RFC 36 (rfc36) - Page 1 of 8

Protocol Notes

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Network Working Group                                          S. Crocker
Request for Comments: 36                                    16 March 1970


                             Protocol Notes

I Overview
  --------

   The network protocol provides three facilities:

         1.  Connection establishment

         2.  Flow control

         3.  Reconnection

   Reconnection is considered separately from connection establishment
   partly because of the complexity of reconnection and partly because I
   don't have enough experience with the protocol to present these
   concepts in an integrated fashion.

   Connection Establishment
   ------------------------

   Connection establishment works essentially the same as in NWG/RFC
   #33.  The major change is that a more general form of switching is
   provided independently of establishment, so establishment is
   simplified by not including switching procedures.

   A rough scenario for connection establishment follows:

   1.  Process PA in host A grabs socket SA and requests connection with
       socket SB.  Process PA accomplishes this through a system call.

   2.  Concurrently with the above, process PB in host B grabs socket SB
       and requests connection with socket SA.

   3.  In response to process PA's request, the network control program
       in host A (referred to as NCPA) sends a Request-for-Connection
       (RFC) command to host B.  NCPB in host B sends a similar command
       to host A.  No ordering is implied: NCPB may send the command to
       NCPA before or after receiving the command from NCPA.

   4.  NCPA and NCPB are both aware the connection is established when
       each has received a RFC command and each has received the RFNM
       for the one it has sent.  They then notify processes PA and PB,
       respectively, that the connection is established.



Crocker
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