IEEE 802 Restructuring ad hoc Sub ad hoc

IEEE 802 Restructuring ad hoc Sub ad hoc: Technical Coherence Roger Marks and Glenn Parsons 2021 -03 -29 802 -ec-21 -0068 -01 -00 EC

Maintaining Coherence: Historical • IEEE 802 Plenary Meeting • Formerly held on Monday morning at IEEE 802 Plenary • IEEE 802. 1 WG has, for decades, offered to organize a “Technical Plenary” meeting on cross-WG architectural issues • Has not been held in recent memory (around 20 years) • Joint coordination meetings, generally during IEEE 802 Plenaries • Using joint meetings • Or tutorials; e. g. , Nov 2017 “Local MAC Addresses in the IEEE 802 Overview and Architecture based on IEEE Std 802 c” • IEEE 802 Architecture Group (see below) • IEEE Std 802, “Overview and Architecture” • 1990; revisions 2001 and 2014; third amendment in progress • Coordinated meetings to develop 2014 revision • Some issues arise in 802/IETF coordination discussions • Criteria for Standards Development • Wireless coexistence in 802. 19 Working Group

IEEE 802 Architecture Group: 2004 -2006 • https: //www. ieee 802. org/1/files/public/802_architecture_group • Intent: Improve alignment between WG projects and existing 802 architecture by: • Identifying current problems, omissions, conflicts, ramifications, and their potential resolution • Identifying potential refinements or changes to the architecture • Providing a regular forum in which such discussion can take place, in a lower pressure environment than is possible during the core Plenary cycle. • Meeting: Sunday 2 -5 PM before 802 Plenary • Identifying current problems, omissions, conflicts, ramifications, and their potential resolution (no formal output documents) • Chaired by 802. 1 Chair • Ended after 7 Plenaries • no longer useful in its current form • If there is a need for the group to meet in order to address a specific and focussed problem then we will schedule an ad-hoc Architecture group meeting for that purpose. The best placing for this would be to use a Plenary tutorial slot. • The 802. 1 “Technical Plenary” will still be available as a vehicle for addressing specific technical problems across 802.

IEEE 802 Architecture Group: “known issues” • 57 slides in final slide set • Qo. S, Co. S, security, management, MAC service definition, MIB, frame size, location awareness, link aggregation, dual homing, synchronization, rate control, congestion management, latency, power management, wake-on-LAN, WLAN bridging, 64 -bit bridging, LLC, wireless mesh, soft handover, multicast, authentication, service discovery • Many of these topics are not yet closed. • Some were addressed with large efforts, such as 802. 11 ak & 802. 1 Qbz • New topics have arisen; e. g. , YANG, local MAC addressing, automotive, industrial, factory, aerospace, data center, etc.

Current Situation • IEEE 802 LMSC P&P: • Approval for moving a draft standard to Sponsor ballot, or approval of any substantive change in the scope of a standard proposed by a subgroup, shall be referred to the Sponsor for approval. The Sponsor may delegate approval authority and form a subgroup for this purpose. Approval to move a standard to Sponsor ballot from such a subgroup requires a majority vote. This vote shall be limited to procedural issues and PAR alignment only. • [Is “this vote” limited to the subgroup vote of the prior sentence? That’s the only ”vote” mentioned. If so, then the Sponsor approval is not subject to this limit. ] • IEEE 802 LMSC Operations Manual: • The LMSC • provides “procedural and, if necessary, technical guidance to the Working Groups and TAGs as it relates to their charters. ” • oversees “Working Group and Technical Advisory Group operations to ensure that it is within the scope of IEEE 802 LMSC, and its established charter. ” • 5 C: Each proposed IEEE 802 LMSC standard should be in conformance with IEEE Std 802, IEEE 802. 1 AC, and IEEE 802. 1 Q. If any variances in conformance emerge, they shall be thoroughly disclosed and reviewed with IEEE 802. 1 Working Group prior to submitting a PAR to the IEEE 802 LMSC.

Going forward • 802 wide technical coherence is warranted • • To reduce duplicative efforts To add functionality to networks To increase commonality as seen by higher layers To strengthen the meaning of the brand of an “IEEE 802 Network” • Are we a family of standards, or just roommates? • Technical coordination needs a regular venue • LMSC Architecture Standing Committee • Potentially scheduled without conflicting WG meetings • Potentially tasked to review/recommend draft standards prior to EC motion • Membership and voting TBD • IEEE Std 802 revision project • Should include explicit architectural details • Should include conformance matter and PICS • Could serve as a de facto alternative to LMSC Architecture Standing Committee • Should try to attract a critical mass of active participants over the long term