Network Working Group                           Y. Y. Goland, Microsoft
INTERNET-DRAFT
draft-goland-url-dns-00
Expires six months after publication date                 July 29, 1997

        Uniform Resource Locators (URL): DNS URL Naming Scheme

Status of this Memo

   This document is an Internet-Draft.  Internet-Drafts are working
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1 Abstract

   This document proposes mapping DNS names into the URL scheme space for
   the purpose of preventing namespace collisions amongst URL schemes
   whose syntax and functionality are not appropriate for standardization.

2 Introduction

   In [URL-REG] a process is established for registering new URL
schemes.
   However this registration process is centralized and keyed toward
   schemes that define new standards.

   Not all URL schemes need to be standardized. Many schemes are
   registered with client software so as to activate software, not to
   specify a generalized function. In such cases the key concern is the
   prevention of URL scheme name collisions, not an open registration
   of the URL's syntax or functionality.

3 DNS URL Prefix Scheme Syntax

   Scheme = "DNS+" domain "+" [extension]
   domain = see [STD13] section 3.5
   extension = URL-Scheme
   URL-Scheme = see the scheme production in [URL-SYNTAX] section 4.1

4 Examples

   The owner of the foo.bar.com DNS name would, under this proposal, be
   given control of the DNS+foo.bar.com+ URL scheme. The scheme can be
   used by itself to form URLs, for example,
   DNS+foo.bar.com+://www.nowhere.com/somewhere or can be used as a
   prefix, for example,
   DNS+foo.bar.com+any-legal-scheme-characters:anything:anywhere.

5 Namespace Ownership

   Whoever owns a particular DNS name owns all DNS URL scheme names as
   defined under this standard. If a DNS name should change ownership
   then all DNS URL scheme names defined using this standard are
   transferred to the new owner.

6 Trademarks

   The trademark ramifications of this scheme are left in the hands of
   those who define names under this scheme. As no central authority
   handles registration of the names there is no central authority to
   be served with court papers. As such there are no special trademark
   issues that need to be addressed by the specification.

7 References

   [URL-REG] Masinter, Zigmond, Alvestrand, "Guidelines and Process
   for new URL Schemes", <draft-mastiner-url-process-01.txt>.

   [URL-SYNTAX] Berners-Lee, Fielding, Mastiner, "Uniform Resource
   Locators: Generic Syntax and Semantics",
<draft-fielding-url-syntax-05>.

   [STD13] Mockapetrix, "DOMAIN NAMES - CONCEPTS AND FACILITIES",
   <std13>.

8 Author's Address

   Yaron Y. Goland
   Microsoft Corporation
   1 Microsoft Way
   Redmond, WA 98052

   Email: yarong@microsoft.com