RFC Streams, Headers, and Boilerplates
RFC 7841

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Internet Architecture Board (IAB)                        J. Halpern, Ed.
Request for Comments: 7841                                L. Daigle, Ed.
Obsoletes: 5741                                          O. Kolkman, Ed.
Category: Informational                                         May 2016
ISSN: 2070-1721

                 RFC Streams, Headers, and Boilerplates

Abstract

   RFC documents contain a number of fixed elements such as the title
   page header, standard boilerplates, and copyright/IPR statements.
   This document describes them and introduces some updates to reflect
   current usage and requirements of RFC publication.  In particular,
   this updated structure is intended to communicate clearly the source
   of RFC creation and review.  This document obsoletes RFC 5741, moving
   detailed content to an IAB web page and preparing for more flexible
   output formats.

Status of This Memo

   This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is
   published for informational purposes.

   This document is a product of the Internet Architecture Board (IAB)
   and represents information that the IAB has deemed valuable to
   provide for permanent record.  It represents the consensus of the
   Internet Architecture Board (IAB).  Documents approved for
   publication by the IAB are not a candidate for any level of Internet
   Standard; see Section 2 of RFC 5741.

   Information about the current status of this document, any errata,
   and how to provide feedback on it may be obtained at
   http://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7841.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2016 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
   (http://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.

Halpern, et al.               Informational                     [Page 1]
RFC 7841           RFC Streams, Headers, Boilerplates           May 2016

Table of Contents

   1.  Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
   2.  RFC Streams and Internet Standards  . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
   3.  RFC Structural Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
     3.1.  The Title Page Header . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     3.2.  The Status of This Memo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
     3.3.  Paragraph 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
     3.4.  Paragraph 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
     3.5.  Paragraph 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
     3.6.  Noteworthy  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
   4.  Additional Notes  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
   5.  Other Structural Information in RFCs  . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
   6.  Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
   7.  RFC Editor Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
   8.  References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
     8.1.  Normative References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
     8.2.  Informative References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
   Appendix A.  Initial Formatting Details . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
     A.1.  RFC Title Page Header . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
     A.2.  Constructing a "Status of This Memo" Section  . . . . . .  10
       A.2.1.  First Paragraph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  11
       A.2.2.  Second Paragraph  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  11
       A.2.3.  Third Paragraph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  13
   IAB Members at Time of Approval . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  13
   Acknowledgements  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  13
   Authors' Addresses  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  14

1.  Introduction

   Previously, RFCs (e.g., [RFC4844]) contained a number of elements
   that were there for historical, practical, and legal reasons.  They
   also contained boilerplate material to clearly indicate the status of
   the document and possibly contained "Notes" to indicate how the
   document interacts with IETF Standards-Track documents.

   As the RFC Series has evolved over the years, there has been
   increasing concern over appropriate labeling of the publications to
   make clear the status of each RFC and the status of the work it
   describes.  Chiefly, there is a requirement that RFCs published as
   part of the IETF's review process not be easily confused with RFCs
   that may have had a very different review and approval process.
   Various adjustments have been made over the years, including evolving
   text of "Notes" included in the published RFC.

   With the definition of the different RFC streams [RFC4844], it is