Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) T. Winter, Ed.
Request for Comments: 6550
Category: Standards Track P. Thubert, Ed.
ISSN: 2070-1721 Cisco Systems
A. Brandt
Sigma Designs
J. Hui
Arch Rock Corporation
R. Kelsey
Ember Corporation
P. Levis
Stanford University
K. Pister
Dust Networks
R. Struik
Struik Security Consultancy
JP. Vasseur
Cisco Systems
R. Alexander
Cooper Power Systems
March 2012
RPL: IPv6 Routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks
Abstract
Low-Power and Lossy Networks (LLNs) are a class of network in which
both the routers and their interconnect are constrained. LLN routers
typically operate with constraints on processing power, memory, and
energy (battery power). Their interconnects are characterized by
high loss rates, low data rates, and instability. LLNs are comprised
of anything from a few dozen to thousands of routers. Supported
traffic flows include point-to-point (between devices inside the
LLN), point-to-multipoint (from a central control point to a subset
of devices inside the LLN), and multipoint-to-point (from devices
inside the LLN towards a central control point). This document
specifies the IPv6 Routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks
(RPL), which provides a mechanism whereby multipoint-to-point traffic
from devices inside the LLN towards a central control point as well
as point-to-multipoint traffic from the central control point to the
devices inside the LLN are supported. Support for point-to-point
traffic is also available.
Winter, et al. Standards Track [Page 1]RFC 6550 RPL March 2012Status of This Memo
This is an Internet Standards Track document.
This document is a product of the Internet Engineering Task Force
(IETF). It represents the consensus of the IETF community. It has
received public review and has been approved for publication by the
Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG). Further information on
Internet Standards is available in Section 2 of RFC 5741.
Information about the current status of this document, any errata,
and how to provide feedback on it may be obtained at
http://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc6550.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (c) 2012 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
document authors. All rights reserved.
This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
Provisions Relating to IETF Documents
(http://trustee.ietf.org/license-info) in effect on the date of
publication of this document. Please review these documents
carefully, as they describe your rights and restrictions with respect
to this document. Code Components extracted from this document must
include Simplified BSD License text as described in Section 4.e of
the Trust Legal Provisions and are provided without warranty as
described in the Simplified BSD License.
Winter, et al. Standards Track [Page 2]RFC 6550 RPL March 2012Table of Contents
1. Introduction ....................................................8
1.1. Design Principles ..........................................8
1.2. Expectations of Link-Layer Type ...........................10
2. Terminology ....................................................10
3. Protocol Overview ..............................................13
3.1. Topologies ................................................13
3.1.1. Constructing Topologies ............................13
3.1.2. RPL Identifiers ....................................14
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