RFC 3260 (rfc3260) - Page 1 of 10
New Terminology and Clarifications for Diffserv
Alternative Format: Original Text Document
Network Working Group D. Grossman
Request for Comments: 3260 Motorola, Inc.
Updates: 2474, 2475, 2597 April 2002
Category: Informational
New Terminology and Clarifications for Diffserv
Status of this Memo
This memo provides information for the Internet community. It does
not specify an Internet standard of any kind. Distribution of this
memo is unlimited.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2002). All Rights Reserved.
Abstract
This memo captures Diffserv working group agreements concerning new
and improved terminology, and provides minor technical
clarifications. It is intended to update RFC 2474, RFC 2475 and RFC
2597. When RFCs 2474 and 2597 advance on the standards track, and
RFC 2475 is updated, it is intended that the revisions in this memo
will be incorporated, and that this memo will be obsoleted by the new
RFCs.
1. Introduction
As the Diffserv work has evolved, there have been several cases where
terminology has needed to be created or the definitions in Diffserv
standards track RFCs have needed to be refined. Some minor technical
clarifications were also found to be needed. This memo was created
to capture group agreements, rather than attempting to revise the
base RFCs and recycle them at proposed standard. It updates in part
RFC 2474, RFC 2475 and RFC 2597. RFC 2598 has been obsoleted by RFC
3246, and clarifications agreed by the group were incorporated in
that revision.
2. Terminology Related to Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
The Diffserv Architecture [2] uses the term "Service Level Agreement"
(SLA) to describe the "service contract... that specifies the
forwarding service a customer should receive". The SLA may include
traffic conditioning rules which (at least in part) constitute a
Traffic Conditioning Agreement (TCA). A TCA is "an agreement
Grossman Informational