ietf
[Top] [All Lists]

Re: An alternative to TCP (part 1)

2001-02-07 18:30:01
if you are proposing that the IETF should investigate ATP, have you 
submitted the proposal as an internet-draft?
No.

If not, why not?
I myself have some unsureness on ATP.

1. There're too many contraints in the tranditional TCP/IPv4 internet 
environment. So ATP is going to be optimized for IPv6. Yet there're quite a lot 
debates on IPv6 itself. For example on the flow label field.
I like IPv6, Of course.

2. I think it may give the upper layer application users or programmers great 
convenience if key features of RSVP, ISAKMP, IPSec and IPComp are consolidated 
in a single set of APIs. The APIs actually represent the services provided by 
the transport layer.

But maybe it's more convenient to devise a session layer protocol. I want to 
raise the consideration.

3. ATP fundamentally changes the meaning of the diffserv/traffic-class field in 
the IPv4/IPv6 header.

There's a saying that IP will definitely fail if it tries to provide as complex 
QoS features as ATM CBR, ABR, VBR or UBR. I'm afraid I agree with the opinion. 
So I assume it is feasible to provide only two classes of service: real time, 
and best effort. The assumption itself may raise heating debate.


I'd like to defense the idea of ATP and make necessary update before it becomes 
a proposal (or does not become a proposal).