Path Computation Element Communication Protocol (PCEP) extensions for Circuit Style Policies
draft-ietf-pce-circuit-style-pcep-extensions-16
| Document | Type | Active Internet-Draft (pce WG) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authors | Samuel Sidor , Praveen Maheshwari , Andrew Stone , Luay Jalil , Shuping Peng | ||
| Last updated | 2026-03-26 (Latest revision 2026-03-16) | ||
| Replaces | draft-sidor-pce-circuit-style-pcep-extensions | ||
| RFC stream | Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) | ||
| Intended RFC status | Proposed Standard | ||
| Formats | |||
| Reviews | |||
| Additional resources | Mailing list discussion | ||
| Stream | WG state | Submitted to IESG for Publication | |
| Document shepherd | Dhruv Dhody | ||
| Shepherd write-up | Show Last changed 2026-01-07 | ||
| IESG | IESG state | RFC Ed Queue | |
| Action Holders |
(None)
|
||
| Consensus boilerplate | Yes | ||
| Telechat date | (None) | ||
| Responsible AD | Ketan Talaulikar | ||
| Send notices to | dd@dhruvdhody.com | ||
| IANA | IANA review state | Version Changed - Review Needed | |
| IANA action state | RFC-Ed-Ack | ||
| RFC Editor | RFC Editor state | EDIT | |
| Details |
draft-ietf-pce-circuit-style-pcep-extensions-16
PCE Working Group S. Sidor
Internet-Draft Cisco Systems, Inc.
Intended status: Standards Track P. Maheshwari
Expires: 17 September 2026 Airtel India
A. Stone
Nokia
L. Jalil
Verizon
S. Peng
Huawei Technologies
16 March 2026
Path Computation Element Communication Protocol (PCEP) extensions for
Circuit Style Policies
draft-ietf-pce-circuit-style-pcep-extensions-16
Abstract
Segment Routing (SR) enables a node to steer packet flows along a
specified path without the need for intermediate per-path states, due
to the utilization of source routing. An SR Policy can consist of
one or a set of candidate paths, where each candidate path is
represented by a segment list or a set of segment lists, which are
essentially instructions that define a source-routed path.
This document specifies a set of extensions to the Path Computation
Element Communication Protocol (PCEP) for Segment Routing Policies
that are designed to satisfy requirements for connection-oriented
transport services (Circuit-Style SR policies). They include the
ability to control path modification and the option to request a
strict hop-by-hop path, being also applicable for generic SR policy
use cases where controlling path modification or deterministic and
persistent path requirements are applicable.
Status of This Memo
This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the
provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.
Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
Task Force (IETF). Note that other groups may also distribute
working documents as Internet-Drafts. The list of current Internet-
Drafts is at https://datatracker.ietf.org/drafts/current/.
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Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any
time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference
material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."
This Internet-Draft will expire on 17 September 2026.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (c) 2026 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
document authors. All rights reserved.
This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
Provisions Relating to IETF Documents (https://trustee.ietf.org/
license-info) in effect on the date of publication of this document.
Please review these documents carefully, as they describe your rights
and restrictions with respect to this document. Code Components
extracted from this document must include Revised BSD License text as
described in Section 4.e of the Trust Legal Provisions and are
provided without warranty as described in the Revised BSD License.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.1. Requirements Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2. Terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3. PCEP Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.1. New Flags in STATEFUL-PCE-CAPABILITY TLV . . . . . . . . 6
3.2. New Flag in the LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.3. PATH-MODIFICATION TLV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4. Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.1. Strict Path Enforcement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.2. Path Modification Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
5. Operational Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5.1. Control of Function and Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5.2. Information and Data Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5.3. Liveness Detection and Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5.4. Verify Correct Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5.5. Requirements On Other Protocols . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
5.6. Impact On Network Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
6. Implementation Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
6.1. Cisco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
7. Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
8. IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
8.1. STATEFUL-PCE-CAPABILITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
8.2. LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
8.3. PATH-MODIFICATION TLV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
8.4. PATH-MODIFICATION TLV Flag Field . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
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8.5. PCEP-Error Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
9. References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
9.1. Normative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
9.2. Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Contributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Authors' Addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
1. Introduction
Segment Routing (SR) [RFC8402] leverages source routing, where the
sender of a packet defines the path that the packet takes through the
network. This is achieved by encoding the path information as a
sequence of segments within the packet header. A segment is an
instruction defined in Section 1 of [RFC8402]. SR can be applied to
both MPLS and IPv6 data planes, providing a flexible and scalable
method for traffic engineering.
The Path Computation Element (PCE) is a network component,
application, or node that is capable of computing a network path or
route based on a network graph and applying computational
constraints. The PCE Communication Protocol (PCEP) [RFC5440] enables
communication between a PCE and Path Computation Clients (PCCs),
facilitating the computation of optimal paths for traffic flows.
[RFC9256] introduces the concept of Segment Routing Policy (SR
Policy), which is one or a set of candidate paths that can be used to
steer traffic through a network. Each candidate path is represented
by a segment list or a set of segment lists, and the path can be
dynamically adjusted based on network conditions and requirements.
In connection-oriented transport services, such as those described in
[I-D.ietf-spring-cs-sr-policy], there is a need for path persistency
and per-hop behavior for PCE-computed paths. This ensures that the
paths remain stable and predictable, which is crucial for services
that require high reliability and performance guarantees.
To support the requirements of connection-oriented transport
services, this document specifies extensions to PCEP to enable the
use of Circuit Style Policies [I-D.ietf-spring-cs-sr-policy]. These
extensions allow for the request of strict hop-by-hop paths from the
PCE, the encoding of information to disable path modification for
specific paths, and the clarification of the usage of existing flags
within PCEP messages.
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The PCEP extensions described in this document are designed to be
compatible with any Path Setup Type and are not limited to Circuit
Style SR policies, ensuring broad applicability across different
network environments and use cases.
1.1. Requirements Language
The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT",
"SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "NOT RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and
"OPTIONAL" in this document are to be interpreted as described in BCP
14 [RFC2119] [RFC8174] when, and only when, they appear in all
capitals, as shown here.
2. Terminology
This document uses the following term defined in [RFC3031]:
* Label Switched Path (LSP)
Note: The base PCEP specification [RFC4655] originally defined the
use of the PCE architecture for MPLS and GMPLS networks with LSPs
instantiated using the RSVP-TE signaling protocol. Over time,
support for additional path setup types such as SRv6 has been
introduced [RFC9603]. The term "LSP" is used extensively in PCEP
specifications, and in the context of this document, refers to a
Candidate Path within an SR Policy, which may be an SRv6 path (still
represented using the LSP object as specified in [RFC8231]).
This document uses the following terms defined in [RFC8231]:
* Path Computation State Report (PCRpt)
* Path Computation Update (PCUpd)
* Path Computation Initiate (PCInitiate)
This document uses the following terms defined in [RFC5440]:
* Explicit Route Object (ERO)
* LSP Attributes (LSPA)
* Path Computation Client (PCC)
* Path Computation Element (PCE)
* Path Computation Element Protocol (PCEP)
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* PCEP Peer
* PCEP speaker
This document uses the following terms defined in [RFC8402]:
* Segment Routing (SR)
* Segment Identifier (SID)
This document uses the following term defined in [RFC9256]:
* SR Policy
This document defines the following terms:
* Circuit Style (CS) SR Policy: An SR Policy designed to satisfy
requirements for connection-oriented transport services. CS SR
Policies are characterized by path persistency (where the path
should remain stable unless explicitly changed or becomes invalid)
and may require strict hop-by-hop path construction. Further
details on CS SR Policies are described in
[I-D.ietf-spring-cs-sr-policy].
* Path Modification: Refers to the PCE instructing the PCC, via a
PCUpd message, to use a path whose set of traversed network hops
differs from the current path. A PCUpd message that changes only
the attributes or re-encodes the same hop sequence (e.g.,
alternative SID representation) is not considered a path
modification.
3. PCEP Extensions
This section specifies the PCEP extensions that enable a PCC and PCE
to support CS SR policies. These extensions build on the base PCEP
[RFC5440] and the Stateful PCE extensions [RFC8231]. The mechanisms
defined here allow a PCC or PCE to:
* Indicate the requirement for strict hop-by-hop paths,
* Signal path persistency by disabling path modification for
specific paths, and
* Identify and control behavior specific to CS SR policies.
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Unless explicitly stated, the procedures of existing PCEP messages
and objects remain unchanged. The following subsections describe the
specific object formats, TLVs, and flag definitions introduced to
realize this functionality.
3.1. New Flags in STATEFUL-PCE-CAPABILITY TLV
The STATEFUL-PCE-CAPABILITY TLV is an optional TLV introduced in
[RFC8231] in the OPEN object for stateful PCEP peer capability
advertisement. Details on the IANA registry are listed in
Section 8.1. This document defines the following new flags in that
TLV:
* STRICT-PATH-CAPABILITY - 1 bit (Bit Position 18) - If set to 1, it
indicates support for the O-bit (Strict-Path) in LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG
TLV. See Section 4.1 for details.
* PATH-MODIFICATION-CAPABILITY - 1 bit (Bit Position 19) - If set to
1, it indicates support for PATH-MODIFICATION TLV. See
Section 4.2 for details.
3.2. New Flag in the LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV
The LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV was introduced in Section 3.1 of [RFC9357].
Details on the IANA registry are listed in Section 8.2. This
document defines the following new flag bit in the LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG
TLV:
* O-bit (Strict-Path) - 1 bit (Bit Position 4): If set to 1, this
indicates to the PCE that a path exclusively made of strict hops
is required. The strict hop definition is described in
Section 4.1.
3.3. PATH-MODIFICATION TLV
This document defines a new TLV for the LSPA Object for encoding
information whether path modification is allowed for a delegated LSP.
The PATH-MODIFICATION TLV is optional. If the TLV is included in the
LSPA object, the PCE MUST NOT modify the path in the cases specified
by flags in the TLV. Only the first instance of this TLV MUST be
processed; subsequent instances MUST be ignored.
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0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Type = 72 | Length = 4 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Reserved | Flags |P|F|
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 1: PATH-MODIFICATION TLV Format
Type (16 bits): 72.
Length (16 bits): 4.
Reserved (16 bits): This field MUST be set to zero on transmission
and MUST be ignored on receipt.
Flags (16 bits): This document defines the following flag bits. The
other bits MUST be set to zero by the sender and MUST be ignored
by the receiver.
* P-bit (Permanent): If set to 1, the PCE MUST NOT modify the
path even if the current path does not satisfy path computation
constraints. If this flag is cleared, then the PCE MAY modify
the path according to local policy if the original path is
invalidated. When the F-bit is set to 1, the P-bit value MUST
be ignored.
* F-bit (Force): If set to 1, the PCE MUST NOT modify the path
(exceptions description in Section 4.2). If the F-bit is
cleared, the PCE MAY update the path based on an explicit
request from the operator.
4. Operation
4.1. Strict Path Enforcement
The STRICT-PATH-CAPABILITY flag in the STATEFUL-PCE-CAPABILITY TLV
MUST be set to 1 by both PCEP speakers during the PCEP session
establishment to support strict hop-by-hop path enforcement. The
O-bit (defined in Section 3.2) MUST NOT be set to 1 if the STRICT-
PATH-CAPABILITY flag was not set to 1 by both PCEP speakers. If the
PCEP peer received LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV with the O-bit set to 1, but
it does not support that capability, it MUST send PCErr with Error-
Type = 2 (Capability not supported). To indicate that a path
exclusively made of strict hops is required, the PCC sets the O-bit
to 1 in the LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV in a PCRpt message sent to the PCE.
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The O-bit set to 0 or LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV not included indicates
that a non-strictly hop-by-hop path is acceptable.
For PCE-initiated LSPs, the PCE MAY set the O-bit to 1 in PCInitiate
or PCUpd messages. If the PCE sets the O-bit to 1, the PCC MUST also
set the O-bit to 1 in the LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV in the corresponding
PCRpt messages. For PCC-initiated LSPs, if the PCC requested a
strict path (by setting the O-bit to 1 in the PCRpt message), the PCE
MUST set the O-bit to 1 in the corresponding PCUpd message. Even if
the PCC did not request a strict path, the PCE MAY set the O-bit to 1
in the PCUpd message if the computed path is a strict hop-by-hop
path.
The flag is applicable only for stateful messages. The existing
O-bit in Request Parameters (RP) object can be used to indicate
similar behavior in PCReq and PCRep messages as described in
Section 7.4.1 of [RFC5440]. For RSVP-TE, [RFC5440] already defines
the strict/loose indication for stateless PCEP; this document extends
a corresponding indication to stateful messages via the LSP-EXTENDED-
FLAG TLV.
If the O-bit is set to 1 (either in the LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV for
stateful messages or in the RP object for stateless messages) for SR
paths introduced in [RFC8664], the PCE MUST use only Segment
Identifiers (SIDs) that explicitly specify adjacencies for packet
forwarding. Adjacency SIDs SHOULD be used, but Prefix SIDs MUST NOT
be used (even if there is only one adjacency).
4.2. Path Modification Control
A PCC MAY set flags in PATH-MODIFICATION TLV to control path
modification behavior on the PCE side. If the PATH-MODIFICATION TLV
is not included, then the PCE MAY use local policy to trigger path
computation or LSP path update.
If a PCEP speaker does not recognize the PATH-MODIFICATION TLV, it
MUST ignore the TLV based on Section 7.1 of [RFC5440]. If a PCEP
speaker recognizes the TLV but does not support the TLV, it MUST send
PCErr with Error-Type = 2 (Capability not supported). The LSP path
MAY be modified, if the change results in a semantically equivalent
path representation (e.g., a different SID list) that preserves the
exact sequence of traversed network links. If the same path can be
encoded using Adjacency, Binding, Prefix, or other SIDs, then PCE MAY
switch between various representations of the same path.
The PATH-MODIFICATION TLV defines the path modification behavior for
an LSP. It is important to note that regardless of the flag settings
described below, a PCE can always initiate an update to tear down the
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LSP (e.g., by sending a PCUpd message with an empty ERO) or to bring
it up again with the same path it had before being torn down. The
P-bit and F-bit specifically restrict the PCE's ability to initiate a
path modification:
TLV present, P=0, F=0:
The PCE MUST NOT modify the path in response to various triggers
(E.g. topology updates, periodic reoptimization timers, or changes
in the state of other LSPs) if the current path remains valid and
meets all constraints (e.g. it is not the most optimal path, but
it is still valid and satisfies all constraints including bounds).
However, the PCE MAY modify the path if:
* The current path is invalidated (e.g., due to a topology change
that makes it non-compliant with LSP constraints).
* An operator explicitly triggers a path modification via an
implementation-specific mechanism (e.g., a Command Line
Interface (CLI) or a dedicated Application Programming
Interface (API) on the PCE).
P-bit set (P=1) and F-bit cleared (F=0):
The PCE MUST NOT modify the path due to network or optimization
triggers, even if the path becomes invalidated or no longer
satisfies its constraints. A path modification MAY be initiated
if explicitly triggered by an operator.
F-bit set (F=1):
The PCE MUST NOT modify the path for any reason, including in
response to an explicit operator trigger.
A PCE includes the PATH-MODIFICATION TLV in PCInitiate and PCUpd
messages to define which triggers will be disabled for an LSP. When
a PCC receives and applies behavior specified by flags in the TLV, it
MUST reflect the active flag values in the PATH-MODIFICATION TLV of
its PCRpt messages for that LSP. By including this TLV, the PCC
ensures that the LSP's path modification policy is consistently
communicated to all connected PCEs.
When a PCC receives a PCUpd message with a path modification for an
LSP, where such a modification is blocked by flags in the PATH-
MODIFICATION TLV (e.g., the F-bit is set to 1), it MUST reject the
update and maintain the existing path for the LSP.The PCC MUST also
send a PCErr message to the PCE with Error-Type=19 ("Invalid
Operation") and Error-Value=TBD1 ("Path modification is blocked by
constraint").
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5. Operational Considerations
All manageability requirements and considerations listed in
[RFC5440], [RFC8231] and [RFC8281] apply to PCEP protocol extensions
defined in this document. In addition, the requirements and
considerations listed in this section apply.
5.1. Control of Function and Policy
A PCE or PCC implementation SHOULD allow the capability of supporting
PCEP extensions introduced in this document to be enabled/disabled as
part of the global configuration.
When path modification is restricted (e.g., when the P-bit is set to
1 and F-bit is set to 0), the PCE relies on an explicit operator
trigger to modify the path if it becomes invalid. Therefore, a PCE
implementation SHOULD provide a mechanism to allow an operator to
explicitly trigger path modification for a specific LSP.
5.2. Information and Data Models
An implementation SHOULD allow an operator to view the PCEP peer
capability defined in this document. A YANG data model specification
augmenting the model defined in Sections 4.1 and 4.1.1 of [RFC9826]
SHOULD include that capability for the PCEP peer.
A YANG data model specification augmenting the module defined in
Section 4.2 of [RFC9826] SHOULD add a notification for blocked path
modification that satisfies specified constraints if path
modification is blocked using the PATH-MODIFICATION TLV.
5.3. Liveness Detection and Monitoring
Circuit-Style Policy [I-D.ietf-spring-cs-sr-policy] describes
connectivity verification and path validity considerations for
Circuit Style Policies.
5.4. Verify Correct Operations
A PCE implementation SHOULD allow the operator to monitor LSPs for
which the PCE has determined that the current path no longer
satisfies the specified constraints but path modification is blocked
by the PATH-MODIFICATION TLV, for example via YANG notifications or
the YANG data model described in Section 5.2.
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5.5. Requirements On Other Protocols
The PCEP extensions defined in this document do not imply any new
requirements on other protocols. The overall concept of Circuit
Style policies requires interaction with other protocols, but those
requirements are described in [I-D.ietf-spring-cs-sr-policy].
5.6. Impact On Network Operations
The mechanisms defined in [RFC5440], [RFC8231], and [RFC8281] also
apply to the PCEP extensions defined in this document.
6. Implementation Status
[Note to the RFC Editor - remove this section before publication, as
well as remove the reference to RFC 7942.]
This section records the status of known implementations of the
protocol defined by this specification at the time of posting of this
Internet-Draft, and is based on a proposal described in [RFC7942].
The description of implementations in this section is intended to
assist the IETF in its decision processes in progressing drafts to
RFCs. Please note that the listing of any individual implementation
here does not imply endorsement by the IETF. Furthermore, no effort
has been spent to verify the information presented here that was
supplied by IETF contributors. This is not intended as, and must not
be construed to be, a catalog of available implementations or their
features. Readers are advised to note that other implementations may
exist.
According to [RFC7942], "this will allow reviewers and working groups
to assign due consideration to documents that have the benefit of
running code, which may serve as evidence of valuable experimentation
and feedback that have made the implemented protocols more mature.
It is up to the individual working groups to use this information as
they see fit".
6.1. Cisco
* Organization: Cisco Systems
* Implementation: IOS-XR PCC and PCE.
* Description: PCEP extensions supported using VENDOR-INFORMATION
Object.
* Maturity Level: Production.
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* Coverage: Partial.
* Contact: ssidor@cisco.com
7. Security Considerations
The security considerations described in [RFC5440], [RFC8231],
[RFC8253],[RFC8281] and [RFC8664] are applicable to this document.
Note that this specification introduces the possibility to block path
modification after various topology events. This creates an
additional vulnerability if the security mechanisms of [RFC5440],
[RFC8231], and [RFC8281] are not used. If there is no integrity
protection on the session, then an attacker could block path updates
from PCE potentially resulting in a traffic drop.
As per [RFC8231], it is RECOMMENDED that these PCEP extensions can
only be activated on authenticated and encrypted sessions across PCEs
and PCCs belonging to the same administrative authority, using
Transport Layer Security (TLS) [RFC8253][I-D.ietf-pce-pceps-tls13] as
per the recommendations and best current practices in [RFC9325]. In
particular, the integrity protection provided by TLS mitigates the
attack described above where an attacker could manipulate path
modification constraints to cause a traffic disruption.
8. IANA Considerations
IANA maintains the "Path Computation Element Protocol (PCEP) Numbers"
registry at <https://www.iana.org/assignments/pcep>.
8.1. STATEFUL-PCE-CAPABILITY
[RFC8231] defines the STATEFUL-PCE-CAPABILITY. IANA is requested to
confirm the following allocations within the "STATEFUL-PCE-CAPABILITY
TLV Flag Field" registry (<https://www.iana.org/assignments/pcep/
pcep.xhtml#stateful-pce-capability-tlv-flag-field>) of the "Path
Computation Element Protocol (PCEP) Numbers" registry group:
+=====+==============================+===============+
| Bit | Description | Reference |
+=====+==============================+===============+
| 18 | STRICT-PATH-CAPABILITY | This document |
+-----+------------------------------+---------------+
| 19 | PATH-MODIFICATION-CAPABILITY | This document |
+-----+------------------------------+---------------+
Table 1
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8.2. LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV
[RFC9357] defines the LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV. IANA is requested to
confirm the following allocation within the "LSP-EXTENDED-FLAG TLV
Flag Field" registry (<https://www.iana.org/assignments/pcep/
pcep.xhtml#lsp-extended-flag-tlv-flags>) of the "Path Computation
Element Protocol (PCEP) Numbers" registry group:
+=====+======================+===============+
| Bit | Description | Reference |
+=====+======================+===============+
| 4 | Strict-Path Flag (O) | This document |
+-----+----------------------+---------------+
Table 2
8.3. PATH-MODIFICATION TLV
IANA is requested to confirm the following allocation within the
"PCEP TLV Type Indicators" registry
(<https://www.iana.org/assignments/pcep/pcep.xhtml#pcep-tlv-type-
indicators>) of the "Path Computation Element Protocol (PCEP)
Numbers" registry group:
+==========+=======================+===============+
| TLV Type | TLV Name | Reference |
+==========+=======================+===============+
| 72 | PATH-MODIFICATION TLV | This document |
+----------+-----------------------+---------------+
Table 3
8.4. PATH-MODIFICATION TLV Flag Field
IANA is requested to create a new registry named "PATH-MODIFICATION
TLV Flag Field" within the "Path Computation Element Protocol (PCEP)
Numbers" registry group. Values are to be assigned by "IETF Review"
[RFC8126]. Each bit should be tracked with the following qualities:
* Bit number (count from 0 as the most significant bit)
* Description
* Reference
The registry contains the following codepoints, with initial values,
to be assigned by IANA with the reference set to this document:
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+======+===============+===============+
| Bit | Description | Reference |
+======+===============+===============+
| 0-13 | Unassigned | |
+------+---------------+---------------+
| 14 | Permanent (P) | This document |
+------+---------------+---------------+
| 15 | Force (F) | This document |
+------+---------------+---------------+
Table 4
8.5. PCEP-Error Object
IANA is requested to allocate new error types and error values within
the "PCEP-ERROR Object Error Types and Values" sub-registry
(<https://www.iana.org/assignments/pcep/pcep.xhtml#pcep-error-
object>) of the PCEP Numbers registry for the following errors.
+============+===========+==========================+===========+
| Error-Type | Meaning | Error-Value | Reference |
+============+===========+==========================+===========+
| 19 | Invalid | TBD1:Path modification | This |
| | Operation | is blocked by constraint | Document |
+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------+
Table 5
9. References
9.1. Normative References
[I-D.ietf-pce-pceps-tls13]
Dhody, D., Turner, S., and R. Housley, "Updates for PCEPS:
TLS Connection Establishment Restrictions", Work in
Progress, Internet-Draft, draft-ietf-pce-pceps-tls13-04, 9
January 2024, <https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/
draft-ietf-pce-pceps-tls13-04>.
[RFC2119] Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate
Requirement Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119,
DOI 10.17487/RFC2119, March 1997,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2119>.
[RFC5440] Vasseur, JP., Ed. and JL. Le Roux, Ed., "Path Computation
Element (PCE) Communication Protocol (PCEP)", RFC 5440,
DOI 10.17487/RFC5440, March 2009,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc5440>.
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[RFC8126] Cotton, M., Leiba, B., and T. Narten, "Guidelines for
Writing an IANA Considerations Section in RFCs", BCP 26,
RFC 8126, DOI 10.17487/RFC8126, June 2017,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8126>.
[RFC8174] Leiba, B., "Ambiguity of Uppercase vs Lowercase in RFC
2119 Key Words", BCP 14, RFC 8174, DOI 10.17487/RFC8174,
May 2017, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8174>.
[RFC8231] Crabbe, E., Minei, I., Medved, J., and R. Varga, "Path
Computation Element Communication Protocol (PCEP)
Extensions for Stateful PCE", RFC 8231,
DOI 10.17487/RFC8231, September 2017,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8231>.
[RFC8253] Lopez, D., Gonzalez de Dios, O., Wu, Q., and D. Dhody,
"PCEPS: Usage of TLS to Provide a Secure Transport for the
Path Computation Element Communication Protocol (PCEP)",
RFC 8253, DOI 10.17487/RFC8253, October 2017,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8253>.
[RFC8281] Crabbe, E., Minei, I., Sivabalan, S., and R. Varga, "Path
Computation Element Communication Protocol (PCEP)
Extensions for PCE-Initiated LSP Setup in a Stateful PCE
Model", RFC 8281, DOI 10.17487/RFC8281, December 2017,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8281>.
[RFC8402] Filsfils, C., Ed., Previdi, S., Ed., Ginsberg, L.,
Decraene, B., Litkowski, S., and R. Shakir, "Segment
Routing Architecture", RFC 8402, DOI 10.17487/RFC8402,
July 2018, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8402>.
[RFC8664] Sivabalan, S., Filsfils, C., Tantsura, J., Henderickx, W.,
and J. Hardwick, "Path Computation Element Communication
Protocol (PCEP) Extensions for Segment Routing", RFC 8664,
DOI 10.17487/RFC8664, December 2019,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8664>.
[RFC9256] Filsfils, C., Talaulikar, K., Ed., Voyer, D., Bogdanov,
A., and P. Mattes, "Segment Routing Policy Architecture",
RFC 9256, DOI 10.17487/RFC9256, July 2022,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9256>.
[RFC9325] Sheffer, Y., Saint-Andre, P., and T. Fossati,
"Recommendations for Secure Use of Transport Layer
Security (TLS) and Datagram Transport Layer Security
(DTLS)", BCP 195, RFC 9325, DOI 10.17487/RFC9325, November
2022, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9325>.
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[RFC9357] Xiong, Q., "Label Switched Path (LSP) Object Flag
Extension for Stateful PCE", RFC 9357,
DOI 10.17487/RFC9357, February 2023,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9357>.
9.2. Informative References
[I-D.ietf-spring-cs-sr-policy]
Schmutzer, C., Ali, Z., Maheshwari, P., Rokui, R., and A.
Stone, "Circuit Style Segment Routing Policy", Work in
Progress, Internet-Draft, draft-ietf-spring-cs-sr-policy-
17, 12 March 2026, <https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/
draft-ietf-spring-cs-sr-policy-17>.
[RFC3031] Rosen, E., Viswanathan, A., and R. Callon, "Multiprotocol
Label Switching Architecture", RFC 3031,
DOI 10.17487/RFC3031, January 2001,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc3031>.
[RFC4655] Farrel, A., Vasseur, J.-P., and J. Ash, "A Path
Computation Element (PCE)-Based Architecture", RFC 4655,
DOI 10.17487/RFC4655, August 2006,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc4655>.
[RFC7942] Sheffer, Y. and A. Farrel, "Improving Awareness of Running
Code: The Implementation Status Section", BCP 205,
RFC 7942, DOI 10.17487/RFC7942, July 2016,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7942>.
[RFC9603] Li, C., Ed., Kaladharan, P., Sivabalan, S., Koldychev, M.,
and Y. Zhu, "Path Computation Element Communication
Protocol (PCEP) Extensions for IPv6 Segment Routing",
RFC 9603, DOI 10.17487/RFC9603, July 2024,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9603>.
[RFC9826] Dhody, D., Ed., Beeram, V., Hardwick, J., and J. Tantsura,
"A YANG Data Model for the Path Computation Element
Communication Protocol (PCEP)", RFC 9826,
DOI 10.17487/RFC9826, September 2025,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9826>.
Contributors
Daniel Voyer
Bell Canada
Email: daniel.voyer@bell.ca
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Reza Rokui
Ciena
Email: rrokui@ciena.com
Tarek Saad
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Email: tsaad.net@gmail.com
Zafar Ali
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Email: zali@cisco.com
Ran Chen
ZTE Corporation
Email: chen.ran@zte.com.cn
Quan Xiong
ZTE Corporation
Email: xiong.quan@zte.com.cn
Dhruv Dhody
Huawei
Email: dhruv.ietf@gmail.com
Christian Schmutzer
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Email: cschmutz@cisco.com
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Dhruv Dhody for shepherding this
document, Ketan Talaulikar for the AD review, and Cheng Li, Luis
Contreras, Mach Chen, and Mohamed Boucadair for their review
comments.
Authors' Addresses
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Samuel Sidor
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Eurovea Central 3.
811 09 Bratislava
Slovakia
Email: ssidor@cisco.com
Praveen Maheshwari
Airtel India
Email: Praveen.Maheshwari@airtel.com
Andrew Stone
Nokia
Email: andrew.stone@nokia.com
Luay Jalil
Verizon
Email: luay.jalil@verizon.com
Shuping Peng
Huawei Technologies
Email: pengshuping@huawei.com
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