Session Date/Time: 28 Jul 2023 19:00

bier

Summary

The BIER working group meeting covered several draft statuses and technical discussions. Key topics included the status of drafts in the ISG queue, updates on OEM-related documents, Beer N6 draft updates, an extension for bit position signaling, a draft addressing duplicate packets on broadcast links, and beer extension header updates. Alignment with MPLS for certain functionalities was a recurring theme, as well as the need for clear requirements and use cases to guide the development of new extensions. There was also discussion about a potential BIER interoperability event as part of the IETF Hackathon in Prague.

Key Discussion Points

Draft Status Updates: Discussed drafts in the ISGQ, those awaiting shepherd write-ups, and drafts ready for last call. Highlighted the overloaded state of the ISGQ.
Stig's Draft (extension 9279 in PIM): Discussed whether to publish the draft as is (with a known limitation requiring PIM for DF election) or wait for a generic DF election solution. The room leaned toward waiting for a DF election solution.
OEM-Related Documents: Reviewed progress on OEM requirements, ping, NTU discovery, BFD, and performance measurement drafts. The importance of BIER ping for deployment was emphasized. Discussion about minimizing the negative impact of massive responses during performance measurements in multicast environments, potentially by using Bitmask.
Beer N6 Draft: Requested working group last call.
Bit Position Signaling Extensions: Discussion on consolidating the IS-IS, OSPF, and OSPFv3 drafts into a single draft for bit position signaling, and a separate one for BGP signaling.
BRT for Broadcast Link: A draft addressing duplicate packets on broadcast links. A participant questioned the validity of the problem, suggesting it could be avoided by configuration/controller means.
Beer Extension Headers: Discussed alignment with MPLS for extension headers, noting the ongoing debate in the MPLS working group and the need to tread carefully. In-situ OEM was mentioned as a potential use case.
Potential Interoperability Event: Discussed a potential BIER interoperability event in Prague during the IETF Hackathon, with several vendors expressing interest.

Decisions and Action Items

Stig's Draft (extension 9279 in PIM): Wait for a generic DF election solution draft. ICE will be contacted to resurrect/continue work on a previous draft.
Bit Position Signaling Extensions: Authors will consider consolidating IS-IS, OSPF, and OSPFv3 bit position signalling extensions into a single document.
BRT for Broadcast Link: Sandy will articulate his arguments and concerns about the solution on the mailing list.
Beer Extension Headers: Requirements should be documented and the ADs should be informed before forking away from what MPLS is doing.
BIER Interoperability Event: Jeffrey will send out an email to the mailing list regarding the potential interoperability event in Prague.

Next Steps

Shepherds to complete write-ups for drafts in the ISGQ.
Take Beer N6 to the list for last call.
Authors to address comments and considerations from the meeting on each of the respective drafts.
Continue discussions on the mailing list, particularly regarding the BRT draft and controller intelligence vs. RFC procedures.
Further planning and coordination for the potential interoperability event in Prague.