Telnet Protocol specifications

　　Network Working Group A. McKenzie

　　Request for Comments: 495 BBN-NET

　　NIC #15371 1 May 1973

　　Categories: TELNET, Protocols

　　References: RFCs 318, 435; NIC 7104

　　TELNET Protocol Specification

　　Following much discussion of TELNET via the RFCseries, an open meeting was held at UCLA on 5 March to formulate a new specification for the　TELNET Protocol. Two attached documents (TELNET Protocol Specification,　NIC #15372, and TELNET Option Specifications, NIC #15373) report the　results of that meeting, which was attended by: Alex McKenzie, BBN-NET,　co-chairman; Jon Postel, UCLA-NMC, co-chairman; Bob Braden, UCLA-CCN;　Vint Cerf, Stanford University; Bernie Cosell, BBN-NET; Dave Crocker,　UCLA-NMC; Steve Crocker, ARPA; John Davidson, Univ. of Hawaii; Gary　Grossman, Univ. of Illinois; Bob Merryman, UCSD; Lou Nelson, UCLA-NMC;　Mike Padlipsky, MIT-MULTICS: Milt Reese, FNW; Bob Thomas, BBN-TENEX;　Steve Wolfe, UCLA-CCN.

　　The two attached specifications referenced above have been reviewed by　the meeting attendees, and should be viewed as the "official" TELNET　Protocol (subject to the implementation schedule given below).

　　Nevertheless, these documents are still subject to minor revisions and　any pertinent comments should be addressed to me at the NIC as AAM, or　by mail at:

　　Alex McKenzie

　　Bolt Beranek and Newman Inc.

　　50 Moulton Street

　　Cambridge, Ma. 02138

　　There are two key dates for a phasing in of the new protocol: the　date when sites should feel free to send the "new" form of TELNET　commands and special codes without expecting to receive "error"　responses, and the date when sites may remove the code which　processes the "old" form of TELNET commands. Between these two　dates, sites may gradually implement and test the "interpreter" for　the new commands. It was the sense of the meeting that appropriate　lead times to these two dates were about 60 and 260 days.

　　Accordingly, these two dates are hereby established as 1 July 1973　and 1 January 1974.

　　I have also attached specifications for TELNET options which allow　negotiation of:

　　o binary transmission

　　o echoing

　　o reconnection

　　o suppression of "Go Ahead"

　　o approximate message size

　　o use of a "timing mark"

　　o discussion of status

　　o extension of option code set

　　These specifications have been prepared by Dave Walden (BBN-NET) with　the help of Bernie Cosell, Ray Tomlinson (BBN-TENEX) and Bob Thomas;　by Jerry Burchfiel (BBN-TENEX); and by David Crocker (ULCA-NMC). It　appears that these options cover most of the capabilities of the　current version of TELNET, with the exception of "Hide Your Input."

　　Dave Walden has also promised to specify the following options in the　near future:

　　o NVT printer line width negotiation

　　o NVT printer page size negotiation

　　o negotiation of the mapping between the line terminator　character available on a physical terminal (e.g., LF,　CR, NL) and the NVT characters to be transmitted　(e.g., CR NUL, LF, CR LF).

　　Dave has also announced his intent to seek collaboration with　Gary Grossman, Bob Braden, and perhaps others in defining an　EBCDIC option. The announcement of intent to specify these　options should, of course, be seen as useful information rather　than as the granting of an "exclusive right" to Dave, or any　other author.

　　I gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Bernie Cosell　in the preparation of the protocol specification.

　　AAM/jm

　　Attachments

　　[ This RFCwas put into machine readable form for entry ]

　　[ into the online RFCarchives by Gottfried Janik 4/98 ]