An Abstract Application Programming Interface for Transport Services
RFC 9622, “An Abstract Application Programming Interface for Transport Services”, is a Proposed Standard document published in January 2025 by B. Trammell, M. Welzl, R. Enghardt, G. Fairhurst, M. Kühlewind, C. S. Perkins, P.S. Tiesel, T. Pauly. The canonical text is published by the RFC Editor.
Abstract
This document describes an abstract Application Programming Interface (API) to the transport layer that enables the selection of transport protocols and network paths dynamically at runtime. This API enables faster deployment of new protocols and protocol features without requiring changes to the applications. The specified API follows the Transport Services Architecture by providing asynchronous, atomic transmission of Messages. It is intended to replace the BSD Socket API as the common interface to the transport layer, in an environment where endpoints could select from multiple network paths and potential transport protocols.
What “Proposed Standard” means
An entry-level standards-track specification: stable, peer-reviewed and a solid basis for implementation, though it may still evolve before becoming an Internet Standard.
The canonical text of RFC 9622 is hosted at rfc-editor.org. Available in HTML,TXT,PDF,XML.
- RFC 9621 Architecture and Requirements for Transport Services
- RFC 9623 Implementing Interfaces to Transport Services
- RFC 9626 Video Frame Marking RTP Header Extension
- RFC 9627 The Layer Refresh Request RTCP Feedback Message
- RFC 9628 RTP Payload Format for VP9 Video
- RFC 9609 Initializing a DNS Resolver with Priming Queries
- RFC 9664 An EDNS Option to Negotiate Leases on DNS Updates
- RFC 9665 Service Registration Protocol for DNS-Based Service Discovery