RFC 863 · INTERNET STANDARD · 1983
MON · 15 JUN 2026
Discard Protocol
Overview
RFC 863, “Discard Protocol”, is an Internet Standard document published in May 1983 by J. Postel. The canonical text is published by the RFC Editor.
Abstract
This RFC specifies a standard for the ARPA Internet community. Hosts on the ARPA Internet that choose to implement a Discard Protocol are expected to adopt and implement this standard. The Discard service simply throws away any data it receives.
What “Internet Standard” means
A mature, widely-implemented specification that has completed the full IETF standards process — the highest maturity level on the standards track.
Read this RFC
The canonical text of RFC 863 is hosted at rfc-editor.org. Available in TXT,HTML.
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