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Status:

INFORMATIONAL

Authors:

V. Cerf
S. Burleigh
A. Hooke
L. Torgerson
R. Durst
K. Scott
K. Fall
H. Weiss

Stream:

IRTF

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DOI:  https://doi.org/10.17487/RFC4838

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Abstract

This document describes an architecture for delay-tolerant anddisruption-tolerant networks, and is an evolution of the architectureoriginally designed for the Interplanetary Internet, a communicationsystem envisioned to provide Internet-like services acrossinterplanetary distances in support of deep space exploration. Thisdocument describes an architecture that addresses a variety ofproblems with internetworks having operational and performancecharacteristics that make conventional (Internet-like) networkingapproaches either unworkable or impractical. We define a message-oriented overlay that exists above the transport (or other) layers ofthe networks it interconnects. The document presents a motivationfor the architecture, an architectural overview, review of statemanagement required for its operation, and a discussion ofapplication design issues. This document represents the consensus ofthe IRTF DTN research group and has been widely reviewed by that group. This memo provides information for the Internet community.

For the definition ofStatus,seeRFC 2026.

For the definition ofStream, seeRFC 8729.