Working group issue tracking: http://www.drizzle.org/~aboba/ZEROCONF/issues.html The goal of the Zero Configuration Networking (ZEROCONF) Working Group is to enable networking in the absence of configuration and administration. Zero configuration networking is required for environments where administration is impractical or impossible, such as in the home or small office, embedded systems 'plugged together' as in an automobile, or to allow impromptu networks as between the devices of strangers on a train. ZEROCONF will make networking as easy as possible, but no easier. In some cases other considerations may dominate ease of use. For example, network security requires some configuration which may not be as easy as the unacceptable alternative of 'no security.' The working group was orginally chartered to develop a requirements specification for host and application operation in environments lacking configuration. The areas for consideration included: * Interface Configuration (IP address, network prefix, gateway router) * Name-to-Address Translation * Service Discovery * Automatic allocation of Multicast Addresses * Sufficient security features to prevent networks from being any less secure than networks which do not use ZEROCONF protocols The ZEROCONF WG could not come to a consensus regarding these requirements. A ZEROCONF requirements document will not be published by this working group. This WG will produce one protocol specification, describing automatic generation and assignment of link-local IPv4 addresses in environments lacking host configuration (static or using DHCP). The document will describe existing practice as well as define recommendations for future implementations.