ZEROCONF

The specification for IPv4 Link-Local Addressing is complete, but the work to improve network ease-of-use (Zero Configuration Networking) continues. That means making it possible to take two laptop computers, and connect them with a crossover Ethernet cable, and have them communicate usefully using IP, without needing a man in a white lab coat to set it all up for you. Zeroconf is not limited to networks with just two hosts, but as we scale up our technologies to larger networks, we always have to be sure we haven't forgotten the two-devices... The IETF Zeroconf Working Group was chartered September 1999 and held its first official meeting at the 46 th IETF in Washington, D.C., in November 1999. By the time the Working Group completed its work on Dynamic Configuration of IPv4 Link-Local Addresses and wrapped up in July 2003, IPv4LL was implemented and shipping in Mac OS (9 & X), Microsoft Windows (98, ME, 2000, XP, 2003), in every network printer from every major printer vendor, and..