
   a "PIM-SSM" specification.  The SSM and PIM working groups chairs 
   will jointly submit an IETF last call for this document.

Other SSM-related documents may be taken on as work items by other
multicast working groups that have more specific expertise, namely
pim, mboned, or idmr.  For instance, a document describing IGMPv3
modifications for SSM will (likely) be adopted by IDMR.  The SSM
working group chairs will cooperate with chairs of the related working
groups and the Area Directors to determine the appropriate location of
SSM-related documents that arise during the working group's lifetime.

A significant amount of work on SSM has already occurred, therefore we
believe that the SSM working group can quickly complete all of its
work items.
 
 Goals and Milestones: 
 
   Aug 00       First meeting                                                  

   Aug 00       Submit I-D to alloctate address space to source-specific 
                multicast                                                      

   Aug 00       Submit source-specific multicast model as internet-draft       

   Aug 00       Submit I-D for source-specific multicast                       

   Sep 00       Reach consensus on source-specific multicast model and 
                alloctate address space to source-specific multicast           

   Oct 00       Submit I-Ds on source-specific multicast model and alloctate 
                address space to source-specific multicast to IESG for 
                consideration as RFCs                                          

   Mar 01       Submit I-D on source-specific multicast to IESG for 
                consideration as an Informational RFC