From: edwin@vax.ftp.com  (Edwin Chow)
Subject: Request for Bakeoff Test Proposals
Nntp-Software: PC/TCP NNTP
Reply-To: edwin@wco.ftp.com
Organization: FTP Software, Inc., Wakefield, MA
Date: Thu, 24 Dec 1992 12:43:16

Hi,

On February 8 - February 12 several TCP/IP vendors will be meeting to
test the interoperablity of their products at a "TCP/IP bakeoff".

The following is a form that you can use to submit test cases for the
upcoming TCP/IP bakeoff.  The sponsoring companies will then create these
test cases which will be used to test interoperablity at the bakeoff.

You can also send me your suggestions without using the form and I will edit
them for you.

We feel that it is important to get a wide variety of test proposals from the
internet community in order to understand what are the major concerns 
involving TCP/IP interoperability. While these tests will not be an official
verification suite, we will make the list of tests run at the bakeoff 
available in hopes of helping everyone developing TCP/IP products.

***** Send the tests to me at edwin@wco.ftp.com *****

***** Send further inquires about the bakeoff to bakeoff@TGV.com *****

I will also make the current list of tests available to anyone who is 
interested.

Thanks,

Ed

P.S.  Also enclosed is a press release describing the bakeoff.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edwin Chow - edwin@wco.ftp.com
FTP Software Inc.

******************************************************************************


                        Bakeoff Test Proposal Sheet
                        ---------------------------

Name of Test:
Submitted by:
Phone Number:
Company Name:
Date:

RFC REQUIREMENT LEVEL
(M)ust, (S)hould, m(A)y:

TCP/IP LAYER BEING TESTED
(A)pplication, (T)ransport, (I)nternet, (L)ink:

TCP/IP Feature Being Tested (include RFC reference and page number if
possible:






Brief Description of Test:





Required Length of Test:

Does it requre any other equipment (Yes/No):
If so, what and who will provide it:




TEST SHOULD TAKE PLACE ON THE
(S)table Net, (B)attle Net:

****************************************************************************

Dated:			      December 8, 1992

                         THE  1993  TCP/IP  BAKE-OFF

After much thought and planning, and based on input gleaned from reading an
Internet mailing list of the same name, a group of four companies has come
up with a format for what they hope will the be the first of many multivendor 
"TCP/IP Bake-Off" gatherings.

The first such get-together took place several years ago, when the protocol 
was much younger.  Mr. Jon Postel, one of the original protocol architects, 
worked on a few test meets in December of 1978, January of 1979, and April 
of 1980.  Since then, apart from occasional multivendor networks at shows 
such as UniForum, FCC and INTEROP, there has not been a great deal of 
multivendor testing of the main TCP/IP protocol suite.

While there are groups who meet regularly to work with SNMP, NFS, and similar 
standards, telnet, ftp and smtp - as well as TCP and IP themselves - are mostly
neglected.  This is starting to show up in the fact that there are some 
implementations currently available which are unable to successfully negotiate 
even some of the more basic communications options, or keep network links 
open when hard- or software anomalies occur.

FTP Software, TGV, Empirical Tools and Technology, and InterCon Systems have
taken the example set by Jon Postel and his colleagues, and are building on 
his ideas.  The "TCP/IP Bake-Off" was first announced publicly at the November 
IETF Meeting in Washington DC.  Vendors of products with TCP/IP protocol 
stacks are invited to come, in a spirit of intervendor cooperation, and assist 
in providing network customers with the finest possible range of products 
from which to choose.  As this is a first meeting, the number of participants 
is being limited to between 25 and 30 manufacturers;  and with attendance 
being on a first-come first-served basis, the ranks are filling rapidly.

This will be solely an engineering gathering.  Programmers from many 
competing companies will be there to make sure that their code is able to 
communicate with that of everyone else.  None of the information learned in 
these meetings will go beyond the walls of the meeting venue.  Strict 
guidelines will apply as to what information, and how much of it, is 
disseminated from the Bake-Off;  and to ensure the security of data acquired 
at the Bake-Off, all participants will be governed by a non-disclosure 
agreement.

In the field of networking hardware and software, vendors are confronted with 
a unique paradox:  in order to compete, they have to work together - because 
any networking product that cannot communicate with another networking product 
rather quickly loses its reason to exist....  For this reason, a gathering of 
competitors on neutral ground ends up benefiting the consumer tremendously - 
as well as the vendors themselves who are able to uncover potential problems 
before their customers do, or who were able to return home secure in the 
knowledge that their code is truly solid.

The actual results of this testing and coding will not be made public.  The 
intent is that the participants, by repeatedly coming together, will know 
that their products are good;  and that their customers, knowing that their 
vendor is one of the active participants, will know that the products that 
they are buying are among the most robust available.