RFC 3638

RFC 3638: Applicability Statement for Reclassification of RFC 1643 to Historic Status 💖

Okay bestie, this is RFC 3638 🎀 from September 2003. It was written by J. Flick (Hewlett-Packard Company) and C. Heard (Consultant) for the Network Working Group. It's Informational, so it isn't a standard, and it obsoletes RFC 1643. The title block doesn't list anything it updates.

Status of This Memo ✨

This memo gives info to the Internet community. It doesn't specify an Internet standard of any kind. Distribution of this memo is unlimited.

Copyright Notice 🌸

Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2003). All Rights Reserved.

Abstract 🦋

This memo recommends that RFC 1643 get reclassified as a Historic document, and it explains the reasons behind that recommendation.

1. Details 🍓

Okay so STD 50, [RFC1643] "Definitions of Managed Objects for the Ethernet-like Interface Types", and its SMIv2 equivalent, [RFC1650], only cover half-duplex 10 Mb/s Ethernet interfaces. 😭 Since those came out in 1994, we've gotten 100 Mb/s, 1000 Mb/s, and 10 Gb/s Ethernet interface types, and full-duplex operation at 10 Mb/s got standardized too. Updates to RFC 1650 were made to handle all of this [RFC2358] [RFC2665] [RFC2666] [RFC3635]. These updates define new MIB objects that supplement the ones in RFC 1643 and RFC 1650. They also deprecate some objects from both that aren't considered useful anymore. And they put a requirement on EtherLike-MIB implementations to support the MAU-MIB as well [RFC2239] [RFC2668] [RFC3636].

RFC 1643 is an obsolete spec, overtaken by events 💀. Its SMIv2 equivalent, RFC 1650, was officially retired in 1998. New implementations, even ones that only support half-duplex 10 Mb/s interfaces, should comply with the latest version of the spec, which is currently RFC 3635 [RFC3635] and RFC 2666 [RFC2666], instead of RFC 1643. So it's recommended that RFC 1643 be reclassified as a Historic document. 🫶

2. Effect on Other Standards Track Documents 💅

Reclassifying RFC 1643 won't affect the status of any standards track RFC, because no standards track RFC cites it as a normative reference. ✨ A content search on the RFC Editor site at http://www.rfc-editor.org found these standards track documents that cite RFC 1643:

Document               Title
--------               -----

RFC 2020         IEEE 802.12 Interface MIB

RFC 2358         Definitions of Managed Objects for the
                 Ethernet-like Interface Types

RFC 2665         Definitions of Managed Objects for the
                 Ethernet-like Interface Types

RFC 2720         Traffic Flow Measurement: Meter MIB

RFC 3635         Definitions of Managed Objects for the
                 Ethernet-like Interface Types

So okay, RFC 2020 [RFC2020] has DOT12-IF-MIB, the MIB module for managing IEEE 802.12 100VG-AnyLAN interfaces. It mentions RFC 1643 while warning people not to implement the EtherLike-MIB on any interface where DOT12-IF-MIB is implemented. 🙈

RFC 2358 [RFC2358], RFC 2665 [RFC2665], and RFC 3635 [RFC3635] all have updated versions of the EtherLike-MIB. They mention RFC 1643 when explaining the history of the EtherLike-MIB, and the citation in RFC 3635 is explicitly listed as a non-normative reference. 🌈

RFC 2720 [RFC2720] has the FLOW-METER-MIB, and it only mentions RFC 1643 in an ASN.1 comment inside the MIB module. Leaving that comment out wouldn't stop anyone from implementing the MIB module correctly. 🧚

Clearly, none of these citations are normative. 👑

3. Security Considerations 🔒

Reclassifying RFC 1643 won't, all by itself, change the security of the Internet at all. Not even a little bit. 😤

4. Normative References 📚

• [RFC1643] Kastenholz, F., "Definitions of Managed Objects for the Ethernet-like Interface Types", STD 50, RFC 1643, July 1994.
• [RFC1650] Kastenholz, F., "Definitions of Managed Objects for the Ethernet-like Interface Types using SMIv2", RFC 1650, August 1994.
• [RFC2020] Flick, J., "IEEE 802.12 Interface MIB", RFC 2020, October 1996.
• [RFC2239] de Graaf, K., Romascanu, D., McMaster, D., McCloghrie, K. and S. Roberts, "Definitions of Managed Objects for IEEE 802.3 Medium Attachment Units (MAUs) using SMIv2", RFC 2239, November 1997.
• [RFC2358] Flick, J. and J. Johnson, "Definitions of Managed Objects for the Ethernet-like Interface Types", RFC 2358, June 1998.
• [RFC2665] Flick, J. and J. Johnson, "Definitions of Managed Objects for the Ethernet-like Interface Types", RFC 2665, August 1999.
• [RFC2666] Flick, J., "Definitions of Object Identifiers for Identifying Ethernet Chip Sets", RFC 2666, August 1999.
• [RFC2668] Smith, A., Flick, J., deGraaf, K., Romascanu, D., McMaster, D., McCloghrie, K. and S. Roberts, "Definitions of Managed Objects for IEEE 802.3 Medium Attachment Units (MAUs)", RFC 2668, August 1999.
• [RFC2720] Brownlee, N., "Traffic Flow Measurement: Meter MIB", RFC 2720, October 1999.
• [RFC3635] Flick, J., "Definitions of Managed Objects for the Ethernet-like Interface Types", RFC 3635, September 2003.
• [RFC3636] Flick, J., "Definitions of Managed Objects for IEEE 802.3 Medium Attachment Units (MAUs)", RFC 3636, September 2003.

5. Authors' Addresses 🏡

John Flick
Hewlett-Packard Company
8000 Foothills Blvd.  M/S 5557
Roseville, CA 95747-5557
USA

Phone: +1 916 785 4018
Fax:   +1 916 785 1199
EMail: johnf@rose.hp.com


C. M. Heard
600 Rainbow Dr. #141
Mountain View, CA 94041-2542
USA

Phone: +1 650 964 8391
EMail: heard@pobox.com

6. Full Copyright Statement 🎀

Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2003). All Rights Reserved.

This document and translations of it can be copied and handed out to others. Derivative works that comment on or explain it, or help with implementing it, can be prepared, copied, published and distributed, in whole or in part, with no restrictions of any kind. The only condition is that the copyright notice and this paragraph appear on all copies and derivative works. ⚠️ The document itself can't be modified in any way, like removing the copyright notice or the references to the Internet Society or other Internet organizations. The exceptions are when it's needed for developing Internet standards (then the copyright procedures in the Internet Standards process must be followed) or when it's translated into a language other than English.

The limited permissions above are perpetual and won't be revoked by the Internet Society or its successors or assignees.

This document and the information in it are provided on an "AS IS" basis and THE INTERNET SOCIETY AND THE INTERNET ENGINEERING TASK FORCE DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF THE INFORMATION HEREIN WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY RIGHTS OR ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Acknowledgement 🫶

Funding for the RFC Editor function is currently provided by the Internet Society. 💜