Session Date/Time: 25 Jul 2025 09:30

nfsv4

Summary

The NFSv4 working group meeting covered the status of adopted documents, ongoing draft development, and addressed administrative issues. Key discussions revolved around internationalization, the adoption of POSIX draft ACLs, and the complexities of concurrent writers in distributed environments. The group also discussed the need for clearer definitions and semantics for POSIX draft ACLs, as well as the potential for GitHub integration to facilitate incremental document review.

Key Discussion Points

Internationalization: The WG discussed updating the internationalization document and addressing concerns about referencing obsolete RFCs. The goal is to resolve objections and move it out of last call.
POSIX Draft ACL Adoption: There was general consensus to adopt the POSIX draft ACL, though discussions continue regarding the "per-file" ACL scope and the handling of Verify/N-Verify attributes.
Concurrent Writers: The group recognized the need to define semantics for concurrent, overlapping writers in NFS, highlighting that the current "last writer wins" model is problematic.
Erasure Coding: Continued discussion on erasure coding including the role of the MDS and DS with agreement that implementation details should not be dictated by the protocol, and focus on setting requirements for the DSs.
5661-bis & Reviewability: The WG discussed renaming RFC 5661 BIS to 8881 BIS. There was a strong push for breaking it into smaller chunks to increase review participation.
GitHub Integration: There was a discussion on using GitHub workflows to improve document review, facilitate incremental changes, and track issues, though some concerns were raised regarding the need for globally visible accounts.
Interim Meetings: The working group discussed the value and format of interim meetings, with a focus on having a well-defined agenda and actionable outcomes.
Security Draft: No offers were made to review this draft.

Decisions and Action Items

Adopt POSIX Draft ACL: The working group will proceed with adopting the POSIX draft ACL.
Rename 5661-bis to 8881-bis: The WG will move forward with renaming the RFC.
Implement GitHub Workflow: The chairs will explore implementing a GitHub workflow to facilitate document review and issue tracking, starting with converting existing drafts to Markdown.
Rick to Seed ACL Discussion: Rick will send an email to the working group mailing list summarizing the recent discussion on ACLs.
Chairs to Catch Up and Plan Roadmap: The chairs will discuss the list of outstanding documents, prioritize them, and develop a roadmap for progression.
Dave to Update 5661bis: Update draft 12 to become 5661-12 BIS (or 8881-12BIS), and address the unsupported AD issue
Chairs to look at getting security draft reviewed: As the security draft had no offers for review

Next Steps

Address the identified action items.
Organize an interim meeting before the next IETF meeting.
Continue discussions on defining concurrent writer semantics.
Explore ways to encourage more active review of drafts, particularly the security draft.