rfc2418.txt

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Network Working Group                                         S. Bradner
Request for Comments: 2418                                        Editor
Obsoletes: 1603                                       Harvard University
BCP: 25                                                   September 1998
Category: Best Current Practice


                           IETF Working Group
                       Guidelines and Procedures

Status of this Memo

   This document specifies an Internet Best Current Practices for the
   Internet Community, and requests discussion and suggestions for
   improvements.  Distribution of this memo is unlimited.

Copyright Notice

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

Abstract

   The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) has responsibility for
   developing and reviewing specifications intended as Internet
   Standards. IETF activities are organized into working groups (WGs).
   This document describes the guidelines and procedures for formation
   and operation of IETF working groups. It also describes the formal
   relationship between IETF participants WG and the Internet
   Engineering Steering Group (IESG) and the basic duties of IETF
   participants, including WG Chairs, WG participants, and IETF Area
   Directors.

Table of Contents

   Abstract .........................................................  1
   1. Introduction ..................................................  2
     1.1. IETF approach to standardization ..........................  4
     1.2. Roles within a Working Group ..............................  4
   2. Working group formation .......................................  4
     2.1. Criteria for formation ....................................  4
     2.2. Charter ...................................................  6
     2.3. Charter review & approval .................................  8
     2.4. Birds of a feather (BOF) ..................................  9
   3. Working Group Operation ....................................... 10
     3.1. Session planning .......................................... 11
     3.2. Session venue ............................................. 11
     3.3. Session management ........................................ 13
     3.4. Contention and appeals .................................... 15



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   4. Working Group Termination ..................................... 15
   5. Rechartering a Working Group .................................. 15
   6. Staff Roles ................................................... 16
     6.1. WG Chair .................................................. 16
     6.2. WG Secretary .............................................. 18
     6.3. Document Editor ........................................... 18
     6.4. WG Facilitator ............................................ 18
     6.5. Design teams .............................................. 19
     6.6. Working Group Consultant .................................. 19
     6.7. Area Director ............................................. 19
   7. Working Group Documents ....................................... 19
     7.1. Session documents ......................................... 19
     7.2. Internet-Drafts (I-D) ..................................... 19
     7.3. Request For Comments (RFC) ................................ 20
     7.4. Working Group Last-Call ................................... 20
     7.5. Submission of documents ................................... 21
   8. Review of documents ........................................... 21
   9. Security Considerations ....................................... 22
   10. Acknowledgments .............................................. 23
   11. References ................................................... 23
   12. Editor's Address ............................................. 23
   Appendix:  Sample Working Group Charter .......................... 24
   Full Copyright Statement ......................................... 26

1. Introduction

   The Internet, a loosely-organized international collaboration of
   autonomous, interconnected networks, supports host-to-host
   communication through voluntary adherence to open protocols and
   procedures defined by Internet Standards.  There are also many
   isolated interconnected networks, which are not connected to the
   global Internet but use the Internet Standards. Internet Standards
   are developed in the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).  This
   document defines guidelines and procedures for IETF working groups.
   The Internet Standards Process of the IETF is defined in [1]. The
   organizations involved in the IETF Standards Process are described in
   [2] as are the roles of specific individuals.

   The IETF is a large, open community of network designers, operators,
   vendors, users, and researchers concerned with the Internet and the
   technology used on it. The primary activities of the IETF are
   performed by committees known as working groups. There are currently
   more than 100 working groups. (See the IETF web page for an up-to-
   date list of IETF Working Groups - http://www.ietf.org.) Working
   groups tend to have a narrow focus and a lifetime bounded by the
   completion of a specific set of tasks, although there are exceptions.





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   For management purposes, the IETF working groups are collected
   together into areas, with each area having a separate focus.  For
   example, the security area deals with the development of security-
   related technology.  Each IETF area is managed by one or two Area
   Directors (ADs).  There are currently 8 areas in the IETF but the
   number changes from time to time.  (See the IETF web page for a list
   of the current areas, the Area Directors for each area, and a list of
   which working groups are assigned to each area.)

   In many areas, the Area Directors have formed an advisory group or
   directorate.  These comprise experienced members of the IETF and the
   technical community represented by the area.  The specific name and
   the details of the role for each group differ from area to area, but
   the primary intent is that these groups assist the Area Director(s),
   e.g., with the review of specifications produced in the area.

   The IETF area directors are selected by a nominating committee, which
   also selects an overall chair for the IETF.  The nominations process
   is described in [3].

   The area directors sitting as a body, along with the IETF Chair,
   comprise the Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG). The IETF
   Executive Director is an ex-officio participant of the IESG, as are
   the IAB Chair and a designated Internet Architecture Board (IAB)
   liaison.  The IESG approves IETF Standards and approves the
   publication of other IETF documents.  (See [1].)

   A small IETF Secretariat provides staff and administrative support
   for the operation of the IETF.

   There is no formal membership in the IETF.  Participation is open to
   all.  This participation may be by on-line contribution, attendance
   at face-to-face sessions, or both.  Anyone from the Internet
   community who has the time and interest is urged to participate in
   IETF meetings and any of its on-line working group discussions.
   Participation is by individual technical contributors, rather than by
   formal representatives of organizations.

   This document defines procedures and guidelines for the formation and
   operation of working groups in the IETF. It defines the relations of
   working groups to other bodies within the IETF. The duties of working
   group Chairs and Area Directors with respect to the operation of the
   working group are also defined.  When used in this document the key
   words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT", "SHOULD",
   "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" are to be
   interpreted as described in RFC 2119 [6].  RFC 2119 defines the use
   of these key words to help make the intent of standards track
   documents as clear as possible.  The same key words are used in this



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   document to help smooth WG operation and reduce the chance for
   confusion about the processes.

1.1. IETF approach to standardization

   Familiarity with The Internet Standards Process [1] is essential for
   a complete understanding of the philosophy, procedures and guidelines
   described in this document.

1.2. Roles within a Working Group

   The document, "Organizations Involved in the IETF Standards Process"
   [2] describes the roles of a number of individuals within a working
   group, including the working group chair and the document editor.
   These descriptions are expanded later in this document.

2. Working group formation

   IETF working groups (WGs) are the primary mechanism for development
   of IETF specifications and guidelines, many of which are intended to
   be standards or recommendations. A working group may be established
   at the initiative of an Area Director or it may be initiated by an
   individual or group of individuals. Anyone interested in creating an
   IETF working group MUST obtain the advice and consent of the IETF
   Area Director(s) in whose area the working group would fall and MUST
   proceed through the formal steps detailed in this section.

   Working groups are typically created to address a specific problem or
   to produce one or more specific deliverables (a guideline, standards
   specification, etc.).  Working groups are generally expected to be
   short-lived in nature.  Upon completion of its goals and achievement
   of its objectives, the working group is terminated. A working group
   may also be terminated for other reasons (see section 4).
   Alternatively, with the concurrence of the IESG, Area Director, the
   WG Chair, and the WG participants, the objectives or assignment of
   the working group may be extended by modifying the working group's
   charter through a rechartering process (see section 5).

2.1. Criteria for formation

   When determining whether it is appropriate to create a working group,
   the Area Director(s) and the IESG will consider several issues:

    - Are the issues that the working group plans to address clear and
      relevant to the Internet community?

    - Are the goals specific and reasonably achievable, and achievable
      within a reasonable time frame?



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    - What are the risks and urgency of the work, to determine the level
      of effort required?

    - Do the working group's activities overlap with those of another
      working group?  If so, it may still be appropriate to create the
      working group, but this question must be considered carefully by
      the Area Directors as subdividing efforts often dilutes the
      available technical expertise.

    - Is there sufficient interest within the IETF in the working
      group's topic with enough people willing to expend the effort to
      produce the desired result (e.g., a protocol specification)?
      Working groups require considerable effort, including management
      of the working group process, editing of working group documents,
      and contributing to the document text.  IETF experience suggests
      that these roles typically cannot all be handled by one person; a
      minimum of four or five active participants in the management
      positions are typically required in addition to a minimum of one
      or two dozen people that will attend the working group meetings
      and contribute on the mailing list.  NOTE: The interest must be
      broad enough that a working group would not be seen as merely the
      activity of a single vendor.

    - Is there enough expertise within the IETF in the working group's
      topic, and are those people interested in contributing in the
      working group?

    - Does a base of interested consumers (end-users) appear to exist
      for the planned work?  Consumer interest can be measured by
      participation of end-users within the IETF process, as well as by
      less direct means.

    - Does the IETF have a reasonable role to play in the determination
      of the technology?  There are many Internet-related technologies
      that may be interesting to IETF members but in some cases the IETF
      may not be in a position to effect the course of the technology in
      the "real world".  This can happen, for example, if the technology
      is being developed by another standards body or an industry
      consortium.

    - Are all known intellectual property rights relevant to the
      proposed working group's efforts issues understood?

    - Is the proposed work plan an open IETF effort or is it an attempt
      to "bless" non-IETF technology where the effect of input from IETF
      participants may be limited?





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    - Is there a good understanding of any existing work that is
      relevant to the topics that the proposed working group is to
      pursue?  This includes work within the IETF and elsewhere.

    - Do the working group's goals overlap with known work in another
      standards body, and if so is adequate liaison in place?