RFC 1272 (rfc1272) - Page 2 of 19

Internet Accounting: Background

RFC 1272            Internet Accounting: Background        November 1991


   surrounding the architecture, or in a sense, an explanation of
   choices made in the Internet Accounting Architecture.

2. Goals for a Usage Reporting Architecture

   We have adopted the accounting framework and terminology used by OSI
   (ISO 7498-4 OSI Reference Model Part 4: Management Framework).  This
   framework defines a generalized accounting management activity which
   includes calculations, usage reporting to users and providers and
   enforcing various limits on the use of resources.  Our own ambitions
   are considerably more modest in that we are defining an architecture
   to be used over the short- term (until ISO and ANRG have final
   pronouncement and standards) that is limited to network USAGE
   REPORTING.

   The OSI accounting model defines three basic entities:

      1) the METER, which performs measurements and aggregates the
         results of those measurements;

      2) the COLLECTOR, which is responsible for the integrity and
         security of METER data in short-term storage and transit;
         and

      3) the APPLICATION, which processes/formats/stores METER
         data.  APPLICATIONS implicitly manage METERS.

   This working group, then, is concerned with specifying the attributes
   of METERS and COLLECTORS, with little concern at this time for
   APPLICATIONS.

3. The Usage Reporting Function

3.1. Motivation for Usage Reporting

   The dominant motivations for usage reporting are:

          o  Understanding/Influencing Behavior.
             Usage reporting provides feedback for the subscriber on
             his use of network resources. The subscriber can better
             understand his network behavior and measure the impact of
             modifications made to improve performance or reduce
             costs.

          o  Measuring Policy Compliance.
             From the perspective of the network provider, usage
             reports might show whether or not a subscriber is in
             compliance with the stated policies for quantity of



Mills, Hirsh, & Ruth