IETF 28 October 2013

A Close Encounter of the Standards Kind — Internet Society Rough Guide to IETF 88

By Leslie DaigleGuest AuthorChief Technical Officer and Internet Integrity Program Director, Global Cyber Alliance

In ten or so days, more than a thousand Internet engineers will descend on Vancouver to spend a week discussing the latest issues in Internet protocol engineering at IETF 88. It’s no secret that we are fans of open Internet standards, and we are enthusiastic about this, the 88th meeting of the group responsible for the Internet’s core protocols.

As some will have seen before, we traditionally post a “rough guide” to the IETF meeting, outlining the Working Group and Birds of a Feather sessions that have agenda items related to topics we’re working in our own key programmes. This time, we’re taking that concept to the blogosphere and (hopefully!) giving it a broader reach. So, I’ll kick off our blog post series here, and there will be follow on posts on particular topics of interest (as perceived by Internet Society technical staff — global addressing, security and resiliency of the routing system, DNSSEC, etc.) appearing shortly and added as links to this post once they’re up.

Naturally, since the last IETF meeting (Berlin, August 2013), there has been even more stir about Internet security protocols and ways to fend off destructive implications of government spying. In the first morning plenary in more than a decade, the IAB technical plenary will feature Bruce Schneier on Wednesday morning, to talk about what we do (and do not) know in terms of what has been compromised by the apparent US National Security Administration (NSA) activities. That session will be rounded out by IESG Security Area Director, Stephen Farrell, who will outline proposed directions for constructive IETF activities to address what we do know as issues. It will also be livestreamed for those unable to attend in person.

The IGOVUPDAT BoF, scheduled for Monday afternoon, will provide an opportunity for updates on “Internet governance” as it relates to IETF areas of interest. The first topic is an update of “Next Generation WHOIS at ICANN”, which is valuable input to the IETF’s ongoing WEIRDS (WHOIS service update) work, but speaks more generally to the question of requirements outside the IETF’s own protocols. The agenda will also feature an update from the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) meeting that took place recently in Bali.

The IETF agenda also features some Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) research group meetings. Of particular note, Applied Networking Research Prize winner Idilio Drago will present his work “Inside Dropbox: Understanding Personal Cloud Storage Services” at the Internet Research Task Force open meeting on Tuesday afternoon.

We will also be holding the ISOC@IETF briefing panel to discuss the work of the IETF in the context of the Internet and the world at large. This time, during “IPv6 – What Does Success Look Like?” we’ll be taking another look at IPv6, and this time what success with IPv6 looks like and what future key milestones for IPv6 lay ahead. The panel will be livestreamed as well, so plan to tune in.

If you want a quick overview of what happened at IETF 87 in Berlin before you go to Vancouver, check out the latest edition of the IETF Journal (I also encourage you to subscribe here to receive future issues). We’re always interested in articles for upcoming issues, so if you’re following work at the Vancouver meeting and would be willing to provide an update, drop a line to [email protected].

There’s lots going on at the upcoming IETF meeting, and whether you plan to be there or join remotely, there’s much to follow. Stay tuned for more topical updates from the Internet Society technical staff about pertinent technical sessions that are scheduled for IETF 88.

IETF 88 sessions referenced (all times UTC -8):

  • Internet Research Task Force Open Meeting
    (5 November 2013, 1420-1550)
    (Agenda not yet available)

IEFT 88 Rough guide:

Disclaimer: Viewpoints expressed in this post are those of the author and may or may not reflect official Internet Society positions.

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