Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP)
RFC 2326

Network Working Group                                     H. Schulzrinne
Request for Comments: 2326                                   Columbia U.
Category: Standards Track                                         A. Rao
                                                                Netscape
                                                             R. Lanphier
                                                            RealNetworks
                                                              April 1998

                  Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP)

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.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (1998).  All Rights Reserved.

Abstract

   The Real Time Streaming Protocol, or RTSP, is an application-level
   protocol for control over the delivery of data with real-time
   properties. RTSP provides an extensible framework to enable
   controlled, on-demand delivery of real-time data, such as audio and
   video. Sources of data can include both live data feeds and stored
   clips. This protocol is intended to control multiple data delivery
   sessions, provide a means for choosing delivery channels such as UDP,
   multicast UDP and TCP, and provide a means for choosing delivery
   mechanisms based upon RTP (RFC 1889).

Table of Contents

   * 1 Introduction .................................................  5
        + 1.1 Purpose ...............................................  5
        + 1.2 Requirements ..........................................  6
        + 1.3 Terminology ...........................................  6
        + 1.4 Protocol Properties ...................................  9
        + 1.5 Extending RTSP ........................................ 11
        + 1.6 Overall Operation ..................................... 11
        + 1.7 RTSP States ........................................... 12
        + 1.8 Relationship with Other Protocols ..................... 13
   * 2 Notational Conventions ....................................... 14
   * 3 Protocol Parameters .......................................... 14
        + 3.1 RTSP Version .......................................... 14

Schulzrinne, et. al.        Standards Track                     [Page 1]
RFC 2326              Real Time Streaming Protocol            April 1998

        + 3.2 RTSP URL .............................................. 14
        + 3.3 Conference Identifiers ................................ 16
        + 3.4 Session Identifiers ................................... 16
        + 3.5 SMPTE Relative Timestamps ............................. 16
        + 3.6 Normal Play Time ...................................... 17
        + 3.7 Absolute Time ......................................... 18
        + 3.8 Option Tags ........................................... 18
             o 3.8.1 Registering New Option Tags with IANA .......... 18
   * 4 RTSP Message ................................................. 19
        + 4.1 Message Types ......................................... 19
        + 4.2 Message Headers ....................................... 19
        + 4.3 Message Body .......................................... 19
        + 4.4 Message Length ........................................ 20
   * 5 General Header Fields ........................................ 20
   * 6 Request ...................................................... 20
        + 6.1 Request Line .......................................... 21
        + 6.2 Request Header Fields ................................. 21
   * 7 Response ..................................................... 22
        + 7.1 Status-Line ........................................... 22
             o 7.1.1 Status Code and Reason Phrase .................. 22
             o 7.1.2 Response Header Fields ......................... 26
   * 8 Entity ....................................................... 27
        + 8.1 Entity Header Fields .................................. 27
        + 8.2 Entity Body ........................................... 28
   * 9 Connections .................................................. 28
        + 9.1 Pipelining ............................................ 28
        + 9.2 Reliability and Acknowledgements ...................... 28
   * 10 Method Definitions .......................................... 29
        + 10.1 OPTIONS .............................................. 30
        + 10.2 DESCRIBE ............................................. 31