What is ISO/IEC TR 10172 - Network Transport Protocol interworking specification about?
ISO/IEC TR 10172 is a technical report that:
specifies the circumstances in which Interworking Functional Units may be used to provide the OSI Connection-mode transport service end-to-end between two end systems, where
- One of the end systems is accessed using the connection-mode transport protocol as defined in ISO 8073/Add.21) in combination with the protocol defined in ISO 8473
- The other end system is accessed using the connection-mode transport protocol as defined in ISO 8073 in combination with the procedures defined in ISO 8208/ISO 88782).
Specifies various sets of procedures for the operation of such Interworking Functional Units.
Specifies how IFUs which operate more than one of these sets of procedures may choose which set to use in a given instance, taking into account the possibility that some end systems may operate both types of Network Service.
Specifies the requirements for IFUs to operate in series and/or in parallel.
Note: Only the Network Layer Relay (NLR) mode of operation is within the scope of OSI. The Active Transport Layer Relay (ATLR) and Passive Transport Layer Relay (PTLR) modes of operation are not considered to be OSI operations because ISO 7498 does not define relaying to be a Transport Layer function.
The field of application also covers the case where the two end systems operate the same Network Layer protocol but are interconnected via IFUs employing ATLR or PTLR operation.
Who is ISO/IEC TR 10172 - Network Transport Protocol interworking specification for?
ISO/IEC TR 10172 on Network Transport Protocol interworking specification is useful for:
- The Information technology industry
- The electronics telecommunication industry
- Network service providers
- Electronics engineers/ relevant technical teams
Why should you use ISO/IEC TR 10172 - Network Transport Protocol interworking specification?
There exist today two different types of data communications network layer protocols under the auspices of ISO Open Systems Interconnection (OSI), yet systems operating either of these protocol types cannot interconnect. The Connection-mode Network Protocol (CONP) ISO 8208/(X.25) operated in accordance with ISO 8878 cannot interwork with the Connectionless-mode Network Protocol (CLNP) ISO 8473.
In order to achieve interworking of these two disparate protocols there is need for a mediating device to perform relaying and/or conversion of PDUs from one network protocol type to another, this device is termed an Interworking Functional Unit (IFU). In solving this problem of CO/CL Interworking two broad objectives must be considered:
- The IFU must not impose any changes on existing end-systems or recognized standards, its operation must be transparent to end-systems; and
- It must provide interconnection to the widest user community within its scope of operation.
ISO/IEC TR 10172 identifies a CO/CL interworking solution which is based on three modes of operation: a network layer relay mode (NLR), a passive transport layer relay (PTLR) mode, and an active transport layer relay (ATLR) mode.