From: abrown@seqp4.uucp (Alex Brown)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.iso
Subject: Re: What is ISO boot protocol's number?
Date: 17 Nov 92 10:32:07 GMT
Organization: Sequoia Systems, Inc. Marlboro MA, USA
In-reply-to: mwr@eng.tridom.com's message of 13 Nov 92 14:31:40 GMT


> Really two questions:
> 1.  Is there an ISO protocol for booting devices on a LAN (similiar to
>     IP's BOOTP)?

Because the OSI model of an information system and a network is very
broad and general, services as specific as booting of a diskless
workstation are not really addressed directly.  Some ISO standards and
protocols do provide facilities that are related, however.

The ISO Manufacturing Messaging Service (MMS) is a general-purpose
remote device control service, although it was developed for
industrial robots.  It supports a download/upload facility for a
"Virtual Manufacturing Device".  Combined with "program invocation
management" services, a BOOTP-like service could be provided.
However, MMS is an application-layer service and its protocol
implementation requires the full OSI stack to be in operation for a
connection to be established, and booting of that stack is undefined.

Probably closer to your intent, the evolving ISO network management
standards provide for "configuration management" from a control center
of a population of "managed objects" on the network; this includes
creation and deletion of those objects, and control operations on
them, by a remote management agent.  The most important managed
objects are the layers of the stack themselves, so it would fit well
to define a management bootstrap action that begins with a short or
null stack, brings up a tiny management agent, responds to a "Create"
request (PT_CREATE CMIS request) for a managed object corresponding to
a system with a local action to boot that system and initialize a full
stack, and then resume management services over the full stack.  The
bootstrap procedure itself would be beyond the scope of the management
action; it might, for example, be a proprietary link-level boot
protocol based on a distinguished LSAP selected by the vendor (or it
might in fact be BOOTP itself :).

However, I don't think the management standards have evolved that far
yet.  Perhaps your description of more specific requirements for a
boot protocol might get things going.

> 2.  What ISO document to I purchase to get its description?

The standards I've referred to are:

ISO 9506	Manufacturing Messaging Service and Protocol
ISO 9595	Common Management Information Service
ISO 9596	Common Management Information Protocol
ISO 10040	OSI System Management Overview
ISO 10164-1	OSI System Management - Object Management Function
ISO 10165-2	OSI System Management - Structure of Management Info -
		Definition of Management Information

> Thanks
> 
> -- 
> Mark
> 
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> | Mark Reardon           |  AT&T Tridom                             |
> | mwr@eng.tridom.com     |  840 Franklin Court                      |
> |                        |  Marietta, GA 30067                      |
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
 
--
Alex Brown                 OSI networks
Sequoia Systems      abrown@sequoia.com
400 Nickerson Rd   (508) 480-0800 x1614
Marlboro MA 01752        481-2418   fax