RFC 2165 (rfc2165) - Page 1 of 72
Service Location Protocol
Alternative Format: Original Text Document
Network Working Group J. Veizades
Request for Comments: 2165 @Home Network
Category: Standards Track E. Guttman
C. Perkins
Sun Microsystems
S. Kaplan
June 1997
Service Location Protocol
Status of This Memo
This document specifies an Internet standards track protocol for the
Internet community, and requests discussion and suggestions for
improvements. Please refer to the current edition of the "Internet
Official Protocol Standards" (STD 1) for the standardization state
and status of this protocol. Distribution of this memo is unlimited.
Abstract
The Service Location Protocol provides a scalable framework for the
discovery and selection of network services. Using this protocol,
computers using the Internet no longer need so much static
configuration of network services for network based applications.
This is especially important as computers become more portable, and
users less tolerant or able to fulfill the demands of network system
administration.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction 3
2. Terminology 3
2.1. Notation Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.2. Service Information and Predicate Representation . . . . 5
2.3. Specification Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3. Protocol Overview 6
3.1. Protocol Transactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.2. Schemes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.2.1. The "service:" URL scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.3. Standard Attribute Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.4. Naming Authority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.5. Interpretation of Service Location Replies . . . . . . . 10
3.6. Use of TCP, UDP and Multicast in Service Location . . . . 10
3.6.1. Multicast vs. Broadcast . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.6.2. Service-Specific Multicast Address . . . . . . . 11
3.7. Service Location Scaling, and Multicast Operating Modes . 12
Veizades, et. al. Standards Track