Subject: Protocol Action: 'Recommendations on Using Assigned Transport Port Numbers' to Best Current Practice (draft-ietf-tsvwg-port-use-11.txt)

From: The IESG <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 04 May 2015 07:47:52 -0700

The IESG has approved the following document:
- 'Recommendations on Using Assigned Transport Port Numbers'
  (draft-ietf-tsvwg-port-use-11.txt) as Best Current Practice

This document is the product of the Transport Area Working Group.

The IESG contact persons are Spencer Dawkins and Martin Stiemerling.

A URL of this Internet Draft is:
https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-ietf-tsvwg-port-use/

Technical Summary

   This document provides recommendations to application and 
   service designers on how to use the transport protocol port 
   number space. It complements (but does not update) RFC 6335, 
   which focuses on IANA process.

Working Group Summary

   The usual collection of controversial topics was raised and
   discussed in the working group (for example, the need to 
   conserve assigned ports, given the current usage rate).

   The document provides guidance to protocol and application 
   designers on best current practices for requesting and using 
   ports; BCP status clearly conveys the nature, importance and 
   relevance of that guidance.

   Some  reviewers have noted that this application of BCP 
   status may not be aligned with their understanding of BCP 
   status (RFC 2026, Section 5) and/or with current IETF usage 
   of BCP status in practice.

   The responsible AD is OK with doing this document as a BCP.

Document Quality

   After IETF Last Call, Spencer asked Martin and Wes (current 
   and former TSV ADs, and both active port registry expert reviewers) 
   to re-review the document, making sure it describes the way 
   other port expert reviewers work. We did get IETF Last Call 
   comments that asked for more clarity on the relationship 
   between this document and RFC 6335, resulting in the RFC
   Editor Note below.

Personnel

   The Document Shepherd is G Fairhurst (TSVWG Co-Chair).
   The Responsible Area Director is Spencer Dawkins (TSV AD).

RFC Editor Note

   In the Abstract

--- OLD

This document provides recommendations to application and service
designers on how to use the transport protocol port number space. It
complements (but does not update) RFC6335, which focuses on IANA process.

--- NEW

This document provides recommendations to application and service
protocol designers on how to use the transport protocol port number
space and when to request a port assignment from IANA. It provides
designer guidelines on how to interact with the IANA processes defined
in RFC6335, thus serving to complement (but not update) that document.