Multicast-Address Allocation
charter-ietf-malloc-01
Document | Charter | Multicast-Address Allocation WG (malloc) | |
---|---|---|---|
Title | Multicast-Address Allocation | ||
Last updated | 2003-06-27 | ||
State | Approved | ||
WG | State | Concluded | |
IESG | Responsible AD | (None) | |
Charter edit AD | (None) | ||
Send notices to | (None) |
Note: This Working Group is co-chartered in the Internet Area.
Multicast address allocation is an essential part of using IP
multicast. Multicast addresses are an even more limited resource than
unicast addresses, and must be allocated dynamically if they are to
satisfy expected demand. To this end, the MALLOC WG will define three
protocols which work together to form a global dynamic multicast
address allocation mechanism. These protocols will be:
-
a "host to Address Allocation Server" protocol used by a host to
obtain one or more multicast addresses from an address allocation
server within its domain. -
an intra-domain server to server protocol that address allocation
servers within the same domain can use to ensure that they do not
give
out conflicting addresses. -
an inter-domain protocol to provide aggregatable multicast address
ranges to domains, which the servers in that domain can then allocate
individual multicast addresses out of. This protocol will work in
conjunction with the IDMR WG's Border Gateway Multicast Protocol to
provide a scalable inter-domain multicast routing solution.
Although mechanisms for enforcing policies for multicast address
allocation may be considered, setting any such policies is not within
the scope of this WG. Alternative multicast models are also out of
scope.