RFC 1039

A DoD Statement on Open Systems Interconnection Protocols 🎀

Okay bestie, the title block tea ☕: this is RFC 1039, from the Network Working Group, written by D. Latham of DoD, dated January 1988. It obsoletes RFC-945, so it's basically the newer version that replaces the old one 🦋. It's also distributed for information only, which I'll explain below ✨.

Status of this Memo ✨

This RFC reproduces a memorandum issued on 2-JUL-87 from the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence (ASDC31) to the Director of the Defense Communications Agency (DCA). This memo is distributed for information only. Distribution of this memo is unlimited 💅.

Memorandum 💌

Okay so there's been some seriously fast progress lately on computer protocols based on the International Organization for Standardization model for Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) 🔥. The Government OSI Profile (GOSIP), dated 22 April 1987, has enough info to properly specify and buy interoperable vendor implementations of OSI message handling and file transfer capabilities 🌸. So the policy on standardizing host-to-host protocols for data communications, which came out of the USDR&E memo of 23 March 1982, is getting updated like this.

The OSI message handling and file transfer protocols, plus their underlying protocols as defined in GOSIP, are being adopted as experimental co-standards next to the DoD protocols that offer similar services (MIL-STDs 1777, 1778, 1780, and 1781) 🧚. These OSI protocols may be specified in addition to, in lieu of, or as an optional alternative to DoD protocols, wherever the current DoD protocol applicability statements apply. They're labeled experimental because there's limited operational experience with OSI protocols so far, and the operational, testing, and security environment currently defined in GOSIP is limited too 🙈. Services and agencies that want to implement OSI protocols right now should carefully evaluate all of this and be ready to handle the complications that can come with new tech 💀.

It's the plan to make OSI a full co-standard with the DoD protocols once GOSIP is formally approved as a Federal Information Processing Standard 👑. Two years after that, OSI would become the sole mandatory interoperable protocol suite. But a capability to interoperate with DoD protocols would still be provided for the expected life of systems that support DoD protocols 🫶.

To speed up OSI capabilities and get DoD and OSI interoperating as fast as possible, these actions are requested 🚀:

a. The Director, Defense Communications Agency, as the DoD Executive Agent for Data Communications Protocol Standards, should:

• Publish by November 1987 the DoD-OSI Interoperability and Transition Plan. The plan should provide for interoperation of the DoD and OSI protocols at the application level. A capability for experimental interoperability of DoD and OSI message handling and file transfer capabilities should be provided by March 1988, and a limit operational capability by January 1989.
• Join the Corporation for Open Systems (COS) as the Department of Defense representative. COS is a non-profit consortium formed to deal with testing and other operational issues relating to OSI protocols. At the request of the Office of Management and Budget, the Services and other defense agencies should not join COS directly, but may participate as the agents of DCA on appropriate COS committees.
• Coordinate Service and agency participation, in accordance with existing directives, in groups developing OSI standards, specifications, and operating and management procedures. These groups include the Government OSI User's Group, the National Bureau of Standards OSI Implementor's Workshop, the Corporation for Open Systems, the Manufacturing and Automation Protocol (MAP) and Technical and Office Protocol (TOP) user's groups, the American National Standards Institute X3S3 and X3T5 committees, and the NATO Tri-Service Group on Communications and Electronic Equipment, Sub-Group 9 (Data Processing and Distribution).

b. The Director, National Security Agency should make sure the ongoing Secure Data Network Systems program can be used to provide the security extensions defined as future work items in GOSIP 🔐.

c. The Services and defense agencies should share the results and experience of early implementations under the experimental coexistence policy by actively participating in the groups listed above, under DCA coordination. This experience should be especially valuable in making sure military requirements can be met by the developing OSI standards, specifications, and procedures 📈.

This guidance covers the interim steps needed to keep moving toward implementing OSI standards 🌈. As the technology matures and DoD gets more experience, the final implementation details will be provided in a DoD Directive ⭐.

References 📚

• [1] Dinneen, Memorandum of Dec 78, IEN-152.
• [2] Dinneen, Memorandum of Apr 80, IEN-152.
• [3] DeLauer, Memorandum of Mar 82, IEN-207.
• [4] Latham, Memorandum of Apr 85, RFC-945.