Subject: WG Review: Recharter of Network File System Version 4 (nfsv4)

From: IESG Secretary <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 15 May 2012 11:39:46 -0700

A modified charter has been submitted for the Network File System 
Version 4 (nfsv4) working group in the Transport Area of the IETF.  The 
IESG has not made any determination as yet.  The modified charter is 
provided below for informational purposes only.  Please send your 
comments to the IESG mailing list ([email-masked]) by Tuesday, May 22, 
2012.

Network File System Version 4 (nfsv4)
-------------------------------------
Current Status: Active
Last updated: 2012-05-10

 Chairs:
     Spencer Shepler <[email-masked]>
     Brian Pawlowski <[email-masked]>

 Transport Area Directors:
     Wesley Eddy <[email-masked]>
     Martin Stiemerling <[email-masked]>

 Transport Area Advisor:
     Martin Stiemerling <[email-masked]>

 Tech Advisor:
     Leif Johansson <[email-masked]>

 Mailing Lists:
     General Discussion: [email-masked]
     To Subscribe:       https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/nfsv4
     Archive:            http://www.ietf.org/mail-archive/web/nfsv4/

Description of Working Group:

NFS Version 4 is the IETF standard for file sharing. To maintain NFS
Version 4's utility and currency, the working group is chartered to
maintain the existing NFSv4, NFSv4.1, Federated Namespace, and
related specifications. The working group will also consider a new
NFSv4 minor version in the form of NFSv4.2 and supporting 
protocols. Finally, best practices will be formed for deployment 
for the NFSv4 FedFS implementations and their interaction with
integration with new user authentication models.

Maintenance

The working group has found that as NFSv4 implementations mature and
deployments continue, clarifications to existing RFCs are needed.
These clarifications assist vendors in delivering quality and 
interoperable implementations. The working group is chartered with
the vetting of the issues and determining correctness of submitted
errata.  In the case that the needed changes are inappropriate for
the errata system, the working group will assist in publication of
RFCs that provide either editorial modification to original RFCs
or best practices RFCs.  The completion of RFC3530bis is the first
work item.  RFCs expected to generate the most discussion or activity
are: RFC 5661, RFC 5662, RFC 5663, and RFC 5664.

RFC5664bis

The NFSv4.1 Objects Layout needs some additional clarification that is
planned for a bis update.  The working group will work final issues
and deliver an RFC for the clarifications.

NFSv4.2

For some time, the working group has been discussing the requirements
for the next NFSv4 minor version.  A consensus has formed within 
the working group for an NFSv4.2 that contains the following:

    - Server Side Copy
    - Sparse Files
    - Seek Hole/Data
    - Space Reservations
    - Application Data Blocks
    - Labeled NFS
    - Simple IO hinting (modeled from posix IO_ADVISE)
    - Change Attribute Behaviors

This is a limited set of functionality that can be effectively
documented as an "addition" to the base NFSv4.1 protocol (RFC 5661).
Two of the items in this list, Server Side Copy and Labeled NFS,
require a new version of the RPCSEC_GSS security abstraction layer.
Thus two documents will be developed by the working group.

NFSv4 Multi-Domain Access for FedFS

As NFSv4 FedFS deployment models are discussed/planned, a significant
issue related to conflicting user identification spaces exists.  User
identification collisions can occur when an NFSv4 server exports
non-domain aware POSIX file systems with separate name (NIS/LDAP)
services.  These collisions can block proper FedFS operation in large
corporations or Universities with multiple naming services, or in
being a solution to join NFS name spaces in corporate acquisitions or
across University domains.

To assist in resolving these issues, the working group will deliver
three items.

First, there are a number of constraints and clarifications to the
current NFSv4.0 and NFSv4.1 protocols to fully enable cross domain
FedFS.

Second, there is a best practices deliverable describing methods to
work around the common current situation of non-domain aware POSIX
file systems, and in managing naming services to cooperate in
resolving remote domain POSIX UIDs and GIDs for remote user file
access.

Third, we need to track the new work in the GSS-API authentication and
authorization space (KRB WG, KITTEN WG, ABFAB WG) to ensure NFS can
take advantage of the new features that address cross domain
authentication and authorization issues.

Goals and Milestones:
  Done     - Issue strawman Internet-Draft for v4
  Done     - Submit Initial Internet-Draft of requirements document
  Done     - Submit Final Internet-Draft of requirements document
  Done     - AD reassesses WG charter
  Done     - Submit v4 Internet-Draft sufficient to begin prototype implementations
  Done     - Begin Interoperability testing of prototype implementations
  Done     - Submit NFS version 4 to IESG for consideration as a Proposed Standard.
  Done     - Conduct final Interoperability tests
  Done     - Conduct full Interoperability tests for all NFSv4 features
  Done     - Update API advancement draft
  Done     - Form core design team to work on NFS V4 migration/replication requirements and protocol
  Done     - Submit revised NFS Version 4 specification (revision to RFC 3010) to IESG for consideration as a Proposed Standard
  Done     - Strawman NFS V4 replication/migration protocol proposal submitted as an ID
  Done     - WG Last Call for RPC and NFS RDMA drafts
  Done     - WG Last Call for rfc1831bis (RPC version 2)
  Done     - WG Last Call for NFSv4.1 Object-based layout
  Done     - WG Last Call for NFSv4 minor version 1
  Done     - WG Last Call for NFSv4.1 block/volume layout
  Done     - Submit NFS Minor Version 1 to IESG for publication as a Proposed Standard
  Done     - Submit Object-based pNFS Operations to IESG for publication as a Proposed Standard
  Done     - Submit pNFS Block/Volume Layout to IESG for publication as a Proposed Standard
  Done     - WG Last Call for Requirements for Federated File Systems draft-ietf-nfsv4-federated-fs-reqts-01
  Done     - WG Last Call for Administration Protocol for Federated Filesystems draft-ietf-nfsv4-federated-fs-admin-00.txt
  Done     - WG Last Call for NSDB Protocol for Federated Filesystems draft-ietf-nfsv4-federated-fs-protocol-00.txt
May 2012   Submit RFC3530bis to IESG (Standards Track)
May 2012   WG Last Call for Labeled NFS Requirements
Jun 2012   Submit Labeled NFS Requirements to IESG (Informational)
Jun 2012   Submit RFC5664bis to IESG (Standards Track)
Aug 2012   WG Last Call NFSv4.2
Nov 2012   WG last Call for the two Multi-domain Access documents
Oct 2012   Submit NFSv4.2 to IESG (Standards Track)
Dec 2012   Submit Multi-domain Access documents to IESG (Standards Track)