RFC 1405 (rfc1405) - Page 2 of 19


Mapping between X



Alternative Format: Original Text Document



RFC 1405                    Mail-11 Mapping                 January 1993


   among systems implementing the DECnet Phase IV networking protocols.

1.3. RFC 822

   RFC 822 was defined as a standard for personal messaging systems
   within the DARPA Internet and is now diffused on top of many
   different message transfer protocols, like SMTP, UUCP, BITNET, JNT
   Grey Book, CSnet. Its mapping with X.400 is fully described in
   RFC 1327. In this document we will try to consider its relations with
   Mail-11, too.

1.4. The user community

   The community using X.400 messaging system is currently growing in
   the whole world, but there is still a number of very large
   communities using Mail-11 based messaging systems willing to
   communicate easily with X.400 based Message Handling Systems. Among
   these large DECnet based networks we can include the High Energy
   Physics network (HEPnet) and the Space Physics Analysis Network
   (SPAN).

   These DECnet communities will in the future possibly migrate to
   DECnet Phase V (DECnet-OSI) protocols, converting thus their
   messaging systems to OSI specifications, i.e., merging into the X.400
   MHS; however the transition period could be long, and there could
   always be some DECnet Phase IV communities around.

   For these reasons a set of mapping rules covering conversion between
   Mail-11 and X.400 is described in this document.

   This document also covers the case of Mail-11 systems implementing
   the "foreign mail protocol" allowing Mail-11 to interface other mail
   systems, including RFC 822 based system.

Chapter 2 - Message Elements

2.1. Service Elements

   Mail-11 protocol offers a very restricted set of elements composing a
   Inter Personal Message (IPM), whereas X.400 specifications support a
   complex and large amount of service elements. Considering the case
   where a message is relayed between two X.400 MHS via a DECnet network
   this could result in a nearly complete loss of information. To
   minimise this inconvenience most of X.400 service elements will be
   mapped into Mail-11 text body parts. To consider also the case when a
   message originates from a network implementing RFC 822 protocols and
   is relayed via Mail-11 to and X.400 MHS, the applied mapping from
   X.400 service elements into Mail-11 text body part the rules



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