CME Globex
iLink Session ID Policy and Operational
Guidelines

Version 3.8
December 2019

Futures trading is not suitable for all investors and involves the risk of loss. Futures are a leveraged
investment, and because only a percentage of a contract’s value is required to trade, it is possible tolose more than the amount of money deposited for a futures position. Therefore, traders should only
use funds that they can afford to lose without affecting their lifestyles. And only a portion of those
funds should be devoted to any one trade because they cannot expect to profit on every trade.
All references to options refer to options on futures.
CME Group is a trademark of CME Group Inc. The Globe Logo, CME, Chicago Mercantile Exchange,
Globex, iLink, E-mini, CME EOS Trader, FirmSoft, CME DataSuite, and CME DataMine aretrademarks of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. New York Mercantile Exchange, NYMEX, miNY,
and ClearPort are registered trademarks of the New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. COMEX is atrademark of Commodity Exchange, Inc.
FIX™ and FAST™ are trademarks of FIX Protocol Limited. FIX/FASTsm is a service mark of FIX
Protocol Limited.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
The information within this document has been compiled by CME Group for general purposes only.
CME Group assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions. Additionally, all examples in thisbrochure are hypothetical situations, used for explanation purposes only, and should not be
considered investment advice or the results of actual market experience.
All matters pertaining to rules and specifications herein are made subject to and are superseded by
official CME, CBOT, and NYMEX rules. Current rules should be consulted in all cases concerning
contract specifications.
Copyright © 2019 CME Group Inc. All rights reserved.

iLink Session ID Policy and Operational Guidelines

Contents
Introduction.............................................................................................................................................. 4
1.0

iLink Session ID Overview ....................................................................................................... 4

1.1

iLink Session ID Types ............................................................................................................. 4

1.2

iLink Session IDs and Network Access ................................................................................. 5

1.3

iLink Session ID Best Practices and Operational Guidelines .............................................. 5

1.4

iLink Session ID Certification Requirement ............................................................................ 5

1.5

Order Routing and Front-End Audit Trail Requirements ..................................................... 5

1.6

iLink Session ID Route-Through Functionality ..................................................................... 6

1.7

Saturday Testing ....................................................................................................................... 7

1.8

Related Policies, Programs and Guidelines.......................................................................... 7

1.9

Risk Management Tools .......................................................................................................... 7

2.0

iLink Session ID Policy ............................................................................................................. 8

2.1

iLink Session ID Policy Objectives ......................................................................................... 8

2.2

iLink Session ID Allocation ...................................................................................................... 8

2.3

iLink Session ID Surcharges ................................................................................................... 8

2.4

CGW iLink Session ID Trade-in .............................................................................................. 92.5

MSGW iLink Session ID Distribution ...................................................................................... 9

2.6

MSGW iLink Session ID Excess Capacity Allowance ......................................................... 92.7

CME Direct iLink Session IDs ............................................................................................... 10

2.8

Mass Quote Market Maker iLink Session IDs ..................................................................... 10

3.0

Partner Exchanges ................................................................................................................. 10

4.0

Contact Us................................................................................................................................ 10

Revision History.................................................................................................................................... 11

3|PageIntroduction

This document replaces the previously published iLink Session ID Guidelines and provides operational,
allocation and distribution information for iLink session IDs in the CME Globex production environment. Market
participants should refer to the CME Globex Notices for the latest iLink session ID functionality and policy
updates.
If you are not currently receiving the CME Globex Notices, please go to www.cmegroup.com/subscribe to sign up toreceive them.

1.0

iLink Session ID Overview

CME Globex iLink session IDs are used to:• Access the electronic markets to enter, modify, and cancel orders;• Receive order and fill confirmations;• Support multiple traders and trading strategies;• Establish and manage a bi-directional stream of ordered messages within a continuous sequence number series.
o A successful client logon establishes a FIX connection and terminates it with the corresponding logout.
o Clients can establish and terminate FIX connections multiple times throughout the week within a single
FIX session.
An iLink session is defined by the following:• SenderCompID (FIX tag 49), made up of:o Session ID (first three characters)o Globex Firm ID (second three characters)o Fault Tolerance Indicator (last character)• Secure Logon• IP address(es)• Port• Market Segment ID (MSGW sessions)1.1

iLink Session ID Types

There are currently two types of iLink session IDs customers may utilize for order entry:• Market Segment Gateway (MSGW)• Market segment-agnostic Convenience Gateway (CGW)•

MSGW iLink session IDs:o Establish separate TCP connections directly to each MSGW servicing a CME Group market segment (trading
engine instance)o Are able to login to all 19 MSGW instances. To manage message sequence numbers, customers must leverage
the combination of Session ID (the first 3 characters of tag 49-SenderCompID) and tag 1300-MarketSegmentID- Customers are strongly encouraged to rely programmatically on tag 1300-MarketSegmentID in theMarket Data Security Definition message to route orders to the correct MSGWo MSGW iLink session ID roundtrip messaging is approximately up to 60 microseconds faster than CGW iLink
session IDs.

•

CGW iLink session IDs:o Establish a TCP connection to a single Convenience Gateway which routes orders to the appropriate matchingengine via the MSGWs.

4|Page1.2

iLink Session IDs and Network AccessiLink session IDs can be used to connect via any of the following available connectivity options:• CME GLink• LNet• CME Globex Hubs
• Client INTERNETLink• CME EConnect
For details on all available connectivity solutions, please see the CME Group Production Network
Connection Guide.

1.3

iLink Session ID Best Practices and Operational Guidelines

1.4

iLink Session ID Certification Requirement

CME Group expects efficient and quality messaging at all times. Firms utilizing iLink session IDs are responsible foradhering to the following best practices and operational guidelines:• 1 MSGW iLink session ID should be utilized to access all market segments which the market participant istrading.
o Market participants should NOT dedicate 1 MSGW iLink session ID for each individual market
segment.
• Sequence numbers should be reset to “1” prior to the beginning of the week logon• Utilize Network Time Protocol (NTP)• Download the config.xml file for the Production Environment available on the CME Group ftp site at the beginningof each week. The file contains the Source and Multicast IP addresses as well as the product and group codes
for the production market data channels• Strict adherence to the following:o CME Globex Messaging Controlso CME Globex Messaging Efficiency Programo CME Globex Fault Toleranceo GCC Port Closure Policy

All application systems (tag 1603) utilized for iLink session ID order entry require mandatory certification. Separate
certification test suites are available for the MSGW and CGW session architecture and customers are required to certify
for the specific session architecture(s) they will be using for order entry.
Application systems utilized for MSGW iLink sessions will need to have completed both the iLink and MSGW certifications
to be considered production ready and meeting minimum certification requirements.
CME Globex iLink session ID certification documentation is available here.

1.5

Order Routing and Front-End Audit Trail Requirements

As announced in the Market Regulation Advisory Notice RA1509-5, all firms must comply with the new Order Routing andFront-End Audit Trail Requirements (Rule 536.B.). All new and currently certified iLink order routing applications mustcertify or recertify their trading systems to ensure full compliance with the new audit trail requirements.
Detailed information on the new specification is available in the Client Systems Wiki.
CME Group recommends all applications certifying to iLink and/or MSGW certify for the new audit trail requirements
simultaneously.
Questions regarding the new Order Routing and Front-End Audit Trail requirements should be submitted to:audittrail@cmegroup.com.

5|Page1.6

iLink Session ID Route-Through Functionality

Market participants often request separate CME Globex Firm IDs (GFIDs) as a means to differentiate iLink session order
flow originating from different business units or customers and/or targeted to clear with different clearing firms. Utilizing
unique GFIDs creates flexibility around operational support, risk management and access administration.
CME Group Globex technical architecture allows a single CGW or MSGW iLink session to support order routing on behalfof multiple GFIDs via the assigned FIX port by modifying the Tag 49-SenderCompID in the iLink order entry Businessmessages. Any of the valid SenderCompIDs can be used to establish the FIX connection.
•iLink session route-through restrictions include:
1. Customer-Side Server
 For iLink CGW sessions, all orders must be routed through the same customer-side server as only
one FIX connection can be active at any point in time.
 For iLink MSGW sessions, all orders must be routed through the same customer-side server per
market segment as only one FIX connection per segment can be active at any point in time. (Sameor different servers can be used for each segment but only 1 connection per session/segment
combination)
2. Order Entry System
 For iLink CGW sessions, all orders must route through the same application system.
 For iLink MSGW sessions, all orders must route through the same application system for eachsegment (can be different across segments)
3. The GFIDs needed must first be enabled for the iLink session within CME Group systems. This can be done
via iLink Self-Service application or via request to your Global Account Manager.
4. Messaging Controls apply to the FIX connection and will be shared with all route-throughs utilizing thesession ID.
5. iLink session IDs (CGW or MSGW) enabled for mass quoting or used for BMD or KRX Exchange order entry
do not support route-through functionality.
•

GFID impacts in relation to the iLink session policy:
1. When an iLink session is created, a primary GFID will be assigned. That iLink session will be included in the
total iLink session count for the primary GFID
2. Any secondary GFIDs added as route-throughs will not have the iLink session included in the secondary
GFIDs total iLink session count
3. Traded volume, used to calculate MIC, will be summed across all active SenderCompIDs associated with thatsession
4. Traded volume, used to calculate ADV for iLink session allocation tiers, will be assigned to the GFID indicatedin the SenderCompID responsible for the trade
5. An iLink session must have a primary GFID assigned in order to interact with the CME Globex platform•

Benefits of route-throughs:
1. Route-throughs allow for GFIDs from different clearing firms to utilize a single iLink session
2. Route-throughs allow customers to add multiple GFIDs to a single iLink session
 Reduces the need for multiple sessions
 Reduces cost
 Allows flexibility to send orders from different GFIDs down the same session
 Utilize session capacity from one GFID to overcome capacity shortfall in another3. Risk management tools such as Cancel on Disconnect and Kill Switch are managed at the SenderCompIDlevel, maintaining separation between all the route-through GFIDs
4. Drop Copy groups can be configured to receive data for each SenderCompID independently or at the iLink
session level.

6|PageExample:

Total Session Count

Not Using Route-Throughs
Session ID
GFID
ABC
123
DEF
456
GHI
789
3

SenderCompID
ABC123
DEF456
GHI789Total Session Count

Using Route-Throughs
Session ID
GFID
ABC
123
ABC
456
ABC
789
1

SenderCompID
ABC123
ABC456
ABC789Market participants interested in leveraging route-through functionality should contact their Global Account Manager withany questions or concerns in the U.S. at +1 312 634 8700, in Europe at +44 203 379 3754 or in Asia at +65 6593 5505 foradditional information.

1.7

Saturday Testing

Customers that need to test their iLink Session IDs on Saturdays when CME Group systems are available should contact
their Global Account Manager no later than Thursday, noon CT, preceding the Saturday test date. Please provide thefollowing information:• Date and Time of the test (CME Group supports most Saturday testing between 8:00 am – 1:00 pm CT)• Please consult the CME Group Globex Freeze Calendar for a list of dates when customer testing is not available.
• Contact information for the tester(s), including cell phone number and email address.
• List of iLink session IDs to be tested (no greater then 5), type of iLink Session ID (CGW or MSGW) and if MSGW,
what market segment(s) will be tested?
• Name of application system(s) to be tested.
• Scope of the testing or scenarios to be tested.
• CME Globex site ID(s) that will be utilized in the testing.
CME Group will make every effort to provide an agreeable testing window if it can be supported in the requested
timeframe and within the scope of CME Group work scheduled for that Saturday.

1.8

Related Policies, Programs and Guidelines

1.9

Risk Management Tools

All market participants should be aware of the following iLink session ID related policies, programs and guidelines:• Business Continuity Management• GCC Inbound Contacts - Order Status & Cancellation Procedure• GCC Targeted Messaging• Globex Roles and Entitlements

CME Group offers Globex customers and clearing firms a wide variety of risk tools which include the following:• Cancel on Disconnect• Credit Controls• Drop Copy
• FirmSoft• Inline Credit Controls (ICC)• Kill Switch• Risk Management Interface (RMI)• Self-Match Prevention (SMP)

7|Page2.0

iLink Session ID Policy
2.1 iLink Session ID Policy Objectives

In conjunction with the launch of the MSGW architecture, CME Group introduced a new iLink Session ID policy with thefollowing objectives:• Provide an objective rationale for iLink session distribution which is easy to explain and administer;• Incent more efficient use of both CGW & MSGW iLink session IDs;
• Effectively manage iLink session ID distribution in light of scaling limitations.

2.2

iLink Session ID Allocation

2.3

iLink Session ID Surcharges

Only CME Globex customers and vendors who have successfully certified to iLink order entry and have registered GCC
Outbound Contacts will be allocated CGW and/or MSGW iLink session IDs.

In an effort to optimize CME Group resource allocation and defray unnecessary expense associated with inactive iLink
session IDs, the following surcharges apply to both MSGW and CGW iLink session IDs. Please refer to the CME Globex
Notices for further information and any updates to this policy.
iLink Session Port Activation Charge(PAC)
A one-time surcharge for every new iLink session
created (MSGW or CGW).
••

MSGW PAC (per iLink session ID) - $250
CGW PAC (per iLink session ID) - $125

iLink Session Monthly Inactivity Charge(MIC)
A monthly surcharge for each iLink session ID(MSGW or CGW) that fails to meet a minimum
monthly volume threshold• MSGW: 1,000 sides per month• CGW: 100 sides per month• MSGW MIC (per iLink session ID) - $1,000• CGW MIC (per iLink session ID) - $100

In order to assist with the administration of the iLink Session Policy, Firm Administrator Dashboard (FADB) users have theability to view volume figures applicable to iLink Session ID Policy administration as well as assigned MSGW tierallocations.
•

Surcharge Terms and Conditionso Any CGW or MSGW iLink session ID, unless stated otherwise, which has the ability to route orders to any of thefollowing Exchanges will be held to all surcharge terms and conditions as noted in this document:- CME- CBOT- COMEX- NYMEXo In instances where iLink session ID surcharges are not administered directly to the customer, the clearing firm ofrecord shall be directly responsible for all associated iLink Session ID surcharges.
o
o
o
o
o

•

Clearing firm of record shall be free to establish and alter iLink session charges they apply to their customers fortheir service(s), provided that such prices do not misrepresent charges applied by CME Group in accordance withthis Policy.
All PAC(s) and MIC(s) will appear on the applicable CME Globex firm or clearing firm’s monthly billing statement.
PAC(s) will be assessed and applied immediately following the iLink session ID calendar date of creation and are
non-refundable.
MIC(s) will be applied as of the end of the first full calendar month following the iLink session ID date of creation if
the iLink session does not meet the minimum monthly volume threshold.
iLink session ID deletion requests submitted by the end of the calendar month will not be subject to the MIC.

Market participants may request a waiver of the PAC when changing clearing relationships if the transfer of an
existing GFID and associated iLink session IDs is not possible. In order for this waiver to apply, all existing iLink
session IDs associated with the prior clearing firm must be deleted.

8|Page2.4

CGW iLink Session ID Trade-in

Existing customers who wish to adopt the MSGW access model have the opportunity to “trade-in” their existing CGW iLink
session IDs for MSGW iLink session IDs and the PAC will be waived for one MSGW session for every two Convenience
Gateway (CGW) sessions that are traded-in.
Traded-in CGW iLink session IDs will be kept active for 3 weeks from the trade-in date. After which, they will no longer beable to be utilized for order entry purposes.

2.5

MSGW iLink Session ID Distribution

Please note that this section applies to MSGW iLink session IDs only. CGW iLink session IDs are not subject tothe limitations outlined below.
CME Group utilizes the following tiers to determine MSGW iLink session allocation and all firms will be subject toapplicable PAC, MIC and Excess Capacity (ECC) surcharges:

CME Globex Firm
Average Daily
Volume*0-9,999
10,000-24,999
25,000-49,999
50,000-74,999
75,000-99,999
100,000-249,999
250,000-499,999
500,000-999,999
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000

Tier
#
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11

MSGW
iLink Session ID
Maximum BaseAllowance
5
10
20
30
50
70
100
150
250
300
350

MSGW
iLink Session ID
Excess Capacity
Allowance**
2
3
4
6
10
15
20
30
50
60
70

MSGW
iLink Session ID
Total Allowance
7
13
24
36
60
85
120
180
300
360
420

*Measured in sides**Subject to monthly recurring charge regardless of usage•

MSGW iLink session tier allocation measurements, assignments and changes are based on the following:o Measure CME Globex Firm average daily volume and adjust tier assignments on a quarterly basis.
o The greater average daily volume of the last two quarters for a Globex Firm ID will be used to determine the iLink
session Tier # and subsequent maximum MSGW iLink session allocation.
o Market participants who experience fluctuations in their quarterly ADV and move down to a lower tier will havethe choice to relinquish all of their MSGW iLink session IDs that exceed their new Maximum Base Allowance or
pay a $500.00 Excess Capacity Charge for every MSGW iLink session which exceeds their Maximum BaseAllowance.
o Any changes to the average daily volume tiers shown above will be announced via the CME Globex Notice prior
to the start of the quarter in which the new tiers will apply.

2.6

MSGW iLink Session ID Excess Capacity Allowance

CME Group realizes that some market participants may require additional MSGW iLink session IDs above the maximum
base allowance available within their volume tier. As such, an excess capacity allowance has been created toaccommodate these needs.
As noted in Section 2.5, each additional MSGW iLink session ID allocated to market participants above the maximum
base allowance for the assigned tier will be subject to a $500 monthly recurring Excess Capacity Charge (ECC)
regardless of usage. Please note that these MSGW iLink sessions are still subject to both the PAC and MIC if minimum
monthly volume requirements are not met.

9|Page2.7

CME Direct iLink Session IDs

2.8

Mass Quote Market Maker iLink Session IDs

iLink session IDs utilized to facilitate market access for CME Direct are configured by CME Group and are not subject tothe requirements contained in this document. However, the volume attributed to CME Direct iLink session IDs is credited
to the CME Globex Firm ID when calculating ADV for the purposes of tier assignment. CME Direct iLink session IDs do
not count against the base or excess capacity session allowance described above.

iLink session IDs utilized for mass quote market making are subject to all CGW and MSGW pricing and volume
requirements contained in this document.
Existing customers who wish to adopt the MSGW access model have the opportunity to trade-in their existing CGW massquote enabled iLink session IDs for MSGW mass quote enabled iLink session IDs and the PAC will be waived for any
MSGW mass quote enabled session for every Convenience Gateway (CGW) mass quote session ID that is traded-in.

3.0Partner Exchanges

All Partner Exchange related iLink session ID inquiries should be directed to Partner Services Management in the U.S. at+1 312 634 8700, in Europe at +44 203 379 3754, or in Asia at +65 6593 5505.
Additional Partner Exchange information is available here.

4.0

Contact Us

Global Account Management (GAM)
United States: +1 312 634 8700
Europe: +44 20 3379 3754
Asia: +65 6593 5505

10 | P a g e

Revision History
Version

Date

AuthorDescription

1.0

9/14/2011

DT

Initial Release

1 .1

3/13/2011blf

Updated Section 1.1.1 Operation and Administration ofiLink Session IDs with new name of CME Globex iLink
Session Guides.

2.0

12/30/14

LS

Renamed doc to CME Globex iLink Session ID Operational
Guidelines and Pricing Policy

2.1

1/29/15

CR

Renamed document to CME Globex iLink Session ID
Policy and Operational Guidelines

2.2

2/9/15

CR

Various edits

2.3

4/9/15

CR

Revised mass quote, Phase 1 iLink session allocation,
MSGW tiers and fault Tolerance information.

2.4

8/17/15CR

Added Policy Updates section, modified mass quote
information and added PAC for MSGW session creation
with no trade-in.

2.5

9/9/15

CR

Various edits noted in Policy Updates

2.6

2/16/16

CR

Various edits to sections 1.1, 1.2, 1.4, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6 2.8
and 2.9. Added Revision History.

2.7

4/7/16

CR

Section 2.5 MSGW allocation increased from 30% to 50%.

Section 2.3 iLink session ID Monthly Inactivity Charge(MIC) update.
2.8

5/19/16

CR

Section 2.4 iLink session ID trade-in update.
Section 2.5 MSGW iLink session ID allocation increased
from 50% to 100%.

2.9

6/13/16

CR

Revised language in Section 2.5.

3.0

9/8/16

CR

Removed Policy Updates. Revised Sections 2.3-2.5.

3.1

9/19/16

CR

3.2

2/1/17

CR

Revised language in Section 2.3 to note clearing firm rightto alter Session ID surcharges in accordance with CME
Session ID Policy.

3.3

2/6/17KD

Added Section 2.5.1 pertaining to CME Europe MSGW iLink session
pricing and distribution.

3.4

9/7/17LS

3.5

10/27/17

CR

Revised language in Section 1.6 originally authored by NB.

Removed section 2.9 CME Europe

Removed Jackson Direct from Section 1.2.
Added ICC to Section 1.9

11 | P a g e

3.6

6/27/18

CR

3.7

2/7/19CR

3.8

12/2/19

CR

Removed password and added Secure Authentication to
Section 1.0.
Added BMD & KRX to Section 1.6.
Removed Section 1.10 iLink Architecture and Network
Enhancements

Revised Section 1.7 Saturday Testing

12 | P a g e