Wiley IP Multicast With Applications To IPTV and Mobile

IP MULTICAST WITH
APPLICATIONS TO IPTV
AND MOBILE DVB-H
Daniel Minoli
A JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC., PUBLICATION

IP MULTICAST WITH
AND MOBILE DVB-H
IP MULTICAST WITH
AND MOBILE DVB-H
Daniel Minoli
A JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC., PUBLICATION

Copyright 2008 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Published simultaneously in Canada
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Minoli, Daniel, 1952-

IP multicast with applications to IPTV and mobile DVB-H / Daniel Minoli.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-470-25815-6 (cloth)
1. Webcasting. 2. Internet television. 3. Digital video. I. Title.
TK5105.887M578 2008
006.7–dc22
2007038116
Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For Anna and the kids.
And for my parents Gino and Angela
Also thanking
Mike Neen
CONTENTS
Preface xiii
About the Author xv
1 INTRODUCTION TO IP MULTICAST 1
1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 Why Multicast Protocols are Wanted/Needed 3
1.3 Basic Multicast Protocols and Concepts 5
1.4 IPTV and DVB-H Applications 11
1.5 Course of Investigation 21
Appendix 1.A: Multicast IETF Request for Comments 21
Appendix 1.B: Multicast Bibliography 23
References 23
2 MULTICAST ADDRESSING FOR PAYLOAD 26

2.1 IP Multicast Addresses 26
2.1.1 Limited Scope Addresses 29
2.1.2 GLOP Addressing 30
2.1.3 Generic IPv4 Addressing 30
2.2 Layer 2 Multicast Addresses 31
2.2.1 Ethernet MAC Address Mapping 31
2.3 MPEG-Layer Addresses 33
References 38
3 MULTICAST PAYLOAD FORWARDING 39

3.1 Multicasting on a LAN Segment 40
3.2 Multicasting between Network Segments 40
3.3 Multicast Distribution Trees 41
3.4 Multicast Forwarding: Reverse Path Forwarding 47
3.5 Multicast Forwarding: Center-Based Tree Algorithm 48
3.6 Implementing IP Multicast in a Network 49
References 50
vii
viii CONTENTS
4 DYNAMIC HOST REGISTRATION—INTERNET

GROUP MANAGEMENT PROTOCOL 51
4.1 IGMP Messages 52
4.2 IGMPv3 Messages 55
4.3 IGMP Operation 61
Appendix 4.A: Protocol Details for IGMPv2 63
4.A.1 Overview 63
4.A.2 Protocol Description 64
4.A.3 Receiver (Host) State Diagram 65
4.A.4 Router State Diagram 69
Appendix 4.B: IGMP Snooping Switches 72
Appendix 4.C: Example of Router Configurations 76
References 77
5 MULTICAST ROUTING—SPARSE-MODE PROTOCOLS:

PROTOCOL INDEPENDENT MULTICAST 78
5.1 Introduction to PIM 79
5.2 PIM SM Details 83
5.2.1 Approach 86
5.2.2 PIM SM Protocol Overview 86
5.2.3 Detailed Protocol Description 94
5.2.4 Packet Formats 114
References 124
6 MULTICAST ROUTING—SPARSE-MODE PROTOCOLS:

CORE-BASED TREES 125
6.1 Motivation 126
6.2 Basic Operation 127
6.3 CBT Components and Functions 129
6.3.1 CBT Control Message Retransmission Strategy 131
6.3.2 Nonmember Sending 131
6.4 Core Router Discovery 131
6.5 Protocol Specification Details 132
6.5.1 CBT HELLO Protocol 133
6.5.2 JOIN_REQUEST Processing 134
6.5.3 JOIN_ACK Processing 135
6.5.4 QUIT_NOTIFICATION Processing 135
6.5.5 ECHO_REQUEST Processing 136
6.5.6 ECHO_REPLY Processing 137
CONTENTS ix
6.5.7 FLUSH_TREE Processing 137

6.5.9 Timers and Default Values 138
6.5.10 CBT Packet Formats and Message Types 138
6.5.11 Core Router Discovery 142
6.6 CBT Version 3 145
6.6.1 The First Step: Joining the Tree 145
6.6.2 Transient State 146
6.6.3 Getting ‘‘On Tree’’ 146
6.6.4 Pruning and Prune State 147
6.6.5 The Forwarding Cache 147
6.6.6 Packet Forwarding 148
6.6.7 The ‘‘Keepalive’’ Protocol 148
6.6.8 Control Message Precedence
and Forwarding Criteria 149
6.6.9 Broadcast LANs 149
6.6.10 The ‘‘all-cbt-routers’’ Group 150
References 151
7 MULTICAST ROUTING—DENSE-MODE
PROTOCOLS: PIM DM 152
7.1 Overview 152
7.2 Basic PIM DM Behavior 153
7.3 Protocol Specification 155
7.3.1 PIM Protocol State 156
7.3.2 Data Packet Forwarding Rules 158
7.3.3 Hello Messages 159
7.3.4 PIM DM Prune, Join, and Graft Messages 160
7.3.5 State Refresh 170
7.3.6 PIM Assert Messages 175
7.3.7 PIM Packet Formats 182
References 184
8 OTHER DENSE-MODE MULTICAST ROUTING PROTOCOLS:

DVMRP AND MOSPF 185
8.1 Distance Vector Multicast Algorithm 185
8.1.1 Overview 185
8.1.2 Basic DVMRP Operation 186
x CONTENTS
8.2 Multicast OSPF 190

References 193
9 IP MULTICASTING IN IPv6 ENVIRONMENTS 194

9.1 Opportunities Offered by IPv6 194
9.2 Introductory Overview of IPv6 196
9.2.1 IPv6 Benefits 197
9.2.2 Traditional Addressing Classes for IPv4 198
9.2.3 Network Address Translation Issues in IPv4 199
9.2.4 IPv6 Address Space 200
9.2.5 Basic Protocol Constructs 201
9.2.6 IPv6 Autoconfiguration 204
9.3 Migration and Coexistence 208
9.4 Multicast with IPv6 211
9.4.1 IPv6 Multicast Addresses 211
9.4.2 MAC Layer Addresses 211
9.4.3 Signaling 213
9.4.4 RP Approaches 213
References 213
10 MULTICAST LISTENER DISCOVERY 215

10.1 Overview of MLDv1 216
10.2 Message Format 216
10.3 Protocol Description 218
10.4 Node State Transition Diagram 220
10.5 Router State Transition Diagram 223
10.6 Overview of MLDv2 226
10.6.1 Protocol Overview 227
10.6.2 Building Multicast Listening State on Multicast
Address Listeners 228
10.6.3 Exchanging Messages between the Querier
and the Listening Nodes 228
10.6.4 Building Multicast Address Listener State
on Multicast Routers 230
10.7 Source Filtering 232
References 233
CONTENTS xi
11 IPTV APPLICATIONS 234

11.1 Overview and Motivation 234
11.2 Basic Architecture 236
11.2.1 Content Aggregation Subsystem 244
11.2.2 Uniform Transcoding Subsystem 245
11.2.3 Conditional-Access Management Subsystem 251
11.2.4 Encapsulation Subsystem 258
11.2.5 Long-Haul Distribution Subsystem 262
11.2.6 Local Distribution Subsystem 264
11.2.7 Middleware Subsystem 267
11.2.8 Set-Top Boxes 267
11.2.9 Catcher (for VoD Services) 269
Appendix 11.A: Serial Digital Interface Basics 269
Appendix 11.B: MPEG Basics 271
11.B.1 MPEG-2 Transport/Multiplexing Mechanisms 271
11.B.2 IPTV/IP Transmission over TS Logical Channels 279
11.B.3 Compression Technology 281
Appendix 11.C: Encapsulation for Transmission of IP Datagrams over
MPEG-2/DVB Networks 298
References 300
12 DVB-H: HIGH-QUALITY TV TO CELL PHONES 303

12.1 Background and Motivation 304
12.2 Basic DVB-H Technology 311
12.2.1 DVB-H Mobile Devices 315
Appendix 12.A: Open Mobile Video Coalition Efforts 317
References 318
Glossary 319
Index 349
PREFACE
This book updates early-release published work undertaken by the author in the
early-to-mid-1990s on the topic of video-for-telcos (‘‘telco TV”), video-over-packet,
video-over-DLS, and video-over-ATM contained in the book Video Dialtone Technol-
ogy: Digital Video over ADSL, HFC, FTTC, and ATM, McGraw-Hill, 1995, and based
on extensive hands-on work on broadband communications and digital video/digital
imaging. At this juncture, the focus of this book (and for this industry) is completely on
commercial-quality video over IP, IPTV.
Of late there has been renewed interest in IP multicast protocols and technologies
because of the desire by traditional telephone companies to deliver entertainment-level
video services over their network using next-generation infrastructures based on IP
networking, by the cell phone companies for video streams to hand held telephone sets
and personal digital assistants (PDAs), and by the traditional TV broadcast companies
seeking to enter the same mobile video market. Critical factors in multicasting include
bandwidth efficiency and delivery tree topology optimization.
IP multicast technology is stable and relatively easy to implement, particularly for
architecturally simple (yet large) networks. A lot of the basic IP multicast mechanisms
were developed in the mid-to-late 1980s, with other basic work undertaken in the 1980s.
A number of recent functional enhancements have been added. From a commercial
deployment perspective, IP multicast is now where IP was in the mid-1990s: poised to
take off and experience widespread deployment. Examples of applications requiring
one-to-many or many-to-many communications include but are not limited to digital
entertainment video and audio distribution, multisite corporate videoconferencing,
broad distribution financial data, stock quotes and news bulletins, database replication,
software distribution, and content caching (for example, Web site caching).
The text literature on IP multicast is limited and somewhat dated, particularly in
reference to IPTV applications. This compact text is intended for practitioners that seek
a quick practical review of the topic with emphasis on the major and most-often used
aspects of the technology. Given its focus on IPTV and DVB-H it can also be used by
technology integrators and service providers that wish to enter this field.
Following an introductory discussion in Chapter 1, Chapter 2 covers multicast
addressing for payload distribution. Chapter 3 focuses on multicast payload forwarding.
Chapter 4 covers the important topic of dynamic host registration using the Internet
Group Management Protocol. Chapter 5 looks at multicast routing in sparse-mode
environments and the broadly used PIM-SM. Chapter 6 discusses CBT. Chapter 7 looks
at multicast routing for dense-mode protocols and PIM-DM in particular. Chapter 8
xiii
xiv PREFACE
examines DVMRP and MOSPF. The next chapter, Chapter 9, covers IP multicasting in
IPv6 environments. Chapter 10 looks at Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) snooping
switches. Finally, Chapters 11 and 12 give examples in the IPTV and (mobile) DVB-H
environments, respectively. Portions of the presentation are pivoted off and summarized
from fundamental RFCs; other key sections are developed here for the first time, based
on the author’s multidecade experience in digital video. The reference RFCs and
protocols are placed in the proper context of a commercial-grade infrastructure for the
delivery of robust, entertainment-quality linear and nonlinear video programming.
Telephone carriers (telcos), cell phone companies, traditional TV broadcasters,
cable TV companies, equipment manufacturers, content providers, content aggregators,
satellite companies, venture capitalists, and colleges and technical schools can make use
of this text. The text can be used for a college course on IP multicast and/or IPTV. There
is now a global interest by all the telcos in Europe, Asia, and North America to enter the
IPTV and DVB-H market in order to replace revenues that have eroded to cable TV
companies and wireless providers. Nearly all the traditional telcos worldwide are
looking into these technologies at this juncture. Telcos need to compete with cable
companies and IPTV and DVB-H is the way to do it. In fact, even the cable TV
companies themselves are looking into upgrading their ATM technology to IP. This
book is a brand-new look at the IP multicast space.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Daniel Minoli has many years of technical hands-on and managerial experience
(including budget and/or PL responsibility) in networking, telecom, video, enterprise
architecture, and security for global best-in-class carriers and financial companies. He
has worked at AIG, ARPA think tanks, Bell Telephone Laboratories, ITT, Prudential
Securities, Bell Communications Research (now Telcordia), AT&T, Capital One
Financial, and SES AMERICOM, where he is director of terrestrial systems engineer-
ing. Previously, he also played a founding role in the launching of two companies
through the high-tech incubator Leading Edge Networks Inc., which he ran in the early
2000s; Global Wireless Services, a provider of secure broadband hotspot mobile
Internet and hotspot VoIP services; and InfoPort Communications Group, an optical
and Gigabit Ethernet metropolitan carrier supporting Data Center/SAN/channel exten-
sion and Grid Computing network access services.
For several years he has been Session-, Tutorial-, or overall Technical Program
Chair for the IEEE ENTNET (Enterprise Networking) conference. ENTNET focuses on
enterprise networking requirements for large financial firms and other corporate
institutions.
At SES AMERICOM, Mr. Minoli has been responsible for engineering satellite-
based IPTV and DVB-H systems. This included overall engineering design, deploy-
ment, and operation of SD/HD encoding, inner/outer AES encryption, Conditional
Access Systems, video middleware, Set Top boxes, Headends, and related terrestrial
connectivity. At Bellcore/Telcordia, he did extensive work on broadband; on video-on-
demand for the RBOCs (then known as Video Dialtone); on multimedia over ISDN/
ATM; and on distance learning (satellite) networks. At DVI he deployed (satellite-
based) distance-learning system for William Patterson College. At Stevens Institute of
Technology (Adjunct), he taught about a dozen graduate courses on digital video. At
AT&T, he deployed large broadband networks also to support video applications, for
example, video over ATM. At Capital One, he was involved with the deployment of
corporate Video-on-demand over the IP-based intranet. As a consultant he handled the
technology-assessment function of several high-tech companies seeking funding,
developing multimedia, digital video, physical layer switching, VSATs, telemedicine,
Java-based CTI, VoFR & VPNs, HDTV, optical chips, H.323 gateways, nanofabrication/
(Quantum Cascade Lasers), wireless, and TMN mediation.
Mr. Minoli has also written columns for ComputerWorld, NetworkWorld, and
Network Computing (1985–2006). He has taught at New York University (Information
Technology Institute), Rutgers University, Stevens Institute of Technology, and
xv
xvi ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Monmouth University (1984–2006). Also, he was a Technology Analyst At-Large, for

Gartner/DataPro (1985–2001); based on extensive hand-on work at financial firms and
carriers, he tracked technologies and wrote around 50 CTO/CIO-level technical/
architectural scans in the area of telephony and data systems, including topics on
security, disaster recovery, IT outsourcing, network management, LANs, WANs (ATM
and MPLS), wireless (LAN and public hotspot), VoIP, network design/economics,
carrier networks (such as metro Ethernet and CWDM/DWDM), and e-commerce. Over
the years, he has advised Venture Capitals for investments of $150M in a dozen high-
tech companies. He has acted as Expert Witness in a (won) $11B lawsuit regarding a
VoIP-based wireless Air-to-Ground communication system, and has been involved as a
technical expert in a number of patent infringement proceedings.
1
INTRODUCTION TO IP
MULTICAST
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Although “not much” new has occurred in the “science” of the Internet Protocol (IP)
multicast space in the past few years, there is now keen interest in this technology because
of the desire by traditional telephone companies to deliver entertainment-level video
services over their networks using next-generation infrastructures based on IP
networking and by the cell phone companies to deliver video streams to handheld
telephone sets and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs). A critical factor in multicasting is
bandwidth efficiency in the transport network. IP multicast, defined originally in RFC
988 (Request for Comments) (1986) and then further refined in RFC 1054 (1988), RFC
1112 (1989), RFC 2236 (1977), RFC 3376 (2002), and RFC 4604 (2006), among others,
is the basic mechanism for these now-emerging applications. The technology is stable
and relatively well understood, particularly for architecturally simple (yet large)
networks.
Even in spite of the opening statement above, enhancements to IP multicast have
actually occurred in the recent past, including the issuing of Internet Group Management
Protocol (IGMP), Version 3 (October 2002); the issuing of Multicast Listener Discovery
IP Multicast with Applications to IPTV and Mobile DVB-H by Daniel Minoli

Copyright 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
1
2 INTRODUCTION TO IP MULTICAST
(MLD), Version 2 for IP, Version 6 (IPv6) (June 2004); the issuing of Source-Specific
Multicast (SSM) for IP (August 2006); and the publication of new considerations for
IGMP and MLD snooping switches (May 2006). Work is also underway to develop
new protocols and architectures to enable better deployment of IP over Moving Pictures
Expert Group 2 (MPEG-2) transport and provide easier interworking with IP networks.
From a commercial deployment perspective, IP multicast is now where IP was in the
mid-1990s: poised to take off and experience widespread deployment. Examples of
applications requiring one-to-many or many-to-many communications include, but are
not limited to, digital entertainment video and audio distribution, multisite corporate
videoconferencing, broad-distribution financial data, grid computing, stock quotes and
news bulletins distribution, database replication, software distribution, and content
caching (e.g., Web site caching).
This book provides a concise guide to the IP multicast technology and its applica-
tions. It is an updated survey of the field with the underlying focus on IP-based Television
(IPTV)1 (also known in some quarters as telco TV) and Digital Video Broadcast—
Handheld (DVB-H) applications.
IPTV deals with approaches, technologies, and protocols to deliver commercial-
grade Standard-Definition (SD) and High-Definition (HD) entertainment-quality real-
time linear and on-demand video content over IP-based networks, while meeting all
prerequisite Quality of Service (QoS), Quality of Experience (QoE), Conditional Access
(CA) (security), blackout management (for sporting events), Emergency Alert System
(EAS), closed captions, parental controls, Nielsen rating collection, secondary audio
channel, picture-in-picture, and guide data requirements of the content providers and/or
regulatory entities. Typically, IPTV makes use of Moving Pictures Expert Group 4
(MPEG-4) encoding to deliver 200–300 SD channels and 20–40 HD channels; viewers
need to be able to switch channels within 2 s or less; also, the need exists to support
multi-set-top boxes/multiprogramming (say 2–4) within a single domicile. IPTV is not to
be confused with simple delivery of video over an IP network (including video
streaming), which has been possible for over two decades; IPTV supports all business,
billing, provisioning, and content protection requirements that are associated with
commercial video distribution. IP-based service needs to be comparable to that received
over cable TVor direct broadcast satellite. In addition to TV sets, the content may also be
delivered to a personal computer. MPEG-4, which operates at 2.5 Mbps for SD video and
8–11 Mbps for HD video, is critical to telco-based video delivery over a copper-based
plant because of the bandwidth limitations of that plant, particularly when multiple
simultaneous streams need to be delivered to a domicile; MPEG-2 would typically
require a higher bit rate for the same perceived video quality. IP multicast is typically
employed to support IPTV.2
1
Some also use the expansion “IPTV (Internet TV),” e.g., CHA 200701. We retain the more general
perspective of IPTV as TV (video, video on demand, etc.) distributed over any kind of IP-based network
(including possibly the Internet).
2
While some have advanced Peer-to-Peer (P2P) models for IPTV (e.g., see CHA 200701), nearly all the
commercial deployment to date is based on the classical client–server model; this is the model discussed in
this book.
WHY MULTICAST PROTOCOLS ARE WANTED/NEEDED 3
Properly, DVB-H is a protocol. More broadly, DVB-H deals with approaches

and technologies to deliver commercial-grade, medium-quality, real-time linear and
on-demand video content to handheld, battery-powered devices such as mobile
telephones and PDAs. IP multicast is also typically employed to support DVB-H.
1.2 WHY MULTICAST PROTOCOLS ARE WANTED/NEEDED
There are three types of communication between systems in an IP network:
. Unicast—here one system communicates directly to another system

. Broadcast—here one system communicates to all systems
. Multicast—here one system communicates to a select group of other systems
In traditional IP networks, a packet is typically sent by a source to a single destination

(unicast); alternatively, the packet can be sent to all devices on the network (broadcast).
There are business- and multimedia-entertainment applications that require a multicast
transmission mechanism to enable bandwidth-efficient communication between groups
of devices where information is transmitted to a single multicast address and received by
any device that wishes to obtain such information. In traditional IP networks, it is not
possible to generate a single transmission of data when this data is destined for a (large)
group of remote devices. There are classes of applications that require distribution of
information to a defined (but possibly dynamic) set of users. IP multicast, an extension to
IP, is required to properly address these communication needs. As the term implies, IP
multicast has been developed to support efficient communication between a source and
multiple remote destinations.
Multicast applications include, among others, datacasting, distribution of real-
time financial data, entertainment digital television over an IP network (commer-
cial-grade IPTV), Internet radio, multipoint video conferencing, distance learning,
streaming media applications, and corporate communications. Other applications
include distributed interactive simulation, grid computing [MIN200401], and dis-
tributed video gaming (where most receivers are also senders). IP multicast protocols
and underlying technologies enable efficient distribution of data, voice, and video
streams to a large population of users, ranging from hundreds to thousands to millions
of users. IP multicast technology enjoys intrinsic scalability, which is critical for these
types of applications.
As an example in the IPTVarena, with the current trend toward the delivery of High-
Definition TV (HDTV) signals, each requiring in the 12-Mbps range, and the consumers
desire for a large number of channels (200–300 being typical), there has to be an efficient
mechanism of delivering a signal of 1–2 Gbps3 in aggregate to a large number of remote
3
Currently a typical digital TV package may consist of 200–250 SD signals each operating at 3 Mbps and
30–40 HD signals each operating at 12 Mbps; this equates to about 1 Gbps; as more HDTV signals are added,
the bandwidth will reach in the range of 2 Gbps.
users. If a source had to deliver one Gbps of signal to, say, one million receivers by
transmitting all of this bandwidth across the core network, it would require a petabit–
per-second network fabric; this is not currently possible. On the contrary, if the source
could send the 1 Gbps of traffic to (say) 50 remote distribution points (e.g., headends),
each of which then makes use of a local distribution network to reach 20,000 subscribers,
the core network needs to support 50 Gbps only, which is possible with proper design. For
these kinds of reasons, IP multicast is seen as a bandwidth-conserving technology that
optimizes traffic management by simultaneously delivering a stream of information to a
large population of recipients, including corporate enterprise users and residential
customers. See Figure 1.1 for a pictorial example.
Traditional unicast IP
R
R
Multicast IP
R
R
S = Source
R = Receiver
Figure 1.1. Bandwidth Advantage of IP Multicast

BASIC MULTICAST PROTOCOLS AND CONCEPTS 5
One important design principle of IP multicast is to allow receiver-initiated

attachment (joins) to information streams, thus supporting a distributed informatics
model. A second important principle is the ability to support optimal pruning such that
the distribution of the content is streamlined by pushing replication as close to the
receiver as possible. These principles enable bandwidth-efficient use of underlying
network infrastructure.
The issue of security in multicast environments is addressed via conditional
access systems that provide per-program4 encryption (typically, but not always,
symmetric encryption) (also known as inner encryption) or aggregate IP-level encryp-
tion (again typically, but not always, symmetric encryption) (also known as outer
encryption).
1.3 BASIC MULTICAST PROTOCOLS AND CONCEPTS
Multicast communication is based on the construct of a group of receivers (hosts) that

have an interest in receiving a particular stream of information, be it voice, video, or
data. There are no physical or geographical constraints, or boundaries, to belong to a
group, as long as the hosts have (broadband) network connectivity. The connectivity of
the receivers can be heterogeneous in nature, in terms of bandwidth and connecting
infrastructure (e.g., receivers connected over the Internet), or homogenous (e.g., IPTV
or DVB-H users). Hosts that are desirous of receiving data intended for a particular
group join the group using a group management protocol: hosts/receivers must become
explicit members of the group to receive the data stream, but such membership may be
ephemeral and/or dynamic. Groups of IP hosts that have joined the group and wish to
receive traffic sent to this specific group are identified by multicast addresses, as
discussed below.
Multicast transmission mechanisms for multipoint distribution are available at both
the data link layer (layer 2) and the network layer (layer 3). Of late, the focus has been on
layer 3 IP-level systems. There are local-area network (LAN)–level approaches to
multicast, but typical contemporary business applications (e.g., IPTV) require a reach of
a campus or, even more likely, a wide-area environment.
Deerings work in the late 1980s defined the IP multicast service model, and he
invented algorithms that allow hosts to arbitrarily join and leave a multicast group
[RFC1054, RFC1112, RFC2201].
Multicast transmission at layer 3 involves several mechanisms, as we discuss next.
Below, we briefly outline key concepts; all of the material introduced below will be
discussed in detail in appropriate chapters in the text.
Addressing for Payload—To communicate with a group of receivers (hosts),
one needs a layer 3 address; also, there must be a mechanism of mapping the layer 3
address onto layer 2 multicast addresses of the underlying LAN. Ethernet multicast
4
A program in this context equates to a video channel, more specifically to an MPEG-2/4 transport stream
with a given Program ID (PID) (this topic is revisited in Chapters 2 and 11).
addresses have a hex “01” in the first byte of the six-octet destination address.
The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) manages the assignment of IP
addresses at layer 3, and it has assigned the (original) Class D address space to be used
for IP multicast. A Class D address consists of 1110 as the higher order bits in the first
octet, followed by a 28-bit group address. A 1110-0000 address in the first byte starts
at 224 in the dotted decimal notation; a typical address might be 224.10.10.1, and so
on. All IP multicast group addresses belong to the range 224.0.0.0–239.255.255.255.
In addition, all IPv6 hosts are required to support multicasting. The mapping of
IP multicast addresses to Ethernet addresses takes the lower 23 bits of the Class D
address and maps them into a block of Ethernet addresses that have been allocated for
multicast.
Dynamic Host Registration—There must be a mechanism that informs the network
that a host (receiver) is a member of a particular group (otherwise, the network would
have to flood rather than multicast the transmissions for each group). For IP networks, the
IGMP serves this purpose.
Multicast Payload Forwarding—Typical IP multicast applications make use of User
Datagram Protocol (UDP) at the transport layer and IP at the network layer. UDP is the
“best effort delivery” protocol with no guarantee of delivery; it also lacks the congestion
management mechanism [such as those utilized in Transmission Control Protocol
(TCP)]. Real-time applications such as commercial live video distribution do not (and
cannot) make use of a retransmission mechanism (such as the one utilized in TCP). In
some cases, portions of the network may be simplex (such as a satellite link), practically
precluding end-to-end retransmission. Hence, the risk exists for audio and video
broadcasts to suffer content degradation due to packet loss. To minimize lost packets,
one must provision adequate bandwidth and/or keep the distribution networks simple and
with as few hops as possible. IP QoS (diffserv), the Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP),
and 802.1p at layer 2 are often utilized to manage QoS. [To minimize in-packet bit
corruption, Forward Error Correction (FEC) mechanisms may be used—a state-of-the-
art mechanism can improve Bit Error Rates (BERs) by an impressive four or five orders
of magnitude.]
Multicast Routing—A multicast network requires a mechanism to build distribu-
tion trees that define a unique forwarding path between the subnet of the content source
and each subnet containing members of the multicast group, specifically, receivers. A
principle utilized in the construction of distribution trees is to guarantee that at most
one copy of each packet is forwarded on each branch of the tree. This is implemented by
ascertaining that there is sufficient real-time topological information at the multicast
router of the source host for constructing a spanning tree rooted at said multicast router
(or other appropriate router) and providing connectivity to the local multicast routers of
each receiving host. A multicast router forwards multicast packets to two types of
devices: downstream-dependent routers and receivers (hosts) that are members of a
particular multicast group. See Table 1.1 for a list of some key multicast-related
protocols.
Multicast routing protocols belong to one of two categories: Dense-Mode (DM)
protocols and Sparse-Mode (SM) protocols.
T A B L E 1.1. Multicast Protocols At a Glance

Protocol Function
IGMP Client [receiver, Set-Top Box
(STB), PC] to router signaling
Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM) Router to router topology
Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol (DVMRP) (multicast route) management
Core-Based Tree (CBT)
Multicast Open Shortcut Path First (MOSPF)
Multiprotocol BGP (MBGP) Large-scale router to router
Multicast Source Discovery Protocol (MSDP)
GLOP Multicast address allocation
Multicast Address Dynamic Client Allocation
Protocol (MADCAP)
Multicast Address Set Claim Protocol (MASC)
Cisco Group Management Protocol (CGMP) Router to switch (Cisco specific)
GARP Multicast Registration Protocol (GMRP)
IGMP snooping
Router-Port Group Management Protocol (RGMP)
. DM protocols are designed on the assumption that the majority of routers in

the network will need to distribute multicast traffic for each multicast group.
DM protocols build distribution trees by initially flooding the entire network
and then pruning out the (presumably small number of) paths without active
receivers. The DM protocols are used in LAN environments, where bandwidth
considerations are less important but can also be used in wide-area networks
(WANs) in special cases (e.g., where the backbone is a one-hop broadcast medium
such as a satellite beam with wide geographic illumination, e.g., in some IPTV
applications).
. SM protocols are designed on the assumption that only few routers in the
network will need to distribute multicast traffic for each multicast group. SM
protocols start out with an empty distribution tree and add drop-off branches
only upon explicit requests from receivers to join the distribution. SM protocols
are generally used in WAN environments, where bandwidth considerations are
important.
For IP multicast, there are several multicast routing protocols that can be employed
to acquire real-time topological and membership information for active groups. Routing
protocols that may be utilized include the PIM, the DVMRP, the MOSPF, and CBTs.
Multicast routing protocols build distribution trees by examining the routing forwarding
table that contains unicast reachability information. PIM and CBT use the unicast
forwarding table of the router. Other protocols use their specific unicast reachability
routing tables; for example, DVMRP uses its distance vector routing protocol to
determine how to create source-based distribution trees, whereas MOSPF utilizes its
link-state table to create source-based distribution trees. MOSPF, DVMRP, and PIM DM
are DM routing protocols, whereas CBT and PIM SM are SM routing protocols. PIM is
currently the most widely used protocol.
Specifically, PIM Version 2 (PIMv2) is a protocol that provides intradomain
multicast forwarding for all underlying unicast routing protocols [e.g., Open Shortest
Path First (OSPF) or BGP], independent from the intrinsic unicast protocol. Two modes
exist: PIM SM and PIM DM.5
PIM DM (defined in RFC 3973, January 2005) is a multicast routing protocol that
uses the underlying unicast routing information base to flood multicast datagrams to all
multicast routers. Prune messages are used to prevent future messages from propagat-
ing to routers without group membership information [RFC3973]. PIM DM attempts to
send multicast data to all potential receivers (flooding) and relies upon their self--
pruning (removal from the group) to achieve distribution. In PIM DM, multicast traffic
is initially flooded to all segments of the network. Routers that have no downstream
neighbors or directly connected receivers prune back the unwanted traffic. PIM DM
assumes most receivers (hosts, PCs, TV viewers, cellular phone handsets) wish to
receive the multicast; therefore the protocol forwards the multicast datagrams
everywhere, and then routers prune the distribution tree where it is not needed. PIM
is now being utilized for IPTV applications; typically DM is used in the backbone;
however, SM could also be utilized in some applications or portions of the overall
network.
In SM PIM, only network segments with active receivers that have explicitly
requested multicast data are forwarded the traffic. PIM SM relies on an explicit joining
request before attempting to send multicast data to receivers of a multicast group. In a
PIM SM network, sources must send their traffic to a Rendezvous Point (RP); this traffic
is in turn forwarded to receivers on a shared distribution tree. SM works by routers
sending PIM Join messages to start the multicast feed being sent across links. The
assumption in SM is that relatively few users need the multicast information and
therefore PIM SM starts with no flooding of multicast. In short order, router-to-router
PIM Join messages cause the multicast stream to be forwarded across links to where it is
needed. This is the current standard for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) supporting
Internet multicast [WEL200101].
An RP (described in RFC 2362) acts as the meeting place for sources and receivers of
multicast data. It is required only in networks running PIM SM and is needed only to start
new sessions with sources and receivers. In a PIM SM network, sources send their traffic
to the RP; this traffic is in turn forwarded to receivers downstream on a shared distribution
5
PIM bidirectional (PIM bidir) (a variant of PIM) allows data flow both up and down the same distribution
tree. PIM bidir uses only shared tree forwarding, thereby reducing the creation of “state” information.
tree. A Designated Router (DR) is the router on a subnet that is selected to control
multicast routes for the members on its directly attached subnet. The receiver sends an
IGMP Join message (see below) to this designated multicast router.6 IP multicast traffic
transmitted from the multicast source is distributed over the tree, via the designated
router, to the receivers subnet. When the designated router of the receiver learns about
the source, it sends a PIM Join message directly to the sources router, creating a
source-based distribution tree, from the source to the receiver. This source tree does not
include the RP unless the RP is located within the shortest path between the source and
receiver.
Auto-RP is a mechanism where a PIM router learns the set of group-to-RP
mappings required for PIM SM. Auto-RP automates the distribution of group-to-RP
mappings. To make auto-RP work, a router must be designated as an RP mapping
agent that receives the RP announcement messages from the RPs and arbitrates
conflicts. Bootstrap Router (BSR) is another mechanism with which a PIM router
learns the set of group-to-RP mappings required for PIM SM. BSR operates similarly
to Auto-RP: it uses candidate routers for the RP function and for relaying the RP
information for a group. RP information is distributed through BSR messages that are
carried within PIM messages. PIM messages are link-local multicast messages that
travel from PIM router to PIM router. Each method for configuring an RP has its
strengths, weaknesses, and complexity. Auto-RP is typically used in a conventional
IP multicast network given that it is straightforward to configure, well tested, and
stable.
IGMP (Versions 1, 2, and 3) is the protocol used by IP Version 4 (IPv4) hosts to
communicate multicast group membership states to multicast routers. IGMP is used to
dynamically register individual hosts/receivers on a particular local subnet (e.g., LAN)
to a multicast group. IGMPv1 defined the basic mechanism. It supports a Membership
Query (MQ) message and a Membership Report (MR) message. Most implementations
at press time employed IGMPv2; Version 2 adds Leave Group (LG) messages. Version
3 adds source awareness allowing the inclusion or exclusion of sources. IGMP allows
group membership lists to be dynamically maintained. The host (user) sends an IGMP
“report,” or join, to the router to be included in the group. Periodically, the router sends
a “query” to learn which hosts (users) are still part of a group. If a host wishes to
continue its group membership, it responds to the query with a “report.” If the host does
not send a “report,” the router prunes the group list to delete this host; this eliminates
unnecessary network transmissions. With IGMPv2, a host may send a “leave group”
message to alert the router that it is no longer participating in a multicast group; this
allows the router to prune the group list to delete this host before the next query is
scheduled, thereby minimizing the time period during which unneeded transmissions
are forwarded to the network.
6
This is different from the router-to-router PIM Join message just described; this message is from a receiver to
its gateway multicast router.
Other basic multicast protocols/mechanisms include the following:
. IGMP snooping is a method by which a switch can constrain multicast packets to

only those ports that have requested the stream IGMP.
. MLDv2 is a protocol that allows a host to inform its neighboring routers of its
desire to receive IPv6 multicast transmissions; it is similar to (and based on)
IGMPv3 used in the IPv4 context.
. STUB multicast routing is a mechanism that allows IGMP messages
to be forwarded through a non-PIM-enabled router toward a PIM-enabled
router.
. PIM SSM is a multicast protocol where forwarding uses only source-based
forwarding trees. IGMPv3 is used to support SSM. SSM mapping is a mapping
that allows SSM routing to occur without IGMPv3 being present. SSM mapping
uses statically configured tables or dynamic Domain Name System (DNS)
discovery of the source address for a SSM channel.
. MSDP is a protocol that allows multiple PIM SM domains to share information
about active sources. The protocol announces active sources to MSDP peers.
. MPBGP is a protocol that defines multiprotocol extensions to the BGP, the
unicast interdomain protocol that supports multicast-specific routing informa-
tion. MPBGP augments BGP to enable multicast routing policy and connect
multicast topologies within and between BGP autonomous systems. It
carries multiple instances of routes for unicast routing as well as multicast
routing.
. Pragmatic General Multicast (PGM) is a reliable multicast transport protocol for
applications that require ordered, duplicate-free multicast data delivery. The
protocol guarantees that a receiver in a multicast group receives all data packets
from direct transmissions or via retransmissions of lost packets. PGM can detect
unrecoverable data packet loss.
. RGMP is a protocol that constrains IP multicast on switches that have only routers
attached.
Some of these protocols (but not all) are covered in the chapters.
Figure 1.2 illustrates where some of these protocols apply in the context of a typical
multicast network.
It should be noted that the design and turnup of IP multicast networks is fairly
complex. This is because by its very nature IP multicast traffic is “blasted all over the
map”; hence, a simple design mistake (or oversight) will push traffic to many interfaces
and easily flood and swamp router and switch interfaces.7
7
This statement is based on some 100-h weeks spent by the author configuring IPTV networks while
endeavoring to meet established business deadlines.
IPTV AND DVB-H APPLICATIONS 11
Multicast source Designated RP

router
MSDP
DR
RP
PIM rendezvous
point
MPBGP
PIM - SM
Bidir PIM
PIM - SSM
MVPN
IGMP, snooping,
RGMP
Designated DR IGMP
router
DSLAM
IGMP
DSLAM
Figure 1.2. Multicast Protocols Usage in a Typical Multicast Network
1.4 IPTV AND DVB-H APPLICATIONS
While IP multicast has been around for a number of years, it is now finding fertile
commercial applications in the IPTVand DVB-H arenas. Applications such as datacast-
ing (e.g., stock market or other financial data) tend to make use of large multihop
networks; pruning is often employed and nodal store-and-forward approaches are totally
acceptable. Applications such as video are very sensitive to end-to-end delay, jitter, and
(uncorrectable) packet loss; QoS considerations are critical. These networks tend to have
fewer hops, and pruning may be somewhat trivially implemented by making use of a
simplified network topology.
IPTV services enable advanced content viewing and navigation by consumers; the
technology is rapidly emerging and becoming commercially available. IPTV services
enable traditional carriers to deliver SD and HD video to their customers in support of
their triple/quadruple play strategies. With the significant erosion in revenues from
traditional voice services on wireline-originated calls (both in terms of depressed pricing

and a shift to voice over IP (VoIP) over broadband Internet services delivered over cable
TV infrastructure) and with the transition of many customers from wireline to wireless
services, the traditional telephone carriers find themselves in need of generating new
revenues by seeking to deliver video services to their customers. Traditional phone
carriers find themselves challenged in the voice arena (by VoIP and other providers); their
Internet services are also challenged in the broadband Internet access arena (by cable TV
companies); and their video services are nascent and challenged by a lack of deployed
technology. Multimedia (and new media) services are a way to improve telco revenues
(e.g., but not limited to, [MIN198601], [MIN199301], [MIN199401], [MIN199402],
[MIN199403], [MIN199404], [MIN199501], [MIN199502], [MIN199503],
[MIN199804], [MIN200001], [MIN200301]).
There was a recognition in the mid-1990s that a video strategy was important, and
considerable technical work was undertaken under the Federal Communications Com-
mission (FCCs) Video Dialtone Initiative. That effort was described by this author in the
well-received book Video Dialtone Technology: Digital Video over ADSL, HFC, FTTC,
and ATM, McGraw-Hill, 1995 [MIN199501]. In 1992, various telcos filed applications
with the FCC for a service called “video dialtone” that would have allowed phone
companies to use their networks to compete with cable television distributors. By 1995,
according to FCC reports, 24 applications were completed representing 43 different
cities/states to be upgraded. As far back as 1997, 9.7 million homes should have received
this service. These upgrades were supposed to handle 500þ channels on average.
Table 1.2 is a compilation of telco commitments filed with the FCC [KUS200601].
Unfortunately, none of these plans led to actual TV services.
The problem was that the emphasis by the telcos for local delivery was totally
pivoted on Digital Subscriber Line (DSL). DSL had a bandwidth range of around 1.5
Mbps when using mid-1990s technology. Consequently, the use of MPEG-1 encoding
techniques operating at 1.5 Mbps limited the domicile access to a single stream of video
into a home at any point in time, which was a market nonstarter [MIN200001]. In
addition, the Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) core infrastructure turned out to be
expensive. Now a decade later, in the mid-to-late 2000s, the recognition has emerged
that an IP infrastructure (with IP multicast) is the best mechanism for distribution of
entertainment video by the telcos, aiming at a 200–300-channel pool and typically with
up to three simultaneous streams of video traffic per domicile based on efficient, yet
high-quality, MPEG-4 standards (e.g., see [MIN200301]). The current delivery model
is state-of-the-art DSL services and possibly Very High Data Rate DSL (VDSL)/
VDSL2 (see Table 1.3, [DSL200701]) in the near term and Fiber To The Home (FTTH)
in the longer term. Tier 2 and tier 3 telcos may rely on VDSL/VDSL2 for the next few
years, while at least some tier 1 telcos (e.g., Verizon FiOS) may move to in short order,
or already use, FTTH technologies. Figures 1.3 and 1.4 illustrate a simplified IPTV
application from an infrastructure perspective.
Some of the areas that require consideration and technical support to develop and
deploy IPTV systems include the following, among many others:
T A B L E 1.2. Video Dialtone Applications by the Phone Companies According to the FCC First
Video Report, 1994
Date Telephone Company Location Homes Type of Proposal
10/21/92 Bell Atlantic-VA Arlington, VA 2,000 Technical/market
10/30/92 NYNEX New York, NY 2,500 Technical
11/16/92 New Jersey Bell Florham Park, NJ 11,700 Permanent
12/15/92 New Jersey Bell Dover Township, NJ 38,000 Permanent
04/27/93 SNET West Hartford, CT 1,600 Technical/market
06/18/93 Rochester Telephone Rochester, NY 350 Technical/market
06/22/93 US WEST Omaha, NE 60,000 Technical/market
12/15/93 SNET Hartford & Stamford, CT 150,000 Technical/market
12/16/93 Bell Atlantic MD & VA 300,000 Permanent
12/20/93 Pacific Bell Orange Co., CA 210,000 Permanent
So. San Francisco Bay, CA 490,000 Permanent
Los Angeles, CA 360,000 Permanent
San Diego, CA 250,000 Permanent
01/10/94 US West Denver, CO 330,000 Permanent
01/24/94 US West Portland, OR 132,000 Permanent
Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN 292,000 Permanent
01/31/94 Ameritech Detroit, MI 232,000 Permanent
Columbus & Cleveland, OH 262,000 Permanent
Indianapolis, IN 115,000 Permanent
Chicago, IL 501,000 Permanent
Milwaukee, WI 146,000 Permanent
03/16/94 US West Boise, ID 90,000 Permanent
Salt Lake City, UT 160,000 Permanent
04/13/94 Puerto Rico Tel. Co. Puerto Rico 250 Technical
05/23/94 GTE - Contel of Va. Manassas, VA 109,000 Permanent
GTE Florida Inc. Pinella and Pasco Co., FL 476,000 Permanent
GTE California Inc. Ventura Co., CA 122,000 Permanent
GTE Hawaiian Tel. Honolulu, HW 334,000 Permanent
06/16/94 Bell Atlantic Wash. DC LATA 1,200,000 Permanent
Baltimore, MD; northern NJ; 2,000,000 Permanent
DE; Philadelphia, PA;
Pittsburgh, PA; and S.E.VA
06/27/94 BellSouth Chamblee & DeKalb, GA 12,000 Technical/market
07/08/94 NYNEX RI 63,000 Permanent
MA 334,000 Permanent
09/09/94 Carolina Tel. & Tel. Wake Forest, NC 1,000 Technical/market
04/28/95 SNET CT 1,000,000 Permanent
. Content aggregation
. Content encoding [e.g., Advanced Video Coding (AVC)/H.264/MPEG-4 Part 10,
MPEG-2, SD, HD, Serial Digital Interface (SDI), Asynchronous Serial Interface
(ASI), layer 1 switching/routing]
. Audio management
T A B L E 1.3. Typical DSL Technologies That May be Used in Current-Day IPTV While Waiting
for FTTH
DSL A technology that exploits unused frequencies on copper telephone lines to
transmit traffic typically at multimegabit speeds. DSL can allow
voice and high-speed data to be sent simultaneously over the same line.
Because the service is “always available,” end users do not need to dial in or
wait for call setup. Variations include ADSL, G.lite ADSL (or simply G.lite),
VDSL [International Telecommunications Union (ITU) G.993.1], and VDSL2
(ITU G.993.2). The standard forms of ADSL [ITU G.992.3 and G.992.5 and
American National Standards Institute (ANSI) T1.413-Issue 2] are all built
upon the same technical foundation, Discrete Multitone (DMT). The suite
of ADSL standards facilitates interoperability between all standard forms
of ADSL.
ADSL (Full- Access technology that offers differing upload and download speeds
Rate and can be configured to deliver up to 6 mbps (6000 kbps) from the
Asymmetric network to the customer. ADSL enables voice and high-speed data to
DSL) be sent simultaneously over the existing telephone line. This type of
DSL is the most predominant in commercial use for business and
residential customers around the world. Good for general Internet access
and for applications where downstream speed is most important, such as
video on demand. ITU-T recommendation G.992.1 and ANSI standard
T1.413-1998 specify full-rate ADSL. ITU recommendation G.992.3
specifies ADSL2, which provides advanced diagnostics, power saving
functions, PSD shaping, and better performance than G.992.1. ITU
recommendation G.992.5 specifies ADSL2Plus, which provides the
benefits of ADSL2Plus twice the bandwidth so that bit rates as high as
20 Mbps downstream can be achieved on relatively short lines.
G.lite ADSL A standard that was specifically developed to meet the plug-and-play
(or simply requirements of the consumer market segment. G.lite is a medium-
G.lite) bandwidth version of ADSL that allows Internet access at up to
1.5 Mbps downstream and up to 500 kbps upstream. G.lite is an
ITU standard (ITU G.992.2). G.lite has seen comparatively little use,
but it did introduce the valuable concept of splitterless installation.
RADSL (Rate A nonstandard version of ADSL. Note that standard ADSL also permits the
Adaptive DSL) ADSL modem to adapt speeds of data transfer.
VDSL A standard for up to 26 Mbps over distances up to 50 m on short loops
such as from fiber to the curb. In most cases, VDSL lines are served
from neighborhood cabinets that link to a central office via optical fiber.
It is useful for “campus” environments—universities and business parks,
for example. VDSL is currently being introduced in market trials to deliver
video services over existing phone lines. VDSL can also be configured in
symmetric mode.
VDSL2 ITU recommendation G.993.2 specifies eight profiles that address a
(Second- range of applications including up to 100-Mbps symmetric transmission on
Generation loops about 100 m long (using a bandwidth of 30 MHz), symmetric bit rates
VDSL) in the 10–30-Mbps range on intermediate-length loops (using a bandwidth
T A B L E 1.3. (Continued)
of 12 MHz), and asymmetric operation with downstream rates in the range
of 10–40 Mbps on loops of lengths ranging from 3 km to 1 km (using a
bandwidth of 8.5 MHz). VDSL2 includes most of the advanced feature
from ADSL2. The rate/reach performance of VDSL2 is better
than VDSL.
Symmetric Symmetric variations of DSL that include SDSL, SHDSL, HDSL,
flavors DSL HDSL2, and IDSL. The equal speeds make symmetric DSLs useful
for LAN access, video conferencing, and locations hosting
Web sites.
SDSL A vendor-proprietary version of symmetric DSL that may include bit rates
(Symmetric to and from the customer ranging from 128 kbps to 2.32 Mbps. SDSL is an
DSL) umbrella term for a number of supplier-specific implementations over a
single copper pair providing variable rates of symmetric service. SDSL
uses 2 Binary, 1 Quaternary (2B1Q).
SHDSL A state-of-the-art, industry standard symmetric DSL, SHDSL equipment
conforms to ITU recommendation G.991.2, also known as G.shdsl,
approved by the ITU-T in 2001. SHDSL achieves 20% better loop
reach than older versions of symmetric DSL and it causes much
less cross talk into other transmission systems in the same cable.
SHDSL systems may operate at many bit rates, from 192 kbps
to 5.7 Mbps, thereby maximizing the bit rate for each customer.
G.shdsl specifies operation via one pair of wires, or for operation on
longer loops, two pairs of wire may be used. For example, with two
pairs of wire, 1.2 Mbps can be sent over 20,000 ft of American Wire
Gage (AWG) 26 wire. SHDSL is best suited to data-only applications that
need high upstream bit rates. Though SHDSL does not carry voice like
ADSL, new voice-over-DSL techniques may be used to convey digitized
voice and data via SHDSL. SHDSL is being deployed primarily for business
customers.
HDSL (High- A DSL variety created in the late 1980s that delivers symmetric service at
Data-Rate speeds up to 2.3 Mbps in both directions. Available at 1.5 or 2.3 Mbps, this
DSL) symmetric fixed-rate application does not provide standard telephone
service over the same line and is already standardized through the ETSI
(European Telecommunications Standards Institute) and ITU. Seen as an
economical replacement for T1 or E1, it uses one, two, or three twisted
copper pairs.
HDSL2 A variant of DSL that delivers 1.5-Mbps service each way, supporting voice,
(Second- data, and video using either ATM, private-line service, or frame relay over a
Generation single copper pair. This ATIS standard (T1.418) supports a fixed 1.5-Mbps
HDSL) rate both up and downstream. HDSL2 does not provide standard voice
telephone service on the same wire pair. HSDL2 differs from HDSL in
that HDSL2 uses one pair of wires to convey 1.5 Mbps whereas ANSI HDSL
uses two wire pairs.
(continued)
T A B L E 1.3. (Continued)
HDSL4 A high-data-rate DSL that is virtually the same as HDSL2 except it achieves
about 30% greater distance than HDSL or HDSL2 by using two pairs of
wire (thus, four conductors), whereas HDSL2 uses one pair of wires.
IDSL A form of DSL that supports symmetric data rates of up to 144 kbps using
(Integrated existing phone lines. Has the ability to deliver services through a DLC
Services Digital (Digital Loop Carrier: a remote device often placed in newer neighborhoods
Network DSL) to simplify the distribution of cable and wiring from the phone company).
While DLCs provide a means of simplifying the delivery of traditional
voice services to newer neighborhoods, they also provide a unique
challenge in delivering DSL into those same neighborhoods. IDSL
addresses this market along with ADSL and G.lite as they are implemented
directly into those DLCs. IDSL differs from its relative ISDN (Integrated
Services Digital Network) in that it is an “always-available” service, but
capable of using the same terminal adapter, or modem, as for ISDN.
Courtesy: DSL Forum.
Aggregation
switch
Encryptor IP encapsulator
(conditional (MPEG-2 transport
MPEG-4 encoder access system) stream segmentation
and reassembly)
Aggregation Designated router

switch Rendezvous point
DR
RP IP receivers
Switch
Encryptor
(conditional
access system) PIM SM
MPEG-4 encoder L-band Switch
network
Content source
DR Designated router
Content distribution
IGMP
DSLAM or optical
distribution node
IGMP
Figure 1.3. Simplified IPTV Application

Aggregation
switch
Encryptor IP encapsulator
(conditional (MPEG-2 transport
MPEG-4 encoder access system) stream segmentation
and reassembly)
Aggregation TELCO 1
switch
IP receivers
Switch
Encryptor
(conditional
MPEG-4 encoder access system)
L-band Switch
network
PIM DM
Content Source
Content PIM DM
distribution
DSLAM DSLAM
or optical or optical
distribution distribution
node node
IGMP
IGMP
TELCO 2 IP receivers
L-band Switch
network
PIM DM
DSLAM
DSLAM or optical
or optical distribution
distribution node
node
IGMP
IGMP
Figure 1.4. Another Simplified IPTV Multicast Arrangement

. Digital rights management/conditional access: encryption Digital Video Broad-

casting Common Scrambling Algorithm (DVB-CSA), Advanced Encryption
Standard (AES); key management schemes [basically, Conditional-Access Sys-
tem (CAS)]; transport rights
. Encapsulation (MPEG-2 transport stream distribution)
. Backbone distribution, for example, satellite or terrestrial Digital Video Broad-
casting Satellite, Version 2 (DVB-S2), Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (Q-PSK),
8-point Phase Shift Keying (8-PSK), FEC, turbocoding for satellite—(Synchro-
nous Optical Network/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy/Optical Transport Network)
SONET/SDH/OTN for terrestrial
. Metro-level distribution
. Last-mile distribution, LAN/WAN/optics, (Gigabit Ethernet) GbE, DSL/
FTTH
. Multicast protocol mechanisms (IP multicast)
. QoS, Backbone distribution
. QoS, metro-level distribution
. QoS, last-mile distribution
. QoS, channel surfing
. STB/middleware
. QoE
. EPG (Electronic Program Guide)
. Blackouts
. Service provisioning/billing, service management
. Advanced video services, Personal Digital Recorder (PDR), Video on Demand
(VoD), etc.
. Management and confidence monitoring
. Triple play/quadruple play
In reference to encoding, typical H.264 SD encoder parameters are as follows:

Video
. Advanced Video Coding (AVC)/H.264/(MPEG-4, Part 10)

. Main profile/level 3
. Capped Variable Bit Rate (VBR)
. 352 · 480 to 720 · 480 pixels
. Look-ahead encoding
. Closed captioning
. Picture-in-picture
Audio
. MPEG-1, layer II
. Dolby AC3
. AAC-HE (Advanced Audio Coding—High Efficiency)
A CAS is a system by which electronic transmission of digital media (e.g., satellite

television signals) is limited only to subscribed clients:
. Signal is encrypted and is unavailable for unauthorized reception

. STB is required in the customer premises to receive and decrypt the signal
The DVB Project (see below) has developed specifications for digital television
systems which are turned into standards by international bodies such as ETSI and
CENELEC (Comite Europeen de Normalisation Electrotechnique—European Commit-
tee for Electrotechnical Standardization). For Digital Rights Management (DRM) it
developed, DVB-CA defines a DVB-CSA and a Common Interface (DVB-CI) for
accessing scrambled content:
. DVB system providers develop their proprietary conditional access systems

within these specifications
. DVB transports include metadata called Service Information (DVB-SI) that
links the various elementary streams into coherent programs and provides
human-readable descriptions for electronic program guides
This topic will be reexamined in Chapter 11. Next, we briefly discuss DVB-H
applications.
DVB-H is a technical development activity by the DVB Project Office organization
[DVB200701] targeting handheld, battery-powered devices such as mobile telephones,
PDAs, and so on. It addresses the requirements for reliable, high-speed, high-data-rate
reception for a number of mobile applications, including real-time video to handheld
devices. DVB-H systems typically make use of IP multicast. DVB-H is generating
significant interest in the broadcast and telecommunications worlds, and DVB-H
services are expected to start at this time. Industry proponents expect to see 300 million
DVB-H-capable handsets to be deployed by 2009. The DVB-H protocols are being
standardized through ETSI.
Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) is a consortium of over 300 companies in the
fields of broadcasting and manufacturing that work cooperatively to establish common
international standards for digital broadcasting. DVB-generated standards have become
the leading international standards, commonly referred to as “DVB,” and the accepted
choice for technologies that enable an efficient, cost-effective, higher quality, and
interoperable digital broadcasting. The DVB standards for digital television have been
adopted in the United Kingdom, across mainland Europe, in the Middle East, in South
America, and in Australasia.
DVB-H is based on DVB-T, a standard for digital transmission of terrestrial

over-the-air TV signals. When DVB-T was first published in 1997, it was not designed
to target mobile receivers. However, DVB-T mobile services have been launched in a
number of countries. Indeed, with the advent of diversity antenna receivers, services that
target fixed reception can now largely be received on the move as well. DVB-T is
deployed in more than 50 countries. Yet, a new standard was sought, namely DVB-H.
Despite the success of mobile DVB-T reception, the major concern with any
handheld device is that of battery life. The current and projected power consumption
of DVB-T front ends is too high to support handheld receivers that are expected to last
from one to several days on a single charge. The other major requirements for DVB-H
were an ability to receive 15 Mbps in an 8-MHz channel and in a wide-area Single-
Frequency Network (SFN) at high speed. These requirements were drawn up after much
debate and with an eye on emerging convergence devices providing video services and
other broadcast data services to second- and not quite third-generation (2.5G) and 3G
handheld devices. Furthermore, all this should be possible while maintaining maximum
compatibility with existing DVB-T networks and systems. Figure 1.5 depicts a block-
level view of a DVB-H network.
In order to meet these requirements, the newly developed DVB-H specification
includes the capabilities discussed next.
Time Slicing. Rather than continuous data transmission as in DVB-T, DVB-H employs a
mechanism where bursts of data are received at a time—the so-called IP datacast
carousel. This means that the receiver is inactive for much of the time and can thus, by
means of clever control signaling, be “switched off.” The result is a power saving of about
90% and more in some cases.
4K Mode. With the addition of a 4K mode with 3409 active carriers, DVB-H benefits
from the compromise between the high-speed small-area SFN capability of 2K DVB-T
and the lower speed but larger area SFN of 8K DVB-T. In addition, with the aid of
enhanced in-depth interleavers in the 2K and 4K modes, DVB-H has even better
immunity to ignition interference.
Multiprotocol Encapsulation–Forward Error Correction (MPE–FEC). The addition of
an optional, multiplexer-level, forward error correction scheme means that DVB-H
IP Multicast
Content Content Provisioning Operation of

Content aggregation encoding of service network Transmitter
acquisition (low bit rate)
Operation of Buy content

Provisioning
cellular
of cellular
network
rights
Consumer
Figure 1.5. Block-Level View of a DVB-H Network

APPENDIX 1.A 21
transmissions can be even more robust. This is advantageous when considering the hostile
environments and poor (but fashionable) antenna designs typical of handheld receivers.
Like DVB-T, DVB-H can be used in 6-, 7-, and 8-MHz channel environments.
However, a 5-MHz option is also specified for use in nonbroadcast environments. A key
initial requirement, and a significant feature of DVB-H, is that it can coexist with DVB-T
in the same multiplex. Thus, an operator can choose to have two DVB-T services and one
DVB-H service in the same overall DVB-T multiplex.
Broadcasting is an efficient way of reaching many users with a single (configurable)
service. DVB-H combines broadcasting with a set of measures to ensure that the target
receivers can operate from a battery and on the move and is thus an ideal companion to 3G
telecommunications, offering symmetric and asymmetric bidirectional multimedia services.
DVB-H trials have taken place in recent years in Germany, Finland, and the United
States (Las Vegas). Such trials help frequency planning and improve understanding of the
complex issue of interoperability with telecommunications networks and services.
This topic will be reexamined in Chapter 12.
1.5 COURSE OF INVESTIGATION
Following this introductory discussion, Chapter 2 covers multicast addressing for

payload distribution. Chapter 3 focuses on multicast payload forwarding. Chapter 4
covers the important topic of dynamic host registration using the IGMP. Chapter 5 looks
at multicast routing in SM environments and the broadly used PIM SM. Chapter 6
discusses CBT. Chapter 7 looks at multicast routing for DM protocols and PIM DM in
particular. Chapter 8 examines DVMRP and MOSPF. Chapter 9 covers IP multicasting in
IPv6 environments. Chapter 10 looks at MLD snooping switches. Finally, Chapters 11 and
12 give examples in the IPTV and (mobile) DVB-H environments, respectively.
APPENDIX 1.A: MULTICAST IETF REQUEST FOR COMMENTS
The following are the key RFCs that define multicast operation:
. RFC 988, Host Extensions for IP Multicasting, S. E. Deering, July 1986.
(obsoletes RFC 966) (obsoleted by RFC 1054, RFC 1112).
. RFC 1054, Host Extensions for IP Multicasting, S. E. Deering, May 1988
(obsoletes RFC 0988) (obsoleted by RFC 1112).
. RFC 1075, Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol, D. Waitzman, C.
Partridge, S. Deering, November 1988.
. RFC 1112, Host Extensions for IP Multicasting, S. E. Deering, August 1989
(obsoletes RFC 0988, RFC1054) (Updated by RFC 2236) (also STD0005) (status:
standard).
. RFC 1469, IP Multicast over Token-Ring Local Area Networks, T. Pusateri, June
1993 (status: historic).
. RFC 1584, Multicast Extensions to OSPF, J. Moy, March 1994.
. RFC 2117, Protocol Independent Multicast-Sparse-Mode (PIM SM): Protocol

Specification, D. Farinacci, A. Helmy, et al., June 1997 (obsoleted by RFC
2362).
. RFC 2201, Core Based Trees (CBT) Multicast Routing Architecture, A. Ballardie,
September 1997.
. RFC 2236, Internet Group Management Protocol, Version 2, W. Fenner, Novem-
ber 1997 (status: standard).
. RFC 2337, Intra-LIS IP Multicast among Routers over ATM using Sparse-Mode
PIM, D. Farinacci, D. Meyer, Y. Rekhter. April 1998 (status: experimental).
. RFC 2362, Protocol Independent Multicast-Sparse-Mode (PIM SM): Protocol
Specification, D. Estrin, D. Farinacci, et al., June 1998.
. RFC 2365, Administratively Scoped IP Multicast, D. Meyer. July 1998 (also
BCP0023) (status: best current practice).
. RFC 2366, Definitions of Managed Objects for Multicast over UNI 3.0/3.1based
ATM Networks, C. Chung, M. Greene, July 1998 (obsoleted by RFC 2417)
(status: proposed standard).
. RFC 2432, Terminology for IP Multicast Benchmarking. K. Dubray, October
1998. (status: informational).
. RFC 2490, A Simulation Model for IP Multicast with RSVP, M. Pullen, R.Malghan,
L. Lavu, G. Duan, J. Ma, H. Nah, January 1999 (status: informational).
. RFC 2588, IP Multicast and Firewalls, R. Finlayson, May 1999 (status:
informational).
. RFC 2710, Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) for IPv6, S. Deering, W. Fenner,
W., B. Haberman, October 1999.
. RFC 2730, Multicast Address Dynamic Client Allocation Protocol (MADCAP),
S. Hanna, B. Patel, M. Shah, December 1999.
. RFC 2909, The Multicast Address-Set Claim (MASC) Protocol, P. Radoslavov, D.
Estrin, et al., September 2000.
. RFC 3170, IP Multicast Applications: Challenges and Solutions, B. Quinn, K.
Almeroth. September 2001 (status: informational).
. RFC 3228, IANA Considerations for IPv4 Internet Group Management Protocol
(IGMP), B. Fenner, February 2002 (also BCP0057) (status: best current practice).
. RFC 3232, J. Reynolds, Editor, Assigned Numbers: RFC 1700 is replaced by an
on-line database, January 2002, obsoletes RFC 1700 (status: informational).
. RFC 3353, Overview of IP Multicast in a Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS)
Environment, D. Ooms, B. Sales, W. Livens, A. Acharya, F. Griffoul, F. Ansari,
August 2002 (status: informational).
. RFC 3376, Internet Group Management Protocol, Version 3, B. Cain, S. Deering,
I. Kouvelas, B. Fenner, A. Thyagarajan, October 2002 (obsoletes RFC 2236)
(updated by RFC 4604) (status: proposed standard).
. RFC 3678, Socket Interface Extensions for Multicast Source Filters, D. Thaler, B.
Fenner, B. Quinn, January 2004.
REFERENCES 23
. RFC 3754, IP Multicast in Differentiated Services (DS) Networks, R. Bless, K.

Wehrle, April 2004 (status: informational).
. RFC 3810, Multicast Listener Discovery Version 2 (MLDv2) for IPv6, R. Vida, L.
Costa, June 2004.
. RFC 3918, Methodology for IP Multicast Benchmarking, D. Stopp, B. Hickman,
October 2004 (status: informational).
. RFC 3973, Protocol Independent Multicast–Dense-Mode (PIM–DM): Protocol
Specification (Revised), A. Adams, J. Nicholas, W. Siadak, January 2005, (status:
experimental).
. RFC 4541, Considerations for Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) and
Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) Snooping Switches, M. Christensen, K.
Kimball, F. Solensky, May 2006 (status: informational).
. RFC 4604, Using Internet Group Management Protocol Version 3 (IGMPv3) and
Multicast Listener Discovery Protocol Version 2 (MLDv2) for Source-Specific
Multicast, H. Holbrook, B. Cain, B. Haberman, August 2006 (updates RFC 3376,
RFC 3810) (status: proposed standard).
. RFC 4605, Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP)/Multicast Listener
Discovery (MLD)-Based Multicast Forwarding (“IGMP/MLD Proxying”), B.
Fenner, H. He, B. Haberman, H. Sandick, August 2006 (status: proposed
standard).
. RFC 4607, Source-Specific Multicast for IP, H. Holbrook, B. Cain, August 2006.
APPENDIX 1.B: MULTICAST BIBLIOGRAPHY
The following is a (partial) listing of textbooks on the topic. Most were written several
years ago.
. Thomas Albert Maufer, Deploying IP Multicast in the Enterprise, Pearson

Education, December 1997.
. Dave R. Kosiur, IP Multicasting: The Complete Guide to Interactive Corporate
Networks, John Wiley & Sons, April 1998.
. C. Kenneth Miller, Multicast Networking and Applications, Pearson Education,
October 1998.
. Paul Sanjoy, Multicasting on the Internet and Its Applications, Springer-Verlag,
New York, June 1998.
. Beau Williamson, Jay D. Zorn, and Glen Zorn, Developing IP Multicast Net-
works, Volume I, Pearson Education, October 1999.
REFERENCES
[CHA200701] S. H. G. Chan, N. L. S. daFonseca, Peer-to-Peer Streaming, IEEE Magazine, June

2007, page 84.
[DSL200701] DSL Forum, Fremont, CA, http://www.dslforum.org.

[DVB200701] The DVB Project Office, Peter MacAvock, Executive Director, DVB-H White
Paper, http://www.dvb.org, Grand Saconnex, Geneva, Switzerland.
[KUS200601] B. Kushnick, New Networks Institute, Telecom & Broadband Research for the
Public Interest, www.newnetworks.com.
[MIN198601] D. Minoli, Putting Video on Desktops, Computerworld, October 1986, page 35.
[MIN199301] D. Minoli, Digital Video Compression: Getting Images across a Net, Network
Computing, July 1993, page 146.
[MIN199401] D. Minoli, Designing Corporate Networks to Carry Multimedia, ICA Summer
Program, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 1994.
[MIN199402] D. Minoli, Support of Corporate Multimedia over ATM, United Technologies
Engineering Coordination Activities Eng. Ops. Subcom. for Computer Maintenance,
Springfield, MA, April 1994.
[MIN199403] D. Minoli, Video Dialtone and Digital Video over ATM, Mt. Jade Science &
Technology, Newark, NJ, December 1994.
[MIN199404] D. Minoli, Distributed Multimedia through Broadband Communication Services
(co-authored), Artech House, 1994.
[MIN199501] D. Minoli, Video Dialtone Technology: Digital Video over ADSL, HFC, FTTC, and
ATM, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1995.
[MIN199502] D. Minoli, An Assessment of Digital Video and Video Dialtone Technology,
Regulation, Services, and Competitive Markets, DataPro Market Report on Convergence
Strategies & Technologies, April 1995.
[MIN199503] D. Minoli, 1995: The Year of Video in Enterprise Nets, Network World, December 5,
1994, page 21.
[MIN199504] D. Minoli, Video Compression Schemes, DataPro Market Report on Convergence
Strategies & Technologies, May 1995.
[MIN199505] D. Minoli, WilTel/Vyvx Video Services, Datapro Report CNS, June 1995.
[MIN199601] D. Minoli, Voice, Video, and Multimedia over ATM, CMA Spring Session,
New York, June 1996.
[MIN199602] D. Minoli, Keynote Speech: Network Issues in Convergence; IEEE Convergence of
Networks and Services, New York, November 1996.
[MIN199603] D. Minoli, Distance Learning: Technology and Applications, Artech House,
1996.
[MIN199701] D. Minoli, Convergence of Networking Technologies, 1997 Conference on
Emerging Technologies, Nashville, TN, January 1997.
[MIN199702] D. Minoli, Video Dialtone Technology, Publishing House of Electronics Industry,
1997 (Chinese translation).
[MIN199801] D. Minoli, Integrating Circuit and Packet Switching: Achieving QOS in Public IP
Networks, Institute for International Research, Orlando, FL, December 1998.
[MIN199802] D. Minoli, IP Applications with ATM (co-authored), McGraw-Hill, 1998.
[MIN199803] D. Minoli, High-Speed Internet Access with ADSL, Fall Condex, Miami Beach, FL,
September 1998.
[MIN199804] D. Minoli, Designing ATM and IP Backbones, Interop 1998, Las Vegas, NV, May
1998.
REFERENCES 25
[MIN200001] D. Minoli, Digital Video Technologies, video section in K. Terplan and P. Morreale,
Editors. The Telecommunications Handbook, IEEE Press, 2000.
[MIN200301] D. Minoli, Telecommunications Technology Handbook, 2nd ed., Artech House,
Norwood, MA, 2003.
[MIN200401] D. Minoli, A Networking Approach to Grid Computing, Wiley, New York, 2006.
[RFC988] RFC 988, Host Extensions for IP Multicasting, S. E. Deering, July 1986.
[RFC1054] RFC 1054, Host Extensions for IP Multicasting, S. E. Deering, May 1988.
[RFC1112] RFC 1112, Host Extensions for IP Multicasting, S. E. Deering, August 1989.
[RFC2201] RFC 2201, Core Based Trees (CBT) Multicast Routing Architecture, A. Ballardie,
September 1997.
[RFC3973] RFC 3973, Protocol Independent Multicast–Dense-Mode (PIM–DM): Protocol
Specification (Revised), A. Adams, J. Nicholas, W. Siadak, January 2005.
[WEL200101] P. J. Welcher, The Protocols of IP Multicast, White Paper, Chesapeake
NetCraftsmen, Arnold, MD.
2
MULTICAST ADDRESSING
FOR PAYLOAD
Multicast communication is predicated on the need to send the same content to multiple
destinations simultaneously. The group or groups of recipients are generally dynamic in
nature and the join and dejoin (leave) rate may be high; furthermore, the implementation
time for a given join/dejoin action is expected to occur in 1–2 s (consider the typical
example of viewers changing TV channels on their remote control device).
Underpinning this ability to sustain multipoint communication is the addressing
scheme. There is a desire in multicast environments to have distributed control of the user
groups. The implication is that the source should not have to know and specifically
address each intended recipient individually, thereby having to maintain large central
tables of current users. Therefore, it follows that a mechanism needs to be available to
accomplish this distribution in an efficient manner. This is accomplished via the use of
multicast IP addresses and the multicast Media Access Control MAC addresses. This
topic is discussed in this chapter.
2.1 IP MULTICAST ADDRESSES
Multicast addresses define, in effect, the group of hosts that participate in the shared
reception of the content intended for that group. One can think of this by analogy with a

26
IP MULTICAST ADDRESSES 27
local TV station or local radio station. When a user “tunes” the TV to, say, Channel 7
(WABC TV in New York City), the user joins the set of viewers (receivers) that receive
the content produced and distributed by WABC TV. When a user then changes channel
and “tunes” the TV to, say, Channel 4 (WNBC TV in New York City), the user joins the
set of viewers (receivers) that receive the content produced and distributed by WNBC TV.
In IP multicast the analogous activity is accomplished by using IP multicast addresses.
The various content providers stream IP packets that have their own source address and a
multicast address as the destination address. For example, WABC TV in New York City
could generate programming with the address 239.10.10.1, WNBC TV in New York City
could generate programming with the address 239.10.10.2, and so on.
RFC 1112 specifies the extensions required of a host implementation of IP to support
multicasting. The IANA controls the assignment of IP multicast addresses. IANA has
allocated what has been known as the Class D address space to be utilized for IP
multicast. IP multicast group addresses are in the range 224.0.0.0–239.255.255.255. See
Figure 2.1. For each multicast address, there exists a set of zero or more hosts (receivers)
that look for packets transmitted to that address. This set of devices is called a host group.
A source (host) that sends packets to a specific group does not need to be a member of the
group and the host typically does not even know the current members in the group
[PAR200601]. As noted above, the source address for multicast IP packets is always the
unicast source address.
There are two types of host groups [PAR200601]:
. Permanent host groups: Applications that are part of this type of group have an IP
address permanently assigned by the IANA. A permanent group continues to exist
even if it has no members. Membership in this type of host group is not permanent:
a host (receiver) can join or leave the group as desired. An application can use DNS
to obtain the IP address assigned to a permanent host group using the domain
Class D IP addresses
1110 group ID
Byte 1 Byte 2 Byte 3 Byte 4
in “dotted decimal” notation: 224.0.0.0 – 239.255.255.255
Administrative categories:
(1) “well-known” multicast addresses (assigned by IANA)
(2) “transient” multicast addresses, assigned and reclaimed dynamically
by organization
Figure 2.1. IP Multicast Address

28 MULTICAST ADDRESSING FOR PAYLOAD
mcast.net. The application can determine the permanent group from an address by
using a pointer query in the domain 224.in-addr.arpa.
. Transient host groups: Any group that is not permanent as just described is
by definition transient. The group is available for dynamic assignment as needed.
Transient groups cease to exist when the number of members drops to zero.
As described above, some IP multicast addresses have been reserved for specific
functions. Addresses in the range 224.0.0.0–224.0.0.255 are reserved to be used by
network protocols on a local network segment. Network protocols make use of these
addresses for automatic router discovery and to communicate routing information (e.g.,
OSPF uses 224.0.0.5 and 224.0.0.6 to exchange link-state information). IP packets with
these addresses are not forwarded by a router; they remain local on a particular LAN
segment [they have a Time-to-Live (TTL) parameter set to 1; even if the TTL is different
from 1, they still are not forwarded by the router]. These addresses are also known as link-
local addresses.
The statically assigned link-local scope is 224.0.0.0/24. The list of IP addresses
assigned to permanent host groups is included in RFC 3232. From November 1977
through October 1994, the IANA periodically published tables of the IP parameter
assignments in RFCs entitled, “Assigned Numbers.” The most current of these assigned
number RFCs had standard status and carried the designation: STD 2, RFC 1700. At
this time, RFC 1700 has been obsoleted by RFC 3232. Since 1994, this sequence of
RFCs has been replaced by an online database accessible through the IANA Web page
(www.iana.org).
Some well known link-local addresses are the following:
. 224.0.0.1: All systems on this subnet

. 224.0.0.2: All routers on this subnet
. 224.0.0.4: DVMRP routers
. 224.0.0.5: OSPF routers
. 224.0.0.6: OSPF designated routers
. 224.0.0.12: DHCP server/relay agent
. 224.0.0.13: All PIM routers
. 224.0.0.22: All IGMPv3-capable multicast routers
. 224.0.0.102: HSRP
. 224.0.0.253: Teredo
The addresses from 224.0.1.0 to 238.255.255.255 are known as globally scoped

addresses. These addresses are used to transmit multicast information across the Internet
and between organizations. Some of these addresses have been reserved for specific uses
such as Network Time Protocol (NTP) (224.0.1.1).
Examples of globally scoped address ranges are as follows:
. 224.1.0.0–224.1.255.255: ST multicast groups

. 224.2.0.0–224.2.127.253: Multimedia conference calls
IP MULTICAST ADDRESSES 29
. 224.2.127.254: SAPv1 announcements

. 224.2.128.0–224.2.255.255: SAP dynamic assignments
. 224.252.0.0–224.255.255.255: DIS transient groups
. 232.0.0.0–232.255.255.255: VMTP transient groups
At a more granular level, examples of globally scoped addresses are as follows:
. 224.0.12.000–224.0.12.063: Microsoft and MSNBC

. 224.0.13.000–224.0.13.255: WorldCom Broadcast Services
. 224.0.15.000–224.0.15.255: Agilent Technologies
. 224.0.16.000–224.0.16.255: XingNet
. 224.0.17.000–224.0.17.031: Mercantile & Commodity Exchange
. 224.0.18.000–224.0.18.255: Dow Jones
. 224.0.19.000–224.0.19.063: Walt Disney Company
. 224.0.19.064–224.0.19.095: Cal Multicast
. 224.0.19.096–224.0.19.127: SIAC Market Service
. 224.0.25.0–224.0.28.255: CME Market Data
. 224.0.29.0–224.0.30.255: Deutsche Boerse
. 224.0.252.0–224.0.252.255: KPN Broadcast Services
. 224.0.253.000–224.0.253.255: KPN Broadcast Services
. 224.0.254.000–224.0.254.255: Intelsat IPTV
. 224.0.255.000–224.0.255.255: Intelsat IPTV
Some of these globally scoped addresses have been assigned recently, for example:
. 224.0.25.0–224.0.28.255, CME Market Data: assigned March 22, 2007

. 224.0.254.000–224.0.254.255, Intelsat IPTV: assigned March 31, 2006
. 224.0.23.52, Amex Market Data: assigned August 11, 2006
. 224.4.4.0–224.4.0.254, London Stock Exchange: assigned March 31, 2006
2.1.1 Limited Scope Addresses

The addresses from 239.0.0.0 to 239.255.255.255 are called limited scope addresses
(also known as administratively scoped addresses). RFC 2365 defines these addresses to
be limited to a local group or organization. Routers are required to be configured with
packet filters to prevent multicast traffic in this address range from flowing outside of an
Autonomous System (AS); these are similar to the 10.x.x.x or 192.x.x.x ranges for
traditional intranets.
Within an AS the limited scope address space can be subdivided so that local
multicast boundaries can be defined. This also allows for address reuse between these
subdomains.
RFC 2365 defines two limited scopes of interest: the IPv4 Local Scope and IPv4
Organization Local Scope.
The IPv4 Local Scope—239.255.0.0/16 239.255.0.0/16 is defined to be the IPv4
Local Scope. The local scope is the minimal enclosing scope and hence is not further
divisible. Although the exact extent of a local scope is site dependent, locally scoped
regions must obey certain topological constraints. In particular, a local scope must not
span any other scope boundary. Further, a local scope must be completely contained
within or equal to any larger scope. In the event that scope regions overlap in area, the area
of overlap must be in its own local scope. This implies that any scope boundary is also a
boundary for the local scope. The IPv4 Local Scope space grows “downward.” As such,
the IPv4 Local Scope may grow downward from 239.255.0.0/16 into the reserved ranges
239.254.0.0/16 and 239.253.0.0/16. However, these ranges should not be utilized until
the 239.255.0.0/16 space is no longer sufficient.
The IPv4 organization Local Scope—239.192.0.0/14 239.192.0.0/14 is defined to
be the IPv4 organization Local Scope and is the space from which an organization
should allocate subranges when defining scopes for private use. The ranges 239.0.0.0/
10, 239.64.0.0/10, and 239.128.0.0/10 are unassigned and available for expansion of
this space. These ranges should be left unassigned until the 239.192.0.0/14 space is no
longer sufficient. This is to allow for the possibility that future revisions may define
additional scopes on a scale larger than organizations.
2.1.2 GLOP Addressing

RFC 2770 recommended that the 233.0.0.0/8 address range be reserved for statically
defined addresses by organizations that already have an AS number reserved. The AS
number of the domain is embedded into the second and third octets of the 233.0.0.0/8
range. GLOP is a mechanism that allocates multicast addresses to ASs (GLOP is neither
an acronym nor an abbreviation).
For example, if an organization had AS 5662 assigned to it, written in binary, left
padded with 0s, one gets 0001-0110-0001-1110 (hex 161E). Mapping the high-order
octet to the second octet of the address, and the low-order octet to the third octet, one gets
233.22.30.0 As another example, if an organization had AS 62010, it is written as
1111-0010-0011-1010 (hex F23A). Looking at the two octets F2 and 3A one gets 242 and
58 in decimal. This gives a subnet of 233.242.58.0 that would be globally reserved for the
organization that has this AS assigned to it.
2.1.3 Generic IPv4 Addressing

In IPv4 a host address is a 32-bit value that contains the network and host number fields.
Traditionally (formerly) there have been five classes of Internet addresses: the class
defined the size of the network and host fields. See Figure 2.2.
Internet addresses are commonly displayed in dotted decimal notation format
XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX. Addresses can also be shown in hex form or in binary
LAYER 2 MULTICAST ADDRESSES 31
Class 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
A 0 Network bits Host bits

B 1 0 Network bits Host bits
C 1 1 0 Network bits Host bits
D 1 1 1 0 Multicast group
E 1 1 1 1 0 Reserved
Figure 2.2. Traditional IPv4 Address Classes
form. Consider, for example, 192.168.8.4. In binary form that would be

11000000|10101000|00001000|00000100; in hex form that would be C0-A8-08-04.
Table 2.1 depicts some key address allocations in the various classes (Class D is what
is of interest in multicast, as already noted) [NET200701].
2.2 LAYER 2 MULTICAST ADDRESSES
During normal operation as defined in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics

Engineers (IEEE) 802.3 LAN specifications, a Network Interface Card (NIC) connected
to a physical LAN accepts only
. frames destined for that card as defined by the destination MAC address and the
burned-in MAC address on the NIC or
. the broadcast MAC address (the broadcast address is 0xFFFF.FFFF.FFFF).
It follows that some mechanism has to be defined so that multiple hosts could receive the
same packet and still be able to differentiate between multicast groups. In the IEEE 802.3
standard, bit 0 of the first octet is used to indicate a broadcast and/or multicast frame, as
shown in Figure 2.3. This broadcast/multicast bit denotes that the frame is intended for an
arbitrary group of hosts or all hosts on the network. IP multicast utilizes this capability to
transmit IP packets to a group of hosts on a LAN segment.
2.2.1 Ethernet MAC Address Mapping

The IANA owns a block of Ethernet MAC addresses that can be allocated for multicast
addresses: 0100.5E00.0000–0100.5E7F.FFFF. With this approach, 23 bits in the Ether-
net address are made to correspond to the IP multicast group address. A mapping is used
that places the lower 23 bits of the IP multicast group address into these available 23 bits
in the Ethernet address (shown in Figure 2.4; also see Figure 2.5 for a specific example;
Figure 2.6 depicts the full Ethernet frame for reference). However, because the upper five
bits of the IP multicast address are dropped, the resulting address is not unique.
Specifically, 32 different multicast group IDs map to the same Ethernet address. This
predicament has to be kept in mind when designing a system.
T A B L E 2.1. IPv4 Address Block Allocation
Block Description
0.0.0.0/8 Addresses in this block refer to source hosts on “this” network. Address
0.0.0.0/32 may be used as a source address for this host on this network;
other addresses within 0.0.0.0/8 may be used to refer to specified hosts on
this network.
10.0.0.0/8 Private-use networks. Addresses within this block should not appear on the
public Internet.
127.0.0.0/8 Loopback. A datagram sent by a higher level protocol to an address
anywhere within this block should loop back inside the host. This is
ordinarily implemented using only 127.0.0.1/32 for loopback, but no
addresses within this block should ever appear on any network anywhere.
128.0.0.0/16 This block, corresponding to the numerically lowest of the former Class B
addresses, was initially and is still reserved by the IANA. Given the present
classless nature of the IP address space, the basis for the reservation no
longer applies and addresses in this block are subject to future allocation to
a Regional Internet Registry for assignment in the normal manner.
169.254.0.0/16 Link local. It is allocated for communication between hosts on a single link.
Hosts obtain these addresses by autoconfiguration, such as when a
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server may not be found.
172.16.0.0/12 Private-use networks. Addresses within this block should not appear on the
public Internet.
191.255.0.0/16 This block, corresponding to the numerically highest of the former Class B
192.0.0.0/24 This block, corresponding to the numerically lowest of the former Class C
192.0.2.0/24 Test-Net. It is often used in conjunction with domain names example.com or
example.net in vendor and protocol documentation. Addresses within this
block should not appear on the public Internet.
192.88.99.0/24 6 to 4 relay anycast.
192.168.0.0/16 Private-use networks. Addresses within this block should not appear on
the public Internet.
223.255.255.0/24 This block, corresponding to the numerically highest of the former Class C
224.0.0.0/4 Multicast. Formerly known as the Class D address space, it is allocated for
use in IPv4 multicast address assignments.
240.0.0.0/4 This block, formerly known as the Class E address space, is reserved.
The “limited broadcast” destination address 255.255.255.255 should never
be forwarded outside the (sub-)net of the source. The remainder of this
space is reserved for future use.
Courtesy: Network Sorcery, Inc.
32
MPEG-LAYER ADDRESSES 33
Destination Address (DA)

Octet0 Octet1 Octet2 Octet3 Octet4 Octet5
7 0 7 0 7 0 7 0 7 0 7 0
0000 0001
Broadcast/Multicast bit
Figure 2.3. IEEE 802.3 MAC Address Format
IP Multicast Addr
32 Bits
28 Bit
Multicast address
1110
5 Bits
dropped
01 –00 –5E –xx –xx –xx
25–Bit 23 Bits
Prefix
48 Bits
MAC address
Figure 2.4. Mapping of IP Multicast to Ethernet MAC Address
IP Class D Address: 224.11.9.6: E 0 0 B 0 9 0 6

1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Class D Not 23 Low-order Bits mapped
ID used
Ethernet Multicast Address
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 00 0 1 0 00 0 00 0 0 11 0
0 1 0 0 5 E 0 B 0 9 0 6
Figure 2.5. Example of Mapping of IP Multicast to Ethernet MAC Address
2.3 MPEG-LAYER ADDRESSES
In the video arena there is an additional “address” (channel indicator) that is often used.
This is the Packet Identifier (PID1). The topic is introduced briefly here and revisited in
Chapter 11. Operators typically maintain tables that show both the multicast IP address
1
Some also call this the Program ID.
6 bytes 6 bytes 2 bytes 1 byte 1 byte 1 byte 5 bytes 38 – 1492 4 bytes

bytes
Dest. Source Length DSAP SSAP Control SNAP Data FCS

MAC MAC
Datalink Header Logical Link Control SNAP Data and CRC (FCS)
SNAP = Subnetwork Access Protocol (provides backward

compatibility with Version II frame type) IP/IP Multicast
DSAP = Destination Service Access Point
Packet
SSAP = Source Service Access Point
FCS = Frame Check Sequence
Figure 2.6. Full Ethernet Frame
and the PID as a way to manage the content delivery. The video portion of the IPTV
system is defined by key documents such as (but not limited to):
. MPEG-2 Transport Stream Specifications—ISO/IEC 13818-1

. DVB-SI Specification—ETSI EN 300 468
The MPEG-2 and/or MPEG-4 standard defines three layers: audio, video, and
systems. The systems layer supports synchronization and interleaving of multiple
compressed streams, buffer initialization and management, and time identification. The
audio and the video layers define the syntax and semantics of the corresponding
Elementary Streams (ESs). An ES is the output of an MPEG encoder and typically
contains compressed digital video, compressed digital audio, digital data, and digital
control data. The information corresponds to an access unit (a fundamental unit of
encoding), such as a video frame. Each ES is in turn an input to an MPEG-2 processor that
accumulates the data into a stream of Packetized Elementary Stream (PES) packets. A
PES typically contains an integral number of ESs. See Figure 2.7, which shows both the
multiplex structure and the Protocol Data Unit (PDU) format [MIN200801].
As seen in the figure, PESs are then mapped to Transport Stream (TS) unit(s). Each
MPEG-2 TS packet carries 184 octets of payload data prefixed by a four-octet (32-bit)
header (the resulting 188-byte packet size was originally chosen for compatibility with
ATM systems). These packets are the basic unit of data in a TS. They consist of a sync byte
(0 · 47), followed by flags and a 13-bit PID. This is followed by other (some optional)
transport fields; the rest of the packet consists of the payload. DVB specifications for
transmission add 16 bytes of Reed–Solomon forward error correction to create a packet
that is 204 bytes long. See Figure 2.8.
As noted, the PID is a 13-bit field that is used to uniquely identify the stream to which
the packet belongs (e.g., PES packets corresponding to an ES) generated by the
multiplexer. The PID allows the receiver to differentiate the stream to which each
received packet belongs; effectively, it allows the receiver to accept or reject PES packets
ENCODER
Serial PES Encoder
Digital Interface Video
Stream ID1 SPTS (Single Program output
(SD) Video Transport Stream) UDP/IP
PES MPEG-2 encapsulation
Audio
Stream ID2 Max
4 184 bytes
PES 4 164 bytes
Data
4 184 bytes
MPEG–2 TS
4 bytes 184 bytes
PES Header Payload
(32 bits)
Packetized elementary stream

Sync Transport Payload Transport Transport Adaptation Continuity
byte error unit start priority PID scrambling field counter 6 bytes
Indication indication control control
(TEI) Header PES packet data bytes
8 1 1 1 13 2 2 4
(48 bits)
Packet start Stream PES Optional

code prefix ID packet length PES header
24 8 16
Figure 2.7. PES and TS Multiplexing
at a high level without burdening the receiver with extensive processing. Often one sends
only one PES (or a part of single PES) in a TS packet (in some cases, however, a given
PES packet may span several TS packets so that the majority of TS packets contain
continuation data in their payloads). MPEG TS are typically encapsulated in the User
Datagram Protocol (UDP) and then in IP.
Note: traditional approaches make use of the PID to identify content; in IPTV
applications, the IP multicast address is used to identify the content. Also, the latest IPTV
systems make use of MPEG-4-coded PESs.
Ultimately, an IPTV stream consists of packets of fixed size, each of which carries a
stream-identifying number called a PID. These MPEG packets are aggregated into an IP
packet; the IP packet is transmitted using IP multicast methods. Each PID contains specific
video, audio, or data information. To display a channel of IPTV digital television, the
DVB packet
204 bytes
188 bytes 16 bytes
MPEG-2 packet Reed–Solomon
error correction
4 bytes 184 bytes
MPEG-2 MPEG-2 payload

header
PID
PIDs are from 0x0000 to 0x1FFF.
PIDs from 0x0000 to 0x0020 and 0x1FFF are reserved
Figure 2.8. DVB Packet

Uplink Receiver
MPE
Figure 2.9. Pictorial View of Encapsulation
DVB-based application configures the driver in the receiver to pass up to it the packets with
a set of specific PIDs, for example, PID 121 containing video and PID 131 containing audio
(these packets are then sent to the MPEG decoder, either hardware or software based). So,
in conclusion, a receiver or demultiplexer extracts elementary streams from the TS in part
by looking for packets identified by the same PID.
Programs are groups of one or more PID streams that are related to each other. For
example, a TS used in IPTV could contain five programs to represent five video channels.
Assume that each channel consists of one video stream, one or two audio streams, and
metadata. A receiver wishing to tune to a particular “channel” has to decode the payload
of the PIDs associated with its program. It can discard the contents of all other PIDs.
DVB embodies the concept of “virtual channels” in analogous fashion as ATM.
Virtual channels are identified by PIDs and are also colloquially known as “PIDs.”
DVB packets are transmitted over the satellite network (one can think of the DVB
packets as being similar to an ATM cell, but with different length and format). The
receiver looks for specific PIDs that have been configured to acquire and then inject
into the telco network.
For satellite transmission, and to remain consistent with already existing MPEG-2
technology,2 TSs are further encapsulated in Multiprotocol Encapsulation (MPE—RFC
3016) and then segmented again and placed into TSs via a device called IP Encapsulator
(IPE); see Figure 2.9. MPE is used to transmit datagrams that exceed the length of the
DVB “cell,” just like ATM Adaptation Layer 5 (AAL5) is used for a similar function in an
ATM context. MPE allows one to encapsulate IP packets into MPEG-2 TSs (“packets,” or
“cells”). See Figure 2.10.
2
Existing receivers [specifically, Integrated Receiver Decoders (IRDs)] are based on hardware that works by
de-enveloping MPEG-2 TSs; hence, the MPEG-4-encoded PESs are mapped to TSs at the source.
MPEG2 Transport
4 bytes
MPE
17 bytes
Ethernet
14 bytes
IP
20 bytes
IP Multicast UDP 7 TSs – same PID
8 bytes
Output of encoders
TS TS TS TS TS TS TS
MPEG2 Transport
4 bytes
V A D
184 bytes
Encoder 1
Encoder 2 Satellite network

L2S IPE
184 bytes
Encoder 3
TS
Terrestrial network
V Video A Audio D Data
Figure 2.10. IPE Protocol Stack
IPEs handle statistical multiplexing and facilitate coexistence. IPE receives IP

packets from an Ethernet connection and encapsulates packets using MPE and then maps
these streams into an MPEG-2 TS. Once the device has encapsulated the data, the IPE
forwards the data packets to a satellite link.
Note: IPEs are usually not employed if the output of the layer 2 switch is connected to
a router for transmission over a terrestrial network; in this case the head end is responsible
for proper downstream enveloping and distribution of the traffic to the ultimate
consumer. The MPE packet has the format shown in Figure 2.11. Figure 2.12 shows
the encapsulation process.
This topic is revisited in Chapter 11.
13 28 4
byte bytes 139 byte payload byte
MPE UDP/ID (content of the “virtual channel” (aka PID)) CRC
MPE IP payload
header
28 bytes of UDP/IP header or
40 bytes of TCP/IP header
Figure 2.11. MPE Packet
If IP packet looks like this
IP UDP Hdr Payload CRC

28 bytes 375 bytes 4 bytes
The MPEG packets would like this

MPEG Hdr Pointer MPE Hdr IP UDP Hdr Payload
4 bytes 1 byte 12 bytes 28 bytes 143 bytes
MPEG Hdr Payload

4 bytes 184 bytes
MPEG Hdr Payload CRC Filler “0xFFFF”

4 bytes 48 bytes 4 bytes 132 bytes
Figure 2.12. Encapsulation Process
REFERENCES
[MIN200801] D. Minoli, K. Iniewski, C. McCrosky, Data Networks—VLSI and Optical Fibre,

Wiley, New York, 2008.
[NET200701] Network Sorcery, Inc., Technical Information, San Diego, CA, http://www.
networksorcery.com.
[PAR200601] P. Lydia, L. Wei, et al., TCP/IP Tutorial and Technical Overview, IBM Press,
Redbook Abstract, IBM Form Number GG24-3376-07, 2006.
[RFC1112] RFC 1112, Host Extensions for IP Multicasting, S.E. Deering, August 1989 (obsoletes
RFC 0988, RFC1054) (updated by RFC 2236) (also STD0005) (status: standard).
[RFC2365] RFC 2365, Administratively Scoped IP Multicast, D. Meyer, University of Oregon,
July1998.
[RFC2770] RFC 2770, GLOP Addressing in 233/8, D. Meyer, P. Lothberg, February 2000.
[RFC3232] RFC 3232, Assigned Numbers: RFC 1700 is Replaced by an Online Database,
J. Reynolds, Editor, January 2002 (obsoletes RFC 1700) (status: informational).
3
MULTICAST PAYLOAD
FORWARDING
This chapter looks at the mechanisms used in IP multicast to transmit payload

information to receivers. It covers multicasting on a LAN segment and, more
importantly, over a multihop routed infrastructure. Multicasting on the local subnet-
work does not require a multicast router or the use of a multicast routing algorithm: on a
shared-media subnet a source host, which does not necessarily have to be a group
member, just transmits a multicast data packet; the packet is received by any member
hosts connected to the medium. But for multicasts to extend beyond the local
subnetwork, the subnet must be attached to a multicast-capable router, which itself
is attached to other multicast-capable routers. This requires three mechanism: (i) the
ability to build distribution trees; (ii) the presence of a multicast routing protocol (e.g.,
PIM); and (iii) the presence of a group management protocol at the edges that enables
the subnets multicast router (or routers) to monitor group membership presence on its
directly attached links, such that if multicast data arrives, the router knows over which
of its links to send a copy of the packet. This chapter focuses on the first mechanism and
chapters that follow focus on other mechanisms.

39
40 MULTICAST PAYLOAD FORWARDING
3.1 MULTICASTING ON A LAN SEGMENT
The transmission process at the source builds a datagram stream with a specified
destination IP multicast address, as defined in Chapter 2. The source network driver
encapsulates the datagram with an Ethernet frame that includes the source Ethernet
address and a(n appropriate) destination Ethernet address. The process then sends the
packet to the destination. In unicast IP traffic forwarding, the encapsulation of the IP
multicast packet into an Ethernet frame with the MAC address of the receiving device
makes use of the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP). As discussed in the previous
chapter, a static mapping has been defined to “create” the destination MAC address (a
multicast Ethernet address.) As noted in Chapter 2, in an Ethernet network, multi-
casting is supported by setting the high-order octet of the data link address to 0 · 01.
The 32-bit multicast IP address is mapped to an Ethernet address by placing the
low-order 23 bits of the Class D address into the low-order 23 bits of the IANA-reserved
address block. Because the high-order 5 bits of the IP multicast group are not utilized,
32 different IP-level multicast groups are mapped to the same Ethernet address.
Figure 3.1 illustrates one example. The destination process informs its network device
drivers that it wishes to receive datagrams destined for a given IP multicast address. The
device driver enables reception of packets for that IP multicast address.
Because of the nonunique IP-to-Ethernet address mapping, filtering by the device
driver is required. This is accomplished by checking the destination address in the IP
header before passing the packet to the IP layer. This ensures the receiving process does
not receive unneeded datagrams. Hosts that are not participating in a host group are not
listening for the multicast address; here, multicast packets are filtered by lower layer
network interface hardware [PAR200601].
3.2 MULTICASTING BETWEEN NETWORK SEGMENTS
Multicast routing protocols have been developed to transmit packets across a routed
network while at the same time seeking to avoid routing loops. There are two functions
required to support multicast transmission across a routed network:
Multicast Source
address Host
used by A
source A0-0B-07-C1-32-11 192 . 1 . 1 . 1
224.11.8.6 Actual MAC address Actual source IP address
(E0-0B-08-06) multicast datagram
A0-0B-07-C1-32-11 01-00-5E-0B-08-06 192 . 1 . 1 . 1 224.11.8.6 ...
SA Multicast DA Source IP Multicast IP
C2-1B-32-11-07-07 192 . 1 . 1. 2
Actual MAC address actual IP address
Figure 3.1. Creation of a Multicast Datagram

MULTICAST DISTRIBUTION TREES 41
. Determining multicast participants: a capability for determining if a multicast

datagram needs to be forwarded on a specific network. The IGMP [RFC3376]
supports this capability.
. Determining multicast scope: the TTL field in a multicast datagram is used to
determine the scope of a transmission. The value contained in this field is
decremented at each router that is traversed.
When a host or multicast-capable router receives a datagram, datagram processing

depends on both the destination IP address and the TTL value:
If TTL ¼ 0, the datagram is restricted to the source host.

If TTL ¼ 1, the datagram reaches all users/hosts on the subnet that are members of
the group. Multicast routers decrement the value to zero. (Note that no Time
Exceeded error messages are sent to the source, unlike the case for unicast
datagrams where error messages are, in fact, sent.)
If TTL > 1, the datagram reaches all users/hosts on the subnet that are members of
the group. The action performed by multicast routers depends on the group
address, as follows [PAR200601]:
. Addresses inside the 224.0.0.0–224.0.0.255 block: Multicast routers do not

forward datagrams with destination addresses in this range since this set of
addresses is intended for single-hop multicast applications. However, even
though multicast-capable router do not forward these datagrams, a host must
still report membership in a group within this range; the report is used to inform
other hosts on the subnet that the reporting host is a member of the group.
. Addresses outside the 224.0.0.0–224.0.0.255 block: These datagrams are
forwarded by the multicast-capable router but the TTL value is decremented
by 1 at each stage.
This mechanism allows a host to locate the nearest user/host seeking a specific
multicast address. The source host sends out a datagram with a TTL value of 1 (same
subnet) and waits for a reply. If no reply is received, the source host resends the datagram
with a TTL value of 2. If no reply is received, the host continues to increment the TTL
value until the nearest user is found.
3.3 MULTICAST DISTRIBUTION TREES
Multicast-capable routers create logical distribution trees that control the path that IP
multicast traffic takes through the network in order to deliver traffic to all receivers.
Mechanisms exist for creating and for maintaining (e.g., pruning) the distribution trees.
Different multicast algorithms (e.g., PIM, CBT, DVMRP) use different techniques for
establishing the distribution tree. One can classify algorithms into source-based tree
algorithms and shared-tree algorithms. Different algorithms have different scaling
characteristics, and the characteristics of the resulting trees differ too, for example,
from an end-to-end delay perspective.
Members of multicast groups can join or leave (dejoin) at any point in time,
therefore, the distribution trees must be dynamically updated. When all the active
receivers on a particular branch stop requesting the traffic for a particular multicast
group, the multicast-capable routers prune that branch from the distribution tree and stop
forwarding traffic along that branch. If a receiver on that branch becomes active and
requests the multicast traffic, the multicast-capable router will dynamically modify the
distribution tree and start forwarding traffic again [CIS200701]. Note that IP multicast
does not require senders to be group members of that group.
The two basic types of multicast distribution trees are source trees [also known as
Shortest Path Trees (SPTs) or source-based trees] and shared trees (also known as share-
based trees). Messages are replicated only where the tree branches. Both SPTs and shared
trees are loop-free topologies.
The simplest form of a multicast distribution tree is the source tree. A source tree has
its root at the multicast source and has branches forming a spanning tree over the network
to the receivers. The tree makes use of the shortest path through the network and so a
separate SPT may exist for each individual source sending to each group. The notation of
(S,G) is utilized to describe an SPT where S is the IP address of the source and G is the
multicast group address. Figure 3.2 depicts an example of an SPT for group 239.1.1.1
rooted at the source, host A, and connecting three receivers, hosts B, C, and D. Using the
(S,G) notation, the SPT is (92.1.1.1, 239.1.1.1).
SPTs achieve, by definition, the optimal path topology between the source and
the receivers in terms of the number of hops, resulting in the minimum amount of
network latency for distributing multicast traffic. However, the multicast-capable
routers are required to maintain path information for each source. In large networks,
Multicast traffic
239.1.1.1
Source Host
A
92.1.1.1
92.2.2.4
Receiver
Host D
92.2.2.2 92.3.3.3
Receiver Receiver
Host B Host C
Figure 3.2. SPT Example

with either many sources and/or many groups, this state information can overtax
the routers, particularly for memory resources needed to store the multicast routing
table. Note that Deerings multicast algorithms [RFC988, RFC1054, RFC1112]
build source-rooted delivery trees, with one delivery tree per sender subnetwork
[RFC2201].
Figure 3.3 depicts a simple IPTV example; in this example the SPT is employed to
efficiently distribute video to remote users. Figure 3.4 shows the real-time pruning that
takes place.
Shared trees use a single common root placed at a selected point in the network.
This shared root is called a Rendezvous Point (RP) (also called core or center). Figure
3.5 shows a shared tree for the group 239.1.1.1 along with the shared root. When
making use of a shared tree, sources send their traffic to the root (RP) and then the traffic
is forwarded along the shared tree to reach all active receivers. In this example,
multicast traffic from sources 1 and 2 travels to the router at the shared root and then
along the shared tree to the three receivers, hosts B, C, and D. All sources in the
multicast group use the common shared tree. The notation (*, G) is used to represent the
tree. In this case, “*” is a wildcard that means all sources. The shared tree shown in
Figure 3.5 is written as (*, 239.1.1.1).
Shared trees require the minimum amount of state information in each router,
thereby minimizing the memory requirements for the routers and the mechanisms to
keep the state information up to date. However, the paths between the source and
receivers may not be the optimal paths in terms of hops and, consequently, latency. This
Video source/
server A
A A
A
A
Unicast
Router
A
Video source/
server A
A A
Multicast
Router
A
Figure 3.3. Simple IPTV Example of SPT

Video source/
server
Multicast
routing
protocol
Group
Join
Join
membership
protocol
Receivers
Delivery tree at time t

Pruned branch at time t
Figure 3.4. Real-Time Pruning
predicament requires a detailed assessment of where the RP should be located in the

network when implementing a shared-tree design.
Source-based multicast trees are built by a distance-vector-based algorithm, which
may be implemented separately from the unicast routing algorithm (as is the case with
DVMRP); alternatively, the multicast tree may also be built using the information present
in the underlying unicast routing table (for example, with PIM DM). The other algorithm
used for building source-based trees is the link-state algorithm (an example being
M-OSPF). Most source-based tree multicast algorithms are typically referred to as
“dense-mode” algorithms. These algorithms assume that the receiver population densely
populates the domain of operation, and therefore the accompanying overhead in the
algorithms (in terms of state, bandwidth usage, and/or processing costs) is acceptable.
This tends to be the case in a local environment and for a number of wide-area
applications, including IPTV and DVB-H. For other applications (e.g., grid computing,
datacasting), group membership tends to be sparsely distributed throughout the
Multicast traffic Multicast traffic

239.1.1.1 239.2.2.2
Source 1 Host Host Source 2

92.1.1.13
92.4.4.43
Shared root
92.2.2.23 92.3.3.33 92.5.5.53
Receiver Receiver Receiver
Host B Host C Host D
Figure 3.5. Shared Distribution Tree
institutional network, carrier network, or Internet; with these applications there may be
“pockets” of denseness, but at the global level, wide-area groups tend to be sparsely
distributed [RFC2201].
A shared-tree architecture offers an improvement in scalability over source tree
architectures by a factor of the number of active sources. Source trees scale O(S · G),
since a distinct delivery tree is built per active source. Shared trees eliminate the source
S scaling factor; all sources use the same shared tree, therefore, a shared tree scales
O(G). The implication of this is that applications with many active senders, such as
distributed interactive simulation applications and distributed video gaming (where
most receivers are also senders), have significantly less impact on underlying multicast
routing if shared trees are used [RFC2201]. Notice that in IPTV the source is typically
unique because the source (call it a supersource) itself aggregates many content
channels (from various providers, e.g., 200 providers) into a single IP multicast stream
in order to apply a consistent coding scheme (e.g., convert from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4,
convert from analog to digital MPEG-4, convert from component video to MPEG-4
video) and to apply a consistent conditional access (digital rights management)
discipline.
For general applications (such as but not limited to datacasting and grid comput-
ing), shared trees incur significant bandwidth and state savings compared with source
trees. The first reason for this is that the tree only spans a groups receivers (including
links/routers leading to receivers)—there is no cost to routers/links in other parts of

the network. The second reason for this is that routers between a nonmember
sender and the delivery tree are not incurring any overhead pertaining to multicast,
and indeed, these routers need not even be multicast capable—packets from nonmember
senders are encapsulated and transmitted in a unicast mode to a core on the tree
[RFC2201].
Some multicast algorithms, specifically the CBT algorithm, make use of a CBT. A
CBT is a “bidirectional shared tree” where the routing state is “bidirectional,” namely,
packets can flow both down the tree away from the core and up the tree toward the core,
depending on the location of the source in the network, and the tree is “shared” by all
sources to the group. Figure 3.6 illustrates a CBT.
Incoming “multicast” packet

containing CORE address
and group ID. Host
Source A
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver Receiver
Receiver
Core router Non–core router
- Path taken by multicast packet
Figure 3.6. Example of CBT

MULTICAST FORWARDING: REVERSE PATH FORWARDING 47
3.4 MULTICAST FORWARDING: REVERSE PATH FORWARDING
The basic approach in unicast routing is forwarding information toward the receiver. In
multicast routing, the source needs to send traffic to a dynamic group of hosts, as
represented by a multicast group address. The basic approach in multicast routing is
forwarding multicast traffic away from the source; this approach is called Reverse Path
Forwarding (RPF).
In traditional unicast routing, traffic is relayed through the network along a single
path from the source to the destination. The router uses its routing table to determine how
to forward the traffic toward that destination, specifically to determine the outgoing
router link that a datagram should utilize. The table is indexed on destination
addresses since a unicast router is generally only concerned with the destination
address on a datagram that needs forwarding.1 After the interface is selected, the router
forward a single copy of the unicast datagram out that interface in the direction of the
destination.
RPF enables multicast-capable routers to correctly forward multicast traffic along
the distribution tree and avoid loops. A multicast-capable router must keep track of which
direction is toward the source (upstream) and which direction(s) is (are) toward the
receiver (downstream). A multicast-capable router only forward a multicast packet if it is
received on the upstream interface. When there are multiple downstream paths, the router
replicates the packet and forwards it along the appropriate downstream paths.
RPF employs the existing unicast routing table to determine the upstream and
downstream neighbors. When a multicast packet arrives at a router, the router will
perform an RPF check on the packet, namely, determine if it has been received on the
upstream interface. If the RPF check is successful, the packet is forwarded; otherwise the
packet is dropped.
For traffic flowing along a source tree, the RPF check procedure works as follows
[CIS200701]:
Step 1. Router looks up the source address in the unicast routing table to determine if
it has arrived on the interface that is on the reverse path back to the source.
Step 2. If the packet has arrived on the interface leading back to the source, the RPF
check is successful and the packet will be forwarded.
Step 3. If the RPF check in 2 fails, the packet is dropped.
Figure 3.7 shows examples of RPF checks. If a multicast packet from source
152.11.5.6 is received on interface Serial 0 (S0), a check of the multicast route table
shows that this packet should be dropped. If the multicast packet, on the contrary, arrived
on S1, then the RPF check passes and the packet is forwarded according to the interface
defined in the unicast routing table (could be S2, as an example.)
Note: the RPF algorithm builds a tree for each source in a multicast group.
1
A router is generally not concerned about the source address except in special cases.
Multicast packet from

source 152.11.5.6
on this interface
is dropped
Multicast packet from
source 152.11.5.6 S0
on this interface S1 S2
is forwarded
E0
Multicast route table
Packet from ...arrive
this source on this
can only ... interface
If multicast packet from source 152.11.5.6
152.11.0.0/16 S1
is received on interface other than S1, drop it
199.15.33.0/24 S0
205.2.17.0/24 E0
215.5.97.0/24 S2
Figure 3.7. RPF Check
3.5 MULTICAST FORWARDING: CENTER-BASED TREE ALGORITHM
The CBT algorithm defines another method to determine (near) optimum paths to
support multicast groups. (The disadvantage of the CBT algorithm is that it could in
theory build a suboptimal path for some sources and receivers.) This algorithm builds a
delivery tree for each multicast group, but the tree is identical for all sources. Each router
maintains a single tree for the entire group. The algorithm operates by making use of the
following steps [PAR200601, RFC2189, RFC2201]:
1. A fixed center point in the network is chosen.

2. Each receiver sends a Join request directed toward the center point. This is
accomplished using an IGMP membership report for that group (as discussed in
more detail in Chapter 4).
3. The request is processed by all intermediate routers located between the multi-
cast receiver and the center point. If the router receiving the request is already a
member of the tree, it marks one more interface as belonging to the group. If this
is the first Join request, the router forwards the request one step further toward the
source.
4. Multicast packets from a source are forwarded toward the center point until they
reach a router belonging to the tree. At this stage, the packets are forwarded using
the multicast processing of the CBT.
Chapter 6 provides additional details on CBT.

IMPLEMENTING IP MULTICAST IN A NETWORK 49
3.6 IMPLEMENTING IP MULTICAST IN A NETWORK
Wide-area multicast applications (for example, IPTV, DVB-H, datacasting) require

datagrams to traverse multiple subnet boundaries and router hops. Support for IP
multicast requires multicast-ready network elements such as routers and layer 2
switches; also, it requires multicast-ready clients (as potential receivers) and servers
(as potential multicast sources).
Users (Hosts): Server and client hosts must have an IP stack supporting multicast, as
specified in Internet RFC 1112, inter alia; this enables hosts to send and receive multicast
data. TCP/IP stacks are now generally multicast enabled. Servers and clients run
applications that support IP multicast delivery, such as audio broadcast, video broadcast,
or videoconferencing. In addition to the usual unicast and broadcast capability, NICs on
all receiving hosts must be configured to monitor multicast packets.
Network Infrastructure: A high-performance backbone is required to support
multicast services. Such backbone should support switched Ethernet connections from
the backbone to the sources and the receivers. An end-to-end layer 2/layer 3 switched
network from source to receiver [for example, using Multiprotocol Label Switching
(MPLS)] may also be desirable; the switched infrastructure can provide adequate
bandwidth to allow unicast and multimedia applications to coexist within the subnet.
A well-tuned traditional IP backbone can also be used.
The most appropriate layer 2 switches for multicast have a switch architecture that
allows multicast traffic to be forwarded to a large number of attached group members
without overloading the switch fabric. Layer 2 switches also need some degree of
multicast awareness (for example, IGMP snooping) to avoid flooding multicasts to all
switch ports. Multicast control in layer 2 switches can be accomplished in a number of
ways [CIS200701]:
. VLANs can be defined to correspond to the boundaries of the multicast group.

This is a simple approach; however, this approach does not support dynamic
changes to group membership and adds to the administrative burden of unicast
VLANs.
. Layer 2 switches can snoop IGMP queries and reports to learn the port mappings
of multicast group members. This allows the switch to dynamically track group
membership. But snooping every multicast data and control packet consumes a lot
of switch processing capacity and therefore can degrade forwarding performance
and increase latency.
. Taking advantage of the Generic Attribute Registration Protocol (GARP) (IEEE
802.1p) will allow the end system to communicate directly with the switch to join a
802.1p group corresponding to a multicast group. This shifts much of the
responsibility for multicast group configuration from layer 3 to layer 2, which
may be most appropriate in large, flat, switched networks.
In reference to layer 3 infrastructure equipment, most modern routers (or more

specifically, router software) include support for IP multicast. Intermediate routers and/
or layer 3 switches between senders and receivers must be IP multicast enabled; at the
very least, the ingress and egress routers to the backbone should be multicast routers. If
the intervening backbone routers lack support for IP multicast, IP tunneling (encapsu-
lating multicast packets within unicast packets) may be used as an interim measure to link
multicast routers. The choice of multicast routing protocol among PIM, DVMRP,
MOSPF, and CBT should be based on the characteristics of the multicast application
being deployed as well as the “density” and geographical location of receiving hosts
[CIS200701].
REFERENCES
[CIS200701] Cisco Systems, Internet Protocol (IP) Multicast Technology Overview, White Paper,
Cisco Systems, San Jose, CA.
[PAR200601] L. Parziale, W. Liu, et al., TCP/IP Tutorial and Technical Overview, IBM Press,
[RFC2189] RFC 2189, Core Based Trees (CBT Version 2) Multicast Routing—Protocol
Specification, A. Ballardie, September 1997.
September 1997.
4
DYNAMIC HOST
REGISTRATION—INTERNET
GROUP MANAGEMENT
PROTOCOL
Q1 This chapter covers the important topic of dynamic host registration. In a multicast
environment, group membership information is exchanged between a receiver (host) and
the nearest multicast router. The IGMP is used by host receivers to join or leave a
multicast host group. Hosts establish group memberships by sending IGMP messages to
their local multicast router. Multicast-enabled routers monitor for IGMP messages to
maintain forwarding tables for the various interfaces on the router. Multicast-enabled
routers periodically send out queries to discover which groups are active or inactive on a
given subnet.
IGMP is used by IPv4-based receivers to report their IP multicast group member-
ships to neighboring multicast routers: it defines the signaling communication occurring
between receiving hosts and their local multicast router. IGMP2, now widely deployed, is
defined by RFC 2236 (November 1997).
The latest version at press time was Version 3, defined in RFC 3376 (IGMPv3,
October 2002); RFC 3376 subsumes and obsoletes RFC 2236 (IGMPv2). IGMPv3
supports receivers that explicitly signal sources from which they wish to receive traffic.
Specifically, IGMPv3 is employed by hosts to signal channel access in SSM. For SSM to
work, IGMPv3 must be available in last-hop routers and receiver host operating system

51
52 DYNAMIC HOST REGISTRATION—INTERNET GROUP MANAGEMENT PROTOCOL
network stacks and be used by the applications running on those receiver hosts. Benefits
of SSM include:
. Optimized access bandwidth utilization—Receivers are able to request traffic

only from explicitly known sources, relieving the typically congested access link
from unnecessary traffic, especially in cases where the access is DSL based (as
covered briefly in Chapter 1).
. Risk reduction—Eliminates denial-of-service attacks from unknown sources.
This chapter provides an overview of IGMP. Appendix 4.A provides a formal

description of IGMPv2. Appendix 4.B covers basic operation of IGMP snooping
switches. Appendix 4.C provides a basic description of commercial router configuration
for IGMP operation.
4.1 IGMP MESSAGES
In Version 1 (defined in RFC 1112), there are two types of IGMP messages: MQ and MR.
In a Version 1 implementation, receivers interested in joining a particular multicast group
generate MRs, which contain reference to that multicast address (group). The router, in
turn, builds a forwarding table entry and routinely forwards the multicast packets to the
interface(s) that support the subnet where registered hosts reside. The router periodically
sends out an IGMP MQ to verify that at least one host on the subnet is still interested in
receiving traffic directed to that group. When there is no reply to the three consecutive
IGMP MQs, the router times out the group and stops forwarding traffic directed toward
that group.
The basic IGMPv2 (defined in RFC 2236) message types are MQ, MR,1 and Leave
Group (LG). MQs can be generic (general MQ) or specific (group-specific MQ). In the
discussion below, the querier is the sender of a Query message—the querier is a multicast
router.
IGMPv2 works in a similar fashion as Version 1 but with the addition of the LG
message. With the LG mechanism, receivers/hosts can explicitly communicate their
intention to depart from the group to the local multicast router. The use of LGs reduces
the traffic on subnets, especially if there is a lot of join/change/leave activity. Upon
receiving an LG message the router issues a group-specific query to determine if there are
any remaining hosts on that subnet that are in need of receiving the traffic. If there are no
replies, the router times out the group and stops forwarding the traffic.
The IGMP messages for IGMPv2 are shown in Figure 4.1. The message comprises
an eight-octet structure. During transmission, IGMP messages are encapsulated in IP
datagrams; to indicate that an IGMP packet is being carried, the IP header contains a
protocol number of 2. For reference, Figure 4.2 shows the format of an IP datagram along
1
There are Versions 1, 2 MRs
IGMP MESSAGES 53
Specifies the maximum allowed time

a host can wait before sending a corresponding report.
0 8 16 31
Type Max resp time
type of IGMP packet (used in membership
16-bit checksum
query messages)
Class D address
(Used in a report packet)
–0x11: Specifies a membership query packet. This packet is sent by a multicast router.
–0x12: Specifies an IGMPv1 membership report packet. This packet is sent by a
multicast host to signal participation in a specific multicast host group.
–0x16: Specifies an IGMPv2 membership report packet.
–0x17: Specifies a leave group packet. This packet is sent by a multicast host.
Figure 4.1. IGMPv2 Message Format
with a short list of protocol types, of which IGMP is one of many. An IGMPv2 PDU
consists of a 20-byte IP header and 8 bytes of IGMP.
The Type field identifies the type of IGMP packet.
. A MQ packet has a type of 0 · 11. This message is sent by a multicast-enabled

router. An MQ packet is sent by a multicast router either to learn which groups
have members on an attached network (also known as general query) or to learn if
a particular group has any members on an attached network (also known as
group-specific query).
. An IGMPv1 membership report packet has a type of 0 · 12. This message is sent
by a multicast receiver (host) to indicate a request for participation in a specific
multicast receiver (host) group.
. An IGMPv2 membership report packet has a type of 0 · 16. This is the Join
message (MR).
. An LG packet has a type of 0 · 17. This message is sent by a multicast receiver
(host) to indicate a request for disassociation from a group.
The Max Response Time field is employed in membership query messages and it
specifies the maximum time a host can wait before sending a corresponding report. This
parameter allows routers to optimize the leave latency and the time between the last receiver
(host)leavesagroupandthetimetheroutingprotocolisnotifiedthattherearenomoreactive
members in that group. The maximum response time is measured in tenths of a second.
The Checksum field contains a 16-bit checksum for the message. The checksum
is the 16-bit ones complement of the ones complement sum of the whole IGMP
message (the entire IP payload). For computing the checksum, the Checksum field is
set to zero.
MAC header IP header Data ...
00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Version IHL TOS Total length
Identification Flags Fragment offset
TTL Protocol Header checksum
Source IP address
Destination IP address
Options and padding
Version. 4 bits. Specifies the format of the IP packet header.
IHL, Internet Header Length. 4 bits. Specifies the length of the IP packet header in 32-bit words.
TOS, Type of Service. 8 bits. Specifies the parameters for the type of services requested.
Precedence. 3 bits.
Total length. 16 bits. Contains the length of the diagram.
Identification. 16 bits Used to identify the fragments of one datagram from those of another.
Flags. 3 bits.
Fragment offset. 13 bits. Used to direct the reassembly of a fragmented datagram.
TTL Time-to-Live. 8 bits. A timer field used to track the lifetime of the datagram.
When the TTL field is decremented down to zero, the datagram is discarded
Protocol. 8. bits. This field specifies the encapsulated protocol
Value Protocol
0 HOPOPT.IPv6 Hop-by-Hop Option.
1 ICMP.Internet Control Message Protocol
IGAP.IGMP for user Authentication Protocol
2 IGMP.Internet Group Management Protocol.
RGMP.Router-port Group Management Protocol.
3 GGP.Gateway to Gateway Protocol.
4 IP in IP encapsulation
5 ST.Internet Stream Protocol.
6 TCP.Transmission Control Protocol.
7 UCL.CBT
8 EGP.Exterior Gateway Protocol.
9 IGRP.Interior Gateway Routing Protocol.
Electera
Electera
Header checksum. 16 bits. A 16-bit one’s complement checksum of the IP header and IP options
Source IP address. 32 bits. IP address of the sender.
Destination IP address. 32 bits. IP address of the intended receiver.
This also includes multicast addresses (see Chapter 2).
Options. Variable length.
Figure 4.2. IP Packet Format
The Class D Address field contains a valid multicast group address and is used in a
report packet.
Note: In IPv4, multicasting and IGMP support are optional. However, IGMP
functions are integrated directly into IPv6, implying that all IPv6 hosts are required
to support multicasting.
IGMPv3 MESSAGES 55
4.2 IGMPv3 MESSAGES
In the recent past, the IGMPv2 message format has been extended in IGMPv3.
Version 3 allows receivers to subscribe to or exclude a specific set of sources within
a multicast group, rather than just an individual source (this is called, as noted, source-
specific multicast). With this feature, IGMPv 3 adds support for “source filtering,” that
is, the ability for a system to report interest in receiving packets sent to a particular
multicast address only from specific source addresses or from all but specific source
addresses. That information may be used by multicast routing protocols to avoid
delivering multicast packets from specific sources to (sub)networks where there are no
interested receivers [RFC3376]. IGMPv3 is not widely implemented as of press time.
“Source filtering” enables a multicast receiver (host) to signal to a multicast-enabled
router that groups the host that wants to receive multicast traffic from (that is, signal
membership to a multicast host group) and from which source(s) this traffic is expected.
This membership information allows a multicast-enabled router to forward traffic from
only those sources from which receivers requested the traffic. “Source filtering” supports
an atomic leave/join; this helps recovery from lost “leave” messages and simplifies some
of the error recovery scenarios. This capability also halves the message traffic, as now
only a single message is needed to “leave” one stream and “join” another.
Receivers signal membership to a multicast host group in the following two modes
[CIS200701]:
. INCLUDE mode—In this mode, the receiver announces membership to a host

group and provides a list of IP addresses (the INCLUDE list) from which it wishes
to receive traffic.
. EXCLUDE mode—In this mode, the receiver announces membership to a host
group and provides a list of IP addresses (the EXCLUDE list) from which it
does not wish to receive traffic. This indicates that the host wants to receive
traffic only from other sources whose IP addresses are not listed in the EXCLUDE
list.
To support this capability the membership query packet (type of 0 · 11) has been
changed; in addition, a new packet type of 0 · 22 has been added. Note that all IGMPv3
implementations must still support packet types 0 · 12, 0 · 16, and 0 · 17.
In IGMPv3 there are the following three variants of the Query message:
1. A “general query” is sent by a multicast router to learn the complete multicast

reception state of the neighboring interfaces (that is, the interfaces attached to the
network on which the query is transmitted). In a general query, both the Group
Address field and the Number of Sources field are zero (see below).
2. A “group-specific query” is sent by a multicast router to learn the reception state,
with respect to a single multicast address, of the neighboring interfaces. In a
group-specific query, the Group Address field contains the multicast address of
interest, and the Number of Sources field contains zero (see below).
0 8 16 31
0x11 (Type) Max Resp Code Checksum
Group Address
Resv S QRV QQIC Number of sources
Source Address [1]
Source Address [2]

-
-
-
Source Address [N]
Figure 4.3. IGMPv3 Membership Query Message
3. A “group-and-source-specific query” is sent by a multicast router to learn if any

neighboring interface desires reception of packets sent to a specified multicast
address from any of the specified list of sources. In a group-and-source-specific
query, the Group Address field contains the multicast address of interest, and the
Source Address fields contain the source address(es) of interest.
The IGMPv3 membership query packet 0 · 11 message includes a field that

specifies the number of sources being covered by the request along with a list of Class
D addresses. See Figure 4.3.
The Type field remains unchanged.
The Max Response Code field has been modified and it distinguishes between a
maximum response code and a maximum response time. The Max Resp Code field
specifies the maximum time allowed before sending a responding report. The actual time
allowed, called the Max Resp Time, is represented in units of 1/10 s and is derived from
the maximum response code. Here is how that is done—when the maximum response
code is less than 128, the value of the maximum response time equates to the value of the
maximum response code. When the maximum response code is greater than 128, the
maximum response time is calculated as follows.
If Max Resp Code 128, Max Resp Code represents a floating-point value where
the coding is
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
|1| exp | mant |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
mant ¼ mantissa
exp ¼ exponent
Max Resp Time ¼ (mant | 0 · 10) (exp þ 3)

IGMPv3 MESSAGES 57
(| is the Boolean or function; e.g., 0010|10000 ¼ 10010) (note that the exp calcula-
tion uses a binary representation of decimal 3, namely 11) “” is the bitwise left shift
operator. It defines the shift bits of a number to the left by a certain number of places and
zero is used for filling.
For example, 2147483646 1 leads to the following: the 32-bit binary representa-
tion of 2147483646 is 10000000000000000000000000000010. If its leftmost bit is
removed and a zero is filled at the rightmost position, the result is
00000000000000000000000000000100, which is equal to 4 in decimal representation.
Consider the example of 18 6: the 11-bit binary representation is 00000010010. If its
leftmost 6 bits are removed and six zeros are filled at the rightmost positions, the result is
10010000000 or decimal 1152. Now we are ready to apply the formula.
As an example, assume that the value of the maximum response code is decimal 178.
The bit string representation of this is 10110010. From this, the fields of the maximum
response code are
. Byte 0 ¼ 1
. exp ¼ 011
. mant ¼ 0010
The subsequent calculations are
. (mant|0 · 10) ¼ (0010|10000) ¼ 10010

. exp þ 11 ¼ 011 þ 11 ¼ 110 (basically, 3 þ 3 ¼ 6 in base 10, or 110 in base 2)
Now,
. 10010 exp þ 11 ¼ 10010 110 ¼ 10010000000

. Binary 10010000000 ¼ decimal 1152
Therefore, when the maximum response code is decimal 178, the maximum
response time is 1152 tenths of a second.
Small values of Max Resp Time allow IGMPv3 routers to tune the “leave latency”
(the time between the moment the last host leaves a group and the moment the routing
protocol is notified that there are no more members). Larger values allow tuning of the
burstiness of IGMP traffic on a network.
The Checksum field contains a 16-bit checksum and remains unchanged from
Version 2.
The Group Address field contains the Class D address and is the same as Version 2.
The Group Address field is set to zero when sending a general query, and set to
the IP multicast address being queried when sending a group-specific query or a
group-and-source-specific query.
The Resv field is reserved and is set to zero on transmission and is ignored on
reception.
The S Flag field is used as follows: when set to 1, this field indicates that any
receiving multicast routers should suppress the timer updates normally performed upon
receiving a query.
The QRV field (Queriers Robustness Variable) carries a parameter that is used in
tuning timer values for expected packet loss. The higher the value of the QRV, the more
tolerant the environment is for lost packets. One needs to keep in mind, however, that
increasing the QRValso increases the delay in detecting a problem. If nonzero, the QRV
field contains the [Robustness Variable] value used by the querier (that is, the sender of
the query, a multicast router). If the queriers [Robustness Variable] exceeds 7, the
maximum value of the QRV field, the QRV is set to zero. Routers adopt the QRV value
from the most recently received query as their own [Robustness Variable] value, unless
that most recently received QRV was zero, in which case the receivers use the default
[Robustness Variable] value.
The QQIC field (Queriers Query Interval Code) carries a value specifying the query
interval, in seconds, used by the originator of this query. In other words, QQIC specifies
the [Query Interval] used by the querier. The actual interval, called the Queriers Query
Interval (QQI), is represented in units of seconds and is derived from the QQIV. Multicast
routers that are not the current querier adopt the QQI value from the most recently
received query as their own [Query Interval] value, unless that most recently received
QQI was zero, in which case the receiving routers use the default [Query Interval] value.
The calculations to convert this code into the actual interval time are the same used for the
maximum response code discussed above.
Number of Sources field indicates how many source addresses are contained within
the Query message. This number is zero in a general query or a group-specific query and
nonzero in a group-and-source-specific query. This number is limited by the Maximum
Transfer Unit (MTU) of the network over which the query is transmitted. For example, on
an Ethernet with an MTU of 1500 octets, the IP header including the Router Alert option
Q2 consumes 24 octets, and the IGMP fields, including the Number of Sources (N) field,
consume 12 octets, leaving 1464 octets for source addresses, which limits the number of
source addresses to 366 (1464/4).
Source Addresses: This list of fields identifies N IP unicast addresses, where the
value N corresponds to the Number or Sources field.
As noted earlier, IGMPv3 adds a new type of 0 · 22 to support the IGMPv3 MR; see
Figure 4.4 for the format of Version 3 reports. MRs are sent by IP systems to report (to
neighboring routers) the current multicast reception state, or changes in the multicast
reception state, of their interfaces. Notice how each group record is assembled in the MR
message.
The Record Type field indicates whether the group record type is a current-state,
filter-mode-change, or source-list-change record. Current-state records (MODE_IS_
INCLUDE, MODE_IS_EXCLUDE) are records sent by a system in response to a
query received on an interface and report the current reception of that interface.
Filter-mode-change records (CHANGE_TO_INCLUDE_MODE, CHANGE_TO_
EXCLUDE_MODE) are records sent by a system when an interfaces state changes for
a particular multicast address. Source-list-change records (ALLOW_NEW_SOURCES,
BLOCK_OLD_SOURCES) are records sent by a system when an interface wishes
IGMPv3 MESSAGES 59
0 8 16 31
0x22 (type) Reserved Checksum
Reserved Number of group records

Group Record [1]
Group Record [2]
. . .
Group Record [N]

0 8 16 31
Record type Reserved Number of Sources (N)
Multicast Address
Source Address [1]
Source Address [2]
. . .
Source Address [N]
Auxiliary Data
Figure 4.4. Membership Report Message
to alter the list of source addresses without altering its state. See Table 4.1 for more
details.
Version 3 reports are sent with an IP destination address of 224.0.0.22, to which all
IGMPv3-capable multicast routers listen. A system that is operating in Version 1 or 2
compatibility modes sends Version 1 or 2 reports to the multicast group specified in the
Group Address field of the report. In addition, a system must accept and process any Version 1
or 2 report whose IP Destination Address field contains any of the addresses (unicast or
multicast) assigned to the interface on which the report arrives [RFC3376].
Note: Because of its higher complexity, IGMPv3 is not universally supported by all
the receiver hosts or the receiver applications as of press time; IGMPv2 is more common,
especially in IPTV applications.2
Note: All routers on a subnet must be configured for the same version of IGMP.
Note: One must be careful when using IGMPv3 with switches that support and are
enabled for IGMP snooping, because, as seen above, IGMPv3 messages are different
from the messages used in IGMPv1 and IGMPv2. If a switch does not recognize IGMPv3
messages, then hosts will not correctly receive traffic if IGMPv3 is being used. In this
case, either IGMP snooping may be disabled on the switch or the router may be
configured for IGMPv2 on the interface (which would remove the ability to use SSM
for host applications that cannot support Version 3) [CIS200701].
Note: IGMPv3 has no confirming reply: like IGMPv2, messages must be sent twice
to guard against loss, and there is no mechanism to return an error code to the client.
Note: One limitation of IGMPv3 in the context of telco networks and IPTV is as
follows [ITU200201]: An IGMPv2 PDU fits in a single ATM cell (20-byte IP header,
8 bytes of IGMP). The source filtering capability of the IGMP requires at least 52 bytes
2
Some vendors have developed IGMP Version 3 lite (IGMPv3 lite).
T A B L E 4.1. Record Types

Record Type Mode Function
Current-state MODE_IS_INCLUDE Indicates that the interface has a
record type filter mode of INCLUDE for
the specified multicast
addresses.
MODE_IS_EXCLUDE Indicates that the interface has a
filter mode of EXCLUDE for
the specified multicast
addresses.
Filter-mode-change CHANGE_TO_INCLUDE_ Indicates that the interface has
record type MODE changed to the INCLUDE
filter mode for the specified
multicast addresses.
CHANGE_TO_EXCLUDE_ Indicates that the interface has
MODE changed to the EXCLUDE
filter mode for the specified
multicast addresses.
Source-list-change ALLOW_NEW_SOURCES Indicates that the interface has
record type changed such that it wants to
receive messages from addi-
tional sources. If the filter is
an INCLUDE filter, the
specified multicast addresses
is added. If it is an EXCLUDE
filter, the specified multicast
addresses is removed.
BLOCK_OLD_SOURCES Indicates that the interface has
changed such that it no longer
wants to receive messages
from additional sources. If the
filter is an INCLUDE filter,
the specified multicast ad-
dresses is removed. If it is an
EXCLUDE filter, the speci-
fied multicast addresses is
added.
and, in turn, two ATM cells (20-byte IP header, 8 bytes of IGMP header, 12 bytes for the
first group record, and 12 bytes for the second group record). This doubles both the ATM
bandwidth and buffer memory required to process channel zapping messages. In turn,
this requires a more complicated ATM Segmentation and Reassembly (SAR) and
increases the amount of software processing in the multicast signaling termination
function within the access network.
Note: IGMP, as we have seen, allows an IPv4 host to communicate IP multicast
group membership information to its neighboring routers; IGMPv3 provides the ability
IGMP OPERATION 61
for a host to selectively request or filter traffic from individual sources within a multicast
group. The protocol MLD defined in RFC 2710 offers similar functionality for IPv6
hosts. MLDv2 provides the analogous source filtering functionality of IGMPv3 for IPv6
[RFC4604]. This topic is revisited in Chapter 10.
4.3 IGMP OPERATION
IGMP is an asymmetric protocol, specifying separate behaviors for group members—

that is, hosts that wish to receive multicast packets and multicast routers. As discussed, it
is used by IP hosts to report their multicast group memberships to routers. (Note that a
multicast router that is also a group member performs both parts of IGMP, receiving and
responding to its own IGMP message transmissions as well as those of its neighbors.)
Host Operations To receive multicast datagrams, a host must join a group. To
join a group, the host sends an IGMP membership report packet through an attached
interface. The report is addressed to the desired multicast group. As noted above, in
IGMPv3, a host can specify a list of multicast addresses from which it wishes to receive
messages and/or it can specify a list of multicast addresses from which it does not wish to
receive messages. A host can modify these lists to add or remove multicast addresses; this
can be done using the filter-mode-change and source-list-change records discussed
above.
Multicast Router Operations Multicast routers listen to all multicast addresses to
detect membership reports. When a receiver (host) signals to join a group, the multicast
router on the subnet receives the membership report packet and creates an entry in the
local group database. This database tracks the group membership of the routers directly
attached networks. The information in the local group database is used to forward
multicast datagrams. When the multicast-enabled router receives a datagram, it is
forwarded to each interface containing hosts belonging to the group. To verify group
membership, multicast routers regularly send (every 125 s) an IGMP Query message to
the all hosts multicast addresses. Each receiver (host) that still wishes to be a member of a
group sends a reply; to avoid traffic bursts, replies to query messages are sent using a
random delay. Because routers do not track the number of hosts in each group, any receiver
(host) that detects another device claiming membership cancels any pending membership
replies. If no hosts claim membership within the specified interval, the multicast router
assumes that no hosts on that network are members of the group [PAR200601].
In summary [ITU200201]:
. A multicast router keeps a list of multicast group memberships and a timer for each
membership; querier routers periodically send a general MQ to solicit member-
ship information. Hosts respond to this general MQ to report their membership
status for each multicast group. Group-specific MQs may also be sent, for
example, when a router needs to check whether there are more members of a
group for which an LG message has been received. If no MRs are received for a
certain multicast group during a predefined period of time, the router assumes that
there are no more members and stops forwarding traffic for that group.
. When a host joins a multicast group, it sends an unsolicited MR for that group. To
cover the possibility of the initial MR being lost or damaged, RFC 2236
recommends that it be repeated once or twice after short delays [Unsolicited
Report Interval]. When a host leaves a multicast group, it sends an LG message.
. When a querier receives an LG message, it sends group-specific MQs to the group
being left. If no MRs are received in response to these MQs, the router assumes
that there are no more members and stops forwarding traffic for that group.
Switches Using IGMP Snooping The flooding of a network segment with multi-
cast packets, when in fact there might not be any nodes on that segment that wish to
receive these packets, can saturate an interface link, even when operating at 10/100/1000
Gbps, and/or saturate the buffers on the NIC. IGMP snooping utilizes a router to send out
IGMP Query messages to identify potentially interested receivers. Membership reports
are returned to the router, which builds a mapping table of the group and associates
forwarding filters for the member port. If no router is available, some switches
can take on the query function. IGMPv2 allows only one active querier on the network.
RFC 4541 provides mechanisms to allow switches to “snoop” on IGMP traffic. With
these mechanisms, switches can analyze the data contained within the IGMP header and
determine if the traffic needs to be forwarded to every segment to which the switch is
connected. This reduces the amount of unnecessary multicast traffic flooding to locally
attached networks that have no active receivers.
See Appendix 4.A for additional information on IGMP operation.
Figure 4.5 illustrates the process at a macrolevel; here receivers seek to access a
video multicast from an IPTV source. The basic steps are as follows [CIS200701]:
1. The receiver sends an IGMP Join message to its (designated) multicast router. As
noted above, an IGMPv2 MR packet has a type of 0 · 16; this is the Join message
(MR). The destination MAC address maps to the Class D address of the group
being joined, rather being the MAC address of the router, as covered in Chapter 2.
The body of the IGMP datagram also includes the Class D group address, as shown
in Figure 4.1, and is encapsulated in an IP datagram, as shown in Figure 4.2.
2. The router logs the Join message and utilizes PIM or another multicast routing
protocol to add this segment to the multicast distribution tree, as discussed in
Chapter 3. The action of the router must be fairly quick (typically less than 2 s and
preferably around 1 s) because the join may be the action generated by a users
STB driving the TV monitor when the viewer hits the change channel button on
his or her remote control device.
3. IP multicast traffic transmitted from the source is now distributed via the
designated router to the clients subnet. The destination MAC address corre-
sponds to the Class D address of group. In this example, and as is typical of
satellite-based IPTV systems, the “backbone” network is basically a single hop to
the telcos headend—in theory the backbone can be more complex (as in the
multirouter examples shown in Chapter 3), but then QoS considerations must be
rigorously kept in mind for high-quality entertainment video.
APPENDIX 4.A 63
I want 230.0.0.11
Content
Providers
239.0.0.11
IGMP join
239.0.0.11 Forwards stream
IGMP: How hosts tell routers
about group membership
Router adds group
Routers solicit group
membership from directly
connected hosts I want 230.0.0.23
239.0.0.33 Forwards stream
RFC2236 specifies Version 2 of IGMP Router adds group
IGMP is now in v3
239.0.0.33
According to RFC3376 IGMP Version 3 is backward
IGMP join
compatible with IGMP Versions 1 and 2
Figure 4.5. Multicast Process
4. The switch receives the multicast packet and examines its forwarding table. If no
entry exists for the MAC address, the packet is flooded to all ports within the
broadcast domain. If an entry does exist in the switch table, the packet will be
forwarded only to the designated ports.
5. With IGMPv2, the client can cease group membership by sending an IGMP leave
to the router. With IGMPv1, the client remains a member of the group until it fails
to send a Join message in response to a query from the router. Multicast routers
also periodically send an IGMP query to the “all multicast hosts” group or to a
specific multicast group on the subnet to determine which groups are still active
within the subnet. As noted above, each host delays its response to a query by a
small random period and will then respond only if no other host in the group has
already reported. This mechanism prevents many hosts from congesting the
network with simultaneous reports.
APPENDIX 4.A: PROTOCOL DETAILS FOR IGMPv2
4.A.1 Overview3
IGMP is used by IP hosts to report their multicast group memberships to any immediately
neighboring multicast routers. This appendix describes the use of IGMP between hosts
3
This section is based on RFC 2236 Copyright (C) The Internet Society (1997). All rights reserved. This
document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to others, and derivative works that comment on
or otherwise explain it or assist in its implementation may be prepared, copied, published, and distributed, in
whole or in part, without restriction of any kind, provided that the copyright notice and this paragraph are
included on all such copies and derivative works.
and routers to determine group membership. Routers that are members of multicast
groups are expected to behave as hosts as well as routers and may even respond to their
own queries. Like the Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP), IGMP is an integral
part of IP. It is required to be implemented by all hosts wishing to receive IP multicasts.
IGMP messages are encapsulated in IP datagrams, with an IP protocol number of 2. All
IGMP messages are sent with IP TTL 1 and contain the IP Router Alert option per RFC
2113 in their IP header.
In the discussion below, timer and counter names appear in square brackets. The
term “interface” is sometimes used in the RFC 2113 to mean “the primary interface on an
attached network;” if a router has multiple physical interfaces on a single network, this
protocol need only run on one of them. Hosts, on the other hand, need to perform their
actions on all interfaces that have memberships associated with them.
4.A.2 Protocol Description

Multicast routers use IGMP to learn which groups have members on each of their
attached physical networks. A multicast router keeps a list of multicast group member-
ships for each attached network and a timer for each membership. “Multicast group
membership” means the presence of at least one member of a multicast group on a given
attached network and not a list of all of the members.
With respect to each of its attached networks, a multicast router may assume one of
the two roles—querier or nonquerier. A querier is the sender of the query. There is
normally only one querier per physical network. All multicast routers start up as a querier
on each attached network. If a multicast router receives a Query message from a router
with a lower IP address, it must become a nonquerier on that network. If a router has not
heard a Query message from another router for [Other Querier Present Interval], it
resumes the role of querier. Routers periodically [Query Interval] send a general query on
each attached network for which this router is the querier, to solicit membership
information. On startup, a router is expected to send [Startup Query Count] general
queries spaced closely together [Startup Query Interval] in order to quickly and reliably
determine membership information. A general query is addressed to the all-systems
multicast group (224.0.0.1), has a group address field of 0, and has Max Response Time
of [Query Response Interval].
When a host receives a general query, it sets delay timers for each group
(excluding the all-systems group) of which it is a member on the interface from
which it received the query. Each timer is set to a different random value, using the
highest clock granularity available on the host, selected from the range (0, Max
Response Time] with Max Response Time as specified in the query packet. When a
host receives a group-specific query, it sets a delay timer to a random value selected
from the range (0, Max Response Time] as above for the group being queried if it is a
member on the interface from which it received the query. If a timer for the group is
already running, it is reset to the random value only if the requested Max Response
Time is less than the remaining value of the running timer. When a groups timer
expires, the host multicasts a Version 2 MR to the group, with IP TTL of 1. If the host
receives another hosts report (Version 1 or 2) while it has a timer running, it stops its
APPENDIX 4.A 65
timer for the specified group and does not send a report in order to suppress duplicate
reports.
When a router receives a report, it adds the group being reported to the list of
multicast group memberships on the network on which it received the report and sets
the timer for the membership to the [Group Membership Interval]. Repeated reports
refresh the timer. If no reports are received for a particular group before this timer
has expired, the router assumes that the group has no local members and that it
need not forward remotely originated multicasts for that group onto the attached
network.
When a host joins a multicast group, it is expected to immediately transmit an
unsolicited Version 2 MR for that group, in case it is the first member of that group on the
network. To cover the possibility of the initial MR being lost or damaged, it is
recommended that it be repeated once or twice after short delays [Unsolicited Report
Interval]. (A simple way to accomplish this is to send the initial Version 2 MR and
then act as if a group-specific query was received for that group and set a timer
appropriately.)
When a host leaves a multicast group, if it was the last host to reply to a query with an
MR for that group, it should send a Leave Group message to the all-routers multicast group
(224.0.0.2). If it was not the last host to reply to a query, it may send nothing as there must be
another member on the subnet. This is an optimization to reduce traffic; a host without
sufficient storage to retain status information as to whether it was the last host to reply may
always send a Leave Group message when it leaves a group. Routers should accept a Leave
Group message addressed to the group being left in order to accommodate implementations
of an earlier version of this standard. Leave Group messages are addressed to the all-routers
group because other group members do not need to know that a host has left the group, but it
does no harm to address the message to the group.
When a querier receives a Leave Group message for a group that has
group members on the reception interface, it sends [Last Member Query Count]
group-specific queries every [Last Member Query Interval] to the group being left.
These group-specific queries have their Max Response Time set to [Last Member
Query Interval]. If no reports are received after the response time of the last query
expires, the routers assume that the group has no local members, as above. Any querier-
to-nonquerier transition is ignored during this time; the same router keeps sending the
group-specific queries.
Nonqueriers must ignore Leave Group messages, and queriers should ignore Leave
Group messages for which there are no group members on the reception interface.
When a nonquerier receives a Group-Specific Query message, if its existing group
membership timer is greater than [Last Member Query Count] times the Max Response
Time specified in the message, it sets its group membership timer to that value.
4.A.3 Receiver (Host) State Diagram

Host behavior is more formally specified by the state transition diagram shown in
Figure 4.1A. A host may be in one of the following three possible states with respect to
any single IP multicast group on any single network interface:
Figure 4.A1. Host State Diagram
. “nonmember” state, when the host does not belong to the group on the interface.
This is the initial state for all memberships on all network interfaces; it requires no
storage in the host.
. “Delaying member” state, when the host belongs to the group on the interface and
has a report delay timer running for that membership.
. “Idle Member” state, when the host belongs to the group on the interface and does
not have a report delay timer running for that membership.
The following five significant events can cause IGMP state transitions:
. “Join group” occurs when the host decides to join the group on the interface. It may
occur only in the Nonmember state.
APPENDIX 4.A 67
. “Leave group” occurs when the host decides to leave the group on the interface. It
may occur only in the Delaying Member and Idle Member states.
. “Query received” occurs when the host receives either a valid General Member-
ship Query message or a valid Group-Specific Membership Query message. To be
valid, the Query message must be at least eight octets long and have a correct
IGMP checksum. The group address in the IGMP header must either be zero (a
general query) or a valid multicast group address (a group-specific query). A
general query applies to all memberships on the interface from which the query is
received. A group-specific query applies to membership in a single group on the
interface from which the query is received. Queries are ignored for memberships
in the Nonmember state.
. “Report received” occurs when the host receives a valid IGMP MR message
(Version 1 or 2). To be valid, the Report message must be at least eight octets
long and have a correct IGMP checksum. An MR applies only to the
membership in the group identified by the MR, on the interface from which
the MR is received. It is ignored for memberships in the Nonmember or Idle
Member state.
. “Timer expired” occurs when the report delay timer for the group on the interface
expires. It may occur only in the Delaying Member state.
All other events, such as receiving invalid IGMP messages or IGMP messages other
than Query or Report, are ignored in all states.
There are seven possible actions that may be taken in response to the above events as
follows:
. “Send report” for the group on the interface. The type of report is determined by
the state of the interface. The Report message is sent to the group being reported.
. “Send leave” for the group on the interface. If the interface state says the querier is
running IGMPv1, this action should be skipped. If the flag saying we were the last
host to report is cleared, this action may be skipped. The Leave message is sent to
the all-routers group (224.0.0.2).
. “Set flag” that we were the last host to send a report for this group.
. “Clear flag” since we were not the last host to send a report for this group.
. “Start timer” for the group on the interface, using a delay value chosen uniformly
from the interval (0, Max Response Time], where Max Response Time is specified
in the query. If this is an unsolicited report, the timer is set to a delay value chosen
uniformly from the interval (0, [Unsolicited Report Interval]].
. “Reset timer” forthegroupontheinterfaceto a new value, using a delay value chosen
uniformly from the interval (0, Max Response Time], as described in “start timer.”
. “Stop timer” for the group on the interface.
In the following state diagrams (Figures 4A.2–4A.4), each state transition arc is
labeled with the event that causes the transition and, in parentheses, any actions taken
Gen.
(send general query,

set initial gen. q.
timer)
Other
Nonquerier
Query received from a
Figure 4.A2. Router State Diagram
during the transition. Note that the transition is always triggered by the event; even if the
action is conditional, the transition still occurs.
The all-systems group (address 224.0.0.1) is handled as a special case. The host
starts in the Idle Member state for that group on every interface, never transitions to
another state, and never sends a report for that group.
In addition, a host may be in one of two possible states with respect to any single
network interface:
. “No IGMPv1 Router Present,” when the host has not heard an IGMPv1 style query
for the [Version 1 Router Present Timeout]. This is the initial state.
. “IGMPv1 Router Present,” when the host has heard an IGMPv1 style query within
the [Version 1 Router Present Timeout].
APPENDIX 4.A 69
Timer
Timer (notify routing —
routing —
–
Rexmt
Membership
(notify routing —)
Figure 4.A3. State Diagram for a Router in Nonquerier State
4.A.4 Router State Diagram

Router behavior is more formally specified by the state transition diagram shown in
Figure 4A.2.
Timer expired Timer
Report
Report received
Report received
Figure 4.A4. State Diagram for a Router in Nonquerier State
A router may be in one of two possible states with respect to any single attached
network:
. “Querier,” when this router is designated to transmit IGMP membership queries

on this network.
. “Nonquerier,” when there is another router designated to transmit IGMP
membership queries on this network.
The following three events can cause the router to change states:
. “Query timer expired” occurs when the timer set for query transmission
expires.
. “Query received from a router with a lower IP address” occurs when an IGMP
membership query is received from a router on the same network with a lower IP
address.
APPENDIX 4.A 71
. “Other querier present timer expired” occurs when the timer set to note the
presence of another querier with a lower IP address on the network expires.
There are three actions that may be taken in response to the above events:
. “Start general query timer” for the attached network.

. “Start other querier present timer” for the attached network [Other Querier Present
Interval].
. “Send general query” on the attached network. The general query is sent to the
all-systems group (224.0.0.1) and has a Max Response Time of [Query Response
Interval].
A router should start in the Initial state on all attached networks and immediately
move to the querier state.
In addition, to keep track of which groups have members, a router may be in one of
the four possible states with respect to any single IP multicast group on any single
attached network:
. “No Members Present” state, when there are no hosts on the network which have
sent reports for this multicast group. This is the initial state for all groups on the
router; it requires no storage in the router.
. “Members Present” state, when there is a host on the network that has sent an MR
for this multicast group.
. “Version 1 Members Present” state, when there is an IGMPv1 host on the network
which has sent a Version 1 MR for this multicast group.
. “Checking Membership” state, when the router has received a Leave Group
message but has not yet heard an MR for the multicast group.
There are six significant events that can cause router state transitions:
. “v2 report received” occurs when the router receives a Version 2 MR for the group
on the interface. To be valid, the Report message must be at least eight octets long
and must have a correct IGMP checksum.
. “v1 report received” occurs when the router receives a Version 1 MR for the group
on the interface. The same validity requirements apply.
. “Leave received” occurs when the router receives an IGMP Group Leave message
for the group on the interface. To be valid, the Leave message must be at least
eight octets long and must have a correct IGMP checksum.
. “Timer expired” occurs when the timer set for a group membership expires.
. “Retransmit timer expired” occurs when the timer set to retransmit a
group-specific membership query expires.
. “v1 host timer expired” occurs when the timer set to note the presence of Version 1
hosts as group members expires.
There are six possible actions that may be taken in response to the above events:
. “Start timer” for the group membership on the interface—also resets the timer to
its initial value [Group Membership Interval] if the timer is currently running.
. “Start timer*” for the group membership on the interface—this alternate action
sets the timer to [Last Member Query Interval] · [Last Member Query Count] if
this router is a querier or the [Max Response Time] in the packet · [Last Member
Query Count] if this router is a nonquerier.
. “Start retransmit timer” for the group membership on the interface [Last Member
Query Interval].
. “Start v1 host timer” for the group membership on the interface, also resets the timer
to its initial value [Group Membership Interval] if the timer is currently running.
. “Send group-specific query” for the group on the attached network. The
group-specific query is sent to the group being queried and has a Max Response
Time of [Last Member Query Interval].
. “Notify routing þ,” notifies the routing protocol that there are members of this
group on this connected network.
. “Notify routing ,” notifies the routing protocol that there are no longer any
members of this group on this connected network.
The state diagram for a router in the Querier state is shown in Figure 4A.3.
The state diagram for a router in the Nonquerier state is similar, but nonqueriers do
not send any messages and are only driven by message reception; see Figure 4A.4. Note
that nonqueriers do not care whether a MR message is Version 1 or 2.
APPENDIX 4.B: IGMP SNOOPING SWITCHES
This appendix describes the concept of IGMP snooping. It is summarized from and based
on concepts discussed in [RFC4541].
The IEEE bridge standard [IEEE Std. 802.1D-2004, IEEE Standard for Local and
Metropolitan Area Networks, Media Access Control (MAC) Bridges] specifies how
LAN packets are “bridged” (switched) between LAN segments. Traditionally, when
processing a packet whose destination MAC address is a multicast address, the switch
forwards, a copy of the packet into each of the remaining network interfaces that are in
the forwarding state; the spanning tree algorithm ensures that the application of this
rule at every switch in the network makes the packet accessible to all nodes connected
to the network. In recent years, however, vendors have introduced products described
as “IGMP snooping switches.” IGMP snooping switches utilize information in the
upper level protocol headers as factors to be considered in processing at the lower
levels. This is in contrast to the normal switch behavior where multicast traffic is
typically forwarded on all interfaces. IGMP snooping switches filter packets addressed
to unrequested group addresses because, in a generic multicast environment, signifi-
cant bandwidth can be wasted by flooding all ports [RFC4541]. Note that the IGMP
APPENDIX 4.B 73
snooping function applies only to IPv4 multicasts. For IPv6, MLD must be used
instead.
IGMP snooping functionality: Forwarding rules
1. A snooping switch forwards IGMP MRs to only those ports where multicast
routers are attached. In other words, a snooping switch does not forward IGMP
MRs to ports on which only hosts (receivers) are attached. An administrative
control may be provided to override this restriction, allowing the Report messages
to be flooded to other ports. This is the main IGMP snooping functionality for the
control path.
Sending MRs to other hosts can result in unintentionally preventing a host
from joining a specific multicast group. When an IGMPv1 or IGMPv2 host
receives a MR for a group address that it intends to join, the host will suppress
its own MR for the same group. This join or message suppression is a
requirement for IGMPv1 and IGMPv2 hosts. However, if a switch does not
receive a MR from the host, it will not forward multicast data to it. This is not a
problem in an IGMPv3—only in the network because there is no suppression of
IGMP MRs. The administrative control allows IGMP MR messages to be
processed by network monitoring equipment such as packet analyzers or port
replicators.
The switch supporting IGMP snooping must maintain a list of multicast
routers and the ports on which they are attached. This list can be constructed in
any combination of the following ways:
(a) This list is built by the snooping switch sending Multicast Router Solicitation
messages as described in IGMP multicast router discovery. It may also snoop
Multicast Router Advertisement messages sent by and to other nodes.
(b) The arrival port for IGMP queries (sent by multicast routers) where the source
address is not 0.0.0.0. The 0.0.0.0 address represents a special case where the
switch is proxying IGMP queries for faster network convergence but is not
itself the querier. The switch does not use its own IP address (even if it has one)
because this would cause the queries to be seen as coming from a newly elected
querier. The 0.0.0.0 address is used to indicate that the query packets are not
from a multicast router.
(c) Ports explicitly configured by management to be IGMP-forwarding ports, in
addition to or instead of any of the above methods to detect router ports.
2. IGMP networks may also include devices that implement “proxy reporting,” in
which reports received from downstream hosts are summarized and used to build
internal membership states. Such proxy-reporting devices may use the all-zeros
IP source address when forwarding any summarized reports upstream. For this
reason, IGMP MRs received by the snooping switch must not be rejected because
the source IP address is set to 0.0.0.0.
3. The switch that supports IGMP snooping must flood all unrecognized IGMP
messages to all other ports and must not attempt to make use of any information
beyond the end of the network layer header. In addition, earlier versions of IGMP
should interpret IGMP fields as defined for their versions and must not alter these
fields when forwarding the message. When generating new messages, a given
IGMP version should set fields to the appropriate values for its own version. If
any fields are reserved or otherwise undefined for a given IGMP version, the
fields should be ignored when parsing the message and must be set to zeros when
new messages are generated by implementations of that IGMP version. An
exception may occur if the switch is performing a spoofing function and is aware
of the settings for new or reserved fields that would be required to correctly spoof
for a different IGMP version.
4. An IGMP snooping switch is typically aware of link-layer topology changes
caused by a spanning tree operation. When a port is enabled or disabled by a
spanning tree, a general query may be sent on all active nonrouter ports to reduce
network convergence time. Nonquerier switches should be aware of whether the
querier is in IGMPv3 mode. If so, the switch does not spoof any general queries
unless it is able to send an IGMPv3 query that adheres to the most recent
information sent by the true querier. In no case should a switch introduce a spoofed
IGMPv2 query into an IGMPv3 network, as this may create excessive network
disruption. If the switch is not the querier, it should use the “all-zeros” IP source
address in these proxy queries (even though some hosts may elect to not process
queries with a 0.0.0.0 IP source address). When such proxy queries are received,
they must not be included in the querier election process.
5. The snooping switch must not rely exclusively on the appearance of IGMP Group
Leave announcements to determine when entries should be removed from the
forwarding table. It should implement a membership timeout mechanism, such
as the router-side functionality of the IGMP, as described in the IGMP and MLD
specifications, on all its nonrouter ports. This timeout value should be
configurable.
IGMP snooping functionality: Data forwarding rules
1. Packets with a destination IP address outside 224.0.0.X, which are not IGMP, will
be forwarded according to group-based port membership tables and must also be
forwarded on router ports. This is the main IGMP snooping functionality for the
data path. One approach that an implementation could take would be to maintain
separate membership and multicast router tables in software and then “merge”
these tables into a forwarding cache.
2. Packets with a Destination IP (DIP) address in the 224.0.0.X range, which are not
IGMP, must be forwarded on all ports. Many host systems do not send join IP
multicast addresses in this range before sending or listening to IP multicast
packets. Furthermore, since the 224.0.0.X address range is defined as link local
(not to be routed), it seems unnecessary to keep the state for each address in this
APPENDIX 4.B 75
range. Additionally, some routers operate in the 224.0.0.X address range without
issuing IGMP joins, and these applications would break if the switch were to
prune them due to not having seen a Join Group message from the router.
3. An unregistered packet is defined as an IPv4 multicast packet with a destination
address that does not match any of the groups announced in earlier IGMP MRs. If
a switch receives an unregistered packet, it must forward that packet on all ports
to which an IGMP router is attached. A switch may default to forwarding
unregistered packets on all ports. Switches that do not forward unregistered
packets to all ports must include a configuration option to force the flooding of
unregistered packets on specified ports.
In an environment where IGMPv3 hosts are mixed with snooping switches that
do not yet support IGMPv3, the switchs failure to flood unregistered streams
could prevent Version 3 hosts from receiving their traffic. Alternatively, in
environments where the snooping switch supports all of the IGMP versions that
are present, flooding unregistered streams may cause IGMP hosts to be over-
whelmed by multicast traffic, even to the point of not receiving queries and
failing to issue new MRs for their own groups.
Snooping switches must at least recognize and process IGMPv3 join reports,
even if this processing is limited to the behavior for IGMPv2 joins, that is, is done
without considering any additional “include source” or “exclude source” filter-
ing. When IGMPv3 joins are not recognized, a snooping switch may incorrectly
prune off the unregistered data streams for the groups (as noted above);
alternatively, it may fail to add in forwarding to any new IGMPv3 hosts if the
group has previously been joined as IGMPv2 (because the data stream is seen as
already having been registered).
4. All non-IPv4 multicast packets should continue to be flooded out to all remaining
ports in the forwarding state as per normal IEEE bridging operations. This
recommendation is a result of the fact that groups made up of IPv4 hosts and IPv6
hosts are completely separate and distinct groups. As a result, information
gleaned from the topology among members of an IPv4 group would not be
applicable when forming the topology among members of an IPv6 group.
5. IGMP snooping switches may maintain forwarding tables based on either MAC
addresses or IP addresses. If a switch supports both types of forwarding tables,
then the default behavior should be to use IP addresses. IP-address-based
forwarding is preferred because the mapping between IP multicast addresses
and link-layer multicast addresses is ambiguous. In the case of Ethernet, there is a
multiplicity of 1 Ethernet address to 32 IP addresses.
6. Switches which rely on information in the IP header should verify that the IP
header checksum is correct. If the checksum fails, the information in the packet
must not be incorporated into the forwarding table. Further, the packet should be
discarded.
7. When IGMPv3 “include source” and “exclude source” MRs are received on
shared segments, the switch needs to forward the superset of all received MRs on
to the shared segment. Forwarding of traffic from a particular source S to a group G
must happen if at least one host on the shared segment reports an IGMPv3
membership of the type INCLUDE(G, S list 1) or EXCLUDE(G, S list 2), where S
is an element of S list 1 and not an element of S list 2. The practical implementation
of the (G,S1,S2, . . .)-based data forwarding tables are not within the scope of this
document. However, one possibility is to maintain two (G,S) forwarding lists—
one for the INCLUDE filter where a match of a specific (G,S) is required before
forwarding will happen and one for the EXCLUDE filter where a match of a
specific (G,S) will result in no forwarding.
APPENDIX 4.C: EXAMPLE OF ROUTER CONFIGURATIONS

This appendix contains an illustrative example. To configure IGMPv3 on a Cisco Systems
router, one can use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:
Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# interface type Selects an interface that is
number connected to hosts on which
IGMPv3 can be enabled.
Step 2 Router(config-if)# ip pim Enables PIM on an interface.
{sparse-mode | One must use either sparse
sparse-dense-mode} mode or sparse–dense
mode.
Step 3 Router(config-if)# ip igmp Enables IGMPv3 on this inter-
version 3 face. The default version of
IGMP is set to Version 2.
To verify that IGMPv3 is configured properly, one can use the following show
commands:
. show ip igmp groups

. show ip mroute
Related commands include the following:
ip igmp query-max-response-time Configures the maximum response time adver-

tised in IGMP queries.
ip igmp query-timeout Configures the timeout time before the router
takes over as the querier for the interface, after
the previous querier has stopped querying.
show ip igmp groups Displays the multicast groups that are directly
connected to the router and that were learned
through IGMP.
show ip igmp interface Displays multicast-related information about an
interface.
REFERENCES 77
The following configuration example shows how to configure a Cisco Systems

router (running IGMPv3) for SSM:
ip multicast-routing
!
interface Ethernet3/1
ip address 172.21.200.203 255.255.255.0
ip pim sparse-dense-mode
ip igmp Version 3
!
interface Ethernet3/2
ip address 131.108.1.2 255.255.255.0
ip pim sparse-dense-mode
ip igmp version 3
!
ip pim ssm default
REFERENCES
Q3 [CIS200701] Cisco Systems, Internet Protocol (IP) Multicast Technology Overview, White Paper,
Cisco Systems, Inc., San Jose, CA.
[ITU200201] ITU-T FS-VDSL Telecommunication Standardization Sector of ITU, Full-Service
VDSL Focus Group, Channel Change Protocol, Version 1.00, November 29 2002.
[RFC2236] RFC 2236, Internet Group Management Protocol, Version 2, W. Fenner, November
1997.
[RFC3376] RFC 3376, Internet Group Management Protocol, Version 3, B. Cain, S. Deering, I.
Kouvelas, B. Fenner, A. Thyagarajan, October 2002.
[RFC4541] RFC 4541, Considerations for Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP)
and Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) Snooping Switches, M. Christensen, K. Kimball,
F. Solensky, May 2006. (status: informational).
[RFC4604] RFC4604, Using Internet Group Management Protocol, Version 3 (IGMPv3) and
Multicast Listener Discovery Protocol, Version 2 (MLDv2) for Source-Specific Multicast,
H. Holbrook, B. Cain, B. Haberman, August 2006.
5
MULTICAST ROUTING—
SPARSE-MODE PROTOCOLS:
PROTOCOL INDEPENDENT
MULTICAST
In Chapter 3, we discussed multicast forwarding algorithms and how they are used to
establish efficient (multicast) paths in the network. A number of multicast routing
protocols have been developed over the years that implement and support these algo-
rithms. The next few chapters describe these protocols. This chapter opens the discussion
by examining the Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM). PIM has two modes of
operation: PIM DM, specified in RFC 3973, and PIM SM, specified in RFC 2362. This
chapter focuses on the SM (DM is covered in Chapter 7). PIM does not send and/or receive
multicast routing updates between routers as is the case in IP routing: instead of building
up a completely separate multicast routing table, PIM uses the unicast routing information
to support the multicast forwarding function. At the same time, it is independent of IP
routing, namely, it can make use of any underlying unicast routing protocols utilized to
manage the unicast routing table, including EIGRP, OSPF, BGP, or even static routes.
Specifically, PIM uses the unicast routing table to perform the RPF check function. PIM is
implemented by the leading router manufacturers, particularly by Cisco Systems, and is
widely deployed. A preliminary overview in Section 5.1 is followed by a more detailed
description of the protocol in Section 5.2.

78
INTRODUCTION TO PIM 79
5.1 INTRODUCTION TO PIM
Multicast routing algorithms aim at accomplishing the following:
. Forward information only to members of the group

. Optimize the path from source to destinations in terms of number of hops and
bandwidth used on each hop
. Establish and maintain loop-free routes
. Provide scalable mechanisms in terms of the number of receivers and groups.
A number of algorithms have been developed over the years. The RPF algorithm
discussed in Chapter 3 uses a multicast delivery tree to enable the forwarding of packets from
the source to each member in the multicast group. With RPF, packets are replicated only at
the furthest branches in the delivery tree where connectivity is still possible. See Figure 5.1.
To identify the routers that require connectivity to support receiver membership to
individual groups, distribution trees are established and updated dynamically. Using this
process, duplicate packets that may be generated by network loops are discarded along the
way. A reverse path table is used at each nodal router to maintain a map between every
known source and the optimal(ly preferred) interface required to reach that source. When
a nodal router needs to forward multicast packets along, it does so based on the following
rule: if the packet arrived over the interface used to transmit data back to the source, the
packet is forwarded through every appropriate downstream interface; otherwise, if the
Multicast traffic Router 3 determines there are

source=S no members. It sends prune
message upstream to router 1.
Host Link 1–3 is pruned from the
delivery tree.
Router 3
Router 3 determines that
members of group G are
present on subnetwork R1
Link 1–2 is part
Link
of the delivery tree Link 1–3
1–2
Router 2
Router 1
subnetwork R1 Join
Group G
Receiver Receiver
Receiver Receiver
Receiver Receiver
Multicast delivery path
from source=S
and group address=G
Figure 5.1. RPF

80 MULTICAST ROUTING—SPARSE-MODE PROTOCOLS
packet arrived through a suboptimal path, it is discarded. RPF has the following
characteristics:
. Traffic follows the shortest path from the source to each destination.
. A different tree is computed for each source node.
. Packet delivery is distributed over multiple network links.
PIM is a broadly deployed multicast routing protocol. Since PIM is independent of

any underlying unicast routing protocol, it interoperates with all the existing unicast
routing protocols. Dense mode and sparse mode refer to the density of group members
within an area. In a random sampling, a group is considered dense if the probability of
finding at least one group member within the sample is high. A group is considered sparse
if the probability of finding group members within the sample is low [PAR200601].
PIM DM uses a push mechanism to flood multicast traffic to every edge router in the
network. This method for delivering data to the receivers is often resource intensive, but if
there are active receivers on every subnet in the network it can, in fact, be an efficient
mechanism. An approach to commercial-grade/large-population linear-content IPTV,
especially in the core network—which may in fact be maintained by a different provider
than the ultimate (distribution) telc—is to use PIM DM within the core tier (and possibly
also at the edge distribution tier). However, if the population of active users is significantly
less than the total population, SM may be the better approach. PIM DM can only support
source trees—(S,G) entries; it cannot be used to build a shared distribution tree (see
Chapter 3). PIM DM initially floods multicast traffic throughout the network, but routers
that do not have any downstream neighbors prune back the unwanted traffic. This process
repeats every 3 min. The flood-and-prune mechanism is the technique used by the routers to
accumulate their state information—by receiving data streams that contain the source and
group information downstream routers can build up their multicast forwarding table
[CIS200701]. PIM DM is revisited in Chapter 7.
PIM SM [RFC2362] uses a pull mechanism to deliver multicast traffic. Only
subnetworks (network segments) that have active receivers that have explicitly requested
the information via IGMP joins are forwarded to the traffic. PIM SM makes use of a
shared tree to distribute the information to active sources.1 The PIM SM protocol shared
tree algorithm actually uses a variant of the center-based tree algorithm (both shared tree
and center-based tree were discussed in Chapter 3.) PIM SM makes use of a RP.
DM is typically used when senders and receivers are in close geographic/topological
proximity to one another, when there are few senders and many receivers, when the
volume of multicast traffic is high, and when the stream of multicast traffic is constant
[CIS200701]. This is generally the case for IPTV/DVB-H applications. Sparse multicast
1
While the traffic can remain on the shared tree, on a Cisco Systems router the default behavior is to switch over to
an optimized source distribution tree. Here, the traffic starts to flow down the shared tree and then routers along the
path determine if there is a better path to the source. If a better path exists, the designated router (router closest to
the receiver) sends a “Join” message toward the source and then reroute to the traffic along this path. If the shared
tree is not an optimal path between the source and the receiver, the routers will dynamically create a source tree
and stop traffic from flowing down the shared tree. Network administrators can force traffic to stay on the shared
tree by using a configuration option (ip pim spt-threshold infinity) [CIS200701].
INTRODUCTION TO PIM 81
is typically used when there are few receivers in a group, when senders and receivers are
separated by point-to-point WAN links, and when the type of traffic is intermittent. This
is generally the case for datacasting applications. Note that modern PIM routers are able
to simultaneously support DM for some multipoint groups and SM for others. SM PIM is
optimized for environments where there are many multipoint data streams and each data
stream is required by a relatively small number of subnets. PIM SM postulates that no
hosts want the multicast traffic unless they specifically ask for it. PIM provides the ability
to switch between SM and DM and also permits both modes to be used within the same
group.
As noted, PIM SM works by defining an RP. An RP is the point in the network where
multicast sources connect to multicast receivers. When a sender wishes to send data, it
first sends it to the RP, and when a receiver wishes to receive data, it registers with the RP.
After the data stream begins to flow from sender to RP to receiver, the routers in the path
optimize the path automatically to remove any unnecessary hops.
Senders register their requests with the RP and in so doing join a tree rooted at the RP.
The RP is similar to the center point used in the center-based tree algorithm. Initially,
traffic from the sender flows through the RP to reach each receiver. The benefit of a SM
protocol is that multicast data is blocked from a network segment unless a receiver
specifically signals to receive the data. This reduces the amount of traffic traversing the
network for those cases where indeed there are just a few receivers on the network at any
given point in time (as noted, this is not generally the model for IPTV or DVB-H). This
approach also implies that no pruning information is maintained for routers without
active receivers; pruning information is maintained only in routers connected to the
multicast delivery tree. In typical implementations (especially in enterprise networks),
the RP is administratively configured; sources register with the RP and then data is
forwarded down the shared tree to the receivers.2
Given the membership requirements of typical multicast (datacasting) applications
over the Internet, PIM SM is currently the most popular multicast routing protocol in use
(PIM SM scales well to a network of any size). The reason is that a multicast source
connected over the Internet may have a (relatively) small set of potential receivers that
are distributed all over the globe. PIM SM makes good sense. On the contrary, current
IPTV/DVB-H applications are delivered over private networks (the Internet is not
generally used because of QoS considerations) and tend to be concentrated to a
geographic area [market served by a telco, such as a city, county, or DMA (Demographic
Marketing Area)].
There are a number of protocols for multicast routing within an AS that predate
PIM, which are discussed in the chapters that follow, but PIM is the most widely
2
Cisco has implemented an alternative to choosing just DM or just SM on a router interface. This is called
sparse–dense mode. This was necessitated by a change in the paradigm for forwarding multicast traffic via PIM
that became apparent during its development. It turned out that it was more efficient to choose sparse or dense on
a per-group basis rather than a per-router interface basis. Sparse–dense mode facilitates this ability. Network
administrators can also configure sparse–dense mode. This configuration option allows individual groups to be
run in either sparse or dense mode depending on whether RP information is available for that group. If the router
learns RP information for a particular group, it will be treated as SM, otherwise that group will be treated as DM
[CIS200701].
implemented protocol. DVMRP is an interior gateway protocol used to build per-

source, per-group multicast delivery trees within an AS; it does not route unicast
datagrams, hence, any router that must handle both multicast and unicast datagrams
must support two separate routing mechanisms. MOSPF requires OSPF as unicast
routing protocol, but it is known to be complex and not to scale well. The CBT protocol
is a network layer multicast routing protocol that builds and maintains a share-
d-delivery tree for a multicast group. The sending and receiving of multicast data by
hosts on a subnetwork conforms to the traditional IP multicast service model. CBT is a
multicast routing architecture that builds a single delivery tree per group that is shared
by all of the groups senders and receivers. Most multicast algorithms build one
multicast tree per sender (subnetwork), the tree being rooted at the senders subnet-
work. The primary advantage of the shared tree approach is that it typically offers more
favorable scaling characteristics than all other multicast algorithms. All multicast
routing protocols make use of IGMP, which as we have seen in Chapter 4 operates
between hosts and multicast router(s) belonging to the same subnetwork. IGMP
enables the subnets multicast router(s) to monitor group membership presence on
its directly attached links, so that if multicast data arrive, it knows over which of its
links to send a copy of the packet [RFC2201].
One of the most critical processes in PIM SM is the creation of the multicast
distribution tree. Basic tree mechanisms were discussed in Chapter 3. The mechanism
entails creating a shared, RP-centered, distribution tree that reaches all group members.
When a data source first sends to a group, its DR unicasts Register messages to the RP
with the sources data packets encapsulated within. If the data rate is high, the RP can
send source-specific Join/Prune messages back toward the source and the sources data
packets will follow the resulting forwarding state and travel unencapsulated to the RP.
Whether they arrive encapsulated or natively, the RP forward the sources deencapsu-
lated data packets down the RP-centered distribution tree toward group members. If the
data rate warrants it, routers with local receivers can join a source-specific, shortest path
distribution tree and then prune this sources packets off of the shared RP-centered tree.
For low-data-rate sources, neither the RP nor the last-hop routers need join a source-
specific shortest path tree and data packets can be delivered via the shared RP-tree
[RFC2117].
The process to build the reverse path tree is as follows (more details are provided in
the next section):
Step 1: A multicast router that has active receivers sends periodic PIM Join messages
to a group-specific RP. Each multicast router along the path, with the RP being on the
upstream, generates and issues PIM Join requests to the RP. This process builds a
group-specific multicast delivery reverse path tree rooted at the RP. Figure 5.2
depicts this operation. Note that the PIM Join requests follow a reverse path from the
receiver to the RP, building out the reverse path tree.
Step 2: The multicast router supporting the source initially encapsulates each
multicast packet in a register message sent to the RP. The RP deencapsulates these
unicast messages and forwards the packets to the set of downstream receivers, as
depicted in Figure 5.3.
PIM SM DETAILS 83
Source Host
A
Multicast stream
RP
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver Receiver PIM join

RP-rooted tree
Figure 5.2. RP-Rooted Reverse Path Delivery Tree
Step 3: The RP-based tree may need optimization. At this juncture the router
supporting the source can create a source-based multicast delivery tree (e.g., see
Figure 5.4).
Step 4: When the downstream router starts to receive multicast packets through both
the RP-based delivery tree and the source-based delivery tree, it generates PIM Prune
messages, which are sent upstream toward the RP. See Figure 5.5. This causes the RP
to prune this branch of the tree. When this process is complete, multicast data from
the source is forwarded only through the source-based delivery tree.
Figure 5.6 depicts the basic format of a PIM message. Section 5.2 provides
additional details on this topic; casual readers may focus only on the first few sections
that follow—more advanced readers may want to go through the entire section.
5.2 PIM SM DETAILS
This section (based on RFC 23623) describes in some detail PIM SM, which as we
have seen is a protocol that can be used for efficiently routing to multicast groups
3
Copyright (C) The Internet Society (1998). All rights reserved. This document and translations of it may be
copied and furnished to others, and derivative works that comment on or otherwise explain it or assist in its
implementation may be prepared, copied, published, and distributed, in whole or in part, without restriction of
any kind, provided that the copyright notice and this paragraph are included on all such copies and derivative
works.
Source Host
A
RP
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver Receiver Multicast Data

Unicast Register Message
Figure 5.3. Source Registration
Source Host
A
RP
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver Receiver
PIM Join Toward Source
Source-Based Delivery Tree
Multicast Data
Figure 5.4. Source-Based Delivery Tree Optimization

PIM SM DETAILS 85
Source Host
A
RP
Receiver
Receiver
Receiver Receiver
Source-based delivery tree
now carrying multicast data
PIM prune message
Figure 5.5. Pruning of the RP-Based Delivery Tree
Figure 5.6. PIM Message Format

that may span wide-area (and interdomain) internets. This description is for
informative value only; developers should refer directly to the latest RFC/release
of the protocol.
5.2.1 Approach
Section 5.2.2 summarizes PIM SM operation; it describes the protocol from a network
perspective, specifically, how the participating routers interact to create and maintain the
multicast distribution tree. Section 5.2.3 describes PIM SM operations from the
perspective of a single router implementing the protocol; this section constitutes the
main body of the protocol specification. It is organized according to PIM SM message
type; for each message type, the section describes its contents, its generation, and its
processing. Section 5.2.4 provides packet format details.
5.2.2 PIM SM Protocol Overview

This section provides an overview of the architectural components of PIM SM.
A router receives explicit PIM Join/Prune messages from those neighboring routers
that have downstream group members. The router then forwards data packets addressed
to a multicast group G only onto those interfaces on which explicit joins have been
received. Note that all routers mentioned in this description are assumed to be PIM SM
capable, unless otherwise specified.
A DR sends periodic Join/Prune messages toward a group-specific RP for each
group for which it has active members. Each router along the path toward the RP builds
a wildcard (any source) state for the group and sends Join/Prune messages on toward
the RP. The term route entry refers to the state maintained in a router to represent the
distribution tree. A route entry may include such fields as the source address, the group
address, the incoming interface from which packets are accepted, the list of outgoing
interfaces to which packets are sent, timers, flag bits, and so on. The wildcard route
entrys incoming interface points toward the RP; the outgoing interfaces point to the
neighboring downstream routers that have sent Join/Prune messages toward the RP.
This state creates a shared, RP-centered distribution tree that reaches all group members.
When a data source first sends to a group, its DR unicasts Register messages to the
RP with the sources data packets encapsulated within. If the data rate is high, the RP
can send source-specific Join/Prune messages back toward the source and the sources
data packets will follow the resulting forwarding state and travel unencapsulated to the
RP. Whether they arrive encapsulated or natively, the RP forward the sources
deencapsulated data packets down the RP-centered distribution tree toward group
members. If the data rate warrants it, routers with local receivers can join a source-
specific, shortest path distribution tree and prune this sources packets off of the shared
RP-centered tree. For low-data-rate sources, neither the RP nor last-hop routers need
join a source-specific shortest path tree and data packets can be delivered via the shared
RP-tree.
The following sections describe PIM SM operation in more detail, in particular the
control messages and the actions they trigger.
PIM SM DETAILS 87
5.2.2.1 Local Hosts Joining a Group. In order to join a multicast group G, a

host conveys its membership information through IGMP (as discussed in Chapter 4).
From this point on, one refers to such a host as a receiver R (or member) of the group G.
When a DR gets a membership indication from IGMP for a new group G, the DR
looks up the associated RP. The DR creates a wildcard multicast route entry for the group,
referred to here as an (*,G) entry; if there is no more specific match for a particular
source, the packet will be forwarded according to this entry. The RP address is included in
a special field in the route entry and is included in periodic upstream Join/Prune
messages. The outgoing interface is set to that included in the IGMP membership
indication for the new member. The incoming interface is set to the interface used to send
unicast packets to the RP.
When there are no longer directly connected members for the group, IGMP notifies
the DR. If the DR has neither local members nor downstream receivers, the (*,G) state is
deleted.
5.2.2.2 Establishing the RP-Rooted Shared Tree. Triggered by the (*,G)

state, the DR creates a Join/Prune message with the RP address in its join list and the
Wildcard bit (WC-bit) and RP-Tree bit (RPT-bit) set to 1. The WC-bit indicates that
any source may match and be forwarded according to this entry if there is no longer a
match; the RPT-bit indicates that this join is being sent up the shared RP-tree. The
prune list is left empty. When the RPT-bit is set to 1, it indicates that the join is
associated with the shared RP-tree and therefore the Join/Prune message is propa-
gated along the RP-tree. When the WC-bit is set to 1, it indicates that the address is an
RP and the downstream receivers expect to receive packets from all sources via this
(shared tree) path. The term RPT-bit is used to refer to both the RPT-bit flags
associated with route entries and the RPT-bit included in each encoded address in a
Join/Prune message.
Each upstream router creates or updates its multicast route entry for (*,G) when it
receives a Join/Prune with the RPT-bit and WC-bit set. The interface on which the Join/
Prune message arrived is added to the list of outgoing interfaces (oifs) for (*,G). Based on
this entry, each upstream router between thereceiver andtheRP sendsa Join/Prune message
in which the join list includes the RP. The packet payload contains Multicast-Address ¼ G,
Join ¼ RP, WC-bit, RPT-bit, Prune ¼ NULL.
5.2.2.3 Hosts Sending to a Group. When a host starts sending multicast data
packets to a group, initially, its DR must deliver each packet to the RP for distribution
down the RP-tree. The senders DR initially encapsulates each data packet in a Register
message and unicasts it to the RP for that group. The RP decapsulates each Register
message and forwards the enclosed data packet natively to downstream members on the
shared RP-tree.
If the data rate of the source warrants the use of a source-specific SPT, the RP may
construct a new multicast route entry that is specific to the source, hereafter referred to
as (S,G) state, and send periodic Join/Prune messages toward the source. Note that over
time the rules for when to switch can be modified without global coordination. When
and if the RP does switch to the SPT, the routers between the source and the RP build
and maintain the (S,G) state in response to these messages and send (S,G) messages
upstream toward the source.
ThesourcesDRmust stopencapsulatingdatapacketsinregisterswhen(andsolongas)
it receives Register-Stop messages from the RP. The RP triggers Register-Stop messages in
response to registers if the RP has no downstream receivers for the group (or for that
particular source) or if the RP has already joined the (S,G) tree and is receiving the data
packets natively. Each sources DR maintains, per (S,G), a register-suppression timer.
The register-suppressiontimer is startedby the Register-Stopmessage;upon expiration, the
sources DR resumes sending data packets to the RP, encapsulated in Register messages.
A router with directly connected members first joins the shared RP-tree. The router
can switch to a sources shortest path tree (SP-tree) after receiving packets from that
source over the shared RP-tree. The recommended policy is to initiate the switch to the
SP-tree after receiving a significant number of data packets during a specified time
interval from a particular source. To realize this policy, the router can monitor data
packets from sources for which it has no source-specific multicast route entry and initiate
such an entry when the data rate exceeds the configured threshold.
When an (S,G) entry is activated (and periodically so long as the state exists), a Join/
Prune message is sent upstream toward the source S, with S in the join list. The payload
contains Multicast-Address¼G, Join¼S, Prune¼NULL. When the (S,G) entry is created,
the outgoing interface list is copied from (*,G), that is, all local shared tree branches are
replicated in the new SP-tree. In this way, when a data packet from S arrives and matches
on this entry, all receivers will continue to receive the sources packets along this path. (In
more complicated scenarios, other entries in the router have to be considered.) Note that
the (S,G) state must be maintained in each last-hop router that is responsible for initiating
and maintaining an SP-tree. Even when (*,G) and (S,G) overlap, both states are needed to
trigger the source-specific Join/Prune messages. The (S,G) state is kept alive by data
packets arriving from that source. A timer, [Entry-Timer], is set for the (S,G) entry and this
timer is restarted whenever data packets for (S,G) are forwarded out at least one oif or
registers are sent. When the entry timer expires, the state is deleted. The last-hop router is
the router that delivers the packets to their ultimate end-system destination. This is the
router that monitors if there is group membership and joins or prunes the appropriate
distribution trees in response. In general, the last-hop router is the DR for the LAN.
However, under various conditions described later, a parallel router connected to the same
LAN may take over as the last-hop router in place of the DR.
Only the RP and routers with local members can initiate switching to the sp-tree;
intermediate routers do not. Consequently, last-hop routers create an (S,G) state in
response to data packets from the source S, whereas intermediate routers only create an
(S,G) state in response to Join/Prune messages from downstream that have S in the join list.
The (S,G) entry is initialized with the SPT-bit cleared, indicating that the SP-tree
branch from S has not yet been set up completely, and the router can still accept packets
from S that arrive on the (*,G) entrys indicated incoming interface (iif). Each PIM
multicast entry has an associated incoming interface on which packets are expected to
arrive.
When a router with an (S,G) entry and a cleared SPT-bit starts to receive packets
from the new source S on the iif for the (S,G) entry, and that iif differs from the (*,G)
PIM SM DETAILS 89
entrys iif, the router sets the SPT-bit and sends a Join/Prune message toward the RP,
indicating that the router no longer wants to receive packets from S via the shared
RP-tree. The Join/Prune message sent toward the RP includes S in the prune list, with
the RPT-bit set indicating that Ss packets must not be forwarded down this branch of
the shared tree. If the router receiving the Join/Prune message has an (S,G) state (with
or without the route entrys RPT-bit flag set), it deletes the arriving interface from the
(S,G) oif list. If the router has only a (*,G) state, it creates an entry with the RPT-bit
flag set to 1. For brevity, one refers to an (S,G) entry that has the RPT-bit flag set to 1 as
an (S,G)RPT-bit entry. This notational distinction is useful to point out the different
actions taken for (S,G) entries depending on the setting of the RPT-bit flag. Note that a
router can have no more than one active (S,G) entry for any particular S and G at any
particular time; whether the RPT-bit flag is set or not. In other words, a router never has
both an (S,G) and an (S,G)RPT-bit entry for the same S and G at the same time. The
Join/Prune message payload contains Multicast-Address ¼ G, Join ¼ NULL, Prune ¼
S, RPT-bit.
A new receiver may join an existing RP-tree on which a source-specific prune state
has been established (e.g., because downstream receivers have switched to SP-trees). In
this case, the prune state must be eradicated upstream of the new receiver to bring all
sources data packets down to the new receiver. Therefore, when an (*,G) join arrives at a
router that has any (S,G)RPT-bit entries (i.e., entries that cause the router to send
source-specific prunes toward the RP), these entries must be updated upstream of
the router so as to bring all sources packets down to the new member. To accomplish
this, each router that receives an (*,G) Join/Prune message updates all the existing
(S,G)RPT-bit entries. The router may also trigger an (*,G) Join/Prune message upstream
to cause the same updating of RPT-bit settings upstream and pull down all active sources
packets. If the arriving (*,G) join has some sources included in its prune list, then the
corresponding (S,G) RPT-bit entries are left unchanged (i.e., the RPT-bit remains set and
no oif is added).
5.2.2.4 Steady State Maintenance of Distribution Tree (i.e., Router

State). In the steady state, each router sends periodic Join/Prune messages for each
active PIM route entry; the Join/Prune messages are sent to the neighbor indicated in the
corresponding entry. These messages are sent periodically to capture state, topology, and
membership changes. A Join/Prune message is also sent on an event-triggered basis each
time a new route entry is established for some new source (note that some damping
function may be applied, for example, a short delay to allow for merging of new join
information). Join/Prune messages do not elicit any form of explicit acknowledgment;
routers recover from lost packets using the periodic refresh mechanism.
5.2.2.5 Obtaining RP Information. To obtain the RP information, all routers

within a PIM domain collect Bootstrap messages. Bootstrap messages are sent
hop by hop within the domain; the domains Bootstrap Router (BSR) is responsible
for originating the Bootstrap messages. Bootstrap messages are used to carry out
a dynamic BSR election when needed and to distribute RP information in the steady
state.
A domain in this context is a contiguous set of routers that implement all PIM and is
configured to operate within a common boundary defined by PIM Multicast Border
Routers (PMBRs). PMBRs connect each PIM domain to the rest of the Internet.
Routers use a set of available RPs (called the RP-set) distributed in Bootstrap
messages to get the proper group-to-RP mapping. The following paragraphs summa-
rize the mechanism; details of the mechanism may be found in RFC 2362. A (small) set
of routers, within a domain, is configured as Candidate BSRs (C-BSRs) and, through a
simple election mechanism, a single BSR is selected for that domain. A set of routers
within a domain is also configured as Candidate RPs (C-RPs); typically, these will be
the same routers that are configured as C-BSRs. C-RPs periodically unicast C-RP-
Advertisement messages (C-RP-Advs) to the BSR of that domain. C-RP-Advs include
the address of the advertising C-RP, as well as an optional group address and a Mask
Length field, indicating the group prefix(es) for which the candidacy is advertised. The
BSR then includes a set of these C-RPs (the RP-set), along with the corresponding
group prefixes, in Bootstrap messages it periodically originates. Bootstrap messages
are distributed hop-by-hop throughout the domain.
Routers receive and store Bootstrap messages originated by the BSR. When a DR
gets a membership indication from IGMP for (or a data packet from) a directly connected
host, for a group for which it has no entry, the DR uses a hash function to map the group
address to one of the C-RPs whose group prefix includes the group. The DR then sends a
Join/Prune message toward (or unicasts registers to) that RP.
The Bootstrap message indicates liveness of the RPs included therein. If an RP is
included in the message, then it is tagged as “up” at the routers, while RPs not included in
the message are removed from the list of RPs over which the hash algorithm acts. Each
router continues to use the contents of the most recently received Bootstrap message until
it receives a new Bootstrap message.
If a PIM domain partitions, each area separated from the old BSR will elect its own
BSR, which will distribute an RP-set containing RPs that are reachable within that
partition. When the partition heals, another election will occur automatically and only
one of the BSRs will continue to send out Bootstrap messages. As is expected at the
time of a partition or healing, some disruption in packet delivery may occur. This time
will be on the order of the regions round-trip time and the bootstrap router timeout
value.
5.2.2.6 Interoperation with Dense-Mode Protocols Such as DVMRP. In

order to interoperate with networks that run dense-mode, broadcast and prune,
protocols, such as DVMRP, all packets generated within a PIM SM region must be
pulled out to that regions PMBRs and injected (i.e., broadcast) into the DVMRP
network. A PMBR is a router that sits at the boundary of a PIM SM domain and
interoperates with other types of multicast routers such as those that run DVMRP.
Generally, a PMBR would speak both protocols and implement interoperability
functions not required by regular PIM routers. To support interoperability, a special
entry type, referred to as (*,*,RP), must be supported by all PIM routers. For this
reason, one includes details about (*,*,RP) entry handling in this general PIM
specification.
PIM SM DETAILS 91
A data packet will match on an (*,*,RP) entry if there is no more specific entry [such
as (S,G) or (*,G)], and the destination group address in the packet maps to the RP listed in
the (*,*,RP) entry. In this sense, an (*,*,RP) entry represents an aggregation of all the
groups that hash to that RP. PMBRs initialize the (*,*,RP) state for each RP in the
domains RP-set. The (*,*,RP) state causes the PMBRs to send (*,*,RP) Join/Prune
messages toward each of the active RPs in the domain. As a result, distribution trees are
built that carry all data packets originated within the PIM domain (and sent to the RPs)
down to the PMBRs.
PMBRs are also responsible for delivering externally generated packets to routers
within the PIM domain. To do so, PMBRs initially encapsulate externally originated
packets (i.e., received on DVMRP interfaces) in Register messages and unicast them to
the corresponding RP within the PIM domain. The Register message has a bit indicating
that it was originated by a border router and the RP caches the originating PMBRs
address in the route entry so that duplicate registers from other PMBRs can be declined
with a Register-Stop message.
All PIM routers must be capable of supporting the (*,*,RP) state and interpreting
associated Join/Prune messages.
5.2.2.7 Multicast Data Packet Processing. Data packets are processed in a

manner similar to other multicast schemes. A router first performs the longest match on
the source and group address in the data packet. An (S,G) entry is matched first if one
exists; an (*,G) entry is matched otherwise. If neither state exists, then an (*,*,RP) entry
match is attempted as follows: the router hashes on G to identify the RP for group G and
looks for an (*,*,RP) entry that has this RP address associated with it. If none of the above
exists, then the packet is dropped. If a state is matched, the router compares the interface
on which the packet arrived to the incoming interface field in the matched route entry. If
the iif check fails, the packet is dropped; otherwise the packet is forwarded to all
interfaces listed in the outgoing interface list.
Some special actions are needed to deliver packets continuously while switching
from the shared to the SP-tree. In particular, when an (S,G) entry is matched, incoming
packets are forwarded as follows:
1. If the SPT-bit is set, then:

(a) If the incoming interface is the same as a matching (S,G) iif, the packet is
forwarded to the oif list of (S,G).
(b) If the incoming interface is different than a matching (S,G) iif, the packet is
discarded.
2. If the SPT-bit is cleared, then:
(a) If the incoming interface is the same as a matching (S,G) iif, the packet is
forwarded to the oif list of (S,G). In addition, the SPT-bit is set for that entry if
the incoming interface differs from the incoming interface of the (*,G) or
(*,*,RP) entry.
(b) If the incoming interface is different than a matching (S,G) iif, the incoming
interface is tested against a matching (*,G) or (*,*,RP) entry. If the iif is the
same as one of those, the packet is forwarded to the oif list of the matching
entry.
(c) Otherwise, the iif does not match any entry for G and the packet is discarded.
Data packets never trigger prunes. However, data packets may trigger actions that in
turn trigger prunes.
5.2.2.8 Operation Over Multiaccess Networks. This section describes

a few additional protocol mechanisms needed to operate PIM over multiaccess networks:
DR election, Assert messages to resolve parallel paths, and the join/prune-suppression
timer to suppress redundant joins on multiaccess networks.
Designated Router Election. When there are multiple routers connected to a multiaccess
network, one of them must be chosen to operate as the DR at any point in time. The DR is
responsible for sending triggered Join/Prune and Register messages toward the RP.
A simple DR election mechanism is used for both SM and traditional IP multicast
routing. Neighboring routers send Hello messages to each other. The sender with the
largest network layer address assumes the role of DR. Each router connected to the
multiaccess LAN sends the hellos periodically in order to adapt to changes in router
status.
Parallel Paths to a Source or the RP—Assert Process. If a router receives a multicast

datagram on a multiaccess LAN from a source whose corresponding (S,G) outgoing
interface list includes the interface to that LAN, the packet must be a duplicate. In this
case, a single forwarder must be elected. Using Assert messages addressed to
“224.0.0.13” (ALL-PIM-ROUTERS group) on the LAN, upstream routers can
resolve which one will act as the forwarder. Downstream routers listen to the asserts
so they know which one was elected and therefore where to send subsequent joins.
Typically, this is the same as the downstream routers RPF neighbor; but there are
circumstances where this might not be the case, for example, when using multiple
unicast routing protocols on that LAN. The RPF neighbor for a particular source (or
RP) is the next-hop router to which packets are forwarded en route to that source (or
RP) and therefore is considered a good path via which to accept packets from that
source.
The upstream router elected is the one that has the shortest distance to the source.
Therefore, when a packet is received on an outgoing interface, a router sends an assert
message on the multiaccess LAN indicating what metric it uses to reach the source of the
data packet. The router with the smallest numerical metric (with ties broken by highest
address) will become the forwarder. All other upstream routers will delete the interface
from their outgoing interface list. The downstream routers also do the comparison in case
the forwarder is different than the RPF neighbor.
Associated with the metric is a metric preference value. This is provided to deal with
the case where the upstream routers may run different unicast routing protocols. The
numerically smaller metric preference is always preferred. The metric preference is
treated as the high-order part of assert metric comparison. Therefore, a metric value can
PIM SM DETAILS 93
be compared with another metric value provided both metric preferences are the same. A
metric preference can be assigned per unicast routing protocol and needs to be consistent
for all routers on the multiaccess network.
Asserts are also needed for (*,G) entries since an RP-tree and an SP-tree for the same
group may both cross the same multiaccess network. When an assert is sent for a (*,G)
entry, the first bit in the metric preference (RPT-bit) is always set to 1 to indicate that this
path corresponds to the RP-tree and that the match must be done on (*,G) if it exists.
Furthermore, the RPT-bit is always cleared for metric preferences that refer to SP-tree
entries; this causes an SP-tree path to always look better than an RP-tree path. When the
SP-tree and RP-tree cross the same LAN, this mechanism eliminates the duplicates that
would otherwise be carried over the LAN.
In case the packet or the Assert message matches on oif for the (*,*,RP) entry, a (*,G)
entry is created, and asserts take place as if the matching state were (*,G).
The DR may lose the (*,G) assert process to another router on the LAN if there are
multiple paths to the RP through the LAN. From then on, the DR is no longer
the last-hop router for local receivers and removes the LAN from its (*,G) oif list.
The winning router becomes the last-hop router and is responsible for sending (*,G)
Join messages to the RP.
Join/Prune Suppression. Join/prune suppression may be used on multiaccess LANs to

reduce duplicate control message overhead; it is not required for correct performance
of the protocol. If a Join/Prune message arrives and matches on the incoming interface
for an existing (S,G), (*,G), or (*,*,RP) route entry, and the holdtime included in the
Join/Prune message is greater than the recipients own [Join/Prune-Holdtime] (with
ties resolved in favor of the higher network layer address), a timer (the join/
prune-suppression timer) in the recipients route entry may be started to suppress
further Join/Prune messages. After this timer expires, the recipient triggers a Join/
Prune message and resumes sending periodic join/prunes for this entry. The join/
prune-suppression timer should be restarted each time a Join/Prune message is
received with a higher holdtime.
5.2.2.9 Unicast Routing Changes. When unicast routing changes, an RPF

check is done on all active (S,G), (*,G), and (*,*,RP) entries, and all affected expected
incoming interfaces are updated. In particular, if the new incoming interface appears in
the outgoing interface list, it is deleted from the outgoing interface list. The previous
incoming interface may be added to the outgoing interface list by a subsequent join/prune
from downstream. Join/Prune messages received on the current incoming interface are
ignored. Join/Prune messages received on new interfaces or on existing outgoing
interfaces are not ignored. Other outgoing interfaces are left as is until they are explicitly
pruned by downstream routers or are timed out due to lack of appropriate Join/Prune
messages. If the router has an (S,G) entry with the SPT-bit set, and the updated iif(S,G)
does not differ from iif(*,G) or iif(*,*,RP), then the router resets the SPT-bit.
The router must send a Join/Prune message with S in the join list out to any new
incoming interfaces to inform upstream routers that it expects multicast datagrams over
the interface. It may also send a Join/Prune message with S in the prune list out to the old
incoming interface, if the link is operational, to inform upstream routers that this part of
the distribution tree is going away.
5.2.3 Detailed Protocol Description

This section describes the protocol operations from the perspective of an individual
router implementation. In particular, for each message type, the section describes how it
is generated and processed.
5.2.3.1 Hello. Hello messages are sent so neighboring routers can discover each
other.
SENDING HELLOS. Hello messages are sent periodically between PIM neighbors,
every [Hello-Period] seconds. This informs routers what interfaces have PIM neighbors.
Hello messages are multicast using address 224.0.0.13 (ALL-PIM-ROUTERS group).
The packet includes a holdtime, set to [Hello-Holdtime], for neighbors to keep the
information valid. Hellos are sent on all types of communication links.
RECEIVING HELLOS. When a router receives a Hello message, it stores the network
layer address for that neighbor, sets its neighbor timer for the hello sender to the holdtime
included in the hello, and determines the DR for that interface. The highest addressed
system is elected DR. Each hello received causes the DRs address to be updated.
When a router that is the active DR receives a hello from a new neighbor (i.e., from
an address that is not yet in the DR’s neighbor table), the DR unicasts its most recent
RP-set information to the new neighbor.
TIMING OUT NEIGHBOR ENTRIES. A periodic process is run to time out PIM
neighbors that have not sent hellos. If the DR has gone down, a new DR is chosen
by scanning all neighbors on the interface and selecting the new DR to be the one with the
highest network layer address. If an interface has gone down, the router may optionally
time out all PIM neighbors associated with the interface.
5.2.3.2 Join/Prune. Join/Prune messages are sent to join or prune a branch off of
the multicast distribution tree. A single message contains both a join and prune list, either
one of which may be null. Each list contains a set of source addresses, indicating the
source-specific trees or shared tree that the router wants to join or prune.
SENDING JOIN/PRUNE MESSAGES. Join/Prune messages are merged such that a

message sent to a particular upstream neighbor N includes all of the current joined
and pruned sources that are reached via N; according to unicast routing Join/Prune
messages are multicast to all routers on multiaccess networks with the target address set
to the next hop router toward S or RP. Join/Prune messages are sent every [Join/Prune-
Period] seconds. One can introduce mechanisms to rate limit this control traffic on a
hop-by-hop basis, in order to avoid excessive overhead on small links. In addition, certain
events cause triggered Join/Prune messages to be sent.
Periodic Join/Prune Messages. A router sends a periodic Join/Prune message to each

distinct RPF neighbor associated with each (S,G), (*,G), and (*,*,RP) entry. Join/Prune
PIM SM DETAILS 95
messages are only sent if the RPF neighbor is a PIM neighbor. A periodic Join/Prune
message sent to a particular RPF neighbor is constructed as follows:
1. Each router determines the RP for a (*,G) entry by using the hash function
described. The RP address (with RPT- and WC-bits set) is included in the join list
of a periodic Join/Prune message under the following conditions:
(a) The Join/Prune message is being sent to the RPF neighbor toward the RP for
an active (*,G) or (*,*,RP) entry, and
(b) The outgoing interface list in the (*,G) or (*,*,RP) entry is non-NULL, or the
router is the DR on the same interface as the RPF neighbor.
2. A particular source address, S, is included in the join list with the RPT and
WC-bits cleared under the following conditions:
(a) The Join/Prune message is being sent to the RPF neighbor toward S,
(b) There exists an active (S,G) entry with the RPT-bit flag cleared, and
(c) The oif list in the (S,G) entry is not null.
3. A particular source address, S, is included in the prune list with the RPT and WC
bits cleared under the following conditions:
(a) The Join/Prune message is being sent to the RPF neighbor toward S,
(b) There exists an active (S,G) entry with the RPT-bit flag cleared, and
(c) The oif list in the (S,G) entry is null.
4. A particular source address, S, is included in the prune list with the RPT-bit set
and the WC-bit cleared under the following conditions:
(a) The Join/Prune message is being sent to the RPF neighbor toward the RP and
there exists an (S,G) entry with the RPT-bit flag set and null oif list, or
(b) The Join/Prune message is being sent to the RPF neighbor toward the RP,
there exists an (S,G) entry with the RPT-bit flag cleared and SPT-bit set, and
the incoming interface toward S is different than the incoming interface
toward the RP, or
(c) The Join/Prune message is being sent to the RPF neighbor toward the RP, and
there exists an (*,G) entry and (S,G) entry for a directly connected source.
5. The RP address (with RPT- and WC-bits set) is included in the prune list if
(a) The Join/Prune message is being sent to the RPF neighbor toward the RP and
there exists a (*,G) entry with a null oif list.
Triggered Join/Prune Messages. In addition to periodic messages, the following events

will trigger Join/Prune messages if, as a result, (a) a new entry is created or (b) the oif list
changes from null to nonnull or nonnull to null. The contents of triggered messages are
the same as the periodic, described above.
1. Receipt of an indication from IGMP that the state of directly connected

membership has changed (i.e., new members have just joined “membership
indication” or all members have left), for a group G, may cause the last-hop
router to build or modify the corresponding (*,G) state. When IGMP indicates
that there are no longer directly connected members, the oif is removed from the
oif list if the oif timer is not running. A Join/Prune message is triggered if and
only if (a) a new entry is created or (b) the oif list changes from null to nonnull or
nonnull to null, as follows:
(a) If the receiving router does not have a route entry for G, the router creates a
(*,G) entry, copies the oif list from the corresponding (*,*,RP) entry (if it
exists), and includes the interface included in the IGMP membership
indication in the oif list; as always, the router never includes the entrys
iif in the oif list. The router sends a Join/Prune message toward the RP with
the RP address and RPT- and WC-bits set in the join list. Or,
(b) If an (S,G)RPT-bit or (*,G) entry already exists, the interface included in the
IGMP membership indication is added to the oif list (if it was not included
already).
2. Receipt of a Join/Prune message for (S,G), (*,G), or (*,*,RP) will cause building
or modifying the corresponding state, and subsequent triggering of upstream
Join/Prune messages, in the following cases:
(a) When there is no current route entry, the RP address included in the Join/
Prune message is checked against the local RP-set information. If it matches,
an entry will be created and the new entry will in turn trigger an upstream
Join/Prune message. If the router has no RP-set information, it may discard
the message or optionally use the RP address included in the message.
(b) When the outgoing interface list of an (S,G) RPT-bit entry becomes null, the
triggered Join/Prune message will contain S in the prune list.
(c) When there exists an (S,G)RPT-bit with null oif list and a (*,G) Join/Prune
message is received, the arriving interface is added to the oif list and a (*,G)
Join/Prune message is triggered upstream.
(d) When there exists a (*,G) with null oif list and a (*,*,RP) Join/Prune message
is received, the receiving interface is added to the oif list and a (*,*,RP) Join/
Prune message is triggered upstream.
3. Receipt of a packet that matches an (S,G) entry whose SPT-bit is cleared triggers
the following if the packet arrived on the correct incoming interface and there is a
(*,G) or (*,*,RP) entry with a different incoming interface: (a) the router sets the
SPT-bit on the (S,G) entry and (b) the router sends a Join/Prune message toward
the RP with S in the prune list and the RPT-bit set.
4. Receipt of a packet at the DR from a directly connected source S, on the subnet
containing the address S, triggers a Join/Prune message toward the RP with S in
the prune list and the RPT-bit set under the following conditions: (a) there is no
matching (S,G) state and (b) there exists a (*,G) or (*,*,RP) for which the DR is
not the RP.
5. When a Join/Prune message is received for a group G, the prune list is checked. If
the prune list contains a source or RP for which the receiving router has a
corresponding active (S,G), (*,G) or (*,*,RP) entry, and whose iif is that on which
the join/prune was received, then a join for (S,G), (*,G), or (*,*,RP) is triggered to
PIM SM DETAILS 97
override the prune, respectively. (This is necessary in the case of parallel

downstream routers connected to a multiaccess network.)
6. When the RP fails, the RP will not be included in the Bootstrap messages sent to
all routers in that domain. This triggers the DRs to send (*,G) Join/Prune
messages toward the new RP for the group, as determined by the RP-set and
the hash function. As described earlier, PMBRs trigger (*,*,RP) joins toward
each RP in the RP-set.
7. When an entrys join/prune-suppression timer expires, a Join/Prune message is
triggered upstream corresponding to that entry, even if the outgoing interface has
not transitioned between null and nonnull states.
8. When the RPF neighbor changes (whether due to an assert or changes in unicast
routing), the router sets a random delay timer (the random-delay-join timer)
whose expiration triggers sending a Join/Prune message for the asserted route
entry to the assert winner (if the join/prune-suppression timer has expired).
One does not trigger prunes onto interfaces based on data packets. Data packets that
arrive on the wrong incoming interface are silently dropped. However, on point-to-point
interfaces, triggered prunes may be sent as an optimization.
It is possible that a Join/Prune message constructed according to the preceding rules
could exceed the MTU of a network. In this case, the message can undergo semantic
fragmentation, whereby information corresponding to different groups can be sent in
different messages. However, if a Join/Prune message must be fragmented, the complete
prune list corresponding to a group G must be included in the same Join/Prune message as
the associated RP-tree join for G. If such semantic fragmentation is not possible, IP
fragmentation should be used between the two neighboring hops.
RECEIVING JOIN/PRUNE MESSAGES. When a router receives a Join/Prune message, it
processes it as follows:
The receiver of the join/prune notes the interface on which the PIM message arrived,
call it I. The receiver then checks to see if the Join/Prune message was addressed
to the receiving router itself (i.e., the routers address appears in the Unicast
Upstream Neighbor Router field of the Join/Prune message). (If the router is
connected to a multiaccess LAN, the message could be intended for a different
router.) If the join/prune is for this router, the following actions are taken.
For each group address, G, in the Join/Prune message, the associated join list is
processed as follows. One refers to each address in the join list as Sj; Sj refers to
the RP if the RPT-bit and WC-bit are both set. For each Sj in the join list of the
Join/Prune message:
1. If an address, Sj, in the join list of the Join/Prune message has the RPT-bit and
WC-bit set, then Sj is the RP address used by the downstream router(s) and the
following actions are taken:
(a) If Sj is not the same as the receiving routers RP mapping for G, the
receiving router may ignore the Join/Prune message with respect to that
group entry. If the router does not have any RP-set information, it may
use the address Sj included in the Join/Prune message as the RP for the
group.
(b) If Sj is the same as the receiving routers RP mapping for G, the receiving
router adds I to the outgoing interface list of the (*,G) route entry [if there is
no (*,G) entry, the router creates one first] and sets the Oif-timer for that
interface to the holdtime specified in the Join/Prune message. In addition, the
oif-deletion delay for that interface is set to one-third the holdtime specified
in the Join/Prune message. If a (*,*,RP) entry exists, for the RP associated
with G, then the oif list of the newly created (*,G) entry is copied from that
(*,*,RP) entry.
(c) For each (Si,G) entry associated with group G: (i) if Si is not included in the
prune list, (ii) if I is not on the same subnet as the address Si, and (iii) if I is not
the iif, then interface I is added to the oif list and the oif timer for that interface
in each affected entry is increased (never decreased) to the Holdtime
included in the Join/Prune message. In addition, if the oif timer for that
interface is increased, the oif deletion delay for that interface is set to
one-third the holdtime specified in the Join/Prune message.
If the group address in the Join/Prune message is “*,” then every (*,G) and
(S,G) entry, whose group address hashes to the RP indicated in the (*,*,RP)
join/prune message, is updated accordingly. A “*” in the group field of the
join/prune is represented by a group address 224.0.0.0 and a group mask
length of 4, indicating a (*,*,RP) join.
(d) If the (Si,G) entry has its RPT-bit flag set to 1, and its oif list is the same as the
(*,G) oif list, then the (Si,G)RPT-bit entry is deleted,
(e) The incoming interface is set to the interface used to send unicast packets to
the RP in the (*,G) route entry, that is, RPF interface toward the RP.
2. For each address, Sj, in the join list whose RPT-bit and WC-bit are not set, and
for which there is no existing (Sj,G) route entry, the router initiates one. The
router creates an (S,G) entry and copies all outgoing interfaces from the (S,G)
RPT-bit entry, if it exists. If there is no (S,G) entry, the oif list is copied from the
(*,G) entry; and if there is no (*,G) entry, the oif list is copied from the (*,*,RP)
entry, if it exists. In all cases, the iif of the (S,G) entry is always excluded from
the oif list.
(a) The outgoing interface for (Sj,G) is set to I. The incoming interface for (Sj,G)
is set to the interface used to send unicast packets to Sj (i.e., the RPF neighbor).
(b) If the interface used to reach Sj is the same as I, this represents an error (or a
unicast routing change) and the join/prune must not be processed.
3. For each address, Sj, in the join list of the Join/Prune message, for which there is
an existing (Sj,G) route entry:
(a) If the RPT-bit is not set for Sj listed in the Join/Prune message, but the
RPT-bit flag is set on the existing (Sj,G) entry, the router clears the RPT-bit
flag on the (Sj,G) entry, sets the incoming interface to point toward Sj for that
PIM SM DETAILS 99
(Sj,G) entry, and sends a Join/Prune message corresponding to that entry

through the new incoming interface.
(b) If I is not the same as the existing incoming interface, the router adds I to the
list of outgoing interfaces.
(c) The oif timer for I is increased (never decreased) to the holdtime included in
the Join/Prune message. In addition, if the oif timer for that interface is
increased, the oif-deletion delay for that interface is set to one-third the
holdtime specified in the Join/Prune message.
(d) The (Sj,G) entrys SPT-bit is cleared until data comes down the shortest path
tree.
For each group address G, in the Join/Prune message, the associated prune list is
processed as follows. One refers to each address in the prune list as Sp; Sp refers to the RP
if the RPT-bit and WC-bit are both set. For each Sp in the prune list of the Join/Prune
message:
1. For each address, Sp, in the prune list whose RPT-bit and WC-bit are cleared:
(a) If there is an existing (Sp,G) route entry, the router lowers the entrys oif timer
for I to its oif-deletion delay, allowing for other downstream routers on a
multiaccess LAN to override the prune. However, on point-to-point links, the
oif timer is expired immediately.
(b) If the router has a current (*,G), or (*,*,RP), route entry, and if the existing
(Sp,G) entry has its RPT-bit flag set to 1, then this (Sp,G)RPT-bit entry is
maintained (not deleted) even if its outgoing interface list is null.
2. For each address, Sp, in the prune list whose RPT-bit is set and whose WC-bit is
cleared:
(a) If there is an existing (Sp G) route entry, the router lowers the entrys oif timer
for I to its oif-deletion delay, allowing for other downstream routers on a
multiaccess LAN to override the prune. However, on point-to-point links, the
oif timer is expired immediately.
(b) Iftherouterhasacurrent(*,G),or(*,*,RP),routeentry,andiftheexisting(Sp,G)
entryhasitsRPT-bitflagsetto1,thenthis(Sp,G)RPT-bitentryisnotdeleted,and
the entry timer is restarted, even if its outgoing interface list is null.
(c) If (*,G), or corresponding (*,*,RP), state exists, but there is no (Sp,G) entry,
an (Sp,G)RPT-bit entry is created. The outgoing interface list is copied from
the (*,G), or (*,*,RP), entry, with the interface I on which the prune was
received deleted. Packets from the pruned source Sp match on this state and
are not forwarded toward the pruned receivers.
(d) If there exists an (Sp,G) entry, with or without the RPT-bit set, the oif timer
for I is expired, and the entry timer is restarted.
3. For each address, Sp, in the prune list whose RPT-bit and WC-bit are both set:
(a) If there is an existing (*,G) entry, with Sp as the RP for G, the router lowers
the entrys oif timer for I to its oif-deletion delay, allowing for other
downstream routers on a multiaccess LAN to override the prune. However,

on point-to-point links, the oif timer is expired immediately.
(b) If the corresponding (*,*,RP) state exists, but there is no (*,G) entry, an (*,G)
entry is created. The outgoing interface list is copied from the (*,*,RP) entry,
with the interface I on which the prune was received deleted.
For any new (S,G), (*,G), or (*,*,RP) entry created by an incoming Join/Prune
message, the SPT-bit is cleared (and if a join/prune-suppression timer is used, it is left off).
If the entry has a join/prune-suppression timer associated with it, and if the
received join/prune does not indicate the router as its target, then the receiving router
examines the join and prune lists to see if any addresses in the list “completely match”
the existing (S,G), (*,G), or (*,*,RP) state for which the receiving router currently
schedules Join/Prune messages. An element on the join or prune list “completely
matches” a route entry only if both the addresses and RPT-bit flag are the same. If the
incoming Join/Prune message completely matches an existing (S,G), (*,G), or (*,*,RP)
entry and the join/prune arrived on the iif for that entry, then the router compares the
holdtime included in the Join/Prune message, to its own [Join/Prune-Holdtime]. If its
own [Join/Prune-Holdtime] is lower, the join/prune-suppression timer is started at the
[Join/Prune-Suppression-Timeout]. If the [Join/Prune-Holdtime] is equal, the tie is
resolved in favor of the Join/Prune Message originator that has the higher network layer
address. When the join/prune timer expires, the router triggers a Join/Prune message
for the corresponding entry(ies).
5.2.3.3 Register and Register-Stop. When a source first starts sending to a

group, its packets are encapsulated in Register messages and sent to the RP. If the data
rate warrants source-specific paths, the RP sets up a source-specific state and starts
sending (S,G) Join/Prune messages toward the source, with S in the join list.
SENDING REGISTERS AND RECEIVING REGISTER-STOPS. Register messages are sent as

follows:
1. When a DR receives a packet from a directly connected source S on the subnet

containing the address, S:
(a) If there is no corresponding (S,G) entry, the router has RP-set information,
and the DR is not the RP for G, the DR creates an (S,G) entry with the
register-suppression timer turned off and the RP address set according to the
hash function mapping for the corresponding group. The oif list is copied
from the existing (*,G) or (*,*,RP) entries, if they exist. The iif of the (S,G)
entry is always excluded from the oif list. If there exists a (*,G) or (*,*,RP)
entry, the DR sends a Join/Prune message toward the RP with S in the prune
list and the RPT-bit set.
(b) If there is an (S,G) entry in existence, the DR simply restarts the correspond-
ing entry timer.
When a PMBR (e.g., a router that connects the PIM SM region to a
dense-mode region running DVMRP or PIM DM) receives a packet from a
source in the dense-mode region, the router treats the packet as if it were from
PIM SM DETAILS 101
a directly connected source. A separate document will describe the details of

interoperability.
2. If the new or previously existing (S,G) entrys register-suppression timer is not
running, the data packet is encapsulated in a Register message and unicast to the
RP for that group. The data packet is also forwarded according to the (S,G) state
in the DR if the oif list is not null since a receiver may join the SP-tree while the
DR is still registering to the RP.
3. If the (S,G) entrys register-suppression timer is running, the data packet is
not sent in a Register message, it is just forwarded according to the (S,G) oif
list.
When theDR receives aRegister-Stop message,it restarts the register-suppression timer

in the corresponding (S,G) entry(ies) at [Register-Suppression-Timeout] seconds. If
there is data to be registered, the DR may send a null register (a Register message with a
zero-length data portion in the inner packet) to the RP [Probe-Time] seconds before the
register-suppression timer expires to avoid sending occasional bursts of traffic to an RP
unnecessarily.
RECEIVING REGISTER MESSAGES AND SENDING REGISTER-STOPS. When a router (i.e.,
the RP) receives a Register message, the router does the following:
1. Decapsulates the data packet and checks for a corresponding (S,G) entry.
(a) If an (S,G) entry with a cleared (0) SPT-bit exists, and the received register
does not have the null-register bit set to 1, the packet is forwarded, and the
SPT-bit is left cleared (0). If the SPT-bit is 1, the packet is dropped, and
Register-Stop messages are triggered. Register-stops should be rate limited
(in an implementation-specific manner) so that not more than a few are sent
per round-trip time. This prevents a high-data-rate stream of packets from
triggering a large number of Register-Stop messages between the time that
the first packet is received and the time when the source receives the first
register-stop.
(b) If there is no (S,G) entry, but there is a (*,G) entry, and the received register
does not have the null-register bit set to 1, the packet is forwarded according
to the (*,G) entry.
(c) If there is an (*,*,RP) entry but no (*,G) entry, and the register received does
not have the null-register bit set to 1, a (*,G) or (S,G) entry is created and the
oif list is copied from the (*,*,RP) entry to the new entry. The packet is
forwarded according to the created entry.
(d) If there is no G or (*,*,RP) entry corresponding to G, the packet is dropped,
and a register-stop is triggered.
(e) A “border bit” is added to the Register message to facilitate interoperability
mechanisms. PMBRs set this bit when registering for external sources. If the
“border bit” is set in the register, the RP does the following:
i. If there is no matching (S,G) state, but there exists a (*,G) or (*,*,RP) entry,
the RP creates an (S,G) entry, with a “PMBR” field. This field holds the
source of the register (i.e., the outer network layer address of the register
packet). The RP triggers an (S,G) join towards the source of the data
packet and clears the SPT-bit for the (S,G) entry. If the received register
is not a “null register,” the packet is forwarded according to the created
state. Else:
ii. If the “PMBR” field for the corresponding (S,G) entry matches the
source of the register packet and the received register is not a “null
register,” the de-encapsulated packet is forwarded to the oif list of that
entry. Else:
iii. If the “PMBR” field for the corresponding (S,G) entry matches the source
of the register packet, the deencapsulated packet is forwarded to the oif
list of that entry. Else:
iv. The packet is dropped, and a register-stop is triggered toward the source
of the register.
The (S,G) entry timer is restarted by registers arriving from that source to that group.
2. If the matching (S,G) or (*,G) state contains a null oif list, the RP unicasts a
Register-Stop message to the source of the Register message; in the latter case,
the Source Address field, within the Register-Stop message, is set to the wildcard
value (all 0s). This message is not processed by intermediate routers, hence, no
(S,G) state is constructed between the RP and the source.
3. If the Register message arrival rate warrants it and there is no existing (S,G) entry,
the RP sets up an (S,G) route entry with the outgoing interface list, excluding iif
(S,G), copied from the (*,G) outgoing interface list, and its SPT-bit is initialized
to 0. If a (*,G) entry does not exist, but there exists a (*,*,RP) entry with the RP
corresponding to G, the oif list for (S,G) is copied—excluding the iif—from that
(*,*,RP) entry.
A timer [Entry-Timer] is set for the (S,G) entry and this timer is restarted by receipt
of data packets for (S,G). The (S,G) entry causes the RP to send a Join/Prune message for
the indicated group toward the source of the Register message.
If the (S,G) oif list becomes null, Join/Prune messages will not be sent toward the
source S.
5.2.3.4 Multicast Data Packet Forwarding. Processing a multicast data

packet involves the following steps:
1. Look up the route state based on the longest match of the source address and an
exact match of the destination address in the data packet. If neither S nor G find
the longest match entry, and the RP for the packets destination group address has
a corresponding (*,*,RP) entry, then the longest match does not require an exact
match on the destination group address. In summary, the longest match is
performed in the following order: (1) (S,G), (2) (*,G). If neither is matched,
then a lookup is performed on (*,*,RP) entries.
PIM SM DETAILS 103
2. If the packet arrived on the interface found in the matching entrys iif field and the
oif list is not null:
(a) Forward the packet to the oif list for that entry, excluding the subnet
containing S, and restart the entry timer if the matching entry is (S,G).
Optionally, the (S,G) entry timer may be restarted by periodic checking of the
matching packet count.
(b) If the entry is an (S,G) entry with a cleared SPT-bit, and a (*,G) or associated
(*,*,RP)alsoexistswhoseincominginterfaceisdifferent thanthatfor(S,G),set
theSPT-bitforthe(S,G)entryandtriggeran(S,G)RPT-bit prunetowardtheRP.
(c) If the source of the packet is a directly connected host and the router is the DR
on the receiving interface, check the register-suppression timer associated
with the (S,G) entry. If it is not running, then the router encapsulates the data
packet in a Register message and sends it to the RP.
This covers the common case of a packet arriving on the RPF interface to
the source or RP and being forwarded to all joined branches. It also detects
when packets arrive on the SP-tree and triggers their pruning from the
RP-tree. If it is the DR for the source, it sends data packets encapsulated in
registers to the RPs.
3. If the packet matches to an entry but did not arrive on the interface found in the
entrys iif field, check the SPT-bit of the entry. If the SPT-bit is set, drop the
packet. If the SPT-bit is cleared, then look up the (*,G), or (*,*,RP), entry for G. If
the packet arrived on the iif found in (*,G), or the corresponding (*,*,RP),
forward the packet to the oif list of the matching entry. This covers the case when
a data packet matches an (S,G) entry for which the SP-tree has not yet been
completely established upstream.
4. If the packet does not match any entry but the source of the data packet is a local,
directly connected host and the router is the DR on a multiaccess LAN and
has RP-set information, the DR uses the hash function to determine the RP
associated with the destination group G. The DR creates an (S,G) entry, with the
register-suppression timer not running, encapsulates the data packet in a Register
message, and unicasts it to the RP.
5. If the packet does not match any entry and it is not a local host or the router is not
the DR, drop the packet.
DATA TRIGGERED SWITCH TO SP-TREE. Different criteria can be applied to trigger

switching over from the RP-based shared tree to source-specific SP-trees.
One proposal is to do so based on data rate. For example, when a (*,G), or
corresponding (*,*,RP), entry is created, a data rate counter may be initiated at the
last-hop routers. The counter is incremented with every data packet received for directly
connected members of an SM group if the longest match is (*,G) or (*,*,RP). If and when
the data rate for the group exceeds a certain configured threshold (t1), the router initiates
“source-specific” data rate counters for the following data packets. Then, each counter
for a source is incremented when packets matching on (*,G), or (*,*,RP), are received
from that source. If the data rate from the particular source exceeds a configured
threshold (t2), an (S,G) entry is created and a Join/Prune message is sent toward the
source. If the RPF interface for (S,G) is not the same as that for (*,G) or (*,*,RP), then the
SPT-bit is cleared in the (S,G) entry.
Other configured rules may be enforced to cause or prevent establishment of the
(S,G) state.
5.2.3.5 Assert. asserts are used to resolve which of the parallel routers con-
nected to a multiaccess LAN is responsible for forwarding packets onto the LAN.
SENDING ASSERTS. The following assert rules are provided when a multicast packet
is received on an outgoing multiaccess interface “I” of an existing active (S,G), (*,G), or
(*,*,RP) entry.
1. Do unicast routing table lookup on source address from data packet, and send
assert on interface “I” for source address in data packet; include metric prefer-
ence of routing protocol and metric from routing table lookup.
2. If route is not found, use metric preference of 0·7fffffff and metric 0·ffffffff.
When an assert is sent for a (*,G) entry, the first bit in the metric preference
(the RPT-bit) is set to 1, indicating the data packet is routed down the RP-tree.
Asserts should be rate limited in an implementation-specific manner.
RECEIVING ASSERTS. When an assert is received, the router performs the longest
match on the source and group address in the Assert message, only active entries—that
have packet forwarding state—are matched. The router checks the first bit of the metric
preference (RPT-bit).
1. If the RPT-bit is set, the router first does a match on (*,G), or (*,*,RP), entries; if
no matching entry is found, it ignores the assert.
2. If the RPT-bit is not set in the assert, the router first does a match on (S,G) entries;
if no matching entry is found, the router matches (*,G) or (*,*,RP) entries.
Receiving Asserts on an Entrys Outgoing Interface. If the interface that received the
Assert message is in the oif list of the matched entry, then this assert is processed by this
router as follows:
1. If the asserts RPT-bit is set and the matching entry is (*,*,RP), the router creates a
(*,G) entry. If the asserts RPT-bit is cleared and the matching entry is (*,G), or
(*,*,RP), the router creates an (S,G)RPT-bit entry. Otherwise, no new entry is
created in response to the assert.
2. The router then compares the metric values received in the assert with the metric
values associated with the matched entry. The RPT-bit and metric preference (in
that order) are treated as the high-order part of an assert metric comparison. If the
value in the assert is less than the routers value (with ties broken by the IP
PIM SM DETAILS 105
address, where the higher network layer address wins), delete the interface from
the entry. When the deletion occurs for a (*,G) or (*,*,RP) entry, the interface is
also deleted from any associated (S,G)RPT-bit or (*,G) entries, respectively. The
entry timer for the affected entries is restarted.
3. If the router has won the election, the router keeps the interface in its outgoing
interface list. It acts as the forwarder for the LAN.
The winning router sends an Assert message containing its own metric to that
outgoing interface. This will cause other routers on the LAN to prune that interface from
their route entries. The winning router sets the RPT-bit in the Assert message if a (*,G) or
(S,G)RPT-bit entry was matched.
Receiving Asserts on an Entrys Incoming Interface. If the assert arrived on the incoming
interface of an existing (S,G), (*,G), or (*,*,RP) entry, the assert is processed as follows.
If the Assert message does not match the entry exactly, it is ignored; that is, the longest
match is not used in this case. If the Assert message does match exactly, then:
1. Downstream routers will select the upstream router with the smallest metric
preference and metric as their RPF neighbor. If two metrics are the same, the
highest network layer address is chosen to break the tie. This is important so that
downstream routers send subsequent joins/prunes (in SM) to the correct neigh-
bor. An assert timer is initiated when changing the RPF neighbor to the assert
winner. When the timer expires, the router resets its RPF neighbor according to
its unicast routing tables to capture network dynamics and router failures.
2. If the downstream routers have downstream members, and if the assert caused the
RPF neighbor to change, the downstream routers must trigger a Join/Prune
message to inform the upstream router that packets are to be forwarded on the
multiaccess network.
5.2.3.6 Candidate-RP-Advertisements and Bootstrap Messages.

C-RP-Advs are periodic PIM messages unicast to the BSR by those routers that are
configured as C-RPs.
Bootstrap messages are periodic PIM messages originated by the BSR within a
domain and forwarded hop by hop to distribute the current RP-set to all routers in that
domain.
The Bootstrap messages also support a simple mechanism by which the C-BSR with
the highest BSR priority and address (referred to as the preferred BSR) is elected as the
BSR for the domain. The RFC recommends that each router configured as a C-RP also be
configured as a C-BSR. Sections below entitled “Receiving C-RP-Advs and Originating
Bootstrap” and “Receiving and Forwarding Bootstrap” describe the combined function
of Bootstrap messages as the vehicle for BSR election and RP-set distribution.
SENDING C-RP-ADVS. C-RPs periodically unicast C-RP-Advs to the BSR for that
domain. The interval for sending these messages is subject to local configuration at the
C-RP.
C-RP-Advs carry Group Address and Group Mask fields. This enables the
advertising router to limit the advertisement to certain prefixes or scopes of groups.
The advertising router may enforce this scope acceptance when receiving registers or
Join/Prune messages. C-RPs should send C-RP-Adv messages with the Priority field
set to 0.
RECEIVING C-RP-ADVS AND ORIGINATING BOOTSTRAP. Upon receiving a C-RP-Adv,

a router does the following:
1. If the router is not the elected BSR, it ignores the message. Else:
2. The BSR adds the RP address to its local pool of candidate RPs, according to
the associated group prefix(es) in the C-RP-Adv message. The holdtime in
the C-RP-Adv message is also stored with the corresponding RP, to be
included later in the Bootstrap message. The BSR may apply a local policy to
limit the number of C-RPs included in the Bootstrap message. The BSR may
override the prefix indicated in a C-RP-Adv unless the Priority field is not
zero.
The BSR keeps an RP timer per RP in its local RP-set. The RP timer is initialized to
the holdtime in the RPs C-RP-Adv. When the timer expires, the corresponding RP is
removed from the RP set. The RP timer is restarted by the C-RP-Advs from the
corresponding RP.
The BSR also uses its bootstrap timer to periodically send Bootstrap messages. In
particular, when the bootstrap timer expires, the BSR originates a Bootstrap message
on each of its PIM interfaces. To reduce the Bootstrap message overhead during
partition healing, the BSR should set a random time (as a function of the priority and
address) after which the Bootstrap message is originated only if no other preferred
Bootstrap message is received. The message is sent with a TTL of 1 to the “ALL-PIM-
ROUTERS” group. In steady state, the BSR originates Bootstrap messages periodi-
cally. At startup, the bootstrap timer is initialized to [Bootstrap-Timeout], causing
the first Bootstrap message to be originated only when and if the timer expires.
For timer details, see the next section, “Receiving and Forwarding Bootstrap.” A
DR unicasts a Bootstrap message to each new PIM neighbor, that is, after the DR
receives the neighbors Hello message (it does so even if the new neighbor becomes
the DR).
The Bootstrap message is subdivided into sets of Group-Prefix,RP-Count,RP-
addresses. For each RP address, the corresponding holdtime is included in the RP-
Holdtime field. The format of the Bootstrap message allows “semantic fragmentation” if
the length of the original Bootstrap message exceeds the packet maximum boundaries
(see Section 5.2.4). However, the RFC recommends against configuring a large number
of routers as C-RPs to reduce the semantic fragmentation required.
RECEIVING AND FORWARDING BOOTSTRAP. Each router keeps a bootstrap timer

initialized to [Bootstrap-Timeout] at startup.
PIM SM DETAILS 107
When a router receives a Bootstrap message sent to the “ALL-PIM-ROUTERS”

group, it performs the following:
1. If the message was not sent by the RPF neighbor toward the BSR address
included, the message is dropped. Else:
2. If the included BSR is not preferred over and not equal to the currently active BSR:
(a) If the bootstrap timer has not yet expired or if the receiving router is a C-BSR,
then the Bootstrap message is dropped. Else:
(b) If the bootstrap timer has expired and the receiving router is not a C-BSR, the
receiving router stores the RP-set and BSR address and priority found in the
message and restarts the timer by setting it to [Bootstrap-Timeout]. The
Bootstrap message is then forwarded out of all PIM interfaces, excluding the
one over which the message arrived, to the “ALL-PIM-ROUTERS” group,
with a TTL of 1.
3. If the Bootstrap message includes a BSR address that is preferred over or
equal to the currently active BSR, the router restarts its bootstrap timer at
[Bootstrap-Timeout] seconds and stores the BSR address and RP-set informa-
tion.
The Bootstrap message is then forwarded out of all PIM interfaces, excluding
the one over which the message arrived, to the “ALL-PIM- ROUTERS” group,
with a TTL of 1.
4. If the receiving router has no current RP-set information and the bootstrap was
unicast to it from a directly connected neighbor, the router stores the information
as its new RP-set. This covers the startup condition when a newly booted router
obtains the RP-set and BSR address from its DR.
When a router receives a new RP-set, it checks if each of the RPs referred to by the
existing state [i.e., by (*,G), (*,*,RP), or (S,G)RPT-bit entries] is in the new RP-set. If an
RP is not in the new RP-set, that RP is considered unreachable and the hash algorithm
(see below) is reperformed for each group with locally active state that previously hashed
to that RP. This will cause those groups to be distributed among the remaining RPs. When
the new RP-set contains a new RP, the value of the new RP is calculated for each group
covered by that C-RPs group prefix. Any group for which the new RPs value is greater
than the previously active RPs value is switched over to the new RP.
5.2.3.7 Hash Function. The hash function is used by all routers within a
domain to map a group to one of the C-RPs from the RP-set. For a particular group
G, the hash function uses only those C-RPs whose group prefix covers G. The algorithm
takes as input the group address and the addresses of the candidate RPs and gives as
output one RP address to be used.
The protocol requires that all routers hash to the same RP within a domain (except
for transients). The following hash function must be used in each router:
1. For RP addresses in the RP-set whose group prefix covers G, select the RP with
the highest priority (i.e., the lowest “priority” value), and compute a value
Value(G,M,C(i)) ¼ (1103515245 * ((1103515245 * (G&M) þ 12345) XOR C

(i)) þ 12345) mod 231 where C(i) is the RP address and M is a hash mask included
in Bootstrap messages. The hash mask allows a small number of consecutive
groups (e.g., 4) to always hash to the same RP. For instance, hierarchically
encoded data can be sent on consecutive group addresses to get the same delay
and fate-sharing characteristics.
For address families other than IPv4, a 32-bit digest to be used as C(i) must first
be derived from the actual RP address. Such a digest method must be used
consistently throughout the PIM domain. For IPv6 addresses, the RFC recom-
mends using the equivalent IPv4 address for an IPv4-compatible address and the
CRC-32 checksum of all other IPv6 addresses.
2. From the RPs with the highest priority (i.e., the lowest “priority” value), the
candidate with the highest resulting value is then chosen as the RP for that group,
and its identity and hash value are stored with the entry created.
Ties between RPs having the same hash value and priority are broken in advantage of
the highest address.
The hash function algorithm is invoked by a DR upon reception of a packet or IGMP
membership indication for a group for which the DR has no entry. It is invoked by any
router that has a (*,*,RP) state when a packet is received for which there is no
corresponding (S,G) or (*,G) entry. Furthermore, the hash function is invoked by all
routers upon receiving a (*,G) or (*,*,RP) Join/Prune message.
5.2.3.8 Processing Timer Events. This section enumerates all timers that have
been discussed or implied. Since some critical timer events are not associated with the
receipt or sending of messages, they are not fully covered by earlier sections.
Timers are implemented in an implementation-specific manner. For example, a
timer may count up or down or may simply expire at a specific time. Setting a timer to a
value T means that it will expire after T seconds.
TIMERS RELATED TO TREE MAINTENANCE. Each (S,G), (*,G), and (*,*,RP) route
entry has multiple timers associated with it: one for each interface in the outgoing interface
list, one for the multicast routing entry itself, and one optional join/prune-suppression
timer. Each (S,G) and (*,G) entry also has an assert timer and a random-delay-join
timer for use with asserts. In addition, DRs have a register-suppression timer for each
(S,G) entry and every router has a single join/prune timer. (A router may optionally keep
separate join/prune timers for different interfaces or route entries if different join/prune
periods are desired.)
. [Join/Prune-Timer]: This timer is used for periodically sending aggregate Join/

Prune messages. To avoid synchronization among routers booting simultaneously, it
is initially set to a random value between 1 and [Join/Prune-Period]. When it expires,
the timer is immediately restarted to [Join/Prune-Period]. A Join/Prune message is
then sent out to each interface. This timer should not be restarted by other events.
PIM SM DETAILS 109
. [Join/Prune-Suppression-Timer (kept per route entry)]: A route entrys (op-

tional) join/prune-suppression timer may be used to suppress duplicate joins
from multiple downstream routers on the same LAN. When a Join message is
received from a neighbor on the entrys incoming interface in which the
included holdtime is higher than the routers own [Join/Prune-Holdtime] (with
ties broken by a higher network layer address), the timer is set to [Join/
Prune-Suppression-Timeout], with some random jitter introduced to avoid
synchronization of triggered Join/Prune messages on expiration. (The random
timeout value must be <1.5 * [Join/Prune-Period] to prevent losing data after
two dropped join/prunes.) The timer is restarted every time a subsequent Join/
Prune message (with higher holdtime/IP address) for the entry is received
on its incoming interface. While the timer is running, Join/Prune messages
for the entry are not sent. This timer is idle (not running) for point-to-point
links.
. [Oif-Timer (kept per oif for each route entry)]: A timer for each oif of a route
entry is used to time out that oif. Because some of the outgoing interfaces in an
(S,G) entry are copied from the (*,G) outgoing interface list, they may not have
explicit (S,G) Join messages from some of the downstream routers [i.e., where
members are joining to the (*,G) tree only]. Thus, when an oif timer is
restarted in a (*,G) entry, the oif timer is restarted for that interface in each
existing (S,G) entry whose oif list contains that interface. The same rule
applies to (*,G) and (S,G) entries when restarting an oif timer on a (*,*,RP)
entry.
The following table shows its usage when first adding the oif to the entrys oif list,
when it should be restarted (unless it is already higher), and when it should be decreased
(unless it is already lower).
Set to When Applies to
included adding oif (S,G) (*,G)
Holdtime off Join/Prune (*,*,RP)
Increased (only) When Applies to
to included received (S,G) (*,G)
Holdtime Join/Prune (*,*,RP)
(*,*,RP) (*,*,RP) oif-timer (S,G) (*,G)
oif-timer value restarted
(*,G) oif-timer (*,G) oif-timer (S,G)
value restarted
When the timer expires, the oif is removed from the oif list if there are no directly
connected members. When deleted, the oif is also removed in any associated (S,G) or
(*,G) entries.
. [Entry-Timer (kept per route entry)]: A timer for each route entry is used to
time out that entry. The following table summarizes its usage when first adding
the oif to the entrys oiflist and when it should be restarted (unless it is already
higher).
Set to When created Applies to (S,G)

[Data-Timeout] off data packet (S,G) (*,G) (*,*,RP)
included created off
Holdtime Join/Prune
Increased When receiving Applies to (S,G)no
(only) to data packets RPT-bit (S,G)RPT-bit
[Data-Timeout] any oif-timer (*,G) (*,*,RP)
oif-timer value restarted
[Assert-Timeout] assert (S,G)RPT-bit (*,G)
received w/null oif
When the timer expires, the route entry is deleted; if the entry is a (*,G) or (*,*,RP)
entry, all associated (S,G)RPT-bit entries are also deleted.
. [Register-Suppression-Timer (kept per (S,G) route entry)]: An (S,G) route

entrys register-suppression timer is used to suppress registers when the RP is
receiving data packets natively. When a Register-Stop message for the entry
is received from the RP, the timer is set to a random value in the range
0.5 · [Register-Suppression-Timeout] to 1.5 · [Register-Suppression-Timeout].
While the timer is running, registers for that entry will be suppressed. If null registers
are used, a null register is sent [Probe-Time] seconds before the timer expires.
. [Assert-Timer (per (S,G) or (*,G) route entry)]: The assert timer for an (S,G) or (*,
G) route entry is used for timing out asserts received. When an assert is received
and the RPF neighbor is changed to the assert winner, the assert timer is set to
[Assert-Timeout] and is restarted to this value every time a subsequent assert for
the entry is received on its incoming interface. When the timer expires, the router
resets its RPF neighbor according to its unicast routing table.
. [Random-Delay-Join-Timer (per (S,G) or (*,G) route entry)]: The random-
delay-join timer for an (S,G) or (*,G) route entry is used to prevent synchroniza-
tion among downstream routers on a LAN when their RPF neighbor changes.
When the RPF neighbor changes, this timer is set to a random value between 0 and
[Random-Delay-Join-Timeout] seconds. When the timer expires, a triggered Join/
Prune message is sent for the entry unless its join/prune-suppression timer is
running.
TIMERS RELATED TO NEIGHBOR DISCOVERY
. [Hello-Timer]: This timer is used to periodically send Hello messages. To avoid

synchronization among routers booting simultaneously, it is initially set to a
random value between 1 and [Hello-Period]. When it expires, the timer is
PIM SM DETAILS 111
immediately restarted to [Hello-Period]. A Hello message is then sent out to each

interface. This timer should not be restarted by other events.
. [Neighbor-Timer (kept per neighbor)]: A neighbor timer for each neighbor is used
to time out the neighbor state. When a hello message is received from a new
neighbor, the timer is initially set to the holdtime included in the Hello message
(which is equal to the neighbors value of [Hello-Holdtime]). Every time a
subsequent hello is received from that neighbor, the timer is restarted to the
holdtime in the hello. When the timer expires, the neighbor state is removed.
TIMERS RELATED TO RP INFORMATION
. [C-RP-Adv-Timer (C-RPs only)]: Routers configured as candidate RPs use this

timer to periodically send C-RP-Adv messages. To avoid synchronization among
routers booting simultaneously, the timer is initially set to a random value between
1 and [C-RP-Adv-Period]. When it expires, the timer is immediately restarted to
[C-RP-Adv-Period]. A C-RP-Adv message is then sent to the elected BSR. This
timer should not be restarted by other events.
. [RP-Timer (BSR only, kept per RP in RP-Set)]: The BSR uses a timer per RP in the
RP-set to monitor liveness. When a C-RP is added to the RP-set, its timer is set to
the holdtime included in the C-RP-Adv message from that C-RP (which is equal to
the C-RPs value of [RP-Holdtime]). Every time a subsequent C-RP-Adv is
received from that RP, its timer is restarted to the holdtime in the C-RP-Adv. When
the timer expires, the RP is removed from the RP-set included in Bootstrap
messages.
. [Bootstrap-Timer]: This timer is used by the BSR to periodically originate
Bootstrap messages and by other routers to time out the BSR (see Section
3.6.3). This timer is initially set to [Bootstrap-Timeout]. A C-BSR restarts this
timer to [Bootstrap-Timeout] upon receiving a Bootstrap message from a
preferred router and originates a Bootstrap message and restarts the timer to
[Bootstrap-Period] when it expires. Routers not configured as C-BSRs restart
this timer to [Bootstrap-Timeout] upon receiving a Bootstrap message from
the elected or a more preferred BSR and ignore Bootstrap messages from
nonpreferred C-BSRs while it is running.
DEFAULT TIMER VALUES. Most of the default timeout values for state information are
3.5 times the refresh period. For example, hellos refresh the Neighbor state and the
default hello timer period is 30 s, so a default neighbor timer duration of 105 s is included
in the holdtime field of the hellos. In order to improve convergence, however, the default
timeout value for information related to RP liveness and Bootstrap messages is 2.5 times
the refresh period.
In this version of the spec, the RFC suggests particular numerical timer settings; it is
possible to specify a mechanism for timer values to be scaled based upon observed
network parameters.
. [Join/Prune-Period]: This is the interval between sending Join/Prune messages.

Default: 60 s. This value may be set to take into account such things as the
configured bandwidth and expected average number of multicast route entries
for the attached network or link (e.g., the period would be longer for lower speed
links or for routers in the center of the network that expect to have a larger
number of entries). In addition, a router could modify this value (and corre-
sponding [Join/Prune-Holdtime] value) if the number of route entries changes
significantly (e.g., by an order of magnitude). For example, given a default
minimum [Join/Prune-Period] value, if the number of route entries with a
particular iif increases from N to N*100, the router could increase its [Join/
Prune-Period] (and [Join/Prune-Holdtime]) for that interface by a factor of 10;
and if/when the number of entries decreases back to N, the [Join/Prune-Period]
(and [Join/Prune-Holdtime]) could be decreased to its previous value. If the
[Join/Prune-Period] is modified, these changes should be made relatively
infrequently and the router should continue to refresh at its previous [Join/
Prune-Period] for at least [Join/Prune-Holdtime] in order to allow the upstream
router to adapt.
. [Join-Prune Holdtime]: This is the holdtime specified in Join/Prune messages, and
is used to time out oifs. This should be set to 3.5 * [Join/Prune-Period]. Default:
210 s.
. [Join/Prune-Suppression-Timeout]: This is the mean interval between receiving a
join/prune with a higher holdtime (with ties broken by higher network layer
address) and allowing duplicate join/prunes to be sent again. This should be set to
approximately 1.25 * [Join/Prune-Period]. Default: 75 s.
. [Data-Timeout]: This is the time after which the (S,G) state for a silent source will
be deleted. Default: 210 s.
. [Register-Suppression-Timeout]: This is the mean interval between receiving
a register-stop and allowing registers to be sent again. A lower value means
more frequent register bursts at RP, while a higher value means longer join
latency for new receivers. Default: 60 s. (Note that if null registers are
sent [Probe-Time] seconds before the timeout, register bursts are prevented,
and [Register-Suppression-Timeout] may be lowered to decrease join latency.)
. [Probe-Time]: When null registers are used, this is the time between sending a null
register and the register-suppression timer expiring unless it is restarted
by receiving a register-stop. Thus, a null register would be sent when the
register-suppression timer reaches this value. Default: 5 s.
. [Assert-Timeout]: This is the interval between the last time an assert is received
and the time at which the assert is timed out. Default: 180 s.
. [Random-Delay-Join-Timeout]: This is the maximum interval between the time
when the RPF neighbor changes and the time at which a triggered Join/Prune
message is sent. Default: 4.5 s.
. [Hello-Period]: This is the interval between sending Hello messages. Default:
30 s.
PIM SM DETAILS 113
. [Hello-Holdtime]: This is the holdtime specified in Hello messages, after which

neighbors will time out their neighbor entries for the router. This should be set to
3.5 * [Hello-Period]. Default: 105 s.
. [C-RP-Adv-Period]: For C-RPs, this is the interval between sending C-RP-Adv
messages. Default: 60 s.
. [RP-Holdtime]: ForC-RPs,thisistheholdtimespecifiedin C-RP-Advmessagesand
is used by the BSR to time out RPs. This should be set to 2.5 * [C-RP-Adv-Period].
Default: 150 s.
. [Bootstrap-Period]: At the elected BSR, this is the interval between originating
Bootstrap messages and should be equal to 60 s.
. [Bootstrap-Timeout]: This is the time after which the elected BSR will be assumed
unreachable when Bootstrap messages are not received from it. This should be set
to 2 * [Bootstrap-Period] þ 10. Default: 130 s.
5.2.3.9 Summary of Flags Used. Following is a summary of all the flags used
in this scheme.
Bit Used in Definition

Border Register Register for external sources is coming
from PIM multicast border router
Null Register Register sent as probe of RP, the
encapsulated IP data packet should not
be forwarded
RPT Route entry Entry represents state on the RP-tree
RPT Join/prune Join is associated with the shared tree
and therefore the Join/Prune message
is propagated along the RP-tree (source
encoded is an RP address)
RPT Assert The data packet was routed down the
shared tree; thus, the path indicated
corresponds to the RP-tree
SPT (S,G) entry Packets have arrived on the iif toward
S, and the iif is different from the
(*,G) iif
WC Join The receiver expects to receive
packets from all sources
via this (shared tree) path. Thus,
the join/prune applies
to a (*,G) entry
WC Route entry Wildcard entry; if there is no more
specific match
for a particular source, packets will
be forwarded according to this entry
Figure 5.7. Packet Format
5.2.4 Packet Formats

This section describes the details of the packet formats for PIM control messages. All PIM
control messages have protocol number 103. Basically, PIM messages are either unicast
(e.g., Register and Register-Stop) or multicast hop-by-hop to “ALL-PIM-ROUTERS”
group “224.0.0.13” (e.g., Join/Prune, Assert). See Figure 5.7 (which is similar to
Figure 5.6).
PIM Ver: PIM Version number is 2.
Type: Types for specific PIM messages. PIM types are as follows:
0 ¼ Hello
1 ¼ Register
2 ¼ Register-Stop
3 ¼ Join/Prune
4 ¼ Bootstrap
5 ¼ Assert
6 ¼ Graft (used in PIM DM only)
7 ¼ Graft-Ack (used in PIM DM only)
8 ¼ Candidate-RP-Advertisement
Reserved. Set to zero; ignored upon receipt.

Checksum. The checksum is the 16-bit ones complement of the ones complement
sum of the entire PIM message (excluding the data portion in the Register message). For
computing the checksum, the Checksum field is zeroed.
5.2.4.1 Encoded Source and Group Address Formats
1. Encoded-Unicast Address: Takes the format shown in Figure 5.8.
Addr Family Encoding Type Unicast Address
Figure 5.8. Encoded-Unicast Address

PIM SM DETAILS 115
Addr Family: The address family of the Unicast Address field of this address.
Here is the address family numbers assigned by IANA:
Number Description
0 Reserved
1 IP (IP Version 4)
2 IP6 (IP Version 6)
3 NSAP
4 HDLC (8-bit multidrop)
5 BBN 1822
6 802 (includes all 802 media plus Ethernet “canonical format”)
7 E.163
8 E.164 (SMDS, frame relay, ATM)
9 F.69 (Telex)
10 X.121 (X.25, frame relay)
11 IPX
12 Appletalk
13 Decnet IV
14 Banyan Vines
15 E.164 with NSAP format subaddress
Encoding Type: The type of encoding used within a specific address family. The
value “0” is reserved for this field and represents the native encoding of the address
family.
Unicast Address: The unicast address as represented by the given address family and
encoding type.
2. Encoded-Group Address: Takes the format of Figure 5.9.
Addr Family: Described above.

Encoding Type: Described above.
Reserved: Transmitted as zero. Ignored upon receipt.
Mask Length: The mask length is 8 bits. The value is the number of contiguous bits
left justified used as a mask, which describes the address. It is less than or equal to the
address length in bits for the given address family and encoding type. If the message is
sent for a single group, then the mask length must equal the address length in bits for the
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Addr Family | Encoding Type | Reserved | Mask Len |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Group multicast Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 5.9. Encoded-Group Address
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Addr Family | Encoding Type | Rsrvd |S|W|R| Mask Len |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Source Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 5.10. Encoded-Source Address
given address family and encoding type (for example, 32 for IPv4 native encoding and
128 for IPv6 native encoding).
The group multicast address contains the group address.
3. Encoded-Source Address: Takes the format of Figure 5.10.
Addr Family: Described above.

Encoding Type: Described above.
Reserved: Transmitted as zero, ignored on receipt.
S, W, R: see Section 5.2.4.5 for details.
Mask Length: Mask length is 8 bits. The value is the number of contiguous bits left
justified used as a mask that describes the address. The mask length must be less than or
equal to the address length in bits for the given address family and encoding type. If the
message is sent for a single group, then the mask length must equal the address length in
bits for the given address family and encoding type. In Version 2 of PIM, it is strongly
recommended that this field be set to 32 for IPv4 native encoding.
Source Address: The source address.
5.2.4.2 Hello Message. This message is sent periodically by routers on all

interfaces. See Figure 5.11.
PIM Version, Type, Reserved, Checksum: Described above.
OptionType: The type of the option given in the following OptionValue field.
OptionLength: The length of the OptionValue field in bytes.
OptionValue: A variable-length field carrying the value of the option.
The Option fields may contain the following values:
. OptionType ¼ 1; OptionLength ¼ 2; OptionValue ¼ Holdtime; where Holdtime is

the amount of time a receiver must keep the neighbor reachable in seconds. If the
holdtime is set to “0xFFFF,” the receiver of this message never times out the
neighbor. This may be used with ISDN lines to avoid keeping the link up with
periodic Hello messages. Furthermore, if the holdtime is set to “0,” the informa-
tion is timed out immediately.
. OptionType 2–16: Reserved
. The rest of the option types are defined in other documents.
In general, options may be ignored.

PIM SM DETAILS 117
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
|PIM Ver| Type | Reserved | Checksum |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| OptionType | OptionLength |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| OptionValue |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+++
| . |
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| OptionType | OptionLength |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| OptionValue |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+++
Figure 5.11. Hello Message
5.2.4.3 Register Message. A Register message is sent by the DR or a PMBR to

the RP when a multicast packet needs to be transmitted on the RP-tree. The source
address is set to the address of the DR, the destination address to the RPs address. See
Figure 5.12.
PIM Version, Type, reserved, and Checksum: Described above. Note that the
checksum for registers is done only on the PIM header, excluding the data packet portion.
B — The Border Bit: If the router is a DR for a source that it is directly connected to,
it sets the B bit to 0. If the router is a PMBR for a source in a directly connected cloud, it
sets the B bit to 1.
N — The Null-Register Bit: Set to 1 by a DR that is probing the RP before expiring its
local register-suppression timer. Set to 0 otherwise.
Multicast Data Packet: The original packet sent by the source.
For (S,G) null registers, the multicast data packet portion contains only a dummy
header with S as the source address, G as the destination address, and a data length of zero.
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
|B|N| Reserved |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| |
Multicast data packet
| |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 5.12. Register Message
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Group Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Unicast-Source Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 5.13. Register-Stop Message
5.2.4.4 Register-Stop Message. A register-stop is unicast from the RP to the

sender of the Register message. The source address is the address to which the register
was addressed. The destination address is the source address of the register message.
See Figure 5.13.
PIM Version, Type, Reserved, and Checksum: Described above.
Encoded-Group Address: Format described above. Note that for register-stops the
Mask Length field contains full address length * 8 (e.g., 32 for IPv4 native encoding) if
the message is sent for a single group.
Encoded-Unicast-Source Address: Host address of source from multicast data
packet in register. The format for this address is given in the encoded-unicast address
in Section 4.1. A special wildcard value (0s) can be used to indicate any source.
5.2.4.5 Join/Prune Message. A Join/Prune message is sent by routers toward

upstream sources and RPs. Joins are sent to build shared trees (RP-trees) or source trees
(SPT). Prunes are sent to prune source trees when members leave groups as well as
sources that do not use the shared tree. See Figure 5.14.
Encoded-Unicast Upstream Neighbor Address: The address of the RPF or upstream
neighbor. The format for this address is given in the encoded-unicast address in
Section 5.2.4.1.
“Reserved” Transmitted as Zero: Ignored on receipt.
Holdtime: The amount of time a receiver must keep the join/prune state alive in
seconds. If the holdtime is set to 0xffff, the receiver of this message never times out the
oif. This may be used with ISDN lines to avoid keeping the link up with periodic Join/
Prune messages. Furthermore, if the holdtime is set to 0, the information is timed out
immediately.
Number of Groups: The number of multicast group sets contained in the
message.
Encoded-Multicast Group Address: For format description see Section 5.2.4.1. A
wildcard group in the (*,*,RP) join is represented by a 224.0.0.0 in the Group Address
field and 4 in the Mask Length field. A (*,*,RP) join also has the WC-bit and the RPT-bit
set.
PIM SM DETAILS 119
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Unicast-Upstream Neighbor Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Reserved | Num groups | Holdtime |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Multicast Group Address-1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Number of Joined Sources | Number of Pruned Sources |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Joined Source Address-1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Joined Source Address-n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Pruned Source Address-1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Pruned Source Address-n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Multicast Group Address-n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Number of Joined Sources | Number of Pruned Sources |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Joined Source Address-1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Joined Source Address-n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Pruned Source Address-1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Pruned Source Address-n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 5.14. Join/Prune Message

Number of Joined Sources: Number of join source addresses listed for a given
group.
Join Source Address 1 . . . n: This list contains the sources that the sending router will
forward multicast datagrams for if received on the interface this message is sent on.
See Section 5.2.4.1. The field explanation for the encoded-source address format
follows:
Reserved: Described above.
S—The Sparse bit is a 1-bit value, set to 1 for PIM SM. It is used for PIMv1
compatibility.
W—The WC-bit is a 1 bit value. If 1, the join or prune applies to the (*,G) or
(*,*,RP) entry. If 0, the join or prune applies to the (S,G) entry where S is the source
address. Joins and prunes sent toward the RP must have this bit set.
R—The RPT-bit is a 1-bit value. If 1, the information about (S,G) is sent toward the
RP. If 0, the information must be sent toward S, where S is the source address.
Mask Length, Source Address: Described above.
Represented in the form of
<WC-bit><RPT-bit><Mask length><Source address>:
A source address could be a host IPv4 native encoding address:

<0><0><32><192.1.1.17>
A source address could be the RPs IP address:

<1><1><32><131.108.13.111>
A source address could be a subnet address to prune from the RP-tree:

<0><1><28><192.1.1.16>
A source address could be a general aggregate:

<0><0><16><192.1.0.0>
Number of Pruned Sources: Number of prune source addresses listed for a group.
Prune Source Address 1 . . . n: This list contains the sources that the sending
router does not want to forward multicast datagrams for when received on the interface
this message is sent on. If the Join/Prune message boundary exceeds the maximum
packet size, then the join and prune lists for the same group must be included in the same
packet.
5.2.4.6 Bootstrap Message. The Bootstrap messages are multicast to the

“ALL-PIM-ROUTERS” group, out to all interfaces having PIM neighbors (excluding
the one over which the message was received). Bootstrap messages are sent with TTL
value of 1. Bootstrap messages originate at the BSR and are forwarded by intermediate
routers. If the original message exceeds the maximum packet size boundaries, the
Bootstrap message is divided up into “semantic fragments.”
The semantics of a single “fragment” is given in Figure 5.15.
PIM SM DETAILS 121
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Fragment Tag | Hash Mask len | BSR-priority |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Unicast-BSR-Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Group Address-1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| RP-Count-1 | Frag RP-Cnt-1 | Reserved |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Unicast-RP-Address-1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| RP1-Holdtime | RP1-Priority | Reserved |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Unicast-RP-Address-m |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| RPm-Holdtime | RPm-Priority | Reserved |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Group Address-n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| RP-Count-n | Frag RP-Cnt-n | Reserved |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Unicast-RP-Address-m |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| RPm-Holdtime | RPm-Priority | Reserved |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 5.15. Bootstrap Message

Fragment Tag: A randomly generated number, acts to distinguish the fragments

belonging to different Bootstrap messages; fragments belonging to the same Bootstrap
message carry the same fragment tag.
Hash Mask Length: The length (in bits) of the mask to use in the hash function. For
IPv4 the RFC recommends a value of 30. For IPv6 the RFC recommends a value of 126.
BSR-Priority: Contains the BSR priority value of the included BSR. This field is
considered as a high-order byte when comparing BSR addresses.
Encoded-Unicast-BSR Address: The address of the bootstrap router for the domain.
The format for this address is given in the encoded-unicast address in Section 5.2.4.1.
“Encoded-Group Address 1 . . . n”: The group prefix (address and mask) with which
the C-RPs are associated. Format previously described.
RP-Count 1 . . . n: The number of C-RP addresses included in the whole Bootstrap
message for the corresponding group prefix. A router does not replace its old RP-set for a
given group prefix until/unless it receives RP-count addresses for that prefix; the
addresses could be carried over several fragments. If only part of the RP-set for a given
group prefix was received, the router discards it, without updating that specific group
prefixs RP-set.
Frag RP-Cnt 1 . . . m: The number of C-RP addresses included in this fragment of
the Bootstrap message for the corresponding group prefix. The Frag RP-Cnt field
facilitates parsing of the RP-set for a given group prefix when carried over more than
one fragment.
Encoded-Unicast-RPAddress 1 . . . m: The address of the C-RPs for the correspond-
ing group prefix. The format for this address is given in the encoded-unicast address in
Section 4.1.
RP1 . . . m-Holdtime: The holdtime for the corresponding RP. This field is copied
from the Holdtime field of the associated RP stored at the BSR.
RP1 . . . m-Priority: The “priority” of the corresponding RP and encoded-group
address. This field is copied from the Priority field stored at the BSR when receiving a
C-RP-Adv. The highest priority is 0 (i.e., the lower the value of the Priority field, the
higher). Note that the priority is per RP per encoded-group address.
5.2.4.7 Assert Message. The Assert message is sent when a multicast data
packet is received on an outgoing interface corresponding to the (S,G) or (*,G) associated
with the source. See Figure 5.16.
Encoded-Group Address: The group address to which the data packet was
addressed and which triggered the assert. Format previously described.
Encoded-Unicast-Source: Address source address from multicast datagram that
triggered the assert packet to be sent. The format for this address is given in the
encoded-unicast address in Section 4.1.
“R”: RPT-bit is a 1-bit value. If the multicast datagram that triggered the assert
packet is routed down the RP-tree, then the RPT-bit is 1; if the multicast datagram is
routed down the SPT, it is 0.
Metric Preference: Preference value assigned to the unicast routing protocol that
provided the route to the host address.
PIM SM DETAILS 123
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Group Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Unicast-Source Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
|R| Metric Preference |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Metric |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 5.16. Assert Message
Metric: The unicast routing table metric. The metric is in units applicable to the
unicast routing protocol used.
5.2.4.8 Graft Message. Used in dense mode.
5.2.4.9 Graft-Ack Message. Used in dense mode.
CANDIDATE-RP-ADVERTISEMENT. C-RP-Advs are periodically unicast from the

C-RPs to the BSR. See Figure 5.17.
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Prefix-Cnt | Priority | Holdtime |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Unicast-RP-Address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| . |
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Encoded-Group Address-n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 5.17. Candidate-RP-Advertisement
Prefix-Cnt: The number of encoded group addresses included in the message,

indicating the group prefixes for which the C-RP is advertising. A Prefix-Cnt of 0
implies a prefix of 224.0.0.0 with mask length of 4, all multicast groups. If the C-RP is
not configured with group prefix information, the C-RP puts a default value of 0 in this
field.
Priority: The “priority” of the included RP for the corresponding encoded-group
address (if any). highest priority is 0 (i.e., the lower the value of the Priority field, the
higher the priority). This field is stored at the BSR upon receipt along with the RP address
and corresponding encoded-group address.
Holdtime: The amount of time the advertisement is valid. This field allows
advertisements to be aged out.
Encoded-Unicast-RP address: The address of the interface to advertise as a C-RP.
The format for this address is given in the encoded-unicast address in Section 5.2.4.1.
IP Encoded-Group Address 1. . .n: The group prefixes for which the C-RP is
advertising. Format previously described.
REFERENCES
[CIS200701] Cisco Systems, Internet Protocol (IP) Multicast Technology Overview, Cisco
Systems, Inc., San Jose, CA.
[RFC2117] RFC 2117, Protocol Independent Multicast-Sparse Mode (PIM-SM): Protocol
Specification, D. Farinacci, A. Helmy, et al., June 1997 (obsoleted by RFC 2362).
September 1997.
[RFC2362] RFC 2362, Protocol Independent Multicast-Sparse Mode (PIM-SM): Protocol
6
MULTICAST
ROUTING—SPARSE-MODE
PROTOCOLS: CORE-BASED
TREES
This chapter looks at multicast approaches that make use of Core-Based Trees (CBTs).
The CBT protocol, defined in RFC 2201 and RFC 2189, is designed to build and maintain
a shared multicast distribution tree that spans only networks and links that connect to
active receivers. CBT is the earliest center-based tree protocol and it is the simplest. CBT
was developed to address the issue of scalability: a shared tree architecture offers an
improvement in scalability over source tree architectures by a factor of the number of
active sources. Source trees scale O(S · G) because a distinct delivery tree is built per
active source. Shared trees, on the contrary, eliminate the source (S) scaling factor; all
sources use the same shared tree, and, therefore, shared trees scale O(G). Core-based
forwarding trees have a single node, for example, a router, known as the core of the tree,
from which branches emanate; these branches are made up of other routers, known as
noncore routers, that form a shortest path between a member hosts directly attached
router and the core. It should be noted that CBTs commercial deployment has been
rather limited to this juncture. Three versions have evolved. But they are not backward
compatible.1
1
Version 2 of the CBT protocol specification differs significantly from the previous version. CBT Version 2 is
not, and was not, intended to be backwards compatible with Version 1. The same is true for Version 3.

125
126 MULTICAST ROUTING—SPARSE-MODE PROTOCOLS: CORE-BASED TREES
6.1 MOTIVATION
The Core-Based Tree Version 2 (CBTv2) network layer multicast routing protocol
builds a shared multicast distribution tree per group. CBT is intended to support inter-
and intradomain multicast routing. CBT may use a separate multicast routing table, or
it may use that of underlying unicast routing, to establish paths between senders and
receivers [RFC2189]. A CBT architecture is advantageous compared with the sour-
ce-based architecture for the following reasons [BAL199301]:
Scalability This is the fundamental premise for CBT. A core-based architecture

allows the operator to significantly improve the overall scaling factor of S · G that
one has in the source-based tree architecture to just G. This is the result of having
just one multicast tree per group as opposed to one tree per (source, group) pair.
Each router on the tree needs only store incident link information per group (i.e.,
per tree) as opposed to incident link information per (source, group) pair. This
represents the minimum possible any router needs to store with respect to its
membership of a particular group; routers not on the tree require no knowledge of
the tree. CBT scales better than flood-and-prune protocols, particularly for sparse
groups where only a small proportion of subnetworks have members because only
routers on the distribution tree for a group keep forwarding a state for that group,
and no router needs to keep information about any source [UCL200701]. Because
CBT does not require a source-specific state, it is suited to applications that have
many senders. Table 6.1, included in RFC 2189, compares for illustrative
purposes the amount of state required by CBT and DVMRP for different group
sizes with different numbers of active sources.
Tree creation The formation of CBTs is receiver based; this means that no router
resides on a tree for a particular group unless (i) that router itself is a member
of that group or (ii) that router is on the path between a potential member and
the tree, in which case that router must become part of the tree. Only one tree is
ever created per group. This is of significant benefit to all routers on the
T A B L E 6.1. Amount of State Required by CBT and DVMRP

No. of 10 100 1000
groups
Group size 20 40 60
(# members)
No. of srcs 10% 50% 100% 10% 50% 100% 10% 50% 100%
per group
No. of DVMRP 20K 100K 200K 4000K 2K 4K 6K 30K 60K
router entries
No. of CBT 10 100 1000
router entries
BASIC OPERATION 127
shortest path between a nonreceiver sender and the multicast tree since they
incur no tree-building overhead.
Unicast routing separation CBT formation and multicast packet flow are de-
coupled from, but take full advantage of, underlying unicast routing, irrespec-
tive of which underlying unicast algorithm is being used. All of the multicast
tree information can be derived solely from a routers existing unicast forward-
ing tables. These factors result in the CBT architecture being as robust as the
underlying unicast routing algorithm (note that with respect to IP networks CBT
requires no partition of the unicast address space). In this architecture there are
two distinct routing phases:
. Unicast routing is used to route multicast packets to a multicast tree, allowing

multicast groups and multicast packets to remain “invisible” to routers not on
the tree. This is achieved by using the unicast address of the center (core) of the
multicast spanning tree in the destination field of multicast packets originating
off-tree.
. Once on the corresponding tree, multicast packets span the tree based on the
packets group identifier, or group-id (similar to a Class D IP address).
However, there are also weaknesses with one core-based multicast tree per group,
including the following [BAL199301]:
. Core placement and shortest path trees. In practical implementations a manual
“best guess” placement for the core router is used. However, CBTs may not
provide the most optimal paths between members of a group; this is especially
true for small, localized groups that have a nonlocal core. A dynamic core
placement mechanism may have to be used. Without good core placement,
CBTs can be inefficient; consequently, CBT has not been used as a global
multicast routing protocol [UCL200701].
. The core as a point of failure. The most obvious point of vulnerability of a CBT
is its core, whose failure can result in a tree becoming partitioned. Having
multiple cores associated with each tree solves this problem (though at the cost
of increased complexity).
Also, CBT never properly solved the problem of how to map a group address to the
address of a core. In addition, good core placement is a hard problem.
6.2 BASIC OPERATION
In order to support multicast distribution, CBT builds a bidirectional shared tree. In a

bidirectional shared tree the datagrams are able to flow both up the tree toward the core
and down the tree away from the core, depending on the location of the source; the tree
is shared by all sources to the group (note that SM PIM builds unidirectional shared
Core router
Join Join
Router 3
Join Join
Router 4
Receiver C
Router 2 Router 1
Receiver A
Source Host
Core router
Router 3
Router 4
Receiver C
Router 2 Router 1
Receiver A
Source Host
Data flow
Bidirectional shared tree
Figure 6.1. Creation of CBT Bidirectional Shared Tree
trees). When a receiver joins a multicast group, a multicast tree is built as follows (also
see Figure 6.1): the receivers local CBT router uses the multicast address to obtain the
address of the core router for the group from its table. The local CBT router then sends a
Join message for the group toward the core router. At each router on the way to the core
router, forwarding state information is created for the group; additionally, an acknowl-
edgment is sent back to the previous router.
After the bidirectional tree is built, if a sender (that happens to be a member of the
group) needs to transmit multicast data to the group, the sources local router (router 1 in
the example of Figure 6.1) forwards the packets to any of its neighbors that are on the
multicast tree (router 3 in Figure 6.1). Each router that receives a packet forwards it out of
all its interfaces that are on the tree except the one the packet came from (router 3 sends
packets to router 2 and to the core router in Figure 6.1). It is conceivable that a senders
local router is not on the tree (recall that IP multicast does not require senders to a group to
be members of the group). In this case, the datagram is forwarded to the next hop toward
the core. At some point the datagram will either reach a router that is on the tree or reach
the core; at that juncture the datagram is distributed along the multicast tree.
CBT COMPONENTS AND FUNCTIONS 129
6.3 CBT COMPONENTS AND FUNCTIONS2
This section looks at CBT components and functions, as described in RFC 2201.
The CBT protocol is designed to build and maintain a shared multicast distribution
tree that spans only those networks and links leading to the interested receivers. To
achieve this, a host first expresses its interest in joining a group by multicasting an IGMP
Host Membership Report (HMR) across its attached link. On receiving this report, a local
CBT aware router invokes the tree joining process (unless it has already) by generating a
JOIN_REQUEST message, which is sent to the next hop on the path toward the groups
core router (how the local router discovers which core to join is discussed later). This Join
message must be explicitly acknowledged (JOIN_ACK) either by the core router itself or
by another router that is on the unicast path between the sending router and the core,
which itself has already successfully joined the tree. Note that all CBT routers, similar to
other multicast protocol routers, are expected to participate in IGMP for the purpose of
monitoring directly attached group memberships and acting as IGMP querier when
needed.
The Join message sets up a transient join state in the routers it traverses, and this state
consists of <group, incoming interface, outgoing interface>. “Incoming interface” and
“outgoing interface” may be “previous hop” and “next hop,” respectively, if the
corresponding links do not support multicast transmission. “Previous hop” is taken
from the incoming control packets IP source address, and “next hop” is gleaned from the
routing table—the next hop to the specified core address. This transient state eventually
times out unless it is “confirmed” with a join acknowledgment (JOIN_ACK) from
upstream. The JOIN_ACK traverses the reverse path of the corresponding Join message,
which is possible due to the presence of the transient join state. Once the acknowledg-
ment reaches the router that originated the Join message, the new receiver can receive
traffic sent to the group.
Loops cannot be created in a CBT because (i) there is only one active core per group
and (ii) tree-building/maintenance scenarios that may lead to the creation of tree loops
are avoided. For example, if a routers upstream neighbor becomes unreachable, the
router immediately “flushes” all of its downstream branches, allowing them to individu-
ally rejoin if necessary. Transient unicast loops do not pose a threat because a new Join
message that loops back on itself will never get acknowledged and thus eventually times
out.
The state created in routers by the sending or receiving of a JOIN_ACK is
bidirectional—data can flow either way along a tree “branch,” and the state is group
specific—it consists of the group address and a list of local interfaces over which Join
messages for the group have previously been acknowledged. There is no concept of
“incoming” or “outgoing” interfaces, though it is necessary to be able to distinguish the
upstream interface from any downstream interfaces. In CBT, these interfaces are known
as the “parent” and “child” interfaces, respectively.
With regards to the information contained in the multicast forwarding cache, on link
types not supporting native multicast transmission an on-tree router must store the
2
This section is based directly on RFC 2201.
address of a parent and any children. On links supporting multicast, however, parent and
any child information is represented with local interface addresses (or similar identifying
information, such as an interface “index”) over which the parent or child is reachable.
When a multicast data packet arrives at a router, the router uses the group address as
an index into the multicast forwarding cache. A copy of the incoming multicast data
packet is forwarded over each interface (or to each address) listed in the entry except the
incoming interface.
Each router that comprises a CBT multicast, except the core router, is responsible for
maintaining its upstream link, provided it has interested downstream receivers, that is, the
child interface list is not NULL. A child interface is one over which a member host is
directly attached or one over which a downstream on-tree router is attached. This “tree
maintenance” is achieved by each downstream router periodically sending a “Keepalive”
message (ECHO_REQUEST) to its upstream neighbor, that is, its parent router on the tree.
One Keepalive message is sent to represent entries with the same parent, thereby
improving scalability on links that are shared by many groups. On multicast-capable
links, a keepalive is multicast to the “all-cbt-routers” group (IANA assigned as
224.0.0.15); this has a suppressing effect on any other router for which the link is its
parent link. If a parent link does not support multicast transmission, keepalives are unicast.
The receipt of a Keepalive message over a valid child interface immediately prompts
a response (ECHO_REPLY), which is either unicast or multicast, as appropriate. The
ECHO_REQUEST does not contain any group information; the ECHO_REPLY does,
but only periodically. To maintain consistent information between parent and child, the
parent periodically reports, in an ECHO_REPLY, all groups for which it has a state, over
each of its child interfaces for those groups. This group-carrying echo reply is not
prompted explicitly by the receipt of an Echo Request message. A child is notified of the
time to expect the next Echo Reply message containing group information in an echo
reply prompted by a childs echo request. The frequency of parent group reporting is at
the granularity of minutes.
It cannot be assumed all of the routers on a multiaccess link have a uniform view of
unicast routing; this is particularly the case when a multiaccess link spans two or more
unicast routing domains. This could lead to multiple upstream tree branches being
formed (an error condition) unless steps are taken to ensure all routers on the link agree,
which is the upstream router for a particular group. CBT routers attached to a multiaccess
link participate in an explicit election mechanism that elects a single router, the DR, as
the links upstream router for all groups. Since the DR might not be the links best next
hop for a particular core router, this may result in Join messages being redirected back
across a multiaccess link. If this happens, the redirected Join message is unicast across
the link by the DR to the best next hop, thereby preventing a looping scenario. This
redirection only ever applies to Join messages. While this is suboptimal for Join
messages, which are generated infrequently, multicast data never traverses a link more
than once (either natively or encapsulated).
In all but the exception case described above, all CBT control messages are multicast
over multicast supporting links to the “all-cbt-routers” group, with IP TTL 1. When a
CBT control message is sent over a nonmulticast supporting link, it is explicitly
addressed to the appropriate next hop.
CORE ROUTER DISCOVERY 131
6.3.1 CBT Control Message Retransmission Strategy

Certain CBT control messages illicit a response of some sort. Lack of response may be
due to an upstream router crashing, or the loss of the original message, or its response. To
detect these events, CBT retransmits those control messages for which it expects a
response, if that response is not forthcoming within the retransmission interval, which
varies depending on the type of message involved. There is an upper bound (typically
three) on the number of retransmissions of the original message before an exception
condition is raised.
For example, the exception procedure for the lack of response to an ECHO_
REQUEST is to send a QUIT_NOTIFICATION upstream and a FLUSH_TREE message
downstream for the group. If this router has group members attached, it restarts the
joining process to the groups core.
6.3.2 Nonmember Sending

If a nonmember senders local router is already on tree for the group being sent to, the
subnets upstream router simply forwards the data packet over all outgoing interfaces
corresponding to that groups forwarding cache entry. This is in contrast to PIM SM,
which must encapsulate data from a nonmember sender, irrespective of whether the local
router has joined the tree. This is due to PIMs unidirectional state.
If the senders subnet is not attached to the group tree, the local DR must encapsulate
the data packet and unicast it to the groups core router, where it is deencapsulated and
disseminated over all tree interfaces, as specified by the cores forwarding cache entry for
the group. The data packet encapsulation method is IP-in-IP. Routers in between a
nonmember sender and the groups core need not know anything about the multicast
group and indeed may even be multicast unaware. This makes CBT attractive for
applications with nonmember senders.
6.4 CORE ROUTER DISCOVERY3
This section looks at CBT core router discovery, as described in RFC 2201.
Core router discovery is the most difficult aspect of shared tree multicast
architectures, particularly in the context of Interdomain Multicast Routing (IDMR).
There have been a number of proposals over the years, including advertising core
addresses in a multicast session directory, manual placement, and the Hierarchical
Protocol Independent Multicast (HPIM) approach of strictly dividing up the multicast
address space into many “hierarchical scopes” and using explicit advertising of core
routers between scope levels.
Two options for CBTv2 core discovery are the “bootstrap” mechanism and manual
placement. The bootstrap mechanism (as specified with the PIM SM protocol) is
applicable only to intradomain core discovery and allows for a “plug-and-play” type
operation with minimal configuration. The disadvantage of the bootstrap mechanism is
3
This section is based directly on RFC 2201.
that it is much more difficult to affect the shape, and thus optimality, of the resulting
distribution tree. Also, it must be implemented by all CBT routers within a domain. It is
unlikely at this stage that the bootstrap mechanism will be appended to a well-known
network layer protocol, such as IGMP or ICMP, though this would facilitate its
ubiquitous (intradomain) deployment. Therefore, each multicast routing protocol re-
quiring the bootstrap mechanism must implement it as part of the multicast routing
protocol itself.
Manual configuration of leaf routers with <core, group> mappings is the other
option (note: leaf routers only); this imposes a degree of administrative burden: the
mapping for a particular group must be coordinated across all leaf routers to ensure
consistency. Hence, this method does not scale particularly well. However, it is likely that
“better” trees will result from this method, and it is also the only available option for
interdomain core discovery currently available. A summary of the operation of the
bootstrap mechanism follows (the topic is also revisited in Section 6.5.11). It is assumed
that all routers within the domain implement the “bootstrap” protocol, or at least forward
bootstrap protocol messages.
A subset of the domains routers are configured to be CBT candidate core routers.
Each candidate core router periodically (default every 60 s) advertises itself to the
domains BSR using Core Advertisement messages. The BSR is itself elected dynami-
cally from all (or participating) routers in the domain. The domains elected BSR collects
Core Advertisement messages from candidate core routers and periodically advertises a
Candidate Core set (CC-set) to each other router in the domain using traditional
hop-by-hop unicast forwarding. The BSR uses Bootstrap messages to advertise the
CC-set. Together, Core Advertisement and Bootstrap messages comprise the bootstrap
protocol.
When a router receives an IGMP host membership report from one of its directly
attached hosts, the local router uses a hash function on the reported group address, the
result of which is used as an index into the CC-set. This is how local routers discover
which core to use for a particular group.
Note the hash function is specifically tailored such that a small number of
consecutive groups always hash to the same core. Furthermore, Bootstrap messages
can carry a “group mask,” potentially limiting a CC-set to a particular range of groups.
This can help reduce traffic concentration at the core.
If a BSR detects a particular core as being unreachable (it has not announced its
availability within some period), it deletes the relevant core from the CC-set sent in its
next Bootstrap message. This is how a local router discovers a groups core is unreach-
able; the router must rehash for each affected group and join the new core after
removing the old state. The removal of the “old” state follows the sending of a
QUIT_NOTIFICATION upstream and a FLUSH_TREE message downstream.
6.5 PROTOCOL SPECIFICATION DETAILS
In this section, details of the CBT protocol are presented in the context of a single router
implementation based on RFC 2189.
PROTOCOL SPECIFICATION DETAILS 133
6.5.1 CBT HELLO Protocol

The HELLO protocol is used to elect a DR on broadcast-type links. It is also used to elect
a designated Border Router (BR) when interconnecting a CBT domain with other
domains. Alternatively, the designated BR may be elected as a matter of local policy.
A router represents its status as a links DR by setting the DR flag on that interface; a
DR flag is associated with each of a routers broadcast interfaces. This flag can only
assume one of the two values: TRUE or FALSE. By default, this flag is FALSE.
A network manager can preference a routers DR eligibility by optionally configur-
ing a HELLO preference, which is included in the routers HELLO messages. Valid
configuration values range from 1 to 254 (decimal), 1 representing the “most eligible”
value. In the absence of explicit configuration, a router assumes the default HELLO
preference value of 255. The elected DR uses HELLO preference zero (0) in HELLO
advertisements, irrespective of any configured preference. The DR continues to use
preference zero for as long as it is running.
HELLO messages are multicast periodically to the all-cbt-routers group,
224.0.0.15, using IP TTL 1. The advertisement period is [HELLO_INTERVAL]
seconds. HELLO messages have a suppressing effect on those routers that would
advertise a “lesser preference” in their HELLO messages; a router resets its
[HELLO_INTERVAL] if the received HELLO is “better” than its own. Thus, in
steady state, the HELLO protocol incurs very little traffic overhead. The DR election
winner is that which advertises the lowest HELLO preference or the lowest addressed
in the event of a tie.
The situation where two or more routers attached to the same broadcast link are
advertising HELLO preference 0 should never arise. However, should this situation arise,
all but the lowest addressed zero advertising router relinquishes its claim as DR
immediately by unsetting the DR flag on the corresponding interface. The relinquishing
router(s) subsequently advertise their previously used preference value in HELLO
advertisements.
6.5.1.1 Sending HELLOs. When a router starts up, it multicasts two HELLO
messages over each of its broadcast interfaces in succession. The DR flag is initially
unset (FALSE) on each broadcast interface. This avoids the situation in which each
router on a multiaccess subnet believes it is the DR, thus preventing the multiple
forwarding of Join requests should they arrive during this startup period. If no “better”
HELLO message is received after holdtime seconds, the router assumes the role of DR
on the corresponding interface. A router sends a HELLO message whenever its
[HELLO_INTERVAL] expires. Whenever a router sends a HELLO message, it resets
its hello timer.
6.5.1.2 Receiving HELLOs. A router does not respond to a HELLO message if

the received HELLO is “better” than its own or equally preferenced but lower
addressed. A router must respond to a HELLO message if that received is lesser
preferenced (or equally preferenced but higher addressed) than would be sent by this
router over the same interface. This response is sent on expiry of an interval timer that is
set between zero (0) and [HOLDTIME] seconds when the lesser preferenced HELLO
message is received.
6.5.2 JOIN_REQUEST Processing

A JOIN_REQUEST is the CBT control message used to register a member hosts interest
in joining the distribution tree for the group.
6.5.2.1 Sending JOIN_REQUESTs. A JOIN_REQUEST can only ever be orig-

inated by a leaf router, that is, a router with directly attached member hosts. This Join
message is sent hop by hop toward the core router for the group. The originating router
caches the <group, NULL, upstream interface> state for each join it originates. This
state is known as “transient join state.” The absence of a “downstream interface” (NULL)
indicates that this router is the Join message originator and is therefore responsible for
any retransmissions of this message if a response is not received within [RTX_INTER-
VAL]. It is an error if no response is received after [JOIN_TIMEOUT] seconds. If this
error condition occurs, the joining process may be reinvoked by the receipt of the next
IGMP host membership report from a locally attached member host.
Note that if the interface over which a JOIN_REQUEST is to be sent supports
multicast, the JOIN_REQUEST is multicast to the all-cbt-routers group using IP TTL 1.
If the link does not support multicast, the JOIN_REQUEST is unicast to the next hop on
the unicast path to the groups core.
6.5.2.2 Receiving JOIN_REQUESTs. On broadcast links, JOIN_REQUESTs

that are multicast may only be forwarded by the links DR. Other routers attached
to the link may process the join (see below). JOIN_REQUESTs that are multicast over a
point-to-point link are only processed by the router on the link that does not have a
local interface corresponding to the joins network layer (IP) source address. Unicast
JOIN_REQUESTs may only be processed by the router that has a local interface
corresponding to the joins network layer (IP) destination address.
With regard to forwarding a received JOIN_REQUEST, if the receiving router is not
on tree for the group, is not the groups core router, and has not already forwarded a join for
the same group, the join is forwarded to the next hop on the path toward the core. The join
is multicast or unicast according to whether the outgoing interface supports multicast. The
router caches the following information with respect to the forwarded join: <group,
downstream interface, upstream interface>. Subsequent JOIN_REQUESTs received for
the same group are cached until this router has received a JOIN_ACK for the previously
sent join, at which time any cached joins can also be acknowledged.
If this transient join state is not “confirmed” with a join acknowledgment
(JOIN_ACK) message from upstream, the state is timed out after [TRANSIENT_
TIMEOUT] seconds.
If the receiving router is the groups core router, the join is “terminated” and
acknowledged by means of a JOIN_ACK. Similarly, if the router is on tree and the
JOIN_REQUEST arrives over an interface that is not the upstream interface for the
group, the join is acknowledged.
If a JOIN_REQUEST for the same group is scheduled to be sent over the corre-
sponding interface (i.e., awaiting a timer expiry), the JOIN_REQUEST is unscheduled.
If this router has a cache-deletion timer [CACHE_DEL_TIMER] running on the
arrival interface for the group specified in a multicast join, the timer is cancelled.
6.5.3 JOIN_ACK Processing

A JOIN_ACK is the mechanism by which an interface is added to a routers multicast
forwarding cache; thus, the interface becomes part of the group distribution tree.
6.5.3.1 Sending JOIN_ACKs. The JOIN_ACK is sent over the same interface as
the corresponding JOIN_REQUESTwas received. The sending of the acknowledgement
causes the router to add the interface to its child interface list in its forwarding cache for
the group, if it is not already. A JOIN_ACK is multicast or unicast according to whether
the outgoing interface supports multicast transmission or not.
6.5.3.2 Receiving JOIN_ACKs. The group and arrival interface must be

matched to a <group, . . ., upstream interface> from the routers cached transient state.
If no match is found, the JOIN_ACK is discarded. If a match is found, a CBT forwarding
cache entry for the group is created, with “upstream interface” marked as the groups
parent interface.
If “downstream interface” in the cached transient state is NULL, the JOIN_ACK has
reached the originator of the corresponding JOIN_REQUEST; the JOIN_ACK is not
forwarded downstream. If downstream interface is non-NULL, a JOIN_ACK for the
group is sent over the downstream interface (multicast or unicast, accordingly). This
interface is installed in the child interface list of the groups forwarding cache entry. Once
the transient state has been confirmed by transferring it to the forwarding cache, the
transient state is deleted.
6.5.4 QUIT_NOTIFICATION Processing

A CBT is “pruned” in the direction downstream to upstream whenever a CBT routers
child interface list for a group becomes null.
6.5.4.1 Sending QUIT_NOTIFICATIONs. A QUIT_NOTIFICATION is sent to

a routers parent router on the tree whenever the routers child interface list becomes null.
If the link over which the quit is to be sent supports multicast transmission, and the
sending router is the links DR, the quit is unicast, otherwise it is multicast.
A QUIT_NOTIFICATION is not acknowledged; once sent, all information pertain-
ing to the group it represents is deleted from the forwarding cache immediately.
To help ensure consistency between a child and parent router given the potential for
loss of a QUIT_NOTIFICATION, a total of [MAX_RTX] QUIT_NOTIFICATIONs are
sent, each holdtime seconds after the previous one.
The sending of a quit (the first) also invokes the sending of a FLUSH_TREE message
over each downstream interface for the corresponding group.
6.5.4.2 Receiving QUIT_NOTIFICATIONs. The group reported in the

QUIT_NOTIFICATION must be matched with a forwarding cache entry. If no
match is found, the QUIT_NOTIFICATION is ignored and discarded. If a match is
found and the arrival interface is a valid child interface in the group entry, how the
router proceeds depends on whether the QUIT_NOTIFICATION was multicast or
unicast.
If the QUIT_NOTIFICATION was unicast, the corresponding child interface is
deleted from the groups forwarding cache entry, and no further processing is
required.
If the QUIT_NOTIFICATION was multicast and the arrival interface is a valid
child interface for the specified group, the router sets a cache-deletion timer
[CACHE_DEL_TIMER].
Because this router might be acting as a parent router for multiple downstream
routers attached to the arrival link, [CACHE_DEL_TIMER] interval gives those
routers that did not send the QUIT_NOTIFICATION, but received it over their parent
interface, the opportunity to ensure that the parent router does not remove the link from
its child interface list. Therefore, on receipt of a multicast QUIT_NOTIFICATION
over a parent interface, a receiving router schedules a JOIN_REQUEST for the group
for sending at a random interval between 0 (zero) and holdtime seconds. If a multicast
JOIN_REQUEST is received over the corresponding interface (parent) for the same
group before this router sends its own scheduled JOIN_REQUEST, it unschedules the
multicasting of its own JOIN_REQUEST.
6.5.5 ECHO_REQUEST Processing

The ECHO_REQUEST message allows a child to monitor reachability to its parent
router for a group (or range of groups if the parent router is the parent for multiple
groups). Group information is not carried in ECHO_REQUEST messages.
6.5.5.1 Sending ECHO_REQUESTs. Whenever a router creates a forwarding

cache entry due to the receipt of a JOIN_ACK, the router begins the periodic sending
of ECHO_REQUEST messages over its parent interface. The ECHO_REQUEST is
multicast to the “all-cbt-routers” group over multicast-capable interfaces, unless the
sending router is the DR on the interface over which the ECHO_REQUEST is being
sent, in which case it is unicast (as is the corresponding ECHO_REPLY).
ECHO_REQUEST messages are sent at [ECHO_INTERVAL] second intervals.
Whenever an ECHO_REQUEST is sent, [ECHO_INTERVAL] is reset. If no response is
forthcoming, any groups present on the parent interface will eventually expire
[GROUP_EXPIRE_TIME]. This results in the sending of a QUIT_NOTIFICATION
upstream and a FLUSH_TREE message downstream for each group for which the
upstream interface was the parent interface.
6.5.5.2 Receiving ECHO_REQUESTs. If an ECHO_REQUEST is received over

any valid child interface, the receiving router schedules an ECHO_REPLY message for
sending over the same interface; the scheduled interval is between 0 (zero) and holdtime
seconds. This message is multicast to the “all-cbt-routers” group over multicast-capable
interfaces and unicast otherwise.
If a multicast ECHO_REQUEST message arrives via any valid parent interface,
the router resets its [ECHO_INTERVAL] timer for that upstream interface,
thereby suppressing the sending of its own ECHO_REQUEST over that upstream
interface.
6.5.6 ECHO_REPLY Processing

ECHO_REPLY messages allow a child to monitor the reachability of its parent and help
to ensure the group state information is consistent between them.
6.5.6.1 Sending ECHO_REPLY Messages. An ECHO_REPLY message is

sent in response to receiving an ECHO_REQUEST message provided the ECHO_
REQUEST is received over any one of this routers valid child interfaces. An ECHO_
REPLY reports all groups for which the link is its child. ECHO_REPLY messages are
unicast or multicast, as appropriate.
6.5.6.2 Receiving ECHO_REPLY Messages. An ECHO_REPLY message

must be received via a valid parent interface. For each group reported in an ECHO_
REPLY, the downstream router attempts to match the group with one in its forwarding
cache for which the arrival interface is the groups parent interface. For each successful
match, the entry is “refreshed.” If however, after [GROUP_EXPIRE_TIME] seconds a
group has not been refreshed, a QUIT_NOTIFICATION is sent upstream, and a
FLUSH_TREE message is sent downstream, for the group.
If this router has directly attached members for any of the flushed groups, the receipt
of an IGMP host membership report for any of those groups will prompt this router to
rejoin the corresponding tree(s).
6.5.7 FLUSH_TREE Processing

The FLUSH_TREE (flush) message is the mechanism by which a router invokes the
tearing down of all its downstream branches for a particular group. The flush message is
multicast to the “all-cbt-routers” group when sent over multicast-capable interfaces and
unicast otherwise.
6.5.7.1 Sending FLUSH_TREE Messages. A FLUSH_TREE message is sent

over each downstream (child) interface when a router has lost reachability with its parent
router for the group (detected via ECHO_REQUESTand ECHO_REPLY messages). All
of the group state is removed from an interface over which a Flush message is sent. A
flush can specify a single group or all groups (INADDR_ANY).
6.5.7.2 Receiving FLUSH_TREE Messages. A FLUSH_TREE message must

be received over the parent interface for the specified group; otherwise the message is
discarded. The Flush message must be forwarded over each child interface for the
specified group. Once the Flush message has been forwarded, all of the state for the group
is removed from the routers forwarding cache.

Data can be sent to a CBT by a sender not attached to the group tree. The sending host
originates native multicast data, which is promiscuously received by a local router,
which must be CBT capable. It is assumed the local CBT router knows about the
relevant <core, group> mapping and thus can encapsulate (IP-in-IP) the data packet
and unicast it to the corresponding core router. On arriving at the core router, the data
packet is deencapsulated and disseminated over the group tree in the manner already
described.
6.5.9 Timers and Default Values

This section provides a summary of the timers described above together with their
recommended default values. Other values may be configured; if so, the values used
should be consistent across all CBT routers attached to the same network.
. [HELLO_INTERVAL]: the interval between sending a Hello message. Default:

60 s.
. [HELLO_PREFERENCE]: default: 255 s.
. [HOLDTIME]: generic response interval. Default: 3 s.
. [MAX_RTX]: default maximum number of retransmissions. Default: 3 s.
. [RTX_INTERVAL]: message retransmission time. Default: 5 s.
. [JOIN_TIMEOUT]: raise exception due to tree join failure. Default:
(3.5 · [RTX_INTERVAL]) s.
. [TRANSIENT_TIMEOUT]: delete (unconfirmed) transient state. Default:
(1.5 · [RTX_INTERVAL]) s.
. [CACHE_DEL_TIMER]: remove child interface from forwarding cache.
Default: (1.5 · [HOLDTIME]) s.
. [GROUP_EXPIRE_TIME]: time to send a QUIT_NOTIFICATION to our
nonresponding parent. Default: (1.5 · [ECHO_INTERVAL]) s.
. [ECHO_INTERVAL]: interval between sending ECHO_REQUEST to parent
routers. Default: 60 s.
. [EXPECTED_REPLY_TIME]: consider parent unreachable. Default: 70 s.
6.5.10 CBT Packet Formats and Message Types

CBT control packets are encapsulated in IP. CBT has been assigned IP number 7 by
IANA.
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| vers | type | addr len | checksum |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.2. CBT Common Control Packet Header
6.5.10.1 CBT Common Control Packet Header. All CBT control messages
have a common fixed-length header, as shown in Figure 6.2.
This CBT specification is Version 2.
CBT packet types are:
. Type 0: HELLO
. Type 1: JOIN_REQUEST
. Type 2: JOIN_ACK
. Type 3: QUIT_NOTIFICATION
. Type 4: ECHO_REQUEST
. Type 5: ECHO_REPLY
. Type 6: FLUSH_TREE
. Type 7: Bootstrap message (optional)
. Type 8: Candidate Core Advertisement (optional)
. Address length: address length in bytes of unicast or multicast addresses carried in
the control packet.
. Checksum: the 16-bit ones complement of the ones complement sum of the
entire CBT control packet.
6.5.10.2 HELLO Packet Format. The HELLO packet format is shown in

Figure 6.3.
HELLO packet field definitions:
. Preference: senders HELLO preference.

. Option type: the type of option present in the Option Value field. One option type is
currently defined: option type 0 (zero) ¼ BR_HELLO; option value 0 (zero);
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| CBT (Control Packet Header) |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Preference | option type | option len | option value |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.3. HELLO Packet Format
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| group address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| target router |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| originating router |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| option type | option len | option value |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.4. JOIN_REQUEST Packet Format
option length 0 (zero). This option type is used with HELLO messages sent by a
BR as part of designated BR election.
. Option length: length of the Option Value field in bytes.
. Option value: variable-length field carrying the option value.
6.5.10.3 JOIN_REQUEST Packet Format. JOIN_REQUEST packet format is

shown in Figure 6.4.
JOIN_REQUEST field definitions:
. Group address: multicast group address of the group being joined. For a
“wildcard” join this field contains the value of INADDR_ANY.
. Target router: target (core) router for the group.
. Originating router: router that originated this JOIN_REQUEST.
. Option type, option length, and option value: see HELLO packet format.
6.5.10.4 JOIN_ACK Packet Format. The JOIN_ACK packet format is shown in

Figure 6.5.
JOIN_ACK field definitions:
. Group address: multicast group address of the group being joined.

. Target router: router (DR) that originated the corresponding JOIN_REQUEST.
. Option type, option length, and option value: see HELLO packet format.
6.5.10.5 QUIT_NOTIFICATION Packet Format. The QUIT_NOTIFICATION

packet format is shown in Figure 6.6.
QUIT_NOTIFICATION field definitions:
. Group address: multicast group address of the group being joined.

0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| group address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| target router |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| option type | option len | option value |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.5. JOIN_ACK Packet Format
. Originating child router: address of the router that originates the QUIT_
NOTIFICATION.
6.5.10.6 ECHO_REQUEST Packet Format. The ECHO_REQUEST packet

format is shown in Figure 6.7.
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| group address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| originating child router |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.6. QUIT_NOTIFICATION Packet Format
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| originating child router |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.7. ECHO_REQUEST Packet Format
ECHO_REQUEST field definitions:
. Originating child router: address of the router that originates the ECHO_
REQUEST.
6.5.10.7 ECHO_REPLY Packet Format. The ECHO_REPLY packet format is

ECHO_REPLY field definitions:
. Originating parent router: address of the router originating this ECHO_REPLY.

. Group address: a list of multicast group addresses for which this router considers
itself a parent router with respect to the link over which this message is sent.
6.5.10.8 FLUSH_TREE Packet Format. The FLUSH_TREE packet format is

FLUSH_TREE field definitions:
. Group address(es): multicast group address(es) of the group(s) being “flushed.”
6.5.11 Core Router Discovery

As discussed earlier in the chapter, there are two available options for CBTv2 core
discovery; the bootstrap mechanism (as currently specified with the PIM SM protocol) is
applicable only to intradomain core discovery and allows for a “plug and play” type
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| originating parent router |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| group address #1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| group address #2 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| ...... |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| group address #n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.8. ECHO_REPLY Packet Format
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| group address |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| ...... |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| group address #n |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.9. FLUSH_TREE Packet Format
operation with minimal configuration. The disadvantage of the bootstrap mechanism is

that it is much more difficult to affect the shape, and thus optimality, of the resulting
distribution tree. Also, to be applicable, all CBT routers within a domain must implement
the bootstrap mechanism.
The other option is to manually configure leaf routers with <core, group> mappings
(note: leaf routers only); this imposes a degree of administrative burden—the mapping
for a particular group must be coordinated across all leaf routers to ensure consistency.
Hence, this method does not scale particularly well. However, it is likely that “better”
trees will result from this method, and it is also the only available option for interdomain
core discovery currently available.
6.5.11.1 Bootstrap Mechanism. It is unlikely that the bootstrap mechanism

will be appended to a well-known network layer protocol, such as IGMP, though this
would facilitate its ubiquitous (intradomain) deployment. Therefore, each multicast
routing protocol requiring the bootstrap mechanism must implement it as part of the
multicast routing protocol itself. A summary of the operation of the bootstrap
mechanism follows. It is assumed that all routers within the domain implement the
bootstrap protocol, or at least forward bootstrap protocol messages.
A subset of the domains routers are configured to be CBT candidate core routers.
Each candidate core router periodically (default every 60 s) advertises itself to the
domains BSR, using Core Advertisement messages. The BSR is itself elected dynami-
cally from all (or participating) routers in the domain. The domains elected BSR collects
Core Advertisement messages from candidate core routers and periodically advertises a
CC-set to each other router in the domain using traditional hop-by-hop unicast forwarding.
The BSR uses Bootstrap messages to advertise the CC-set. Together, Core Advertisements
and Bootstrap messages comprise the bootstrap protocol.
When a router receives an IGMP host membership report from one of its directly
attached hosts, the local router uses a hash function on the reported group address, the
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| CBT (common control packet header) |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| For full Bootstrap Message specification, see [7] |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.10. Bootstrap Message Format
result of which is used as an index into the CC-set. This is how local routers discover
which core to use for a particular group.
Note the hash function is specifically tailored such that a small number of
consecutive groups always hash to the same core. Furthermore, Bootstrap messages
can carry a “group mask,” potentially limiting a CC-set to a particular range of groups.
This can help reduce traffic concentration at the core.
If a BSR detects a particular core as being unreachable (it has not announced its
availability within some period), it deletes the relevant core from the CC-set sent in its
next Bootstrap message. This is how a local router discovers a groups core is
unreachable; the router must rehash for each affected group and join the new core
after removing the old state. The removal of the “old” state follows the sending of a
QUIT_NOTIFICATION upstream and a FLUSH_TREE message downstream.
6.5.11.2 Bootstrap Message Format. The Bootstrap message format is shown

in Figure 6.10.
6.5.11.3 Candidate Core Advertisement Message Format. The Candidate

Core Advertisement message format is shown in Figure 6.11.
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| CBT common control packet header |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| For full Candidate Core Adv. Message specification, see [7] |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 6.11. Candidate Core Advertisement Message Format

CBT VERSION 3 145
6.6 CBT VERSION 3
The CBT Version 3 specification published as an Internet Draft in 1988 superceded and
obsoleted RFC 2189. Changes from RFC 2189 include support for source-specific
joining and pruning to provide better CBT transit domain capability, new packet formats,
and new robustness features. Unfortunately, most of these changes are not backward
compatible with RFC 2189; however, neither at that time nor now has CBT enjoyed
widespread implementation or deployment. Specifically, changes from RFC 2189 are
[BAL199801]:
. Forwarding cache support for entries of different granularities, that is, (*, G),
(*, Core), or (S, G) and support for S and/or G masks for representing S and/or
G aggregates
. Included support for joins, quits (prunes), and flushes of different granularities,
that is, (*, G), (*, Core), or (S, G), where S and/or G can be aggregated
. Optional one-way join capability
. Improved the LAN HELLO protocol and included a state diagram
. Revised packet format and provided option support for all control packets
. Added downstream state timeout to CBT router
. Revised the CBT “keepalive” mechanism between adjacent on-tree CBT routers
. Overall provided added clarification of protocol events and mechanisms
A brief description of the CBTv3 protocol follows below, based directly on

[BAL199801]; it incorporates many of the CBTv2 capabilities described earlier,
although, as noted, it is not backward compatible.
6.6.1 The First Step: Joining the Tree

As a first step, a host first expresses its interest in joining a group by multicasting an
IGMP host membership report across its attached link. Note that all CBT routers, similar
to other multicast protocol routers, are expected to participate in IGMP for the purpose of
monitoring directly attached group memberships and acting as IGMP queriers when
needed. On receiving an IGMP host membership report, a local CBT router invokes the
tree-joining process (unless it has already) by generating a JOIN_REQUEST message,
which is sent to the next hop on the path towards the groups core router (how the local
router must discover which core to join). This Join message must be explicitly
acknowledged (JOIN_ACK) either by the core router itself or by another router that
is on the path between the sending router and the core, which itself has already
successfully joined the tree.
By default, JOINS/JOIN_ACKS create a bidirectional forwarding state, that is,
data can flow in the direction downstream - to upstream or upstream - to downstream.
In some circumstances a JOIN/JOIN_ACK may include an option which instantiates a
unidirectional forwarding state; an interface over which a unidirectional JOIN_ACK
is forwarded (not received) is automatically marked as pruned. Data is permitted to be
received via a pruned interface but must not be forwarded over a pruned interface.
Prune state can also be instantiated by the QUIT_NOTIFICATION message (see
Section 6.6.8).
A JOIN_REQUEST is made unidirectional by the inclusion of the “unidirectional”
JOIN option that is copied to the corresponding JOIN_REQUEST options are always
copied to the corresponding JOIN_ACK.
CBT now supports source-specific joins/prunes so as to be better equipped when
deployed in a transit domain; source-specific control messages are only ever
generated by CBT BRs. Source-specific control messages follow G, not S, that is,
they are routed toward the core (not S) and no further. Thus, the (S, G) state only
exists on the “core tree” in a CBT domain—those routers and links between a BR and
a core router.
6.6.2 Transient State

The Join message sets up a transient join state in the router that originates it (a LANs DR)
and the routers it traverses (an exception is described in Section 6.6.9), and this state
consists of <group, [source], downstream address, upstream address>; “source” is
optional and relevant only to source-specific control messages.
On broadcast networks “downstream address” is the local IP address of the interface
over which this router received the join (or IGMP host membership report), and
“upstream address” is the local IP address of the interface over which this router
forwarded the join (according to this routers routing table). On nonbroadcast networks
“downstream address” is the IP address of the joins previous hop, and “upstream
address” is the IP address of the next hop (according to this routers routing table). The
transient state eventually times out unless the join is explicitly acknowledged. When a
join is acknowledged, the transient join state is transferred to the routers multicast
forwarding cache, thus becoming “permanent.”
If “downstream address” implies a broadcast LAN, the transient state must be able to
distinguish between a member host being reachable over that interface and a downstream
router being reachable over that interface. This is necessary so that, on receipt of a
JOIN_ACK, a router with a transient state knows whether “downstream address” only
leads to a group member, in which case the JOIN_ACK need not be forwarded, or whether
“downstream address” leads to a downstream router that either originated or forwarded the
join prior to this router receiving it, in which case this router must forward a received
JOIN_ACK. Precisely how this distinction is made is implementation dependent. A router
must also be able to distinguish these two conditions with respect to its forwarding cache.
6.6.3 Getting “On Tree”

A router that terminates a JOIN_REQUEST (see Section 6.6.8) sends a JOIN_ACK in
response. A join acknowledgment (JOIN_ACK) traverses the reverse path of the
corresponding Join message which is possible due to the presence of the transient join
state. Once the acknowledgment reaches the router that originated the Join message, the
new receiver can receive traffic sent to the group.
CBT VERSION 3 147
A router is not considered “on tree” until it has received a JOIN_ACK for a
previously sent/forwarded JOIN_REQUEST and has instantiated the relevant forward-
ing state.
Loops cannot be created in a CBT because (a) there is only one active core per group
and (b) tree-building/maintenance scenarios that may lead to the creation of tree loops are
avoided. For example, if a routers parent router for a group becomes unreachable, the
router (child) immediately “flushes” all of its downstream branches, allowing them to
individually rejoin if necessary. Transient unicast loops do not pose a threat because a
new Join message that loops back on itself will never get acknowledged and thus
eventually times out.
6.6.4 Pruning and Prune State

Any of a forwarding cache entrys children can be “pruned” by the immediate
downstream router (child); in CBT, pruning is implemented by means of the
QUIT_NOTIFICATION message, which is sent hop by hop in the direction downstream
to upstream. A pruned child must be distinguishable from a nonpruned child—how is
implementation dependent. One possible way would be to associate a “prune bit” with
each child in the forwarding cache.
The granularity of a quit (prune) can be (*, G), (*, Core), or (S, G). (*, Core) and
(S, G) prunes are only relevant to core tree branches, that is, those routers between a CBT
BR and a core (inclusive). (*, G) prunes are applicable anywhere on a CBT.
In previous versions of CBT, a quit was sent by a child router to cause its parent to
remove it from the tree. While this capability remains, in this version of CBT a quit can
also be sent by a child to make the parents forwarding state more specific. Refer to Section
6.6.8 for the procedures relating to receiving and forwarding a Quit (Prune) message.
Data is permitted to be received via a pruned interface but must not be forwarded
over a pruned interface. Thus, pruning is always unidirectional—it can stop data flowing
downstream but does not prevent data from flowing upstream.
CBT BRs are able to take advantage of this unidirectionality; if the BR does not have
any directly attached group members and is not serving a neighboring domain with group
traffic, it can elect not to receive traffic for the group which is sourced inside, or received
via, the CBT domain. At the same time, if the BR is the ingress BR for a particular (*, G),
or (S, G), externally sourced traffic for (*, G) or (S, G) need not be encapsulated by the
ingress BR and unicast to the relevant core router—the BR can send the traffic using
native IP multicast.
6.6.5 The Forwarding Cache

A CBT router must implement a multicast forwarding cache which supports source-
specific [i.e., (S, G)] as well as source-independent [i.e., (*, G) and (*, Core)] entries.
This forwarding cache is known as the routers Private CBT Forwarding Cache (PFC).
All implementations should also implement a shared (i.e., protocol-independent)
multicast forwarding cache—to facilitate interoperability—which is only used by BRs
and shared by all protocols operating on the BR (hence “shared”). This forwarding cache
is known as the routers Shared Forwarding Cache, or SFC. By having all CBT
implementations support an SFC, any CBT router is eligible to become a BR.
(*, Core) entries are only relevant to a CBT PFC. This state is represented in the
cache by specifying the cores IP unicast address in place of a group address/group
address range.
With respect to representing groups (Gs) in the forwarding cache, G may be an
individual Class D 32-bit group address or a prefix representing a contiguous range of
group addresses (a group aggregate). Similarly, for source-specific PFC entries, S can be
an aggregate. Therefore, the PFC should support the inclusion of masks or mask lengths
to be associated with each of S and G.
In CBT, all PFC entries require that an entrys “upstream” interface is distinguish-
able as such—how is implementation dependent. CBT uses the term “parent” inter-
changeably with “upstream” and “child/children” interchangeably with “downstream.”
A core routers parent is always NULL.
Whenever the sending/receiving of a CBT join or prune results in the instantiation of
a more specific state in the router [e.g., a (*, Core) state exists, then a (*, G) join arrives],
the children of the new entry represent the union of the children from all other less
specific forwarding cache entries as well as the child (interface) over which the message
was received (if not already included). This is so that at most a single forwarding cache
entry needs to be matched with an incoming packet.
Note that in CBT there is no notion of “expected” or “incoming” interface for (S, G)
forwarding entries—these are treated just like (*, G) entries.
A forwarding cache entry whose children are all marked as pruned as a result of
receiving Quit messages may delete the entry provided there exists no less specific state
with at least one nonpruned child.
6.6.6 Packet Forwarding

When a data packet arrives, the forwarding cache is searched for a best matching
(according to longest match) entry. If no match is found, the packet is discarded. If the
packet arrived natively, it is accepted if it arrives via an on-tree interface, that is, any
interface listed in a matching entry; otherwise the packet is discarded. Assuming the
packet is accepted, a copy of the packet is forwarded over each other (outgoing)
nonpruned interface listed in the matching entry.
If the packet arrived IP-in-IP encapsulated and the packet has reached its final
destination, the packet is deencapsulated and treated as described above, except
the packet need not have arrived via an on-tree interface according to the matching
entry.
6.6.7 The “Keepalive” Protocol

The CBT forwarding state created by JOIN/ACK messages is the soft state. This soft state
is maintained by a separate keepalive mechanism rather than by JOIN/ACK refreshes.
The CBT keepalive mechanism operates between adjacent on-tree routers. The
keepalive mechanism is implemented by means of group-specific ECHO_REQUEST
CBT VERSION 3 149
and ECHO_REPLY messages, with the child routers responsible for periodically
(explicitly) querying the parent router. The parent router (implicitly) monitors its
children by expecting to periodically receive queries (ECHO_REQUESTs) from each
child (per child router on nonbroadcast networks; per child interface on broadcast
networks). The repeated absence of either an expected query (ECHO_REQUEST) or
expected response (ECHO_REPLY) results in the corresponding interface being marked
as pruned in the routers forwarding cache. This constitutes a state timeout due to an
exception condition. An interface can also be pruned in an explicit and timely fashion by
means of either a QUIT_NOTIFICATION (downstream to upstream) or FLUSH_TREE
(upstream to downstream) message.
Note that the network path comprising a CBT branch only changes due to
connectivity failure. An implementation could, however, invoke the tearing down and
rebuilding of a tree branch whenever an underlying routing change occurs, irrespective of
whether that change is due to connectivity failure. This is not CBTs default behavior.
6.6.8 Control Message Precedence and Forwarding Criteria

When a router receives a CBT Join or (Quit) Prune message, if the message contains a
state for which the receiving router has no matching (according to longest match) state in
its forwarding cache, the receiving router creates a forwarding cache entry for the
corresponding state and forwards the control message upstream.
CBT Join and Quit (Prune) messages are forwarded as far upstream as the
corresponding core router, or the first router encountered with an equally or less specific
state and at least one other nonpruned child for that state. The forwarding state
corresponding exactly to the granularity of the join/quit is instantiated in all routers
between the join/quit originator and join/quit terminator, inclusive.
A router with a forwarding cache entry whose children are all pruned can remove
(delete) the corresponding entry unless there exists a less specific state with at least one
nonpruned child. If an entry is eligible for deletion, a quit representing the same
granularity as the forwarding cache entry is sent upstream.
CBT Flush messages are forwarded downstream removing all equally and more
specific state. A Flush message is terminated by a leaf router or a router with a less
specific state; the flush message does not affect the terminating routers less specific
state.
6.6.9 Broadcast LANs

It cannot be assumed that all of the routers on a broadcast link have a uniform view of
unicast routing; this is particularly the case when a broadcast link spans two or more
unicast routing domains. This could lead to multiple upstream tree branches being
formed for any one group (an error condition) unless steps are taken to ensure all routers
on the link agree on a single LAN upstream forwarding router. CBT routers attached to a
broadcast link participate in an explicit election mechanism that elects a single router, the
DR; the DR is a “join broker” for all LAN routers insofar as joins are routed according to
the DRs view of routing—without a DR there could be conflicts potentially resulting in
tree loops. The router that actually forwards a join off-LAN for a group (toward the
groups core) is known as the LAN “upstream router” for that group. A groups LAN
upstream router may or may not be the LAN DR.
With regards to a JOIN_REQUEST being multicast onto a broadcast LAN, the LAN
DR decides over which interface to forward it. Depending on the groups core location, the
DR may redirect (unicast) the join back across the same link as it arrived towhat it considers
isthebestnexthoptowardthecore.Inthiscase,theLANDRdoesnotkeepanytransientstate
for the JOIN_REQUEST it passed on. This best next-hop router is then the LAN upstream
forwarder for the corresponding group. This redirection only applies to joins, which are
relatively infrequent—native multicast data never traverses a link more than once.
For the case where a DR originates a join and has to unicast it to a LAN neighbor, the
DR must keep a transient state for the join.
On broadcast LANs it is necessary for a router to be able to distinguish between a
directly attached (downstream) group member and any (at least one) downstream on-tree
router(s). For a router to be able to send a QUIT_NOTIFICATION (prune) upstream, it
must be sure it neither has any (downstream) directly attached group members or on-tree
routers reachable via a downstream interface. How this is achieved is implementation
dependent. One possible way would be for a CBT forwarding cache to maintain two extra
bits for each child entry—one bit to indicate the presence of a group member on that
interface, the other bit indicating the presence of an on-tree router on that interface. Both
these bits must be clear (i.e., unset) before this router can send a QUIT_NOTIFICATION
for the corresponding state upstream.
6.6.10 The “all-cbt-routers” Group

The IP destination address of CBT control messages is either the “all-cbt-routers” group
address or a unicast address, as appropriate.
All CBT control messages are multicast over broadcast links to the “all-cbt-routers”
group (IANA assigned as 224.0.0.15), with IP TTL 1. The exception to this is if a DR
decides to forward a control packet back over the interface on which it arrived, in which
the DR unicasts the control packet. The IP source address of CBT control messages is the
sending routers outgoing interface.
CBT control messages are unicast over nonbroadcast media.
A CBT control message originated or forwarded by a router is never processed by itself.

This process is relevant to nonmember sending where the data is sourced inside the CBT
domain. A host always originates native multicast data. All multicast traffic is received
promiscuously by CBT routers. All but the LANs DR discard the packet. The DR looks
up the relevant <core, group> mapping, encapsulates (IP-in-IP) the data, and unicasts it
to the groups core router. Consequently, no group state is required in the network
between the first hop router and the groups core. On arriving at the core router, the data
packet is deencapsulated and disseminated over the group tree in the manner already
described.
REFERENCES 151
REFERENCES
[BAL199301] T. Ballardie, P. Francist, J. Crowcroft, Core Based Trees (CBT): An Architecture

for Scalable Interdomain Multicast Routing, ACM SIGCOMM93, Ithaca, NY.
[BAL199801] A. Ballardie, B. Cain, Z. Zhang, INTERNET-DRAFT: Core-Based Trees (CBT
Version 3) Multicast Routing — Protocol Specification, www3.ietf.org/proceedings/99mar/
I-D/draft-ietf-idmr-cbt-spec-v3-01.txt, August 1998.
[RFC2189] RFC 2189, Core Based Trees (CBT Version 2) Multicast Routing—Protocol
September 1997.
[UCL200701] Department of Computer Science, University College London, Core-Based Trees
White Paper, London UK, http://www.cs.ucl.ac.uk/staff/jon/mmbook/book/node78.html.
7
MULTICAST
ROUTING—DENSE-MODE
PROTOCOLS: PIM DM
This chapter addresses Protocol-Independent Multicast Dense Mode (PIM DM),

defined in RFC 3973 (January 2005). PIM DM is a multicast routing protocol that
uses the underlying unicast routing information base to flood multicast datagrams to all
multicast routers. Prune messages are used to block further messages from propagating
to routers without group members. As we have seen in previous chapters, DM is useful
when one or more of the following apply: senders and receivers are in geographic/
topological proximity, there are few sources and many receivers, the volume of
multicast traffic is high, and the stream of multicast traffic is continuous in time.
IPTV/DVB-H applications meet these conditions, except for the geographical prox-
imity; however, proximity is effectively achieved by the use of point-to-multipoint
satellite distribution.
7.1 OVERVIEW
As we know by now, PIM employs an explicit join model for sparse groups; transmission
occurs on a shared tree but it can switch to a per-source tree. PIM DM also uses the

152
BASIC PIM DM BEHAVIOR 153
underlying unicast routing information base to flood multicast datagrams to all multicast
routers (it does not have a topology discovery mechanism often used by a unicast routing
protocol). Prune messages are used to prevent messages from propagating to routers
without active group members. PIM DM uses RPF. PIM DM employs the same packet
formats PIM SM uses. Note that:
. In PIM DM there are no periodic joins being transmitted, only explicitly triggered
prunes and grafts.
. In PIM DM there is no RP. This is advantageous in networks that cannot accept a
single point of failure, such as commercial IPTV networks.
. PIM DM does not maintain a keepalive timer associated with each (S,G) route
(unlike the case with PIM SM). In PIM DM, route and state information associated
with an (S,G) entry is maintained as long as any protocol timer associated with that
(S,G) entry is active. Thereafter, all information concerning that (S,G) route is
discarded.
When a PIM DM-enabled router receives a packet, it validates the incoming

interface with the unicast routing table, and then the packet is sent out to every interface
(i.e., it floods) that has not been pruned from the multicast delivery tree. (This is the
operation of the RPF algorithm.)
PIM DM does not attempt to develop multicast-specific routes. Instead, it assumes
that the routes in the unicast routing table are symmetric. A PIM DM-enabled router
initially assumes all downstream interfaces needed to receive multicast traffic. The router
floods datagrams to all areas of the network. If some areas do not have receivers for the
specific multicast group, PIM DM reactively prunes these branches from the delivery
tree. This reactive pruning is done because PIM DM does not obtain downstream receiver
information from the unicast routing table. PIM DM requires that the router be able to
process a list of prune requests [PAR200601]. See Figure 7.1 for an example of pruning.
Considering the flood-and-prune approach used in PIM DM, one should use it in
cases where the large majority of hosts within a domain need to receive the multicast
data; here the majority of branches will not be pruned from the delivery tree, and the
inefficiencies due to flooding are minimal. IPTV fits this predicament.
7.2 BASIC PIM DM BEHAVIOR
PIM DM makes the assumption that when a source S starts transmitting, all downstream
users wish to receive multicast datagrams. Initially, the multicast datagrams are flooded
to all areas of the network. PIM DM uses RPF to prevent looping of multicast datagrams
while flooding. If some areas of the network do not have group members, PIM DM will
prune off the forwarding branch by instantiating a prune state. In IPTV applications, all
routers supporting a neighborhood DSL Access Multiplexer (DSLAM) will (typically)
require to be receiving all multicast packets (with each content channel using a different
multicast address); hence, it is unlikely that pruning will occur, but that may be the case in
the middle of the night if nobody is watching TV.
154 MULTICAST ROUTING—DENSE-MODE PROTOCOLS: PIM DM
Source1 Host
A
Prune
message
A
B C
Receiver
Host
Receiver Host
Receiver
Host
Host
Multicast delivery tree rooted at router A
Before
After
Figure 7.1. Example of Flood-and-Prune Operation
A prune state has a finite lifetime; when that lifetime expires, data will again be
forwarded down the previously pruned branch. The broadcast of datagrams followed
by the pruning of unwanted branches is referred to as a flood-and-prune cycle. The
prune state is associated with an (S,G) pair. When a new member for a group G appears
in a pruned area, a router can “graft” toward the source S for the group, thereby
activating the pruned branch back into a forwarding branch. To minimize the repeated
flooding and pruning associated with a particular (S,G) pair, PIM DM uses a State
Refresh message. This message is sent by the router(s) directly connected to the source
and is propagated throughout the network; when the message is received by a router on
its RPF interface, the State Refresh message causes an existing prune state to be
refreshed [RFC3973].
PROTOCOL SPECIFICATION 155
PIM DM has a simplified design compared with multicast routing protocols with
built-in topology discovery mechanisms (e.g., DVMRP) and is not dependent on any
specific topology discovery protocol. However, this simplification does incur more
potential overhead in some applications by causing flooding and pruning activities to
take place on some links that could be avoided if sufficient topology information were
available. In IPTV applications, increased overhead is opted for in favor of the
simplification and flexibility obtained by not relying on a specific topology discovery
protocol.
7.3 PROTOCOL SPECIFICATION
The specification of PIM DM consists of several elements:
. Description of the protocol state stored at routers

. Description of the data packet forwarding rules
. Description of the generation and processing of Hello messages
. Description of the join, prune, and graft generation and processing rules
. Description of the state refresh generation and forwarding rules
. Description of the assert generation and processing rules
. PIM DM packet formats
. PIM DM timers and defaults
Only a summary is presented here, with our description based directly on

[RFC3973]1; the interested reader and/or developer should refer to the RFC for
complete details.
The RFC uses the notation depicted in Table 7.1. Note that set operations are to be
conducted in the order specified. This is due to the fact that () is not a true difference
operator, because B is not necessarily a subset of A. That is, A (þ) B () C ¼ A () C (þ)
B is not a true statement unless C is a subset of both A and B.
T A B L E 7.1. Set and Other Notation

Notation Meaning
A (þ) B The union of two sets, A and B
A () B The elements of set A that are not in set B
NULL The empty set or list
¼ Denotes assignment of a variable
¼¼ Denotes a comparison for equality
!¼ Denotes a comparison for inequality
Curly braces, namely {and} Used for grouping
1
The rest of this chapter is liberally based on RFC 3973.
7.3.1 PIM Protocol State

This section specifies the protocol state that a PIM DM implementation is required to
maintain. This state is known as the Tree Information Base (TIB). The TIB holds the state
of all the multicast distribution trees at a given router. [RFC3973] defines PIM DM
mechanisms in terms of the TIB. However, only a very simple implementation would
actually implement packet forwarding operations in terms of this state. Most of the
implementations will use this state to build a multicast forwarding table, which would
then be updated when the relevant state in the TIB changes. Although the RFC precisely
specifies the state to be kept, this does not mean that an implementation of PIM DM has to
hold the state in this form; a PIM DM implementation is free to hold whatever internal
state it requires and will still be conformant with the specification as long as it results in
the same externally visible protocol behavior as an abstract router that holds the
following state.
PIM DM does not maintain a keepalive timer associated with each (S,G) route.
Instead, route and state information associated with an (S,G) entry must be maintained as
long as any timer associated with that (S,G) entry is active. When no timer associated
with an (S,G) entry is active, all information concerning that (S,G) route may be
discarded.
7.3.1.1 General Purpose State. A router stores the non-group-specific state

shown in Table 7.2.
7.3.1.2 (S,G) State. For every source/group pair (S,G), a router stores the state
shown in Table 7.3.
7.3.1.3 State Summarization Nomenclature. Table 7.4 defines “macros”

used in the descriptions of the state machines and pseudocode in the following sections.
The most important macros are those defining the outgoing interface list (“olist”) for
T A B L E 7.2. Non-Group-Specific State

Router Element State Information Retained
For each interface Hello Timer (HT)
State Refresh Capable
LAN Delay Enabled
Propagation Delay (PD)
Override Interval (OI)
For each neighbor Information from neighbor’s hello
Neighbor’s Gen ID.
Neighbor’s LAN Prune Delay
Neighbor’s Override Interval
Neighbor’s State Refresh Capability
Neighbor Liveness Timer (NLT)
T A B L E 7.3. (S,G) State

Router Element State Information Retained
For each interface Local Membership:
State: One of {“NoInfo,” “Include”}
PIM (S,G) Prune State:
State: One of {“NoInfo” (NI), “Pruned” (P), “PrunePending” (PP)}
Also, Prune Pending Timer (PPT) and Prune Timer (PT)
(S,G) Assert Winner State:
State: One of {“NoInfo,” “I lost Assert” (L), “I won Assert” (W)}
Also, Assert-Timer (AT) and assert winner’s IP Address and
assert winner’s Assert Metric
Upstream interface Graft/Prune State:
specific State: One of {“NoInfo,” “Pruned,” “Forwarding” (F),
“AckPending” (AP)}
Also, GraftRetry Timer (GRT) and Override Timer (OT)
and Prune Limit Timer (PLT)
Originator State:
Source Active Timer (SAT) and State Refresh Timer (SRT)
T A B L E 7.4. “Macros” Used in the Descriptions of the State Machines

Macro Definition
immediate_olist(S,G) ¼ pim_nbrs () prunes(S,G) (þ)
(pim_include(*,G) ()
pim_exclude(S,G)) (þ)
pim_include(S,G) ()
lost_assert(S,G) ()
boundary(G)
olist(S,G) ¼ immediate_olist(S,G) () RPF_interface(S)
pim_include(*,G) ¼ {all interfaces I such that: local_receiver_include(*,G,I)}
pim_include(S,G) ¼ {all interfaces I such that: local_receiver_include(S,G,I)}
pim_exclude(S,G) ¼ {all interfaces I such that: local_receiver_exclude(S,G,I)}
RPF_interface(S) Returns the RPF interface for source S (it returns the
interface used to reach S as indicated by the MRIB)
local_receiver_include(S,G,I) True if the IGMP module (or other local membership
mechanism) has determined that there are local members
on interface I that seek to receive traffic sent specifically
by S to G
local_receiver_include(*,G,I) True if the IGMP module or other local membership
mechanism has determined that there are local members
on interface I that seek to receive all traffic sent to G.
Note that this determination is expected to account
for membership joins initiated on or by the router.
local_receiver_exclude(S,G,I) True if local_receiver_include(*,G,I) is true but none
of the local members seek to receive traffic from S.
I_Am_Assert_loser(S, G, I) True if the assert state machine for (S,G) on interface
I is in the “I am Assert Loser” state.
T A B L E 7.5. Sets Used in the Descriptions of the State Machines

Set Definition
pim_nbrs The set of all interfaces on which the router has at least one active
PIM neighbor
prunes(S,G) The set of all interfaces on which the router has received Prune(S,G)
messages:
prunes(S,G)¼{all interfaces I such that DownstreamPState(S,G,I) is
in pruned state}
lost_assert(S,G) The set of all interfaces on which the router has lost an (S,G) Assert
lost_assert(S,G)¼{all interfaces I such that lost_assert(S,G,I)
¼¼ TRUE}
boundary(G) The set
boundary(G)¼{all interfaces I with an administratively scoped boundary
for group G}
RPF’ The RPF neighbor toward a source unless a PIM DM assert has
overridden the normal choice of neighbor
neighbor RPF’(S,G)
{if (I_Am_Assert_loser(S, G, RPF_interface(S))) {return
AssertWinner(S, G, RPF_interface(S))} else
{return MRIB.next_hop(S)}}
iif The incoming interface of the packet
S The source address of the incoming packet
G The destination address of the packet (group address)
the relevant state. The macros pim_include(*,G) and pim_include(S,G) indicate the
interfaces to which traffic might or might not be forwarded because of hosts that are local
members on those interfaces.
The sets defined in Table 7.5 are used in the descriptions of the state machines.
7.3.2 Data Packet Forwarding Rules

First, an RPF check is performed to determine whether the packet should be accepted,
based on TIB state and the interface on which the packet arrived. The packets that fail the
RPF check will not be forwarded, and the router will conduct an assert process for the (S,
G) pair specified in the packet. The packets for which a route to the source cannot be
found must be discarded. If the RPF check has been passed, an outgoing interface list is
constructed for the packet. If this list is not empty, then the packet must be forwarded to
all the listed interfaces. If the list is empty, then the router will conduct a prune process for
the (S,G) pair specified in the packet.
Upon receipt of a data packet from S addressed to G on interface iif,
if ðiif ¼¼ RPFinterface ðSÞ AND UpstreamPStateðS; GÞ ! ¼ PrunedÞ
foiflist ¼ olistðS; GÞg else foiflist ¼ NULLg
where UpstreamPState(S,G) is the state of the Upstream(S,G) state machine in Upstream

Prune, Join, and Graft messages, then the packet is forwarded on all interfaces in the
oif list.
7.3.3 Hello Messages

This section describes the generation and processing of Hello messages.
7.3.3.1 Sending Hello Messages. PIM DM uses Hello messages to detect

other PIM routers. Hello messages are sent periodically on each PIM-enabled interface.
Hello messages are multicast to the ALL-PIM-ROUTERS group. When PIM is enabled
on an interface, or when a router first starts, the HT must be set to a random value between
0 and Triggered_Hello_Delay. This prevents synchronization of Hello messages if
multiple routers are powered on simultaneously. After the initial Hello message, a Hello
message must be sent to every Hello_Period. A single hello timer may be used to trigger
sending Hello messages on all active interfaces. The hello timer should not be reset
except when it expires.
7.3.3.2 Receiving Hello Messages. When a Hello message is received, the

receiving router will record the receiving interface, the sender, and any information
contained in recognized options. This information is retained for a number of seconds
in the Hold Time field of the Hello message. If a new Hello message is received from
a particular neighbor N, the NLT(N,I) must be reset to the newly received hello
holdtime. If a Hello message is received from a new neighbor, the receiving router
should send its own Hello message after a random delay between 0 and
Triggered_Hello_Delay.
7.3.3.3 Hello Message Hold Time. The hold time in the Hello message
should be set to a value that can reasonably be expected to keep the hello active until a
new Hello message is received. On most links, this will be 3.5 times the value of
Hello_Period.
If the hold time is set to 0xFFFF, the receiving router must not time out that Hello
message. This feature might be used for on-demand links to avoid keeping the link up
with periodic Hello messages. If a hold time of 0 is received, the corresponding neighbor
state expires immediately. When a PIM router takes an interface down or changes the IP
address, a Hello message with a zero hold time should be sent immediately (with the old
IP address if the IP address is changed) to cause any PIM neighbors to remove the old
information immediately.
7.3.3.4 Handling Router Failures. If a Hello message is received from an

active neighbor with a different Generation ID (GenID), the neighbor has restarted
and may not contain the correct (S,G) state. A Hello message should be sent after
a random delay between 0 and Triggered_Hello_Delay before any other messages
are sent. If the neighbor is downstream, the router may replay the last State
Refresh message for any (S,G) pairs for which it is the assert winner indicating
prune and assert status to the downstream router. These State Refresh messages
should be sent out immediately after the Hello message. If the neighbor is the
upstream neighbor for an (S,G) entry, the router may cancel its prune limit timer to
permit sending a Prune message and reestablishing a pruned state in the upstream
router.
Upon startup, a router may use any State Refresh messages received within
Hello_Period of its first Hello message on an interface to establish state information.
The state refresh source will be the RPF’(S), and the prune status for all interfaces
will be set according to the prune indicator bit in the State Refresh message. If the
prune indicator is set, the router should set the PruneLimitTimer to Prune_Holdtime
and set the PruneTimer on all downstream interfaces to the state refresh’s interval
times 2. The router should then propagate the state refresh as described in
Section 7.3.5.1.
7.3.3.5 Reducing Prune Propagation Delay on LANs. If all routers on a

LAN support the LAN Prune Delay option, then the PIM routers on that LAN will use the
values received to adjust their J/P_Override_Interval on that interface and the interface is
LAN delay enabled. Briefly, to avoid synchronization of Prune Override (Join) messages
when multiple downstream routers share a multiaccess link, sending of these messages is
delayed by a small random amount of time. The period of randomization is configurable
and has a default value of 3 s.
Each router on the LAN expresses its view on the amount of randomization
necessary in the Override Interval field of the LAN Prune Delay option. When all
routers on a LAN use the LAN Prune Delay option, all routers on the LAN must set their
Override_Interval to the largest override value on the LAN.
The LAN delay inserted by a router in the LAN Prune Delay option expresses the
expected message propagation delay on the link and should be configurable by the
system administrator. When all routers on a link use the LAN Prune Delay option, all
routers on the LAN must set propagation delay to the largest LAN delay.
PIM implementers should enforce a lower bound on the permitted values for this
delay to allow for scheduling and processing delays within their router. Such delays
may cause received messages to be processed later and triggered messages to be
sent later than intended. Setting this LAN prune delay to too low a value may
result in temporary forwarding outages, because a downstream router will not be
able to override a neighbor’s Prune message before the upstream neighbor stops
forwarding.
7.3.4 PIM DM Prune, Join, and Graft Messages

This section describes the generation and processing of PIM DM Join, Prune, and Graft
messages. Prune messages are sent toward the upstream neighbor for S to indicate that
traffic from S addressed to group G is not desired. In the case of downstream routers A
and B, where A wishes to continue receiving data and B does not, A will send a join in
olist == NULL
Forward Pruned
RPF (S) Changes

olist == NULL
Rcv GraftAck OR
Rcv State Refresh with (P==0) OR olist != NULL
AckPending
S Directly Connect
Figure 7.2. Upstream Interface State Machine
response to B’s prune to override the prune. This is the only situation in PIM DM in
which a Join message is used. Finally, a Graft message is used to rejoin a previously
pruned branch to the delivery tree.
7.3.4.1 Upstream Prune, Join, and Graft Messages. The Upstream(S,G)

state machine for sending Prune, Graft, and Join messages is shown in Figure 7.2. There
are three states, as shown in Table 7.6, and three times, as shown in Table 7.7.
T A B L E 7.6. Upstream(S,G) State Machine States

State Description
Forwarding (F) This is the starting state of the Upsteam(S,G) state machine.
The state machine is in this state if it just started or if
oiflist(S,G) !¼ NULL.
Pruned (P) The set olist(S,G) is empty. The router will not forward data from
S addressed to group G.
AckPending (AP) The router was in the Pruned (P) state, but a transition
has occurred in the Downstream (S,G) state machine
for one of this (S,G) entry’s outgoing interfaces, indicating
that traffic from S addressed to G should again be forwarded.
A Graft message has been sent to RPF’(S), but a GraftAck
message has not yet been received.
T A B L E 7.7. State-Machine-Specific Timers

Timer Description
GraftRetry Timer (GRT(S,G)) This timer is set when a graft is sent upstream. If a
corresponding GraftAck is not received before the timer
expires, then another graft is sent, and the GraftRetry
timer is reset. The timer is stopped when a GraftAck
message is received. This timer is normally set to
Graft_Retry_Period.
Override Timer (OT(S,G)) This timer is set when a Prune(S,G) is received on the
upstream interface where olist(S,G) !¼ NULL. When
the timer expires, a Join(S,G) message is sent on
the upstream interface. This timer is normally set
to t_override.
Prune Limit Timer (PLT(S,G)) This timer is used to rate limit prunes on a LAN. It is
only used when the Upstream(S,G) state machine is in
the pruned state. A prune cannot be sent if this timer
is running. This timer is normally set to t_limit.
In tabular form, the state, machine is defined as follows:

Previous State
Event Forwarding Pruned AckPending
Data packet >P Send >P Send N/A
arrives on Prune(S,G) Prune(S,G)
RPF_Interface(S) Set PLT(S,G) Set PLT
AND olist(S,G) (S,G)
¼¼ NULL AND PLT
(S,G) not running
State Refresh(S,G) >F Set OT >P Reset >AP Set
received from (S,G) PLT(S,G) OT(S,G)
RPFÓ(S)
AND Prune
Indicator ¼¼ 1
State Refresh >F >P Send >F Cancel
(S,G) received Prune GRT(S,G)
from RPFÓ(S) (S,G)
AND Prune Set PLT
Indicator ¼¼ 0 (S,G)
AND PLT(S,G)
not running
See Join(S,G) >F Cancel >P >AP Cancel
to RPF’(S) OT(S,G) OT(S,G)
See Prune(S,G) >F Set >P >AP Set
OT(S,G) OT(S,G)
OT(S,G) >F Send N/A >AP Send
Expires Join(S,G) Join(S,G)
Previous State
Event Forwarding Pruned AckPending
olist(S,G) >P Send N/A >P Send
>NULL Prune(S,G) Prune(S,G)
Set PLT(S,G) Set PLT
(S,G)
Cancel
GRT
(S,G)
olist(S,G) N/A >AP Send N/A
>nonNULL Graft(S,G)
Set GRT(S,G)
RPF’(S) >AP Send >AP Send >AP Send
Changes AND
olist(S,G) Graft(S,G) Graft(S,G) Graft(S,G)
!¼ NULL Set GRT(S,G) Set GRT Set GRT(S,G)
(S,G)
RPF’(S) >P >P Cancel >P Cancel
Changes PLT(S,G) GRT(S,G)
AND olist
(S,G) ¼¼ NULL
S becomes >F >P >F Cancel
directly GRT(S,G)
connected
GRT(S,G) N/A N/A >AP Send
Expires Graft(S,G)
Set
GRT(S,G)
Receive >F >P >F Cancel
GraftAck(S,G) GRT(S,G)
from RPF’(S)
The transition event RcvGraftAck(S,G) implies receiving a GraftAck message

targeted to this router’s address on the incoming interface for the (S,G) entry. If
the destination address is not correct, the state transitions in this state machine must
not occur.
TRANSITIONS FROM THE FORWARDING (F) STATE. When the Upstream(S,G) state machine is in
the F state, the events shown in Table 7.8 may trigger a transition.
TRANSITIONS FROM THE PRUNED (P) STATE. When the Upstream(S,G) state machine is in the P
state, the events shown in Table 7.9 may trigger a transition.
TRANSITIONS FRO THE ACKPENDING(AP) STATE. When the Upstream(S,G) state machine is in
the AP state, the events shown in Table 7.10 may trigger a transition.
T A B L E 7.8. Events That Trigger a Transition from the F State

Event Description
Data Packet arrives on The Upstream(S,G) state machine must transition to the
RPF_Interface(S) AND P state, send a Prune(S,G) to RPF’(S), and
olist(S,G) ¼¼ NULL AND set PLT(S,G) to t_limit seconds.
S NOT directly connected
State Refresh(S,G) received The Upstream(S,G) state machine remains in an F
from RPF’(S) state. If the received state refresh has the prune
indicator bit set to 1, this router must override the
upstream router’s prune state after a short random
interval. If the Override Timer OT(S,G) is not running and
the prune indicator bit equals 1, the router must set OT(S,G)
to t_override seconds.
See Join(S,G) to RPF’(S) This event is only relevant if RPF_interface(S) is a
shared medium. This router sees another router on
RPF_interface(S) send a Join(S,G) to RPF’(S,G). If the
OT(S,G) is running, it means that the router had
scheduled a join to override a previously received
prune. Another router has responded more quickly with
a join, so the local router should cancel its OT(S,G),
if it is running. The Upstream(S,G) state machine
remains in the F state.
See Prune(S,G) AND S NOT This event is only relevant if RPF_interface(S) is a
directly connected shared medium. This router sees another router on
RPF_interface(S) send a Prune(S,G). As this router
is in the F state, it must override the prune after
a short random interval. If OT(S,G) is not running,
the router must set OT(S,G) to t_override seconds.
The Upstream(S,G) state machine remains
in the F state.
OT(S,G) expires AND S NOT OT(S,G) expires. The router must
directly connected send a Join(S,G) to RPF’(S) to override a previously
detected prune. The Upstream(S,G) state machine
remains in the F state.
olist(S,G) > NULL AND S The Upstream(S,G) state machine must transition to
NOT directly connected the P state, send a Prune(S,G) to RPF’(S),
and set PLT(S,G) to t_limit seconds.
RPF’(S) changes AND Unicast routing or assert state causes RPF’(S) to
olist(S,G) is non-NULL change, including changes to RPF_Interface(S). The
AND S NOT directly Upstream(S,G) state machine must transition to the
connected AP state, unicast a Graft to the new RPF’(S), and set
the Graft Retry Timer (GRT(S,G)) to Graft_Retry_Period.
RPF’(S) changes AND Unicast routing or assert state causes RPF’(S) to change,
olist(S,G) is NULL including changes to RPF_Interface(S). The Upstream(S,G)
state machine must transition to the P state.
T A B L E 7.9. Events That Trigger a Transition from the Upstream(S,G) State

Event Description
Data arrives on RPF_interface(S) Either another router on the LAN desires traffic from
AND PLT(S,G) not running S addressed to G or a previous prune was lost.
AND S NOT directly connected To prevent generating a Prune(S,G) in response to
every data packet, the Prune Limit Timer (PLT(S,G))
is used. Once the PLT(S,G) expires, the router
needs to send another prune in response to a data
packet not received directly from the source.
A Prune(S,G) must be sent to RPF’(S), and
the PLT(S,G) must be set to t_limit.
State Refresh(S,G) received The Upstream(S,G) state machine remains in a
from RPF’(S) pruned state. If the state refresh has its prune
indicator bit set to zero and PLT(S,G) is not
running, a Prune(S,G) must be sent to RPF’(S),
and the PLT(S,G) must be set to t_limit. If the
state refresh has its prune indicator bit
set to 1, the router must reset PLT(S,G)
to t_limit.
See Prune(S,G) to RPF’(S) A Prune(S,G) is seen on RPF_interface(S) to
RPF’(S). The Upstream(S,G) state machine stays
in the P state. The router may reset its PLT(S,G)
to the value in the Holdtime field of the received message
if it is greater than the current value
of the PLT(S,G).
olist(S,G)non-NULL AND S The set of interfaces defined by the olist(S,G) macro
NOT directly connected becomes nonempty, indicating that traffic from
S addressed to group G must be forwarded. The
Upstream(S,G) state machine must cancel PLT(S,G),
transition to the AP state, and unicast a
Graft message to RPF’(S). The Graft Retry Timer
(GRT(S,G)) must be set to Graft_Retry_Period.
olist(S,G) ¼¼ non-NULL AND change, including changes to RPF_Interface(S).
S NOT directly connected The Upstream(S,G) state machine must cancel
PLT(S,G), transition to the AP state, send
a graft unicast to the new RPF’(S), and set
GRT(S,G) to Graft_Retry_Period.
RPF’(S) changes AND Unicast routing or assert state causes RPF’(S)
olist(S,G) ¼¼ NULL AND S to change, including changes to RPF_Interface(S).
NOT directly connected The Upstream(S,G) state machine stays in the
P state and must cancel the PLT(S,G) timer.
S becomes directly connected Unicast routing changed so that S is directly connected.
The Upstream(S,G) state machine remains in the
P state.
T A B L E 7.10. Events That Trigger a Transition from the AP State

Event Description
State Refresh(S,G) received The Upstream(S,G) state machine remains in an AP
from RPF’(S) with prune state. The router must override the upstream router’s
indicator ¼¼ 1 prune state after a short random interval. If the Override
Timer OT (S,G) is not running and the prune indicator
bit equals 1, the router must set OT(S,G) to t_override
seconds.
State Refresh(S,G) received The router must cancel its Graft Retry Timer (GRT(S,G))
from RPF’(S) with prune and transition to the F state.
indicator ¼¼ 0
See Join(S,G) to RPF’(S,G) This event is only relevant if RPF_interface(S) is a
RPF_interface(S) send a Join(S,G) to RPF’(S,G). If
the OT(S,G) is running, it means that the router had
scheduled a join to override a previously received
prune. Another router has responded more quickly
with a join, so the local router SHOULD cancel its
OT(S,G), if it is running. The Upstream(S,G)
state machine remains in the AP state.
See Prune(S,G) This event is only relevant if RPF_interface(S) is a
RPF_interface(S) send a Prune(S,G). As this router
is in AP state, it must override the prune after a short
random interval. If OT(S,G) is not running, the
router must set OT(S,G) to t_override seconds. The
Upstream(S,G) state machine remains in AP state.
OT(S,G) Expires The OT(S,G) expires. The router must send a Join(S,G)
to RPF’(S). The Upstream(S,G) state machine remains in
the AP state.
olist(S,G) > NULL The set of interfaces defined by the olist(S,G) macro
becomes null, indicating that traffic from S addressed
to group G should no longer be forwarded. The
Upstream(S,G) state machine must transition to the
P state. A Prune(S,G) must be multicast to
the RPF_interface(S), with RPF’(S) named in the
upstream neighbor field. The GRT(S,G) must be cancelled,
and PLT(S,G) must be set to t_limit seconds.
RPF’(S) changes AND Unicast routing or assert state causes RPF’(S) to change,
olist(S,G) does not become including changes to RPF_Interface(S). The Upstream(S,G)
NULL AND S NOT state machine stays in the AP state. A graft must be
directly connected unicast to the new RPF’(S) and the GRT(S,G) reset to
Graft_Retry_Period
olist(S,G) ¼¼ NULL change, including changes to RPF_Interface(S).
The Upstream(S,G)
TABLE 7.10 (Continued )
Event Description
AND S NOT directly state machine must transition to the P state.
connected The GRT(S,G) must be cancelled.
S becomes directly Unicast routing has changed so that S is directly connected.
connected The graft retry timer must be cancelled, and the
Upstream(S,G) state machine must transition to the
F state.
GRT(S,G) expires The GRT(S,G) expires for this (S,G) entry. The Upstream(S,G)
state machine stays in the AP state. Another Graft message
for (S,G) should be unicast to RPF’(S) and the GRT(S,G)
reset to Graft_Retry_Period. It is recommended that the
router retry a configured number of times before ceasing retries.
See GraftAck(S,G) A GraftAck is received from RPF’(S). The graft retry timer
from RPF’(S) must be cancelled, and the Upstream(S,G) state machine
must transition to the F state.
7.3.4.2 Downstream Prune, Join, and Graft Messages. The Prune(S,G)

downstream state machine for receiving Prune, Join, and Graft messages on interface I is
shown in Figure 7.3. This state machine must always be in the NoInfo state on the
upstream interface. It contains three states, as shown in Table 7.11. Table 7.12 lists times.
PPT Expires
PrunePending Pruned
Rcv Prune
Rcv Join/Graft or Rcv Join/Graft or

RPF_Interface (S) -> I NoInfo PT Expires, or
RPF_Interface (S) ->I
Figure 7.3. Downstream Interface State Machine

T A B L E 7.11. Prune(S,G) Downstream State Machine States

State Description
NoInfo(NI) The interface has no (S,G) prune state, and
neither the Prune Timer (PT(S,G,I)) nor
the Prune Pending Timer ((PPT(S,G,I))
is running
PrunePending(PP) The router has received a Prune(S,G) on this interface
from a downstream neighbor and is waiting to see
whether the prune will be overridden by another
downstream router. For forwarding purposes,
the prune pending state functions exactly like
the NoInfo state.
Pruned(P) The router has received a Prune(S,G) on this interface
from a downstream neighbor, and the prune was not
overridden. Data from S addressed to group G is no
longer being forwarded on this interface
In tabular form, the state machine is as follows:

Previous State
Event NoInfo PrunePend Pruned
Receive ->PP Set ->PP ->P Reset
Prune(S,G) PPT(S,G,I) T(S,G,I)
Receive ->NI ->NI Cancel ->NI Cancel
Join(S,G) ->NI Send PPT(S,G,I) T(S,G,I)
Receive GraftAck ->NI send ->NI Send
Graft(S,G) GraftAck GraftAck
cancel cancel
PPT(S,G,I) PT(S,G,I)
PPT(S,G) N/A ->P Set PT N/A
expires (S,G,I)
PT(S,G) N/A N/A ->NI
expires
RPF_Interface(S) ->NI ->NI cancel ->NI cancel
becomes I PPT(S,G,I) PT(S,G,I)
Send State ->NI ->PP ->P reset
Refresh(S,G) PT(S,G,I)
out I
The transition events “Receive Graft(S,G),” “Receive Prune(S,G),” and “Receive

Join(S,G)” denote receiving a Graft, Prune, or Join message in which this router’s address
on I is contained in the message’s Upstream Neighbor field. If the Upstream Neighbor
T A B L E 7.12. Prune(S,G) Downstream State Machine Timers

Timer Description
Prune Pending This timer is set when a valid Prune(S,G) is received.
Timer (PPT(S,G,I)) Expiry of the PPT(S,G,I) causes the interface to transition
to the pruned state.
Prune Timer (PT(S,G,I)) This timer is set when the PPT(S,G,I) expires. Expiry of the
PT(S,G,I) causes the interface to transition to the
NoInfo (NI) state, thereby allowing data from S
addressed to group G to be forwarded on
the interface.
field does not match this router’s address on I, then these state transitions in this state
machine must not occur.
TRANSITIONS FROM THE NOINFO STATE. When the Prune(S,G) downstream state machine is in
the NI state, the events identified in Table 7.13 may trigger a transition.
TRANSITIONS FROM THE PRUNEPENDING (PP) STATE. When the Prune(S,G) downstream state
machine is in the PP state, the events identified in Table 7.14 may trigger a transition.
T A B L E 7.13. Events That Trigger a Transition from the NI State

Event Description
Receive Prune(S,G) A Prune(S,G) is received on interface I with the upstream
neighbor field set to the router’s address on I. The
Prune(S,G) downstream state machine on interface I must
transition to the PP state. The Prune Pending Timer
(PPT(S,G,I)) must be set to J/P_Override_Interval
if the router has more than one neighbor on I. If the router
has only one neighbor on interface I, then it should
set the PPT(S,G,I) to zero, effectively transitioning
immediately to the P state.
Receive Graft(S,G) A Graft(S,G) is received on the interface I with the
upstream neighbor field set to the router’s address on I.
The Prune(S,G) downstream state machine on interface
I stays in the NI state. A GraftAck(S,G) MUST be
unicast to the originator of the Graft(S,G) message.
T A B L E 7.14. Events That Trigger a Transition from the PP State

Event Description
Receive Join(S,G) A Join(S,G) is received on interface I with the
upstream neighbor field set to the router’s address
on I. The Prune(S,G) downstream state machine on
interface I must transition to the NI state. The
Prune Pending Timer (PPT(S,G,I)) must be
cancelled.
Receive Graft(S,G) A Graft(S,G) is received on interface I with the
upstream neighbor field set to the router’s address
on I. The Prune(S,G) downstream state machine on
interface I must transition to the NI state and must
unicast a GraftAck message to the graft originator.
The PPT(S,G,I) must be cancelled.
PPT(S,G,I) expires The PPT(S,G,I) expires, indicating that no neighbors
have overridden the previous Prune(S,G) message.
The Prune(S,G) downstream state machine on
interface I must transition to the P state. The Prune
Timer (PT(S,G,I)) is started and must be initialized
to the received Prune_Hold_Time minus
J/P_Override_Interval. A PruneEcho(S,G) must
be sent on I if I has more than one PIM neighbor.
A PruneEcho(S,G) is simply a Prune(S,G) message
multicast by the upstream router to a LAN, with itself
as the upstream neighbor. Its purpose is to add additional
reliability so that if a join that should have overridden
the prune is lost locally on the LAN, the PruneEcho(S,G)
may be received and trigger a new Join message.
A PruneEcho(S,G) is optional on an interface with only
one PIM neighbor. In addition, the router must evaluate
any possible transitions in the Upstream(S,G) state
machine. RPF_Interface(S) becomes interface I. The
upstream interface for S has changed. The Prune(S,G)
downstream state machine on interface I must transition
to the NI state. The PPT(S,G,I) must be cancelled.
TRANSITIONS FROM THE PRUNE (P) STATE. When the Prune(S,G) downstream
state machine is in the P state, the events identified in Table 7.15 may trigger a
transition.
7.3.5 State Refresh

This section describes the major portions of the state refresh mechanism.
T A B L E 7.15. Events That Trigger a Transition from the P State

Event Description
Receive Prune(S,G) A Prune(S,G) is received on the interface I with
the Upstream Neighbor field set to the router’s
address on I. The Prune(S,G) downstream
state machine on interface I remains in the
P state. The Prune Timer (PT(S,G,I)) should
be reset to the holdtime contained in the
Prune(S,G) message if it is greater than the
current value.
Receive Join(S,G) A Join(S,G) is received on the interface I with
address on I. The Prune(S,G) downstream
state machine on interface I must transition
to the NI state. The PT(S,G,I) must be
cancelled. The router must evaluate any
possible transitions in the Upstream(S,G)
state machine.
Receive Graft(S,G) A Graft(S,G) is received on interface I with
address on I. The Prune(S,G) downstream state
machine on interface I must transition to the
NI state and send a GraftAck back to the
graft’s source. The PT(S,G,I) must be
cancelled. The router must evaluate any possible
transitions in the Upstream(S,G)
state machine.
PT(S,G,I) expires The PT(S,G,I) expires, indicating that time
again is to flood data from S addressed
to group G onto interface I. The Prune(S,G)
downstream state machine on interface I must
transition to the NI state. The router must evaluate
any possible transitions in the Upstream(S,G)
state machine.
RPF_Interface(S) becomes interface I The upstream interface for S has changed. The
Prune(S,G) downstream state machine on
interface I must transition to the NI state.
The PT(S,G,I) must be cancelled.
Send State Refresh(S,G) out to interface I The router has refreshed the Prune(S,G) state
on interface I. The router must reset the
PT(S,G,I) to the holdtime from an active
prune received on interface I. The holdtime
used should be the largest active one but
may be the most recently received active
prune holdtime.
7.3.5.1 Forwarding of State Refresh Messages. When a State Refresh

message, is received, it is forwarded according to the following pseudocode:
if (iif != RPF_interface(S)) return;

if (RPF’(S) != srcaddr(SRM)) return;
if (StateRefreshRateLimit(S,G) == TRUE) return;
for each interface I in pim_nbrs {

if (TTL(SRM) == 0 OR (TTL(SRM)-1) < Threshold(I))
continue;/* Out of TTL, skip this interface */
if (boundary(I,G))
continue;/* This interface is scope boundary, skip it */
if (I == iif)
continue;/* This is the incoming interface, skip it */
if (lost_assert(S,G,I) == TRUE)
continue;/* Let the Assert Winner do State Refresh */
Copy SRM to SRM’/* Make a copy of SRM to forward */
if (I contained in prunes(S,G)) {
set Prune Indicator bit of SRM’ to 1;
if StateRefreshCapable(I) == TRUE
set PT(S,G) to largest active holdtime read from a Prune
message accepted on I;
} else {
set Prune Indicator bit of SRM’ to 0;
}
set srcaddr(SRM’) to my_addr(I);

set TTL of SRM’ to TTL(SRM)-1;
set metric of SRM’ to metric of unicast route used to reach S;
set pref of SRM’ to preference of unicast route used to reach S;
set mask of SRM’ to mask of route used to reach S;
if (AssertState == NoInfo) {
set Assert Override of SRM’ to 1;
} else {
set Assert Override of SRM’ to 0;
}
transmit SRM’ on I;
}
The pseudocode above employs the macro definitions listed in Table 7.16.
T A B L E 7.16. Macro Definitions Used for Forwarding of State Refresh Messages

Macro Definition
Boundary(I,G) TRUE if an administratively scoped boundary for group G
is configured on interface I
StateRefreshCapable(I) TRUE if all neighbors on an interface use the state
refresh option
StateRefreshRateLimit(S,G) TRUE if the time elapsed since the last received State
Refresh(S,G) is less than the configured RefreshLimitInterval
TTL(SRM) Returns the TTL contained in the State Refresh Message,
SRM. This is different from the TTL contained in the IP
header.
Threshold(I) Returns the minimum TTL that a packet must have before
it can be transmitted on interface I
srcaddr(SRM) Returns the source address contained in the network protocol
(e.g., IPv4) header of the SRM
my_addr(I) Returns this node’s network (e.g., IPv4) address on interface I
7.3.5.2 State Refresh Message Origination. This section describes the

origination of State Refresh messages. These messages are generated periodically by
the PIM DM router directly connected to a source. One Origination(S,G) state machine
exists per (S,G) entry in a PIM DM router. The Origination(S,G) state machine shown in
Figure 7.4 has the states defined in Table 7.17. Timers used in this state machine are
defined in Table 7.18.
Rcv directly from S
NotOriginator Originator
SAT expires or
S not direct connect
Figure 7.4. State Refresh State Machine
T A B L E 7.17. States for Origination(S,G) State Machine

State Description
NotOriginator (NO) This is the starting state of the Origination(S,G) state machine.
While in this state, a router will not originate State Refresh
messages for the (S,G) pair.
Originator (O) When in this state the router will periodically originate
State Refresh messages. Only routers directly connected
to S may transition to this state.
T A B L E 7.18. Timers Used State Machine

Timer Description
State Refresh Timer This timer controls when State Refresh messages are
(SRT(S,G)) generated. The timer is initially set when that Origination(S,G)
state machine transitions to the O state. It is cancelled
when the Origination(S,G) state machine transitions to the
NO state. This timer is normally set to StateRefreshInterval.
Source Active Timer This timer is first set when the Origination(S,G) state machine
(SAT(S,G)) transitions to the O state and is reset on the receipt of every
data packet from S addressed to group G. When it expires,
the Origination(S,G) state machine transitions to the NO state.
This timer is normally set to SourceLifetime.
In tabular form, the state machine is defined as follows:

Previous State
Event NotOriginator Originator
Receive data from ->O ->O Reset SAT(S,G)
S and S Set SRT (S,G)
directly connected Set SAT (S,G)
SRT(S,G) expires N/A ->O Send StateRe
fresh(S,G)
reset SRT(S,G)
SAT(S,G) expires N/A >NO Cancel SRT(S,G)
S no longer directly ->NO >NO Cancel SRT(S,G)
connected Cancel SAT(S,G)
TRANSITIONS FROM THE NOTORIGINATOR (NO) STATE. When the Originating(S,G) state
machine is in the NO state, the event shown in Table 7.19 may trigger a transition.
TRANSITIONS FROM THE ORIGINATOR (O) STATE. When the Origination(S,G) state machine is
in the O state, the events shown in Table 7.20 may trigger a transition.
T A B L E 7.19. Events That Trigger a Transition from the NO State

Event Description
Data packet received The router must transition to an O state, set SAT(S,G)
from directly connected to SourceLifetime, and set SRT(S,G) to StateRefreshInterval.
Source S addressed to The router should record the TTL of the packet for use in
group G State Refresh messages
7.3.6 PIM Assert Messages

7.3.6.1 Assert Metrics. Assert metrics are defined as follows:
struct assert_metric {
metric_preference;
route_metric;
ip_address;
};
T A B L E 7.20. Events That Trigger a Transition from the O State

Event Description
Receive data packet from The router remains in the O state and must reset SAT(S,G)
S addressed to G to SourceLifetime. The router should increase its recorded
TTL to match the TTL of the packet if the packet’s TTL
is larger than the previously recorded TTL. A router may
record the TTL based on an implementation-specific
sampling policy to avoid examining the TTL of every
multicast packet it handles.
SRT(S,G) expires The router remains in the O state and must reset SRT(S,G)
to StateRefreshInterval. The router must also generate
State Refresh messages for transmission, as described
in the state refresh forwarding rules (Section 7.3.5.1),
except for the TTL. If the TTL of data packets from S to G
are being recorded, then the TTL of each State Refresh
message is set to the highest recorded TTL. Otherwise, the
TTL is set to the configured state refresh TTL. Let I denote
the interface over which a State Refresh message is being
sent. If the Prune(S,G) downstream state machine is in the
P state, then the prune indicator bit must be set to 1 in the
State Refresh message being sent over I. Otherwise, the prune
indicator bit must be set to 0
SAT(S,G) expires The router must cancel the SRT(S,G) timer and transition to
the NO state
S is no longer directly The router must transition to the NO state and cancel both the
connected SAT(S,G) and SRT(S,G)
When assert_metrics are compared, the metric_preference and route_metric field

are compared in order, where the first lower value wins. If all fields are equal, the IP
address of the router that sourced the Assert message is used as a tiebreaker, with the
highest IP address winning.
An assert metric for (S,G) to include in (or compare against) an Assert message sent
on interface I should be computed using the following pseudocode:
assert_metric
my_assert_metric(S,G,I) {
if (CouldAssert(S,G,I) == TRUE) {
return spt_assert_metric(S,G,I)
}else {
return infinite_assert_metric()
}
}
spt_assert_metric(S,I) gives the assert metric that we use if one is sending an assert
based on the following active (S,G) forwarding state:
assert_metric
spt_assert_metric(S,I) {
return {0,MRIB.pref(S),MRIB.metric(S),my_addr(I)}
}
MRIB.pref(X) and MRIB.metric(X) are the routing preference and routing metrics
associated with the route to a particular (unicast) destination X, as determined by the
MRIB.; my_addr(I) is simply the router’s network (e.g., IP) address associated with the
local interface I.
infinite_assert_metric() gives the assert metric that one needs to send an assert but
does not match the (S,G) forwarding state:
assert_metric
infinite_assert_metric() {
return {1,infinity,infinity,0}
}
7.3.6.2 AssertCancel Messages. An AssertCancel(S,G) message is simply an

Assert message for (S,G) with infinite metric. The assert winner sends this message
when it changes its upstream interface to this interface. Other routers will see this metric,
causing those with forwarding state to send their own asserts and reestablish an assert
winner.
AssertCancel messages are simply an optimization. The original assert
timeout mechanism will eventually allow a subnet to become consistent; the Assert-
Cancel mechanism simply causes faster convergence. No special processing is required
for an AssertCancel message, as it is simply an Assert message from the current

winner.
7.3.6.3 Assert State Macros. The macro lost_assert(S,G,I) is used in the olist
computations of state summarization nomenclature and is defined as follows:
bool lost_assert(S,G,I) {
if ( RPF_interface(S) == I ) {
return FALSE
}else {
return (AssertWinner(S,G,I) != me AND
(AssertWinnerMetric(S,G,I) is better than
spt_assert_metric(S,G,I)))
}
}
AssertWinner(S,G,I) defaults to NULL, and AssertWinnerMetric(S,G,I) defaults to

infinity when in the NI state.
7.3.6.4 (S,G) Assert Message State Machine. The (S,G) assert state
machine for interface I is shown in Figure 7.5. There are three states as depicted in
Table 7.21.
In addition, an Assert Timer (AT(S,G,I)) is used to time out the assert state.
Rcv Pref Assert OR

State Refresh
Winner Loser
AT expires OR Rcv Pref Assert OR

CouldAssert-> FALSE State Refresh
Rcv Inf Assert from win, OR

NoInfo Rcv Inf State Refresh from winner, OR
Rcv Data from dnstrm, OR
at expires, OR
Rcv Inferior Assert, OR
CouldAssert changes, OR
Rcv Inferior State Refresh
winner’s NLT expires
Figure 7.5. Assert State Machine
T A B L E 7.21. States for (S,G) Assert State Machine

State Description
NoInfo (NI) This router has no (S,G) assert state on interface I.
I am Assert Winner (W) This router has won an (S,G) assert on interface I. It is now
responsible for forwarding traffic from S destined for G
via interface I.
I am Assert Loser (L) This router has lost an (S,G) assert on interface I. It must not
forward packets from S destined for G onto interface I.
In tabular form, the state machine is defined as follows:

Previous State
Event NoInfo Winner Loser
An (S,G) data ->W Send ->W Send ->L
packet received Assert(S,G) Assert(S,G)
on downstream set AT(S,G,I) set AT(S,G,I)
interface
Receive Inferior N/A N/A ->NI Cancel
(Assert or AT(S,G,I)
State Refresh)
from Assert
Winner
Receive Inferior ->W Send ->W Send ->L
(Assert or Assert(S,G) Assert(S,G)
State Refresh) set AT(S,G,I) set AT(S,G,I)
from nonAssert
winner and
CouldAssert¼¼TRUE
Receive Preferred >L Send ->L Send ->L Set
Assert Prune(S,G) Prune(S,G) AT(S,G,I)
or State Refresh set AT(S,G,I) set AT(S,G,I)
Send State Refresh ->NI ->W reset N/A
AT(S,G,I)
AT(S,G) Expires N/A ->NI ->NI
CouldAssert -> ->NI ->NI Cancel ->NI Cancel
FALSE AT(S,G,I) AT(S,G,I)
CouldAssert -> ->NI N/A ->NI Cancel
TRUE AT(S,G,I)
Winner’s NLT(N,I) N/A N/A ->NI Cancel
Expires AT(S,G,I)
Receive Prune(S,G), ->NI ->W ->L Send
Join(S,G) Assert(S,G)
or Graft(S,G)
T A B L E 7.22. Events That Trigger a Transition from the NI State

Event Description
An (S,G) data packet An (S,G) data packet arrived on a downstream interface. It is
arrives on downstream optimistically assumed that this router will be the assert
interface I winner for this (S,G). The assert state machine must transition
to the “I am Assert Winner” state, send an Assert(S,G) to
interface I, store its own address and metric as the assert
winner, and set the Assert_Timer (AT(S,G,I) to Assert_Time,
thereby initiating the assert negotiation for (S,G).
Receive Inferior (Assert An assert or state refresh is received for (S,G) that is inferior
or State Refresh) and to our own assert metric on interface I. The assert state
CouldAssert(S,G,I) machine must transition to the “I am Assert Winner” state,
¼¼TRUE send an Assert(S,G) to interface I, store its own address
and metric as the assert winner, and set AT(S,G,I) to Assert_Time.
Receive Preferred Assert The received assert or state refresh has a better metric than
or State Refresh this router’s, and, therefore, the assert state machine must
transition to the “I am Assert Loser” state and store the assert
winner’s address and metric. If the metric was received in an
assert, the router must set AT(S,G,I) to Assert_Time. If the
metric was received in a state refresh, the router must set
AT(S,G,I) to three times the received state refresh interval.
If CouldAssert(S,G,I) ¼¼ TRUE, the router must also
multicast a Prune(S,G) to the assert winner with a prune
holdtime equal to the assert timer and evaluate any changes
in its Upstream(S,G) state machine.
Terminology: A “preferred assert” is one with a better metric than the current winner.
An “inferior assert” is one with a worse metric than my_assert_metric(S,G,I).
The state machine uses the following macro:
CouldAssert(S,G,I) = (RPF_interface(S) != I)
TRANSITIONS FROM NI STATE. In the NI state, the events shown in Table 7.22 may trigger
transitions.
TRANSITIONS FROM WINNER STATE. When in “I am Assert Winner” state, the events shown in
Table 7.23 trigger transitions.
TRANSITIONS FROM LOSER STATE. When in “I am Assert Loser” state, the transitions shown in
Table 7.24 can occur.
7.3.6.5 Rationale for Assert Rules. The following is a summary of the rules
for generating and processing Assert messages. It is not intended to be definitive (the
T A B L E 7.23. Events That Trigger a Transition from the “I am Assert Winner” State
Event Description
An (S,G) data packet An (S,G) data packet arrived on a downstream interface.
arrives on downstream The assert state machine remains in the “I am Assert
interface I Winner” state. The router must send an Assert(S,G) to
interface I and set the Assert Timer (AT(S,G,I)) to
Assert_Time.
Receive Inferior Assert An (S,G) assert is received containing a metric for S that
or State Refresh is worse than this router’s metric for S. Whoever sent the
assert is in error. The router must send an Assert(S,G) to
interface I and reset AT(S,G,I) to Assert_Time.
Receive Preferred Assert An (S,G) assert or state refresh is received that has a
or State Refresh better metric than this router’s metric for S on interface
I. The assert state machine must transition to “I am
Assert Loser” state and store the new assert winner’s
address and metric. If the metric was received in an
assert, the router must set AT(S,G,I) to Assert_Time. If
the metric was received in a state refresh, the router
must set AT(S,G,I) to three times the state refresh
interval. The router must also multicast a Prune(S,G) to
the assert winner, with a prune holdtime equal to the
assert timer, and evaluate any changes in its
Upstream(S,G) state machine.
Send State Refresh The router is sending a State Refresh(S,G) message on
interface I. The router must set AT(S,G,I) to three
times the state refresh interval contained in the State
Refresh(S,G) message.
AT(S,G,I) Expires The (S,G) AT(S,G,I) expires. The assert state
machine must transition to the NI state.
CouldAssert(S,G,I) -> This router’s RPF interface changed, making
FALSE CouldAssert(S,G,I) false. This router can no longer
perform the actions of the Assert winner, so the assert
state machine must transition to NI state, send an
AssertCancel(S,G) to interface I, cancel the AT(S,G,I),
and remove itself as the assert winner.
state machines and pseudocode provide the definitive behavior). Instead, it provides
some rationale for the behavior.
1. The assert winner for (S,G) must act as the local forwarder for (S,G) on behalf of
all downstream members.
2. PIM messages are directed to the RPF’ neighbor and not to the regular RPF
neighbor.
T A B L E 7.24. Events That Trigger a Transition from the “I am Assert Loser” State
Event Description
Receive Inferior An assert or state refresh is received from the current Assert
Assert or State winner that is worse than this router’s metric for S (typically, the
Refresh from winner’s metric became worse). The assert state machine must
Current Winner transition to NI state and cancel the Assert Timer (AT(S,G,I)).
The router must delete the previous assert winner’s address
and metric and evaluate any possible transitions to its
Upstream(S,G) state machine. Usually this router will
eventually reassert and win when data packets from S have
started flowing again.
Receive Preferred An assert or state refresh is received that has a metric better than
Assert or State or equal to that of the current assert winner. The assert state
Refresh machine remains in the Loser (L) state. If the metric was received
in an assert, the router must set the AT(S,G,I) to Assert_Time.
If the metric was received in a state refresh, the router must set
the AT(S,G,I) to three times the received state refresh interval.
If the metric is better than the current assert winner, the router
must store the address and metric of the new assert winner,
and if CouldAssert(S,G,I) (b) V. Mirsa and D. E. Draper,
Biopolymers 48, 113(1998). See also ref. 71 and 72.¼¼ TRUE,
the router must multicast a Prune(S,G) to the new assert winner.
AT(S,G,I) expires The (S,G) AT(S,G,I) expires. The assert state machine must
transition to NI state. The router must delete the assert winner’s
address and metric. If CouldAssert ¼¼ TRUE, the router must
evaluate any possible transitions to its Upstream(S,G)
state machine.
CouldAssert > CouldAssert has become FALSE because interface I has become
FALSE the RPF interface for S. The assert state machine must transition
to NI state, cancel AT(S,G,I), and delete information
concerning the assert winner on I.
CouldAssert > CouldAssert has become TRUE because interface I used to be the
TRUE RPF interface for S, and now it is not. The assert state machine
must transition to NI state, cancel AT(S,G,I), and delete
information concerning the assert winner on I.
Current Assert The current assert winner’s NeighborLiveness Timer (NLT(N,I))
Winner’s has expired. The Assert state machine must transition to the
NeighborLiveness NI state, delete the assert winner’s address and metric,
Timer Expires and evaluate any possible transitions to its Upstream(S,G)
state machine
Receive Prune(S,G), A Prune(S,G), Join(S,G), or Graft(S,G) message was received
Join(S,G), or on interface I with its upstream neighbor address set to the
Graft(S,G) router’s address on I. The router must send an Assert(S,G)
on the receiving interface I to initiate an assert negotiation.
The assert state machine remains in the assert L state. If a
Graft(S,G) was received, the router must respond with a
GraftAck(S,G).
3. An assert loser that receives a Prune(S,G), Join(S,G), or Graft(S,G) directed to it

initiates a new assert negotiation so that the downstream router can correct its
RPF’(S).
4. An assert winner for (S,G) sends a cancelling assert when it is about to stop
forwarding on an (S,G) entry. Example: If a router is being taken down, then a
cancelling assert is sent.
7.3.7 PIM Packet Formats

All PIM DM packets use the same format as PIM SM packets discussed in Chapter 5. All
PIM control messages have IP number 103. All PIM DM messages must be sent with a
TTL of 1. All PIM DM messages except Graft and GraftAck messages must be sent to the
ALL-PIM-ROUTERS group. Graft messages should be unicast to the RPF’(S). GraftAck
messages must be unicast to the sender of the graft.
The IPv4 ALL-PIM-ROUTERS group is 224.0.0.13. The IPv6 ALL-PIM-ROU-
TERS group is FF02::D.
7.3.7.1 PIM Header. As discussed in Chapter 5, all PIM Control messages have
the header shown in Figure 7.6.
7.3.7.2 Hello Message Format. Refer to Chapter 5.
7.3.7.3 Join/Prune Message Format. Refer to Chapter 5.
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
PIM Ver PIM version number is 2.
Type: Types for specific PIM messages:

0 = Hello
1 = Register (PIM SM only)
2 = Register Stop (PIM SM only)
3 = Join/Prune
4 = Bootstrap (PIM SM only)
5 = Assert
6 = Graft
7 = GrafTack
8 = Candidate RP Advertisement (PIM SM only)
9 = State Refresh
Figure 7.6. PIM Control Message

7.3.7.4 Assert Message Format. Refer to Chapter 5.
7.3.7.5 Graft Message Format. PIM Graft messages use the same format as
Join/Prune messages, except that the Type field is set to 6. The source address must be in
the Join section of the message. The Holdtime field should be zero and should be ignored
when a graft is received.
7.3.7.6 GraftAck Message Format. PIM GraftAck messages are identical in

format to the received Graft message, except that the Type field is set to 7. The Upstream
Neighbor Address field should be set to the sender of the Graft message and should be
ignored upon receipt.
7.3.7.7 State Refresh Message Format. PIM State Refresh messages have
the format shown in Figure 7.7.
PIM Ver, Type, Reserved, Checksum: Described in PIM SM (see Chapter 5).
Multicast Group Address: The multicast group address in the encoded multicast
address format given in PIM SM (see Chapter 5).
Source Address: The address of the data source in the encoded unicast address
format given in PIM SM (see Chapter 5).
Originator Address: The address of the first hop router in the encoded unicast
address format given in PIM SM (see Chapter 5).
R: The RP-tree bit. Set to 0 for PIM DM. Ignored upon receipt.
Metric Preference: The preference value assigned to the unicast routing protocol that
provided the route to the source.
Metric: The cost metric of the unicast route to the source. The metric is in units
applicable to the unicast routing protocol used.
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Multicast Group Address (Encoded Group Format) |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Source Address (Encoded Unicast Format) |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Originator Address (Encoded Unicast Format) |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
|R| Metric Preference |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Metric |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Masklen | TTL |P|N|O|Reserved | Interval |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Figure 7.7. Refresh Message
Masklen: The length of the address mask of the unicast route to the source.
TTL: Time to Live of the State Refresh message. Decremented each time the
message is forwarded. Note that this is different from the IP header TTL, which is always
set to 1.
P: Prune indicator flag. This must be set to 1 if the state refresh is to be sent on a
pruned interface. Otherwise, it must be set to 0.
N: Prune Now flag. This should be set to 1 by the state refresh originator on every
third State Refresh message and should be ignored upon receipt. This is for compatibility
with earlier versions of state refresh.
O: Assert Override flag. This should be set to 1 by upstream routers on a LAN if the
Assert Timer (AT(S,G)) is not running and should be ignored upon receipt. This is for
compatibility with earlier versions of state refresh.
Reserved: Set to zero and ignored upon receipt.
Interval: Set by the originating router to the interval (in seconds) between consecu-
tive State Refresh messages for this (S,G) pair.
REFERENCES
[PAR200601] L. Parziale,W. Liu, et al., TCP/IP Tutorial and Technical Overview, IBM Press,
Redbook Abstract, 2006, IBM Form Number GG24-3376-07, 2006.
[RFC3973] RFC 3973, Protocol Independent Multicast—Dense-Mode (PIM—DM): Protocol
Specification (Revised), J. Nicholas, W. Siadak, January 2005.
8
OTHER DENSE-MODE
MULTICAST ROUTING
PROTOCOLS: DVMRP
AND MOSPF
This chapter provides a short overview of other DM MRPs not covered so far, specifically
Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol (DVMRP) and Multicast Open Shortest Path
First (MOSPF). These protocols are generally not used in current IPTV/DVB-H
applications, but MOSPF may have applicability at some future point in time. Portions
of this discussion are based on the pertinent RFCs.
8.1 DISTANCE VECTOR MULTICAST ALGORITHM
8.1.1 Overview
In previous chapters we discussed the processes typically used for the creation of
source-based multicast trees. As noted, these distribution trees can be built by
. a distance-vector algorithm that may be implemented separately from the unicast

routing algorithm (as is the case with DVMRP discussed below) or using the

185
186 OTHER DENSE-MODE MULTICAST ROUTING PROTOCOLS: DVMRP AND MOSPF
information present in the underlying unicast routing table (as is the case with
PIM DM) or
. a link-state algorithm (as is the case with MOSPF, also discussed below).
The distance vector multicast algorithm builds a multicast delivery tree using a
variant of the RPF technique. In broad terms, the technique is as follows: when a
multicast router receives a multicast data packet, if the packet arrives on the interface
used to reach the source of the packet, the packet is forwarded over all outgoing
interfaces, except leaf subnets with no members attached; a “leaf” subnet is a subnet that
no router would use to reach the source of a multicast packet. If the data packet does not
arrive over the link that would be used to reach the source, then the packet is discarded.
This constitutes a “broadcast-and-prune” approach to multicast tree construction: when a
data packet reaches a leaf router, if that router has no membership registered on any of its
directly attached subnetworks, the router sends a Prune message one hop back toward the
source. The receiving router then checks its leaf subnets for group membership and
checks whether it has received a prune from all of its downstream routers (downstream
with respect to the source). If so, the router itself can send a Prune message upstream over
the interface leading to the source. The sender and receiver of a Prune message must
cache the <S, G> pair being reported for a “lifetime,” typically of minutes. Unless a
routers prune information is refreshed by the receipt of a new prune for <source, group>
before its “lifetime” expires, that information is removed, allowing data to flow over the
branch again. The state that expires in this way is referred to as of “soft state” [RFC2201].
Note that routers that do not lead to group members still have to deal with overhead
generated by Prune messages. For wide-area multicasting this technique does not scale
(as discussed in Chapter 6).
8.1.2 Basic DVMRP Operation

DVMRP1 is defined in RFC 1075 (1988) and uses RPF. It is an interior gateway
protocol [operate within an Autonomous System (AS)] used to build per-source,
per-group multicast delivery trees. As described above and in Chapter 3, when a router
receives a packet, it floods the packet out of all paths except the one that leads back to
the packets source. If a downstream router does not wish to receive a particular
multicast group because there are no active members, the router can send a Prune
message back up the distribution tree to inhibit subsequent packets from reaching it.
DVMRP periodically refloods the network in an effort to make sure that any new users
that wish to receive a particular group G are reachable over the distribution tree. There
is a direct correlation between the frequency of the reflooding and the time required for
a new receiver to join the group and receive the data stream. In turn, the necessity for
frequent reflooding limits the scalability of DVMRP, as we noted in previous chapters.
1
DVMRP has been used to support MBONE, a multicast service over the Internet, by establishing tunnels
between DVMRP-capable machines; MBONE was used widely in the research community.
DISTANCE VECTOR MULTICAST ALGORITHM 187
Note that:
. DVMRP builds per-source trees based on routing information collected via

protocol exchanges.
. DVMRP prunes the per-source broadcast tree to generate a multicast delivery tree;
DVMRP utilizes the RPF algorithm to establish the set of downstream interfaces
used to forward multicast traffic.
DVMRP uses its own routing process; this routing is based on hop counts and is
similar to the Routing Information Protocol (RIP). DVMRP does not route unicast
datagrams, hence a router that needs to process both multicast and unicast datagrams must
be configured with two separate routing processes. Note, as a consequence, that the path
that the multicast traffic uses to reach a destination may not be the same as the path that the
unicast traffic uses to reach the same destination. While in principle this is not necessarily
a problem of its own, the implications are that a dual state must be maintained at a router.
A key operation of DVMRP is the neighbor discovery operation. A DVMRP router
dynamically discovers its neighbors by periodically transmitting Neighbor Probe
messages over each of its local interfaces. The transmitted message contains a list of
neighbor routers from which Neighbor Probe messages have been received. Upon
receiving a Probe message that contains its own address in the neighbor list, the pair
of routers establishes a two-way neighbor adjacency relationship. Messages are trans-
mitted to the multicast address 224.0.0.4 “all-DVMRP-routers” (See Chapter 2).
Another key operation is the routing table creation operation. The DVMRP
algorithm is based on hop counts and the algorithm computes the set of reverse paths
identified in the RPF algorithm. As part of the process, the routing table is exchanged
between each neighbor router. The algorithm makes use of a metric configured on every
router interface. Each router advertises the network number, mask, and metric of each
interface; it also advertises routes received from neighbor routers. As is the case for other
distance vector protocols, when a route is received, the interface metric is added to the
advertised metric; this adjusted metric is then used to determine the best upstream path to
the source [PAR200601].
The creation of a list of dependent downstream routers is also important. The
DVMRP algorithm utilizes the exchange of a routing information mechanism to notify
upstream routers that a specific downstream router requires these upstream routers to
forward multicast traffic to this downstream router. DVMRP accomplishes this as
described next. If a downstream router selects an upstream router as the next hop to
a particular source, then the routing updates from the downstream router have a metric set
to a very large number (“infinity”) for the source network. When the upstream DVMRP
router receives the advertisement, it adds the downstream router to the list of dependent
downstream routers for this source. This technique provides the information needed to
prune the multicast delivery tree [PAR200601]. DVMRP prevents the forwarding of
duplicate packets by enforcing the concept of a designated forwarder for each source.
This is accomplished as follows: when routers exchange their routing table, each router
makes note of the peers metric to reach the source network. By convention, it will be the
router with the lowest metric that is responsible for forwarding data to the shared network
(if multiple routers have the same metric, then the router with the lowest IP address
becomes the designated forwarder for the network).
Building and maintaining multicast delivery trees is obviously a key operation of the
protocol. The RPF algorithm is used in a DVMRP environment to forward multicast
datagrams. As described in Chapter 3, with RPF, if a datagram is received via the
interface that represents the best path to the source, then the router forwards the datagram
along the set of downstream interfaces. This set contains each downstream interface
included in the multicast delivery tree.
If a multicast router has no dependent downstream neighbors through a specific
interface, the network as seen from that interface is called a leaf network. If a network is a
leaf for a given source, and if there are no members of a particular group on the network,
then there are no recipients for datagrams from the source to the group on that network.
That networks parent router can forgo sending those datagrams on that network; this is
also called “truncating” the shortest path tree. The algorithm that tracks and uses this
information is the Truncated Reverse Path Broadcasting (TRPB) algorithm [RFC1075]. If
a new router connects to a leaf network, packets are forwarded on that network only if there
are hosts/receivers that are members of the specific multicast group as determined through
the IGMP and the local group database that is generated from IGMP transactions. If the
group address is currently listed and the router is the designated forwarder for the source,
then, and only then, the interface is included in the multicast delivery tree.
Pruning of the multicast tree is important in order to optimize network resources. At
first, all networks that are nonleaf networks are included in the multicast delivery tree.
However, routers connected to leaf networks abrogate an interface when there are no
longer any active receivers/members participating in the specific multicast group;
thereafter, multicast packets are no longer forwarded through the interface. If and when
a router is able to remove all of its downstream interfaces for a specific group, it notifies its
upstream neighbor (by sending a Prune message to the upstream neighbor) that it no
longer is in need of traffic from that particular source and group pair. In turn, if the
upstream neighbor receives Prune messages from each of the dependent downstream
routers on a given interface, the upstream router can remove this interface from the
multicast delivery tree. In turn, again, if this upstream router is able to prune all of its
interfaces from the tree, it sends a Prune message to its upstream router. This process
continues until all unused branches have been pruned from the delivery tree. In order to
eliminate the possibility of using outdated prune information, each Prune message
contains a prune lifetime timer that indicates the length of time that the prune is to
remain in effect.
DVMRP routers use graft messages to reattach portions of the network to the
multicast delivery tree. This is needed because IP multicast is required to accommodate
dynamic group membership. A Graft message is sent upon receiving an IGMP MR for a
group that has previously been pruned. Distinct Graft messages are transmitted to the
appropriate upstream neighbor for each source network that has been Pruned. Receipt
of a Graft message is acknowledged with a Graft ACK message; if an acknowledg-
ment is not received within the graft timeout period, the request is retransmitted.
ACKs enable the sender to distinguish between a misrouted graft packet and an
inactive device.
DISTANCE VECTOR MULTICAST ALGORITHM 189
Nonmulticast Tunnel Multicast

network network
Tunnel
DSLAM
DSLAM DSLAM
Figure 8.1. Example of a DVMRP Tunnel
In addition to its native functionality, DVMRP can tunnel IP multicast datagrams

through networks containing nonmulticast routers. Here the datagrams are encapsulated
in unicast IP packets and forwarded through the network. When the packet is received at
the remote end of the tunnel, it is deencapsulated and forwarded through the remaining
subnetwork using DVMRP multicast methods (as discussed in the previous paragraphs).
See Figure 8.1 for a pictorial example of tunneling.
The frequent reflooding procedure limits the scalability of DVMRP to large user
populations. In an IPTVapplication, one would have a (super)source but several hundred
groups G. As it can be seen in Table 8.1 (expanded from Table 6.1), between 10,000 and
50,000 table entries per router are required. This is generally at the mid-high-end of what
a router typically is able to support.
T A B L E 8.1. Amount of State Required by CBT and DVMRP

Number of groups 200 400
Group size (no. of members) 10,000 50,000
No. of services per group 0.5% 0.25%
No. of DVMRP router entries 10K 50K
8.2 MULTICAST OSPF
MOSPF is a multicast extension to OSPF Version 2 that is described in RFC 1584.

MOSPF provides the ability to forward multicast datagrams from one IP network to
another (i.e., through Internet routers). MOSPF is a link-state multicast algorithm that is
employed in networks that already utilize OSPF for unicast IP routing (it is not a separate
multicast routing protocol per se). The multicast extensions make use of the existing
OSPF topology database to create a source-rooted shortest path delivery tree. While
OSPF relies only on the destination address, MOSPF forwards a multicast datagram on
the basis of both the datagrams source and destination (this is also called source/
destination routing).
As discussed in RFC 2201, routers implementing a link-state algorithm periodically
collect reachability information related to their directly attached neighbors, then flood
this throughout the routing domain using the so-called link-state update packets. Stephen
Deering extended the link-state algorithm for multicasting by having a router addi-
tionally detect group membership changes on its incident links before flooding this
information in link-state packets. This way, each router has a complete, up-to-date
image of a domains topology and group membership. Upon receiving a multicast data
packet, a router uses its membership and topology information to calculate a shortest
path tree rooted at the sender subnetwork; on the assumption that the router is on the
computed tree, the router forwards the data packet over the interfaces defined by its
calculation. Hence, multicast data packets only traverse routers leading to members
either directly attached or further downstream. That is, the delivery tree is a true
multicast tree right from the start. However, the flooding of group membership
information is the predominant factor preventing the link-state multicast algorithm
being applicable over a wide-area network. The other limiting factor is the processing
cost of the Dijkstra calculation to compute the shortest path tree for each active source
[RFC2201].
The OSPF link-state database provides a complete description of the topology of an
AS. OSPF allows an AS to be segmented into multiple areas; areas are generally utilized
for traffic management purposes. However, when this is done, complete knowledge of
the ASs topology is lost. By adding a new type of link-state advertisement, the group
membership Link-State Advertisements (LSAs), the location of all multicast group
members is defined in the database. The path of a multicast datagram can then be
calculated by building a shortest path tree rooted at the datagrams source. All branches
not containing multicast members are pruned from the tree. These pruned shortest path
trees are initially built when the first datagram is received (i.e., on demand). The results of
the shortest path calculation are then cached for use by subsequent datagrams having the
same source and destination.
When forwarding multicasts between areas, only incomplete shortest path trees can
be built; this may lead to some inefficiency in routing. An analogous situation exists
when the source of the multicast datagram lies in another AS. In both cases (i.e.,
the source of the datagram belongs to a different OSPF area or to a different AS) the
neighborhood immediately surrounding the source is unknown. In these cases the
MULTICAST OSPF 191
sources neighborhood is approximated by OSPF summary link advertisements or by

OSPF AS external link advertisements, respectively. Routers running MOSPF can be
intermixed with nonmulticast OSPF routers. Both types of routers can interoperate when
forwarding regular (unicast) IP data traffic. The forwarding extent of IP multicasts is
limited by the number of MOSPF routers present in the AS (and their interconnection, if
any). An ability to “tunnel” multicast datagrams through nonmulticast routers is not
provided. In MOSPF, just as in the OSPF protocol, datagrams (multicast or unicast) are
routed “as is” — they are not further encapsulated or deencapsulated as they transit the
AS [RFC1584].
MOSPF forwards a multicast datagram to a group G by building a shortest path
delivery tree rooted at the datagrams source S using information contained in the link-
state database. Branches in the shortest path delivery tree that do not have a
corresponding group membership LSA are pruned, because these branches do not
contain any multicast members for the group G. Note that all routers generate an
identical shortest path delivery tree for a specific multicast datagram and there is a
single path between the datagram source and any specific destination. The tree is
recomputed when a link-state change occurs or when the forwarding information ages
(times out).
As a multicast datagram is forwarded along its shortest path tree, the datagram is
delivered to each member of the destination multicast group. As is the case for PIM, on
each network segment, one MOSPF router is selected to be the DR. The DR is
responsible for generating periodic IGMP host membership queries. The DR is also
responsible for accumulating IGMP MRs. Routers ignore any MRs received on a
network where they are not the DR, thus ensuring that each network segment appears in
the local group database of at most one router and also preventing datagrams from
being duplicated as they are transmitted to local group members. Every router transmits
in a flooding mode a group membership LSA for each multicast group that has at least
one entry in the routers local group database. The forwarding of the multicast datagram
has the following properties [RFC1584]:
. The path taken by a multicast datagram depends on both the datagrams source and
its multicast destination; this is called source/destination routing—this is in
contrast to most unicast datagram forwarding algorithms (as is the case for
OSPF) that route based solely on destination.
. The path taken between the datagrams source and any particular destination
group member is the least cost path available. Cost is expressed in terms of the
OSPF link-state metric. For example, if the OSPF metric represents delay, a
minimum-delay path is chosen. OSPF metrics are configurable. A metric is
assigned to each outbound router interface, representing the cost of sending a
packet on that interface. The cost of a path is the sum of its constituent (outbound)
router interfaces.
. MOSPF takes advantage of any commonality of least cost paths to destination
group members. However, when members of the multicast group are spread out
over multiple networks, the multicast datagram must at times be replicated. This
replication is performed as few times as possible (at the tree branches), taking
maximum advantage of common path segments.
. For a given multicast datagram, all routers calculate an identical shortest path tree.
There is a single path between the datagrams source and any particular destina-
tion group member. This means that, unlike OSPFs treatment of regular (unicast)
IP data traffic, there is no provision for equal-cost multipath.
. On each packet hop, MOSPF normally forwards IP multicast datagrams as data
link multicasts. There are two exceptions. First, on nonbroadcast networks, since
there are no data link multicast/broadcast services, the datagram must be
forwarded to specific MOSPF neighbors. Second, a MOSPF router can be
configured to forward IP multicasts on specific networks as data link unicasts,
in order to avoid datagram replication in certain anomalous situations.
As noted, the location of every group member is communicated to the rest of the
network. This ensures that multicast datagrams can be forwarded to each member. OSPF
uses group membership LSAs to track the location of each group member. These LSAs
are stored in the OSPF link-state database that effectively describes the topology of the
AS [PAR200601].
While MOSPF optimizes the path to any given group member, it does not necessarily
optimize the use of the internetwork as a whole. To do so, instead of calculating
source-based shortest path trees, something similar to a minimal spanning tree (contain-
ing only the group members) would need to be calculated. This type of minimal spanning
tree is called a Steiner tree in the literature.
In a multiple-area environment, provisions need to be made to maintain global
topology information because a router is only aware of the network topology within the
local area. Within an OSPF area, the Area Border Router (ABR2) forwards routing
information and data traffic between areas; in an MOSPF environment this function is
performed by an interarea multicast forwarder. The interarea multicast forwarder
forwards group membership information and multicast datagrams between areas.
Because group membership LSAs are only flooded within an area, a process in the
interarea multicast forwarder is needed to convey membership information between
areas. To do this, each interarea multicast forwarder summarizes the attached areas
group membership information and forwards this information to OSPF backbone. This
announcement consists of a group membership LSA listing each group containing
members in the nonbackbone area. The advertisement supports the same function as the
summary LSAs generated in a standard OSPF area. Membership information for the
nonbackbone area is summarized into the backbone; however, this information is not
readvertised into other nonbackbone areas. To forward multicast data traffic between areas,
a wildcard multicast receiver is utilized. This is a router to which all multicast traffic,
regardless of destination, is forwarded. In nonbackbone areas, all interarea multicast
forwarders are wildcard multicast receivers. This ensures that all multicast traffic that
2
Aka Autonomous System Border Router (ASBR).
MULTICAST OSPF 193
originates in a nonbackbone area is forwarded to an interarea multicast forwarder. This

router sends the multicast datagrams to the backbone area; because the backbone has
complete knowledge of all group membership information, the datagrams are then
forwarded to the appropriate group members in other areas [PAR200601].
REFERENCES
[RFC1075] RFC 1075, Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol, D. Waitzman, C. Partridge, S.
Deering, November 1988
[RFC1584] RFC 1584, Multicast Extensions to OSPF, J. Moy, March 1994.
September 1997.
9
IP MULTICASTING IN IPv6
ENVIRONMENTS
This chapter discusses IPv6 and multicast applications. The first part is a short tutorial on
IPv6; the second part looks at multicast-specific issues. IPv6 is now seeing major
deployment in Europe and Asia; eventually, it will also see deployment in North
America.
9.1 OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED BY IPv6
The IPv6 is now gaining momentum as an improved network layer protocol. There is a lot
of commercial interest and activity in Europe and Asia, and as of press time, there was
also some traction in the United States. For example, the U.S. Department of Defense
(DoD) announced that from October 1, 2003, all new developments and procurements
needed to be IPv6 capable; the DoDs goal was to complete the transition to IPv6 for all
intra- and internetworking across the agency by 2008. In 2005, the U.S. Government
Accountability Office (GAO) recommended that all agencies become proactive in
planning a coherent transition to IPv6. The expectation is that in the next few years,
a transition to this new protocol will occur worldwide [MIN200801].

194
OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED BY IPv6 195
IPv6 is considered to be the next generation IP ([MIN200801], [HAG200201],

[MUR200501], [SOL200401], [ITO200401], [MIL200001], [GRA200001],
[DAV200201], [LOS200301], [GON199801], [DEM200301], [GOS200301],
[MIN200601], [WEG199901]). The current version of IP, IPv4, has been in use for
almost 30 years and exhibits some challenges in supporting emerging demands for
address space cardinality, high-density mobility, multimedia, and strong security. This
is particularly true in developing domestic and defense department applications
utilizing peer-to-peer networking. IPv6 is an improved version of IP that is designed
to coexist with IPv4 and eventually provide better internetworking capabilities than
IPv4 [IPV200401].
IPv6 offers the potential of achieving the scalability, reacheability, end-to-end
interworking, QoS, and commercial-grade robustness for data as well as for Voice Over
IP (VoIP), IPTV distribution, and triple-play networks; these capabilities are mandatory
mileposts of the technology if it is to replace the Time Division Multiplexing (TDM)
infrastructure around the world.
IPv6 was initially developed in the early 1990s because of the anticipated
need for more end-system addresses based on anticipated Internet growth, encom-
passing mobile phone deployment, smart home appliances, and billions of new
users in developing countries (e.g., in China and India). New technologies and
applications such as VoIP, “always-on access” (e.g., DSL and cable), Ethernet-
to-the-home, converged networks, and evolving ubiquitous computing applications
will be driving this need even more in the next few years [IPV200501]. A converged
network utilizing IPv6 supports both local- and wide-area components as well as
private and carrier-provided communications domains; the IPv6/IPv4 network can
support video delivery, VoIP, Internet, intranet, and wireless services.
Basic Network Address Translation (NAT) is a method by which IP addresses
(specifically IPv4 addresses) are transparently mapped from one group to another.
Specifically, private “nonregistered” addresses are mapped to a small set (as small as
1) of public registered addresses; this impacts the general addressability, accessibi-
lity, and “individuality” of the device. Network Address Port Translation (NAPT) is
a method by which many network addresses and their TCP/UDP ports are transla-
ted into a single network address and its TCP/UDP ports. Together, these two
methods, referred to as traditional NAT, provide a mechanism to connect a realm
with private addresses to an external realm with globally unique registered addresses
[RFC3022].
NAT is a short-term solution for the anticipated Internet growth phenomenon
and a better solution is needed for address exhaustion. There is a recognition that
NAT techniques make the internetworking, the applications, and even the devices
more complex and this means a cost overhead [IPV200501]. The expectation is that
IPv6 can make IP devices less expensive, more powerful, and even consume less
power; the power issue not only is important for environmental reasons but also
improves operability (e.g., longer battery life in portable devices, such as mobile
phones).
196 IP MULTICASTING IN IPv6 ENVIRONMENTS
Corporations and government agencies will be able to achieve a number of

improvements with IPv6. IPv6 can improve a firms intranet, with benefits such as
follows:
. Expanded addressing capabilities

. Serverless autoconfiguration (“plug-and-play”) and reconfiguration
. More efficient and robust mobility mechanisms
. End-to-end security, with built-in, strong IP layer encryption, and authentication
. Streamlined header format and flow identification
. Enhanced support for multicast and QoS
. Extensibility—improved support for feature options/extensions
While the basic function of IP is to move information across networks, IPv6 has more
capabilities built into its foundation than IPv4. A key capability is the significant increase
in address space. For example, all devices could have a public IP address, so that they can
be uniquely tracked. Today, inventory management of dispersed Information Technology
(IT) assets cannot be achieved with IP mechanisms; during the inventory cycle, someone
has to manually verify the location of each desktop computer. With IPv6, one can use the
network to verify that such equipment is there; even non-ITequipment in the field can also
be tracked, by having an IP address permanently assigned to it. IPv6 also has extensive
automatic configuration (autoconfiguration) mechanisms and reduces the IT burden,
thereby making configuration essentially plug-and-play.
9.2 INTRODUCTORY OVERVIEW OF IPv6
IP was designed in the 1970s for the purpose of connecting computers that were in
separate geographic locations. Computers on a campus were connected by means of local
networks, but these local networks were separated into essentially stand-alone islands.
Internet, as a name to designate the protocol and more recently the worldwide
information network, simply means “internetwork,” that is, a connection between
networks. In the beginning, the protocol had only military use, but computers from
universities and enterprises were quickly added. The Internet as a worldwide information
network is the result of the practical application of IP, that is, the result of the
interconnection of a large set of information networks [IPV200501]. Starting in the
early 1990s, developers realized that the communication needs of the 21st century
needed a protocol with some new features and capabilities while at the same time
retaining the useful features of the existing protocol.
While link-level communication does not generally require a node identifier
(address) since the device is intrinsically identified with the link-level address,
communication over a group of links (a network) does require unique node identifiers
(addresses). The IP address is an identifier that is applied to each device connected to
an IP network. In this setup, different elements taking part in the network (servers,
INTRODUCTORY OVERVIEW OF IPv6 197
routers, user computers, etc.) communicate among each other using their IP address
as an entity identifier. In IPv4, addresses consist of four octets. For ease of human
conversation, IP addresses are represented as separated by periods, for example,
166.74.110.83, where the decimal numbers are a shorthand (and corresponds to) the
binary code described by the byte in question (an 8-bit number takes a value in the 0–
255 range). Since the IPv4 address has 32 bits there are nominally 232 different IP
addresses (approximately four billions nodes if all combinations are used).
IPv6 is the Internets next-generation protocol, which was at first called IPng
(“Internet Next Generation”). The IETF developed the basic specifications during the
1990s to support a migration to a new environment. IPv6 is defined in RFC 2460, which
obsoletes RFC 1883. [The “version 5” reference was employed for another use (an
experimental real-time streaming protocol), and to avoid any confusion, it was decided
not to use this nomenclature.]
9.2.1 IPv6 Benefits

IPv4 has proven, by means of its long life, to be a flexible and powerful networking
mechanism. However, IPv4 is starting to exhibit limitations, not only with respect to
the need for an increase of the IP address space, driven, for example, by new
populations of users in countries such as China and India and by new technologies
with “always connected devices” (DSL, cable, networked PDAs, 2.5G/3G mobile
telephones, etc.), but also in reference to a potential global rollout of VoIP. IPv6
creates a new IP address format, so that the number of IP addresses will not exhaust
for several decades or longer even though an entire new crop of devices are expected
to connect to Internet.
IPv6 also adds improvements in areas such as routing and network autoconfigura-
tion. Specifically, new devices that connect to the Internet will be “plug-and-play”
devices. With IPv6 one is not required to configure dynamic nonpublished local IP
addresses, the gateway address, the subnetwork mask, or any other parameters. When
plugged into the network, the equipment automatically obtains all requisite configura-
tion data [IPV200501].
The advantages of IPv6 can be summarized as follows:
. Scalability: IPv6 has 128-bit addresses versus 32-bit IPv4 addresses. With IPv4,
the theoretical number of available IP addresses are 232 –1010. IPv6 offers a 2128
space. Hence, the number of available unique node addresses is 2128 –1039.
. Security: IPv6 includes security in its specifications such as payload encryption
and authentication of the source of the communication.
. Real-time applications: To provide better support for real-time traffic (e.g., VoIP),
IPv6 includes “labeled flows” in its specifications. By means of this mechanism
routers can recognize the end-to-end flow to which transmitted packets belong.
This is similar to the service offered by MPLS, but it is intrinsic with the IP
mechanism rather than an add-on. Also, it preceded this MPLS feature by a
number of years.
. Plug-and-play: IPv6 includes a plug-and-play mechanism that facilitates the

connection of equipment to the network. The requisite configuration is automatic.
. Mobility: IPv6 includes more efficient and enhanced mobility mechanisms,
particularly important for mobile networks.
. Optimized protocol: IPv6 embodies IPv4 best practices but removes unused or
obsolete IPv4 characteristics. This results in a better optimized IP.
. Addressing and routing: IPv6 improves the addressing and routing hierarchy.
. Extensibility: IPv6 has been designed to be extensible and offers support for new
options and extensions.
9.2.2 Traditional Addressing Classes for IPv4

With IPv4, the 32-bit address can be represented as AdrClass|netID|host. The network
portion can contain either a network ID or a network ID and a subnet. Every network and
every host or device has a unique address, by definition. The traditional IPv4 address
classes were as follows:
. Traditional Class A address: Class A uses the first bit of the 32-bit space (bit 0) to
identify it as a Class A address; this bit is set to 0. Bits 1 – 7 represent the network
ID and bits 8 – 31 identify the PC, terminal device, or host/server on the network.
This address space supports 27 2 ¼ 126 networks and approximately 16 million
devices (224) on each network. By convention, the use of an “all 1s” or “all 0s”
address for both the network ID and the host ID is prohibited (which is the reason
for subtracting the 2 above).
. Traditional Class B address: Class B uses the first 2 bits (bit 0 and bit 1) of the
32-bit space to identify it as a Class B address; these bits are set to 10. Bits 2 – 15
represent the network ID and bits 16 – 31 identify the PC, terminal device, or host/
server on the network. This address space supports 214 2 ¼ 16,382 networks and
216 2 ¼ 65,134 devices on each network.
. Traditional Class C address: Class C uses the first 3 bits (bit 0, bit 1, and bit 2) of
the 32-bit space to identify it as a Class C address; these bits are set to 110. Bits 3 –
23 represent the network ID and bits 24 – 31 identify the PC, terminal device, or
host/server on the network. This address space supports about 2 million networks
(221 – 2) and 28 – 2 ¼ 254 devices on each network.
. Traditional Class D address: This class is used for broadcasting and/or multicasting:
wherein all devices on the network receive the same packet. Class D uses the first 4
bits (bit 0, bit 1, bit 2, and bit 3) of the 32-bit space to identify it as a Class D address;
these bits are set to 1110.
Classless Interdomain Routing (CIDR), described in RFC 1518, RFC 1519,

and RFC 2050, is yet another mechanism that was developed to help alleviate the
problem of exhaustion of IP addresses and growth of routing tables. The concept behind
CIDR is that blocks of multiple addresses (for example, blocks of Class C address) can
be combined, or aggregated, to create a larger classless set of IP addresses, with
more hosts allowed. Blocks of Class C network numbers are allocated to each network
service provider; organizations using the network service provider for Internet
connectivity are allocated subsets of the service providers address space as required.
These multiple Class C addresses can then be summarized in routing tables, resulting
in fewer route advertisements. The CIDR mechanism can also be applied to blocks of
Class A and B addresses [TEA200401]. All of this assumes, however, that the insti-
tution in question already has an assigned set of public, registered IP addresses; it does
not address the issue of how to get additional public, registered, globally unique IP
addresses.
9.2.3 Network Address Translation Issues in IPv4

IPv4 addresses can be from an officially assigned public range or from an internal
intranet private (but not globally unique) block. Internal intranet addresses may be in the
ranges of 10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12, and 192.168.0.0/16. In the internal intranet private
address case, a NAT function is employed to map the internal addresses to an external
public address when the private-to-public network boundary is crossed. This, however,
imposes a number of limitations, particularly since the number of registered public
addresses available to a company is almost invariably much smaller (as small as 1) than
the number of internal devices requiring an address.
As noted, IPv4 theoretically allows up to 232 addresses, based on a four-octet
address space. Public, globally unique addresses are assigned by the IANA. IP
addresses are addresses of network nodes at layer 3; each device on a network (whether
the Internet or an intranet) must have a unique address. In IPv4, it is a 32-bit (4-byte)
binary address used to identify a hosts network ID. It is represented by the nomencla-
ture a.b.c.d (each of a, b, c, and d being from 1 to 255 (0 has a special meaning).
Examples are 167.168.169.170, 232.233.229.209, and 200.100.200.100.
The problem is that during the 1980s many public registered addresses were
allocated to firms and organizations without any consistent control. As a result, some
organizations have more addresses than they actually need, giving rise to the present
dearth of available “registerable” layer 3 addresses. Furthermore, not all IP addresses can
be used due to the fragmentation described above.
One approach to the issue would be a renumbering and a reallocation of the IPv4
addressing space. However, this is not as simple as it appears since it requires
worldwide coordination efforts. Moreover, it would still be limited for the human
population and the quantity of devices that will be connected to the Internet in the
medium-term future [IPV200501]. At this juncture, and as a temporary and pragmatic
approach to alleviate the dearth of addresses, NAT mechanisms are employed by
organizations and even home users. This mechanism consists of using only a small set
of public IPv4 addresses for an entire network to access the Internet. The myriad of
internal devices are assigned IP addresses from a specifically designated range of Class A
or Class C addresses that are locally unique but are duplicatively used and reused within
various organizations. In some cases (e.g., residential Internet access use via DSL or
cable), the legal IP address is only provided to a user on a time-lease basis, rather than
permanently.
A number of protocols cannot travel through a NAT device and hence the use of NAT
implies that many applications (e.g., VoIP) cannot be used effectively in all instances. As
a consequence, these applications can only be used in intranets. Examples include
[IPV200501] the following:
. Multimedia applications such as videoconferencing, VoIP, or video-on-demand/

IPTV do not work smoothly through NAT devices. Multimedia applications
make use of RTP and Real-Time Control Protocol (RTCP). These in turn use
UDP with dynamic allocation of ports and NAT does not directly support this
environment.
. Kerberos authentication needs the source address and the source address in the IP
header is often modified by NAT devices.
. IPSec is used extensively for data authentication, integrity, and confidentiality.
However, when NAT is used, IPSec operation is impacted, since NAT changes the
address in the IP header.
. Multicast, although possible in theory, requires complex configuration in a
NAT environment and hence, in practice, is not utilized as often as could be
the case.
The need for obligatory use of NAT disappears with IPv6.
9.2.4 IPv6 Address Space

The format of IPv6 addressing is described in RFC 2373. As noted, an IPv6 address
consists of 128 bits, rather than 32 bits as with IPv4 addresses. The number of bits
correlates to the address space as follows:
IP Version Size of Address Space

IPv6 128 bits, which allows for 2128 or
340, 282, 366, 920, 938, 463, 463, 374, 607, 431, 768, 211, 456 (3.4 · 1038)
possible addresses
IPv4 32 bits, which allows for 232 or 4, 294, 967, 296 possible addresses
The relatively large size of the IPv6 address is designed to be subdivided into
hierarchical routing domains that reflect the topology of the modern-day Internet. The
use of 128 bits provides multiple levels of hierarchy and flexibility in designing
hierarchical addressing and routing. The IPv4-based Internet currently lacks this
flexibility [MSD200401].
The IPv6 address is represented as eight groups of 16 bits each separated by the “:”
character. Each 16-bit group is represented by four hexadecimal digits, that is, each digit
has a value between 0 and F (0,1, 2, . . . A, B, C, D, E, F with A ¼ 10, B ¼ 11, etc., to
F ¼ 15). What follows is an IPv6 address example:
3223:0BA0:01E0:D001:0000:0000:D0F0:0010
An abbreviated format exists to designate IPv6 addresses when all endings are 0. For
example,
3223:0BA0::
is the abbreviated form of the following address:
3223:0BA0:0000:0000:0000:0000:0000:0000
Similarly, only one 0 is written, removing 0s in the left side and four 0s in the middle
of the address. For example, the address
3223:BA0:0:0:0:0::1234
is the abbreviated form of the following address:
3223:0BA0:0000:0000:0000:0000:0000:1234
There is also a method to designate groups of IP addresses or subnetworks that is
based on specifying the number of bits that designate the subnetwork, beginning from left
to right, using remaining bits to designate single devices inside the network. For example,
the notation
3223:0BA0:01a0::/48
indicates that the part of the IP address used to represent the subnetwork has 48 bits. Since
each hexadecimal digit has 4 bits, this points out that the part used to represent the
subnetwork is formed by 12 digits, that is: “3223:0BA0:01A0.” The remaining digits of
the IP address would be used to represent nodes inside the network.
There are a number of special IPv6 addresses, as follows:
. Auto-return or loopback virtual address: This address is specified in IPv4 as the

127.0.0.1 address. In IPv6 this address is represented as ::1.
. Not specified address (::): This address is not allocated to any node since it is used
to indicate absence of address.
. IPv6 over IPv4 dynamic/automatic tunnel addresses: These addresses are desig-
nated as IPv4-compatible IPv6 addresses and allow the sending of IPv6 traffic
over IPv4 networks in a transparent manner. They are represented as, for
example, ::156.55.23.5.
. IPv4 over IPv6 addresses automatic representation: These addresses allow for
IPv4-only nodes to still work in IPv6 networks. They are designated as “mapped
from IPv4 to IPv6 addresses” and are represented as ::FFFF:, for example,
::FFFF.156.55.43.3.
9.2.5 Basic Protocol Constructs

Table 9.1 lists basic IPv6 terminology while Table 9.2 shows the core protocols that
comprise IPv6.
A scope is a subset of the network; multiple scopes are defined within IPv6, as
illustrated in Figure 9.1. Table 9.3 shows the address and associated reachability scopes.
The reachability of node-local addresses is “the same node”; the reachability of
T A B L E 9.1. Basic IPv6 Terminology

Address An IP layer identifier for an interface or a set of interfaces.
Host Any node that is not a router.
Interface A nodes attachment to a link.
Link A communication facility or medium over which nodes can communicate
at the link layer, that is, the layer immediately below IP. Examples are
Ethernet (simple or bridged); PPP links, X.25, frame relay, or ATM
networks; and Internet (or higher) layer “tunnels,” such as tunnels over
IPv4 or IPv6 itself.
Link-layer A link-layer identifier for an interface. Examples include IEEE 802 addresses
identifier for Ethernet network interfaces and E.164 addresses for ISDN links.
Link-local An IPv6 address having a link-only scope, indicated by having the prefix
address (FE80::/10), that can be used to reach neighboring nodes attached to the
same link. Every interface has a link-local address.
Multicast An identifier for a set of interfaces typically belonging to different nodes.
address A packet sent to a multicast address is delivered to all interfaces
identified by that address.
Neighbor A node attached to the same link.
Node A device that implements IP.
Packet An IP header plus payload.
Prefix The initial bits of an address, or a set of IP addresses that share the same
initial bits.
Prefix length The number of bits in a prefix.
Router A node that forwards IP packets not explicitly addressed to itself.
Unicast address An identifier for a single interface. A packet sent to a unicast address is
delivered to the interface identified by that address.
link-local addresses is “the local link”; the reachability of site-local addresses1 is “the
private intranet”; and the reachability of global addresses is “the IPv6-enabled Internet.”
IPv6 interfaces can have multiple addresses that have different reachability scopes. For
example, a node may have a link-local address, a site-local address, and a global address.
Note: IPv6 actually has possible 15 scopes, as hex 0 to hex F; some of these scopes are
unused.
Like IPv4, IPv6 is a connectionless, unreliable datagram protocol used primarily
for addressing and routing packets between hosts. Connectionless means that a session
is not established before exchanging data. Unreliable means that delivery is not
guaranteed. IPv6 always makes a best effort attempt to deliver a packet. An IPv6
packet might be lost, delivered out of sequence, duplicated, or delayed. IPv6 per se does
not attempt to recover from these types of errors. The acknowledgment of packets
delivered and the recovery of lost packets is done by a higher layer protocol, such as
TCP [MSD200401]. From a packet forwarding perspective IPv6 operates just like
IPv4. An IPv6 packet, also known as an IPv6 datagram, consists of an IPv6 header and
an IPv6 payload.
1
Site-local unicast addresses were deprecated by the IETF in 2003; their description herewith is for historical
reference.
T A B L E 9.2. Key IPv6 Protocols

Protocol Description
Internet Protocol IPv6 is a connectionless datagram protocol used
version 6 (IPv6): for routing packets between hosts.
RFC 2460
Internet Control Message ICMPv6 is a mechanism that enables hosts and

Protocol for IPv6 (ICMPv6): routers that use IPv6 communication to report
RFC 2463 errors and send simple status messages.
Multicast Listener MLD is a mechanism that enables one to manage

Discovery (MLD): subnet multicast membership for IPv6. MLD uses
RFC 2710, RFC 3590, RFC 3810 a series of three ICMPv6 messages. MLD replaces
IGMPv3 that is employed for IPv4.
Neighbor Discovery (ND): ND is a mechanism that is used to manage

RFC 2461 node-to-node communication on a link. ND uses
a series of five ICMPv6 messages. ND replaces
ARP, ICMPv4 Router Discovery, and the ICMPv4
Redirect message; it also provides additional
functions.
The IPv6 header consists of two parts, the IPv6 base header and optional
extension headers. Functionally, the optional extension headers and upper layer
protocols, for example, TCP, are considered part of the IPv6 payload. Table 9.4 shows
the fields in the IPv6 base header. IPv4 headers and IPv6 headers are not directly
interoperable: hosts and/or routers must use an implementation of both IPv4 and IPv6
in order to recognize and process both header formats. This gives rise to a number of
complexities in the migration process between the IPv4 and the IPv6 environments.
However, techniques have been developed to handle these migrations.
Global Site-Local Link-Local
Figure 9.1. Scope in IPv6

T A B L E 9.3. Address and Associated Reachability Scopes

Address scope/
Reachability Description
Node-local addresses to Used to send PDUs to the same node:
reach same node
Loopback address (PDUs addressed to the loopback address
are never sent on a link or forwarded by an IPv6 router—this
is equivalent to the IPv4 loopback address)
Node-local multicast address
Link-local addresses to Used to communicate between hosts devices
reach local linka (e.g., servers, VoIP devices, etc.) on the link; these addresses
are always configured automatically:
Unspecified address. It indicates the absence of an address
and is typically used as a source address for PDUs that are
attempting to verify the uniqueness of a tentative address
(it is equivalent to the IPv4 unspecified address). The
unspecified address is never assigned to an interface or used
as a destination address.
Link-local unicast address
Link-local multicast address
Site-local addresses Used between nodes that communicate with other nodes in the
to reach the private same site; site-local addresses are configured by router
intranet (internetwork)a, b advertisement:
Site-local unicast address—these addresses are not reachable
from other sites, and routers must not forward site-local traffic
outside of the site. Site-local addresses can be used in
addition to aggregatable global unicast addresses.
Site-local multicast address
Global addresses to Globally routable and reachable addresses on the IPv6 portion
reach the Internet of the Internet (they are equivalent to public IPv4 addresses);
(IPv6 enabled); also global addresses are configured by router advertisement:
known as aggregatable
Global unicast address
global unicast
Other scope multicast address
addresses
Global addresses are designed to be aggregated or summarized to
produce an efficient, hierarchical addressing and routing structure.
a
When one specifies a link-local or site-local address, one needs to also specify a scope ID, which further defines
the reachability scope for these (nonglobal) addresses.
b
See note 1 in this chapter.
9.2.6 IPv6 Autoconfiguration

“Autoconfiguration” is a new characteristic of IPv6 that facilitates network management
and system setup tasks by users. This characteristic is often called “plug-and-play” or
“connect-and-work.” Autoconfiguration facilitates initialization of user devices: after
connecting a device to an IPv6 network, one or several IPv6 globally unique addresses
are automatically allocated.
T A B L E 9.4. IPv6 Base Header

IPv6 Header Field Length, bits Function
Version 4 Identifies the version of the protocol. For IPv6,
the version is 6.
Class 8 Intended for originating nodes and forwarding routers
to identify and distinguish between different classes
or priorities of IPv6 packets.
Flow Label 20 (Sometimes referred to as flow ID) Defines how
traffic is handled and identified. A flow is a sequence
of packets sent either to a unicast or a multicast
destination. This field identifies packets that require
special handling by the IPv6 node. The following
list shows the ways the field is handled if a host
or router does not support Flow Label field functions:
If the packet is being sent, the field is set to zero.
If the packet is being received, the field is ignored.
Payload Length 16 Identifies the length, in octets, of the payload. This field
is a 16-bit unsigned integer. The payload includes
the optional extension headers, as well as the
upper layer protocols, for example, TCP.
Next Header 8 Identifies the header immediately following
the IPv6 header. The following shows examples of
the next header:
00 ¼ Hop-by-hop options
01 ¼ ICMPv4
04 ¼ IP in IP (encapsulation)
06 ¼ TCP
17 ¼ UDP
43 ¼ Routing
44 ¼ Fragment
50 ¼ Encapsulating security payload
51 ¼ Authentication
58 ¼ ICMPv6
Hop Limit 8 Identifies the number of network segments, also known
as links or subnets, on which the packet is allowed to
travel before being discarded by a router. The hop
limit is set by the sending host and is used to prevent
packets from endlessly circulating on an IPv6
internetwork.
When forwarding an IPv6 packet, IPv6 routers must
decrease the hop limit by 1 and must discard
the IPv6 packet when the hop limit is 0.
Source Address 128 Identifies the IPv6 address of the original source of the
IPv6 packet.
Destination Address 128 Identifies the IPv6 address of the intermediate or final
destination of the IPv6 packet.
The “autoconfiguration” process is flexible but it is also somewhat complex. The

complexity arises from the fact that various policies are defined and implemented by
the network administrator. Specifically, the administrator determines the parameters
that will be assigned automatically. At a minimum (and/or when there is no network
administrator), the allocation of a link-local address is often included. The link-local
address allows communication with other nodes placed in the same physical network.
Note that “link” has somewhat of a special meaning in IPv6, as follows: a communi-
cation facility or medium over which nodes can communicate at the link layer, that is,
the layer immediately below IPv6. Examples are Ethernets (simple or bridged); PPP
links; an X.25 packet-switched network, a frame relay network or a cell relay/ATM
network, and internet(working) layer (or higher layer) “tunnels,” such as tunnels over
IPv4 or IPv6 itself [RFC2460].
Two autoconfiguration basic mechanisms exist: (i) “stateful” and (ii) “stateless.” Both
mechanisms can be used in a complementary manner and/or simultaneously to define
parameter configurations [IPV200501].
Stateless autoconfiguration is also described as “serverless.” Here, the presence of
configuration servers to supply profile information is not required. In this environment,
manual configuration is required only at the host level and a minimal configuration at the
router level is occasionally needed. The host generates its own address using a
combination of the information that it possesses (in its interface or network card) and
the information that is periodically supplied by the routers. Routers determine the prefix
that identifies networks associated to the link under discussion. The “interface identifier”
identifies an interface within a subnetwork and is often, and by default, generated from
the MAC address of the network card. The IPv6 address is built combining the 64 bits of
the interface identifier with the prefixes that routers determine as belonging to the
subnetwork. If there is no router, the interface identifier is self-sufficient to allow the PC
to generate a link-local address. The link-local address is sufficient to allow the
communication between several nodes connected to the same link (the same local
network).
Stateful configuration requires a server to send the information and parameters of
network connection to nodes and hosts. Servers maintain a database with all addresses
allocated and a mapping of the hosts to which these addresses have been allocated, along
with any information related with all requisite parameters. In general, this mechanism is
based on the use of DHCPv6.
Stateful autoconfiguration is often employed when there is a need for rigorous
control in reference to the address allocated to hosts (in stateless autoconfigu-
ration the only concern is that the address be unique). Depending on the network
administrator policies, it may be required that some addresses be allocated to
specific hosts and devices in a permanent manner; here, the stateful mechanism is
employed on this subset of hosts, but the control of the remaining parameters and/or
nodes could be less rigorous. In some environments there are no policy requirements
on the importance of the allocated addresses. In this situation the stateless mechanism
can be used.
IPv6 addresses are “leased” to an interface for a fixed established time (including an
infinite time). When this “lifetime” expires, the link between the interface and the
address is invalidated and the address can be reallocated to other interfaces. For the
suitable management of address expiration time, an address goes through two states
(stages) while it is affiliated to an interface [IPV200501]:
(a) At first, an address is in a “preferred” state, so its use in any communication is

not restricted.
(b) After that, an address becomes “deprecated,” indicating that its affiliation with
the current interface will (soon) be invalidated.
While it is in deprecated state, the use of the address is discouraged, although it is

not forbidden. However, when possible, any new communication (for example, the
opening of a new TCP connection) must use a preferred address. A deprecated address
should only be used by applications that already used it before and in cases where it is
difficult to change this address to another address without causing a service
interruption.
To insure that allocated addresses (granted either by manual mechanisms or by
autoconfiguration) are unique in a specific link, the link duplicated address detection
algorithm is used. The address to which the duplicated address detection algorithm is
being applied to is designated (until the end of this algorithmic session) as an “attempt
address.” In this case, it does not matter that such address has been allocated to an
interface and received packets are discarded.
Next, we describe how an IPv6 address is formed. The lowest 64 bits of the address
identify a specific interface and these bits are designated as “interface identifier.” The
highest 64 bits of the address identify the “path” or the “prefix” of the network or router in
one of the links to which such interface is connected. The IPv6 address is formed by
combining the prefix with the interface identifier.
It is possible for a host or device to have IPv6 and IPv4 addresses simultaneously.
Most of the systems that currently support IPv6 allow the simultaneous use of both
protocols. In this way, it is possible to support communication with IPv4-only networks
as well as IPv6-only networks and the use of the applications developed for both
protocols [IPV200501].
Is it possible to transmit IPv6 traffic over IPv4 networks via tunneling methods. This
approach consists of “wrapping” the IPv6 traffic as IPv4 payload data: IPv6 traffic is sent
“encapsulated” into IPv4 traffic, and at the receiving end this traffic is parsed as IPv6
traffic. Transition mechanisms are methods used for the coexistence of IPv4 and/or IPv6
devices and networks. For example, an “IPv6-in-IPv4 tunnel” is a transition mechanism
that allows IPv6 devices to communicate through an IPv4 network. The mechanism
consists of creating the IPv6 packets in a normal way and eccapsulating them in an IPv4
packet. The reverse process is undertaken in the destination machine, which deencap-
sulates the IPv6 packet.
There is a significant difference between the procedures to allocate IPv4 addresses,
which focus on the parsimonious use of addresses (since addresses are a scarce resource
and should be managed with caution), and the procedures to allocate IPv6 addresses,
which focus on flexibility. ISPs deploying IPv6 systems follow the Regional Internet
Registries (RIRs) policies relating to how to assign IPv6 addressing space among their
clients. RIRs are recommending ISPs and operators allocate to each IPv6 client a /48
subnetwork; this allows clients to manage their own subnetworks without using NAT.
(The implication is that the need for NAT disappears in IPv6.)
In order to allow its maximum scalability, IPv6 uses an approach based on a basic
header, with minimum information. This differentiates it from IPv4 where different
options are included in addition to the basic header. IPv6 uses a header
“concatenation” mechanism to support supplementary capabilities. The advantages
of this approach include the following:
. The size of the basic header is always the same and is well known. The basic
header has been simplified compared with IPv4, since only 8 fields are used
instead of 12. The basic IPv6 header has a fixed size, hence, its processing by
nodes and routers is more straightforward. Also, the headers structure aligns to 64
bits, so that new and future processors (64 bits minimum) can process it in a more
efficient way.
. Routers placed between a source point and a destination point (that is, the route
that a specific packet has to pass through) do not need to process or understand any
“following headers.” In other words, in general, interior (core) points of the
network (routers) only have to process the basic header, while in IPv4 all headers
must be processed. This flow mechanism is similar to the operation in MPLS yet
precedes it by several years.
. There is no limit to the number of options that the headers can support (the IPv6
basic header is 40 octets in length, while the IPv4 one varies from 20 to 60 octets,
depending on the options used).
In IPv6, interior/core routers do not perform packet fragmentation, but the frag-
mentation is performed end to end. That is, source and destination nodes perform, by
means of the IPv6 stack, the fragmentation of a packet and the reassembly, respectively.
The fragmentation process consists of dividing the source packet into smaller packets or
fragments [IPV200501].
A “jumbogram” is an option that allows an IPv6 packet to have a payload greater
than 65,535 bytes. Jumbograms are identified with a 0 value in the payload length in the
IPv6 header field and include a jumbo payload option in the hop-by-hop option header. It
is anticipated that such packets will be used, in particular, for multimedia traffic.
This preliminary overview of IPv6 highlights the advantages of the new protocol and
its applicability to a whole range of applications, including VoIP.
9.3 MIGRATION AND COEXISTENCE
Migration is expected to be fairly complex. Initially, internetworking between the two

environments will be critical. Existing IPv4 endpoints and/or nodes will need to run
dual-stack nodes or convert to IPv6 systems. Fortunately, the new protocol supports
IPv4-compatible IPv6 addresses, which is an IPv6 address format that employs
MIGRATION AND COEXISTENCE 209
embedded IPv4 addresses. Tunneling, which we already described in passing, will play
a major role in the beginning:
There are a number of requirements that are typically applicable to an organization
wishing to introduce an IPv6 service [6NE200501]:
. The existing IPv4 service should not be adversely disrupted (e.g., as it might be by
router loading of encapsulating IPv6 in IPv4 for tunnels).
. The IPv6 service should perform as well as the IPv4 service (e.g., at the IPv4 line
rate and with similar network characteristics).
. The service must be manageable and be able to be monitored (thus tools should be
available for IPv6 as they are for IPv4).
. The security of the network should not be compromised due to the additional
protocol itself or weakness of any transition mechanism used.
. An IPv6 address allocation plan must be drawn up.
Well-known interworking mechanisms include the following [RFC2893]:2
. Dual IP layer (also known as dual stack): A technique for providing complete
support for both IPs—IPv4 and IPv6—in hosts and routers.
. Configured tunneling of IPv6 over IPv4: Point-to-point tunnels made by encap-
sulating IPv6 packets within IPv4 headers to carry them over IPv4 routing
infrastructures.
. Automatic tunneling of IPv6 over IPv4: A mechanism for using IPv4-compatible
addresses to automatically tunnel IPv6 packets over IPv4 networks.
Tunneling techniques include the following [RFC2893]:
. IPv6-over-IPv4 tunneling: The technique of encapsulating IPv6 packets within

IPv4 so that they can be carried across IPv4 routing infrastructures.
. Configured tunneling:
– IPv6-over-IPv4 tunneling where the IPv4 tunnel endpoint address is deter-
mined by configuration information on the encapsulating node. The tunnels
can be either unidirectional or bidirectional. Bidirectional configured tunnels
behave as virtual point-to-point links.
– Automatic tunneling: IPv6-over-IPv4 tunneling where the IPv4 tunnel end-
point address is determined from the IPv4 address embedded in the IPv4-
compatible destination address of the IPv6 packet being tunneled.
2
any kind, provided that the copyright notice and this paragraph are included on all such copies and derivative
works.
– IPv4 multicast tunneling: IPv6-over-IPv4 tunneling where the IPv4 tunnel

endpoint address is determined using ND. Unlike configured tunneling
this does not require any address configuration, and unlike automatic
tunneling it does not require the use of IPv4-compatible addresses. How-
ever, the mechanism assumes that the IPv4 infrastructure supports IPv4
multicast.
Applications (and the lower layer protocol stack) need to be properly equipped.
There are four cases [RFC4038]:
Case 1: IPv4-only applications in a dual-stack node. IPv6 is introduced in a
node, but applications are not yet ported to support IPv6. The protocol stack is as
follows:
Case 2: IPv4-only applications and IPv6-only applications in a dual-stack

node. Applications are ported for IPv6-only. Therefore, there are two similar appli-
cations, one for each protocol version (e.g., ping and ping6). The protocol stack is as
follows:
—
—
Case 3: Applications supporting both IPv4 and IPv6 in a dual-stack node. Applica-
tions are ported for both IPv4 and IPv6 support. Therefore, the existing IPv4 applications
can be removed. The protocol stack is as follows:
—
MULTICAST WITH IPv6 211
Case 4: Applications supporting both IPv4 and IPv6 in an IPv4-only node.

Applications are ported for both IPv4 and IPv6 support, but the same applications may
also have to work when IPv6 is not being used [e.g., disabled from the Operating System
(OS)]. The protocol stack is as follows:
The first two cases are not interesting in the longer term; only a few applications are
inherently IPv4 or IPv6 specific and should work with both protocols without having to
care about which one is being used.
9.4 MULTICAST WITH IPv6
Next, we focus on multicast issues, including layer 3 addressing. Note at this juncture that
IPv6 multicast does not support DM.
9.4.1 IPv6 Multicast Addresses

Figure 9.2 depicts the IPv6 multicast address. In IPv6, multicast addresses begin with the
format prefix 1111 1111 (FF in hex). The format prefix is followed by two fields, each 4
bits long: flags and scope. The flag field T initially indicated whether the address was
permanent or transient. RFC 3306 added a P (prefix) flag; this flag allows part of the group
address to include the source networks unicast prefix, which creates a globally unique
group address. The R flag is used to indicate that the RP address is embedded in the group
address; with embedded RP, the flags R, P, and T are set to 1. The scope is a subset of the
network, as discussed earlier. The remaining 112 bits of the IPv6 address are the group ID.
9.4.2 MAC Layer Addresses

MAC layer addresses consist of 24 bits for the Organizational Unit Identifier (OUI) and
24 bits for the serial number of the Ethernet NIC. For a multicast environment the MAC
address format uses a special OUI. As we saw in Chapter 2, the OUI for IPv4 multicast is
00:00:5E with the least significant bit most significant octet set and with only half of this
address space allocated to IP multicast. The implication of the fact that only 23 bits are
available for the group address means a potential address overlap at layer 2. A different
OUI format is used for IPv6 multicast. The leading two octets are set to hex 33-33, and the
remaining four octets are available for address mapping from the last 32 bits of the
128-bit IPv6 multicast address. See Figure 9.3 for an example.
128 bits
8 bits 8 bits
Group ID
1111 1111
F F Flags Scope
1 = node
2 = link
5 = site
8 = organization
E = global
0 RP T
R= RP address embedded
T= 0 if permanent, 1 if temporary
P= Prefix for unicast-based assignments
Figure 9.2. IPv6 Multicast Addressing
IPv6 Multicast
address
FF01 0000 0000 0000 0000 0001 FD0F FE17
33 33 FD 0F FE 17
Multicast prefix
for Ethernet multicast
Corresponding
Ethernet address
Figure 9.3. IPv6 Multicast Address Mapping to derive an Ethernet address

REFERENCES 213
9.4.3 Signaling
Just as is the case in IPv4, IPv6 hosts (receivers) must signal a router with its desire to
receive data from a specific group. IPv6 multicast does not use IGMP but rather uses
MLD. MLDv1 is similar to IGMPv2, and MLDv2 is similar to IGMPv3. This topic is
revisited in Chapter 10.
9.4.4 RP Approaches
Recall that in SM PIM sources must send their traffic to an RP; this traffic is in turn
forwarded to receivers on a shared distribution tree. In IPv6, auto-RP is not currently
available; however, there is a BSR for IPv6; also there is static configuration of an RP
(embedded RP). Static use is acceptable in the intradomain, but not within the
interdomain. Embedded RP is a viable solution for those applications that cannot
leverage SSM and that require a PIM SM model to interoperate across multiple
domains [CIS200701]. *Embedded RP uses the R flag discussed above: when the flags
R, P, and T are set to 1, this indicates that the RP address is embedded in the group
address.
REFERENCES
[6NE200501] 6NET, D2.2.4: Final IPv4 to IPv6 Transition Cookbook for Organisational/ISP
(NREN) and Backbone Networks, Version:1.0, Project Number: IST-2001-32603, CEC
Deliverable Number 32603/UOS/DS/2.2.4/A1, February 4, 2005.
[CIS200701] Cisco Systems, Internet Protocol (IP) Multicast Technology Overview and White
Papers, Cisco Systems, San Jose, CA.
[DAV200201] J. Davies, Understanding IPv6, Microsoft Press, 2002.
[DEM200301] Desmeules, Cisco Self-Study: Implementing IPv6 Networks (IPV6), Pearson
Education, May 2003.
[GON199801] M. Goncalves, K. Niles, IPv6 Networks, McGraw-Hill Osborne, 1998.
[GOS200301] S.Goswami, Internet Protocols: Advances, Technologies, and Applications, Kluwer
Academic Publishers, May 2003.
[GRA200001] B. Graham, TCP/IP Addressing: Designing and Optimizing Your IP Addressing
Scheme, 2nd ed., Morgan Kaufmann, 2000.
[HAG200201] S. Hagen, IPv6 Essentials, OReilly, 2002.
[HUI199701] C. Huitema, IPv6 the New Internet Protocol, 2nd ed., Prentice-Hall, 1997.
[IPV200401] IPv6Forum, IPv6 Vendors Test Voice, Wireless and Firewalls on Moonv6, http://www.
ipv6forum.com/modules.php?op¼modload&name¼News&file¼article&sid¼15&mode¼
thread&order¼0&thold¼0, November 15, 2004.
[IPV200501] IPv6 Portal, http://www.ipv6tf.org/meet/faqs.php.
[ITO200401] J. Itojun Hagino, IPv6 Network Programming, Butterworth-Heinemann, 2004.
[LEE200501] H. K. Lee, Understanding IPv6, Springer-Verlag, New York, 2005.
[LOS200301] P. Loshin, IPv6: Theory, Protocol, and Practice, 2nd ed., Elsevier Science &
Technology Books, 2003.
[MIL199701] M.A. Miller, Implementing IPv6: Migrating to the Next Generation Internet
Protocol, Wiley, 1997.
[MIL200001] M. Miller, P. E. Miller, Implementing IP V6: Supporting the Next Generation
Internet Protocols, 2nd ed., Hungry Minds, 2000.
[MIN200601] D. Minoli, VoIP over IPv6, Elsevier, 2006.
[MIN200801] J. J. Amoss, D. Minoli, Handbook of IPv4 to IPv6 Transition Methodologies for
Institutional and Corporate Networks, TF-ARBCH, New York, 2008.
[MSD200401] Microsoft Corporation, MSDN Library, Internet Protocol, http://msdn.microsoft.
com, 2004.
[MUR200501] N. R. Murphy, D. Malone, IPv6 Network Administration, OReilly & Associates,
2005.
[RFC2460] RFC 2460, Internet Protocol, Version 6 (IPv6) Specification, S. Deering, R. Hinden,
December 1998.
[RFC2893] RFC 2893, Transition Mechanisms for IPv6 Hosts and Routers, R. Gilligan, E.
Nordmark, August 2000.
[RFC3022] RFC 3022, Traditional IP Network Address Translator (Traditional NAT), P. Srisuresh,
K. Egevang, January 2001.
[RFC3306] RFC 3306, Unicast-Prefix-Based IPv6 Multicast.
[RFC4038] RFC 4038, Application Aspects of IPv6 Transition, M-K. Shin, Ed., Y-G. Hong, J.
Hagino, P. Savola, E.M. Castro, March 2005.
[SOL200401] H. S. Soliman, Mobile IPv6, Pearson Education, 2004.
[TEA200401] D. Teare, C. Paquet, CCNP Self-Study: Advanced IP Addressing, Cisco Press, June
11, 2004.
[WEG199901] J. D. Wegner, IP Addressing and Subnetting, Including IPv6, Elsevier Science &
Technology Books, 1999.
10
MULTICAST LISTENER
DISCOVERY
Just as is the case in IPv4, IPv6 hosts (receivers) signal a router with their desire to receive
data from a specific group. IPv6 multicast does not use the IGMP but rather the Multicast
Listener Discovery (MLD) protocol. MLD is used by an IPv6 router to discover the
presence of multicast listeners on directly attached links and to discover which multicast
addresses are of interest to those neighboring nodes. MLDv1 is similar to IGMPv2, and
MLDv2 is similar to IGMPv3. MLDv2 adds the ability for a node to report interest in
listening to packets with a particular multicast address only from specific source
addresses, or from all sources except for specific source addresses, this being similar
to SSM. Recall that SSM is a form of multicast where a receiver must specify both the
network layer address of the source and the multicast destination address to receive the
multicast datagrams of interest.
This chapter provides an overview of MLD based on RFC 2710,1 Multicast
Listener Discovery (MLD) for IPv6, and RFC 3810, Multicast Listener Discovery
Version 2 (MLDv2) for IPv6. The focus is on MLDv1. Due to the commonality of
1
any kind provided that the copyright notice and this paragraph are included on all such copies and derivative
works.

215
216 MULTICAST LISTENER DISCOVERY
function, the term Group Management Protocol (GMP) is sometimes used to refer to both
IGMP and MLD.
10.1 OVERVIEW OF MLDv12
MLD [RFC 2710, RFC 3550, RFC 3810] specifies the protocol used by an IPv6 router to
discover the presence of multicast listeners (i.e., nodes wishing to receive multicast
packets) on its directly attached links and to discover which multicast addresses are of
interest to those neighboring nodes. MLD enables IPv6 routers to discover the presence
of multicast listeners. This information is then provided to the multicast routing protocol
being used by the router to ensure that multicast packets are delivered to all links where
there are interested receivers. MLD is derived from Version 2 of IPv4s IGMPv2. One
important difference is that MLD uses ICMPv6 message types (IP 58) rather than IGMP
message types (IP 2).
MLD is an asymmetric protocol, specifying different behaviors for multicast
listeners and for routers. For those multicast addresses to which a router itself is listening,
the router performs both parts of the protocol, the “multicast router part” and the
“multicast address listener part,” including responding to its own messages. If a router
has more than one interface to the same link, it needs to perform the router part of the
MLD over only one of those interfaces. Listeners, on the contrary, must perform the
listener part of MLD on all interfaces from which an application or upper layer protocol
has requested reception of multicast packets.
Note that a multicast router may itself be a listener of one or more multicast
addresses; in this case it performs both the multicast router part and the multicast address
listener part of the protocol to collect the multicast listener information needed by its
multicast routing protocol on the one hand and to inform itself and other neighboring
multicast routers of its listening state on the other hand.
10.2 MESSAGE FORMAT
MLD is a subprotocol of ICMPv6, namely, MLD message types are a subset of the
set of ICMPv6 messages, and MLD messages are identified in IPv6 packets by a
preceding next header value of 58. All MLD messages are sent with a link-local IPv6
source address, an IPv6 hop limit of 1, and an IPv6 Router Alert option in a Hop-by-Hop
Options header. (The Router Alert option is necessary to cause routers to examine
MLD messages sent to multicast addresses in which the routers themselves have no
interest.)
MLD messages have the format depicted in Figure 10.1.
2
The discussion of Sections 10.1–10.5 is based on and summarized from RFC 2710.
MESSAGE FORMAT 217
Maximum Response Delay Reserved
Multicast Address
Figure 10.1. MLD Messages Format
There are three types of MLD messages:
1. Multicast Listener Query (type ¼ decimal 130), also known as “Query.” There
are two subtypes of Multicast Listener Query messages (differentiated by the
contents of the Multicast Address field):
General Query, used to learn which multicast addresses have listeners on an
attached link.
Multicast-Address-Specific Query, used to learn if a particular multicast
address has any listeners on an attached link.
2. Multicast Listener Report (type ¼ decimal 131), also known as “Report.”
3. Multicast Listener Done (type ¼ decimal 132), also known as “Done.”
The Code field is initialized to zero by the sender; ignored by receivers.

The Checksum field is the standard ICMPv6 checksum, covering the entire MLD
message plus a “pseudoheader” of IPv6 header fields.
The Maximum Response Delay field is meaningful only in Query messages and
specifies the maximum allowed delay before sending a responding report, in units of
milliseconds. In all other messages, it is set to zero by the sender and ignored by receivers.
Varying this value allows the routers to tune the “leave latency” (the time between
the moment the last node on a link ceases listening to a particular multicast address and
the moment the routing protocol is notified that there are no longer any listeners for that
address. It also allows tuning of the burstiness of MLD traffic on a link.
The Reserved field is initialized to zero by the sender; ignored by receivers.
In a Query message, the Multicast Address field is set to zero when sending a general
query and set to a specific IPv6 multicast address when sending a multicast-
address-specific query. In a Report or Done message, the Multicast Address field holds
a specific IPv6 multicast address to which the message sender is listening or is ceasing to
listen, respectively.
The length of a received MLD message is computed by taking the IPv6 payload
length value and subtracting the length of any IPv6 extension headers present between
the IPv6 header and the MLD message. If that length is greater than 24 octets, it indicates
that there are other fields present beyond the fields described above, perhaps belonging to
a future backwards-compatible version of MLD. An implementation of the version of
MLD specified in this document must not send an MLD message longer than 24 octets,
and must ignore anything past the first 24 octets, of a received MLD message. In all cases,
the MLD checksum must be computed over the entire MLD message, and not just the first
24 octets.
10.3 PROTOCOL DESCRIPTION
Routers use MLD to learn that multicast addresses have listeners on each of their attached
links. Each router keeps a list, for each attached link, of which multicast addresses have
listeners on that link and a timer associated with each of those addresses. Note that the
router needs to learn only that listeners for a given multicast address are present on a link;
it does not need to learn the identity (e.g., unicast address) of those listeners or even how
many listeners are present.
For each attached link, a router selects one of its link-local unicast addresses on that
link to be used as the IPv6 source address in all MLD packets it transmits on that link.
For each interface over which the router is operating the MLD protocol, the router
must configure that interface to listen to all link-layer multicast addresses that can be
generated by IPv6 multicasts. For example, an Ethernet-attached router must set its
Ethernet address reception filter to accept all Ethernet multicast addresses that start
with the hexadecimal value 3333 (as covered in Chapter 9); in the case of an Ethernet
interface that does not support the filtering of such a range of multicast addresses, it
must be configured to accept all Ethernet multicast addresses to meet the requirements of
MLD.
With respect to each of its attached links, a router may assume one of the two
roles: querier or nonquerier. There is normally only one querier per link. All routers
start up as a querier on each of their attached links. If a router hears a Query message
whose IPv6 source address is numerically less than its own selected address for that
link, it must become a nonquerier on that link. If the timer [Other Querier Present
Interval] passes without receiving, from a particular attached link, any queries from a
router with an address less than its own, a router resumes the role of querier on that link.
A querier for a link periodically sends (with timer [Query Interval]) a general
query on that link to solicit reports of all multicast addresses of interest on that link. On
startup, a router should send as many general queries as specified by [Startup Query
Count] spaced closely together (based on the [Startup Query Interval] timer) on all
attached links to quickly and reliably discover the presence of multicast listeners on
those links.
General queries are sent to the link-scope all-nodes multicast address (FF02::1) with
a Multicast Address field of 0 and a maximum response delay defined by the timer
[Query Response Interval].
PROTOCOL DESCRIPTION 219
When a node receives a general query, it sets a delay timer for each multicast address
to which it is listening on the interface from which it received the query, excluding the
link-scope all-nodes address and any multicast addresses of scope 0 (reserved) or 1
(node-local). Each timer is set to a different random value, using the highest
clock granularity available on the node, selected from the range [0,Maximum Response
Delay] with the maximum response delay as specified in the query packet. If a
timer for any address is already running, it is reset to the new random value only if
the requested maximum response delay is less than the remaining value of the running
timer. If the query packet specifies a maximum response delay of zero, each timer is
effectively set to zero, and the action specified below for timer expiration is performed
immediately.
When a node receives a multicast-address-specific query, if it is listening to the
queried multicast address on the interface from which the query was received, it sets a
delay timer for that address to a random value selected from the range [0,Maximum
Response Delay], as above. If a timer for the address is already running, it is reset to the
new random value only if the requested maximum response delay is less than the
remaining value of the running timer. If the query packet specifies a maximum response
delay of zero, the timer is effectively set to zero, and the action specified below for timer
expiration is performed immediately.
If a nodes timer for a particular multicast address on a particular interface expires,
the node transmits a report to that address via that interface; the address being reported is
carried in both the IPv6 Destination Address field and the MLD Multicast Address field
of the report packet. The IPv6 hop limit of 1 (as well as the presence of a link-local
IPv6 source address) prevents the packet from traveling beyond the link to which the
reporting interface is attached.
If a node receives another nodes report from an interface for a multicast address
while it has a timer running for that same address on that interface, it stops its timer
and does not send a report for that address, thus suppressing duplicate reports on the
link.
When a router receives a report from a link, if the reported address is not already
present in the routers list of multicast addresses having listeners on that link, the reported
address is added to the list, its timer is set to [Multicast Listener Interval], and its
appearance is made known to the routers multicast routing component. If a report is
received for a multicast address that is already present in the routers list, the timer for
that address is reset to [Multicast Listener Interval]. If an addresss timer expires, it is
assumed that there are no longer any listeners for that address present on the link; so it is
deleted from the list and its disappearance is made known to the multicast routing
component.
When a node starts listening to a multicast address on an interface, it should
immediately transmit an unsolicited report for that address on that interface in case it is
the first listener on the link. To cover the possibility of the initial report being lost or
damaged, it is recommended that it be repeated once or twice after short delays
[Unsolicited Report Interval] (a simple way to accomplish this is to send the initial
report and then act as if a multicast-address-specific query was received for that address
and set a timer appropriately).
When a node ceases to listen to a multicast address on an interface, it should send a

single Done message to the link-scope all-routers multicast address (FF02::2), carrying
in its Multicast Address field the address to which it is ceasing to listen. If the nodes most
recent Report message was suppressed by hearing another Report message, it may send
nothing, as it is highly likely that there is another listener for that address still present on
the same link. If this optimization is implemented, it must be able to be turned off but
should also default to on.
When a router in the querier state receives a Done message from a link, if the
multicast address identified in the message is present in the queriers list of addresses
having listeners on that link, the querier sends [Last Listener Query Count] multicast-
address-specific queries, one every [Last Listener Query Interval] to that multicast
address. These multicast-address-specific queries have their maximum response delay
set to [Last Listener Query Interval]. If no reports for the address are received from the
link after the response delay of the last query has passed, the routers on the link assume
that the address no longer has any listeners there; the address is therefore deleted from the
list and its disappearance is made known to the multicast routing component. This
process is continued to its resolution (i.e., until a report is received or the last multi-
cast-address-specific query is sent with no response) despite any transition from querier
to nonquerier on this link.
Routers in the Nonquerier state must ignore Done messages.
When a router in the Nonquerier state receives a multicast-address-specific query, if
its timer value for the identified multicast address is greater than [Last Listener Query
Count] times the maximum response delay specified in the message, it sets the addresss
timer to that latter value.
10.4 NODE STATE TRANSITION DIAGRAM
Node behavior is more formally specified by the state transition diagram below. A node
may be in one of the three possible states with respect to any single IPv6 multicast address
on any single interface:
. “Nonlistener” state, when the node is not listening to the address on the interface
(i.e., no upperlayer protocol or application has requested reception of packets to
that multicast address). This is the initial state for all multicast addresses on all
interfaces; it requires no storage in the node.
. “Delaying listener” state, when the node is listening to the address on the interface
and has a report delay timer running for that address.
. “Idle listener” state, when the node is listening to the address on the interface and
does not have a report delay timer running for that address.
There are five significant events that can cause MLD state transitions:
. “Start listening” occurs when the node starts listening to the address on the
interface. It may occur only in the nonlistener state.
NODE STATE TRANSITION DIAGRAM 221
. “Stop listening” occurs when the node stops listening to the address on the
interface. It may occur only in the delaying listener and idle listener states.
. “Query received” occurs when the node receives either a valid General Query
message or a valid Multicast-Address-Specific Query message. To be valid, the
Query message must come from a link-local IPv6 source address, be at least 24
octets long, and have a correct MLD checksum. The Multicast Address field in the
MLD message must contain either zero (a general query) or a valid multicast
address (a multicast-address-specific query). A general query applies to all
multicast addresses on the interface from which the query is received. A multicast-
address-specific query applies to a single multicast address on the interface
from whichthe query isreceived.Queriesare ignored foraddresses inthenonlistener
state.
. “Report received” occurs when the node receives a valid MLD Report message. To
be valid, the Report message must come from a link-local IPv6 source address, be
at least 24 octets long, and have a correct MLD checksum. A report applies only to
the address identified in the Multicast Address field of the Report, on the interface
from which the report is received. It is ignored in the nonlistener or idle listener
state.
. “Timer expired” occurs when the report delay timer for the address on the
interface expires. It may occur only in the delaying listener state.
All other events, such as receiving invalid MLD messages or MLD message types other
than Query or Report, are ignored in all states.
There are seven possible actions that may be taken in response to the above events:
. “Send report” for the address on the interface. The Report message is sent to the
address being reported.
. “Send done” for the address on the interface. If the flag saying we were the last
node to report is cleared, this action may be skipped. The Done message is sent to
the link-scope all-routers address (FF02::2).
. “Set flag” that we were the last node to send a report for this address.
. “Clear flag” since we were not the last node to send a report for this address.
. “Start timer” for the address on the interface using a delay value chosen uniformly
from the interval [0,Maximum Response Delay], where the maximum response
delay is specified in the query. If this is an unsolicited report, the timer is set to a
delay value chosen uniformly from the interval [0,Unsolicited Report Interval].
. “Reset timer” for the address on the interface to a new value using a delay value
chosen uniformly from the interval [0, Maximum Response Delay], as described
in “start timer.”
. “Stop timer” for the address on the interface.
See Figure 10.2 for the protocol state machine. In all of the following state transition
diagrams, each state transition arc is labeled with the event that causes the transition
query
Listener Listener
query timer
Figure 10.2. Protocol State Machine
and, in parentheses, any actions taken during the transition. Note that the transition is
always triggered by the event; even if the action is conditional, the transition still
occurs.
The link-scope all-nodes address (FF02::1) is handled as a special case. The node
starts in the idle listener state for that address on every interface, never transitions to
another state, and never sends a Report or Done message for that address.
MLD messages are never sent for multicast addresses whose scope is 0 (reserved) or
1 (node-local).
MLD messages are sent for multicast addresses whose scope is 2 (link-local),
including solicited-node multicast addresses, except for the link-scope all-nodes address
(FF02::1).
ROUTER STATE TRANSITION DIAGRAM 223
10.5 ROUTER STATE TRANSITION DIAGRAM
Router behavior is more formally specified by the state transition diagrams of

Figures 10.3–10.5.
A router may be in one of the two possible states with respect to any single attached
link:
. “Querier,” when this router is designated to transmit MLD queries on this link.
. “Nonquerier,” when there is another router designated to transmit MLD queries on
this link.
The following three events can cause the router to change states:
query received from a other querier

router with a lower present timer
IP address expired
Figure 10.3. Router State Diagram

. “Query timer expired” occurs when the timer set for query transmission expires.
This event is significant only when in the querier state.
. “Query received from a router with a lower IP address” occurs when a valid
MLD query is received from a router on the same link with a lower IPv6
source address. To be valid, the Query message must come from a link-local
IPv6 source address, be at least 24 octets long, and have a correct MLD
checksum.
. “Other querier present timer expired” occurs when the timer set to note the
presence of another querier with a lower IP address on the link expires. This event
is significant only when in the nonquerier state.
There are three actions that may be taken in response to the above events:
. “Start general query timer” for the attached link to [Query Interval].
. “Start other querier present timer” for the attached link to [Other Querier Present
Interval].
. “Send general query” on the attached link. The general query is sent to the
link-scope all-nodes address (FF02::1) and has a maximum response delay of
[Query Response Interval].
A router starts in the Initial state on all attached links and immediately transitions to
the querier state. In addition, to keep track of which multicast addresses have listeners, a
router may be in one of the three possible states with respect to any single IPv6 multicast
address on any single attached link:
. “No listeners present” state, when there are no nodes on the link that have sent a
report for this multicast address. This is the initial state for all multicast addresses
on the router; it requires no storage in the router.
. “Listeners present” state, when there is a node on the link that has sent a report for
this multicast address.
. “Checking listeners” state, when the router has received a Done message but has
not yet heard a report for the identified address.
There are five significant events that can cause router state transitions:
. “Report received” occurs when the router receives a report for the address from the
link. To be valid, the Report message must come from a link-local IPv6 source
address, be at least 24 octets long, and have a correct MLD checksum.
. “Done received” occurs when the router receives a Done message for the address
from the link. To be valid, the Done message must come from a link-local IPv6
source address, be at least 24 octets long, and have a correct MLD checksum. This
event is significant only in the listerners present state and when the router is a
querier.
ROUTER STATE TRANSITION DIAGRAM 225
. “Multicast-address-specific query received” occurs when a router receives a

multicast-address-specific query for the address from the link. To be valid, the
Query message must come from a link-local IPv6 source address, be at
least 24 octets long, and have a correct MLD checksum. This event is
significant only in the listeners present state and when the router is a
nonquerier.
. “Timer expired” occurs when the timer set for a multicast address expires. This
event is significant only in the listeners present or checking listeners state.
. “Retransmit timer expired” occurs when the timer set to retransmit a
multicast-address-specific query expires. This event is significant only in the
checking listeners state.
There are seven possible actions that may be taken in response to the above
events:
. “Start timer” for the address on the link — also resets the timer to its initial value
[Multicast Listener Interval] if the timer is currently running.
. “Start timer*” for the address on the link — this alternate action sets the timer to
the minimum of its current value and either [Last Listener Query Interval] ·
[Last Listener Query Count] if this router is a querier or the maximum response
delay in the query message · [Last Listener Query Count] if this router is a
nonquerier.
. “Start retransmit timer” for the address on the link [Last Listener Query Interval].
. “Clear retransmit timer” for the address on the link.
. “Send multicast-address-specific query” for the address on the link. The multi-
cast-address-specific query is sent to the address being queried and has a
maximum response delay of [Last Listener Query Interval].
. “Notify routing þ” internally notify the multicast routing protocol that there are
listeners to this address on this link.
. “Notify routing ” internally notify the multicast routing protocol that there are
no longer any listeners to this address on this link.
The state diagrams that follow apply per group per link (one for routers in the querier
state and one for routers in the nonquerier state). The transition between querier and
nonquerier states on a link is handled specially. All groups on that link in the no listeners
present or listeners present state switch state transition diagrams when the querier/
nonquerier state transition occurs. However, any groups in checking listeners state
continue with the same state transition diagram until the checking listeners state is exited.
For example, a router that starts as a querier, receives a Done message for a group, and
then receives a query from a router with a lower address (causing a transition to the
nonquerier state) continues to send multicast-address-specific queries for the group in
question until it either receives a report or its timer expires, at which time it starts
performing the actions of a nonquerier for this group.
Figure 10.4. State Transition Diagram for a Router in Querier State
The state transition diagram for a router in the querier state is shown in Figure 10.4.
The state transition diagram for a router in the nonquerier state is similar, but
nonqueriers do not send any messages and are only driven by message reception. See
Figure 10.5.
10.6 OVERVIEW OF MLDv2
The MLDv2 protocol, when compared to MLDv1, adds support for “source filtering,”
that is, the ability for a node to report interest in listening to packets only from specific
source addresses, as required to support source-specific multicast defined in RFC 3569,
or from all but specific source addresses sent to a particular multicast address. MLDv2 is
designed to be interoperable with MLDv1. RFC 3810 (June 2004) updates RFC 2710.
Below is a summary of MLDv2 based directly on the RFC. Developers and interested
parties should consult the RFC outright.
OVERVIEW OF MLDv2 227
Figure 10.5. The State Transition Diagram for a Router in Nonquerier State
10.6.1 Protocol Overview

As noted already, MLD is an asymmetric protocol; it specifies separate behaviors for
multicast address listeners (i.e., hosts or routers that listen to multicast packets) and
multicast routers. The purpose of MLD is to enable each multicast router to learn, for
each of its directly attached links, which multicast addresses and sources have interested
listeners on that link. The information gathered by MLD is provided to whichever
multicast routing protocol is used by the router to ensure that multicast packets are
delivered to all links where there are listeners interested in such packets.
Multicast routers only need to know that at least one node on an attached link is
listening to packets for a particular multicast address from a particular source; a
multicast router is not required to individually keep track of the interests of each
neighboring node.
A multicast router performs the router part of the MLDv2 protocol on each of its
directly attached links. If a multicast router has more than one interface connected to the
same link, it only needs to operate the protocol on one of those interfaces. The router
behavior depends on whether there are several multicast routers on the same subnet or
not. If that is the case, a querier election mechanism is used to elect a single multicast
router to be in the querier state. This router is called the querier. All multicast routers on
the subnet listen to the messages sent by multicast address listeners and maintain the
same multicast listening information state so that they can take over the querier role
should the present querier fail. Nevertheless, only the querier sends periodic or triggered
query messages on the subnet.
A multicast address listener performs the listener part of the MLDv2 protocol on all
interfaces on which multicast reception is supported, even if more than one of those
interfaces are connected to the same link.
10.6.2 Building Multicast Listening State on Multicast

Address Listeners
Upper layer protocols and applications that run on a multicast address listener node use
specific service interface calls to ask the IP layer to enable or disable reception of packets
sent to specific multicast addresses. The node keeps the multicast address listening state
for each socket on which the service interface calls have been invoked. In addition to this
per-socket multicast listening state, a node must also maintain or compute a multicast
listening state for each of its interfaces. Conceptually, that state consists of a set of
records, with each record containing an IPv6 multicast address, a filter mode, and a
source list. The filter mode may be either INCLUDE or EXCLUDE. In the INCLUDE
mode, reception of packets sent to the specified multicast address is enabled only from
the source addresses listed in the source list. In the EXCLUDE mode, reception of
packets sent to the given multicast address is enabled from all the source addresses except
those listed in the source list.
At most one record per multicast address exists for a given interface. This per-
interface state is derived from the per-socket state but may differ from it when different
sockets have differing filter modes and/or source lists for the same multicast address and
interface. After a multicast packet has been accepted from an interface by the IP layer, its
subsequent delivery to the application connected to a particular socket depends on the
multicast listening state of that socket (and possibly also on other conditions, such as
what transport layer port the socket is bound to). Note that MLDv2 messages are not
subject to source filtering and must always be processed by hosts and routers.
10.6.3 Exchanging Messages between the Querier

and the Listening Nodes
There are three types of MLDv2 query messages: general queries, multicast address-
specific queries, and multicast address- and source-specific queries. The querier
periodically sends general queries to learn multicast address listener information from
an attached link. These queries are used to build and refresh the multicast address listener
state inside all multicast routers on the link.
Nodes respond to these queries by reporting their per-interface multicast address
listening state through Current State Report messages sent to a specific multicast address
of all MLDv2 routers on the link listen to. On the contrary, if the listening state of a node
changes, the node immediately reports these changes through a State Change Report
message. The state change report contains either filter mode change records, source list
change records, or records of both types.
Both router and listener state changes are mainly triggered by the expiration of a
specific timer or the reception of an MLD message (listener state change can also be
triggered by the invocation of a service interface call). Therefore, to enhance protocol
robustness, in spite of the possible unreliability of message exchanges, messages are
retransmitted several times. Furthermore, timers are set so as to take into account the
possible message losses and to wait for retransmissions.
Periodic general queries and current state reports do not apply this rule in order to not
to overload the link; it is assumed that, in general, these messages do not generate state
changes, their main purpose being to refresh the existing state. Thus, even if one such
message is lost, the corresponding state will be refreshed during the next reporting
period.
As opposed to current state reports, state change reports are retransmitted several
times in order to avoid them being missed by one or more multicast routers. The number
of retransmissions depends on the so-called robustness variable. This variable allows
tuning the protocol according to the expected packet loss on a link. If a link is expected to
be lossy (e.g., a wireless connection), the value of the robustness variable may be
increased. MLD is robust to [Robustness Variable] 1 packet losses. The RFC recom-
mends a default value of 2 for the robustness variable.
If more changes to the same per-interface state entry occur before all the retransmis-
sions of the state change report for the first change have been completed, each additional
change triggers the immediate transmission of a new state change report. Retransmis-
sions of the new state change report will be scheduled as well, in order to ensure that each
instance of state change is transmitted at least [Robustness Variable] times.
If a node on a link expresses, through a state change report, its desire to no longer
listen to a particular multicast address (or source), the querier must query for other
listeners of the multicast address (or source) before deleting the multicast address (or
source) from its multicast address listener state and stopping the corresponding
traffic. Thus, the querier sends a multicast address-specific query to verify whether
there are nodes still listening to a specified multicast address or not. Similarly, the
querier sends a multicast address- and source-specific query to verify whether, for a
specified multicast address, there are nodes still listening to a specific set of sources
or not.
Both multicast address-specific queries and multicast address- and source-
specific queries are only sent in response to state change reports and never in response
to current state reports. This distinction between the two types of reports is needed to
avoid the router treating all multicast listener reports as potential changes in state. By
doing so, the fast leave mechanism of MLDv2 might not be effective if a state change
report is lost, and only the following current state report is received by the router.
Nevertheless, it avoids an increased processing at the router, and it reduces the MLD
traffic on the link.
Nodes respond to the above queries through current state reports, which contain their
per-interface multicast address listening state, only for the multicast addresses (or
sources) being queried.
As stated earlier, in order to ensure protocol robustness, all the queries, except the
periodic general queries, are retransmitted several times within a given time interval. The
number of retransmissions depends on the robustness variable. If, while scheduling
new queries, there are pending queries to be retransmitted for the same multicast address,
the new queries and the pending queries have to be merged. In addition, host reports
received for a multicast address with pending queries may affect the contents of those
queries.
Protocol robustness is also enhanced through the use of the S flag (suppress
router-side processing). As described above, when a multicast address-specific or a
multicast Address- and source-specific query is sent by the querier, a number of
retransmissions of the query are scheduled. In the original (first) query the S flag is
clear. When the querier sends this query, it lowers the timers for the concerned multicast
address (or source) to a given value; similarly, any nonquerier multicast router that
receives the query lowers its timers in the same way. Nevertheless, while waiting for the
next scheduled queries to be sent, the querier may receive a report that updates the timers.
The scheduled queries still have to be sent, in order to ensure that a nonquerier router
keeps its state synchronized with the current querier (the nonquerier router might have
missed the first query). Nevertheless, the timers should not be lowered again, as a valid
answer was already received. Therefore, in subsequent queries the querier sets the S flag.
10.6.4 Building Multicast Address Listener State

on Multicast Routers
Multicast routers that implement MLDv2 (whether they are in the querier state or not)
keep state per multicast address per attached link. This multicast address listener state
consists of a filter mode, a filter timer, and a source list, with a timer associated to each
source from the list. The filter mode is used to summarize the total listening state of a
multicast address to a minimum set such that all nodes listening states are respected. The
filter mode may change in response to the reception of particular types of Report
messages or when certain timer conditions occur.
A router is in the INCLUDE mode for a specific multicast address on a given
interface if all the listeners on the link interested in that address are in the INCLUDE
mode. The router state is represented through the notation INCLUDE (A), where A is a
list of sources, called the “include list.” The include list is the set of sources that one or
more listeners on the link have requested to receive. All the sources from the include list
will be forwarded by the router. Any other source that is not in the include list will be
blocked by the router.
A source can be added to the current include list if a listener in the INCLUDE mode
sends a current state or a state change report that includes that source. Each source from
the include list is associated with a source timer that is updated whenever a listener in the
INCLUDE mode sends a report that confirms its interest in that specific source. If
the timer of a source from the include list expires, the source is deleted from the include
list.
Besides this “soft leave” mechanism, there is also a “fast leave” scheme in MLDv2;
it is also based on the use of source timers. When a node in the INCLUDE mode expresses
its desire to stop listening to a specific source, all the multicast routers on the link lower
their timers for that source to a given value. The querier then sends a multicast address
and source-specific query to verify whether there are other listeners for that source on the
link or not. If a report that includes this source is received before the timer expiration, all
the multicast routers on the link update the source timer. If not, the source is deleted from
the include list.
A router is in the EXCLUDE mode for a specific multicast address on a given
interface if there is at least one listener in the EXCLUDE mode for that address on the
link. When the first report is received from such a listener, the router sets the filter timer
that corresponds to that address. This timer is reset each time an EXCLUDE mode
listener confirms its listening state through a current state report. The timer is also
updated when a listener, formerly in the INCLUDE mode, announces its filter mode
change through a State Change Report message. If the filter timer expires, it means that
there are no more listeners in the EXCLUDE mode on the link. In this case, the router
switches back to the INCLUDE mode for that multicast address.
When the router is in the EXCLUDE mode, the router state is represented by the
notation EXCLUDE (X,Y), where X is called the “requested list” and Y is called
the “exclude list.” All sources, except those from the exclude list, will be forwarded
by the router. The requested list has no effect on forwarding. Nevertheless, the router
has to maintain the requested list for the following two reasons:
1. To keep track of sources that listeners in the INCLUDE mode listen to. This is
necessary to assure a seamless transition of the router to the INCLUDE mode
when there is no listener in the EXCLUDE mode left. This transition should not
interrupt the flow of traffic to listeners in the INCLUDE mode for that multicast
address. Therefore, at the time of the transition, the requested list should
contain the set of sources that nodes in the INCLUDE mode have explicitly
requested.
When the router switches to the INCLUDE mode, the sources in the
requested list are moved to the include list, and the exclude list is deleted.
Before switching, the requested list can contain an inexact guess of the sources
that listeners in the INCLUDE mode listen to—might be too large or too small.
These inexactitudes are due to the fact that the requested list is also used for fast
blocking purposes, as described below. If such a fast blocking is required, some
sources may be deleted from the requested list to reduce the router state.
Nevertheless, in each such case the filter timer is updated as well. Therefore,
listeners in the INCLUDE mode will have enough time, before an eventual
switching, to reconfirm their interest in the eliminated source(s) and rebuild the
requested list accordingly. The protocol ensures that when a switch to the
INCLUDE mode occurs, the requested list is accurate.
2. To allow the fast blocking of previously unblocked sources. If the router receives
a report that contains such a request, the concerned sources are added to the
requested list. Their timers are set to a given small value, and a multicast address
and source-specific query is sent by the querier to check whether there are nodes
on the link still interested in those sources or not. If no node announces its interest
in receiving those specific source, the timers of those sources expire. Then, the
sources are moved from the requested list to the exclude list. From then onwards,
the sources will be blocked by the router.
10.7 SOURCE FILTERING
What follows is a brief discussion of source filtering based on RFC 4604. The term
“Source Filtering GMP (SFGMP)” is used to refer jointly to the IGMPv3 and MLDv2
group management protocols. The use of source-specific multicast is facilitated by small
changes to the SFGMP protocols on both hosts and routers. SSM defines general
requirements that must be followed by systems that implement the SSM service model;
this document defines the concrete application of those requirements to systems that
implement IGMPv3 and MLDv2. In doing so, RFC 4604 defines modifications to the
host and router portions of IGMPv3 and MLDv2 for use with SSM and presents a number
of clarifications to their behavior when used with SSM addresses. RFC 4604 updates the
IGMPv3 and MLDv2 specifications.
One should note that SSM can be used by any host that supports source filtering APIs
and whose operating system supports the appropriate SFGMP. The SFGMP modifica-
tions, as described in RFC 4604, make SSM work better on an SSM-aware host (but they
are not strict prerequisites for the use of SSM).
The 232/8 IPv4 address range is currently allocated for SSM by the IANA. In IPv6,
the FF3x::/32 range (where x is a valid IPv6 multicast scope value) is reserved for SSM
semantics, although today SSM allocations are restricted to FF3x::/96.
A host that knows the SSM address range and is capable of applying SSM semantics
to it is described as an “SSM-aware” host. A host or router may be configured to apply
SSM semantics to addresses other than those in the IANA-allocated range. The GMP
module on a host or router should have a configuration option to set the SSM address
range(s). If this configuration option exists, it must default to the IANA-allocated SSM
range. The mechanism for setting this configuration option must at least allow for manual
configuration. Protocol mechanisms to set this option may be defined in the future.
If the host IP module of an SSM-aware host receives a non-source-specific request
to receive multicast traffic sent to an SSM destination address, it should return an
error to the application. On a non-SSM-aware host, an application that uses the
wrong API [e.g., “join(G),” “IPMulticastListen(G,EXCLUDE(S1))” for IGMPv3 or
“IPv6MulticastListen(G,EXCLUDE(S2))” for MLDv2] to request delivery of packets
sent to an SSM address will not receive the requested service because an SSM-aware
router (following the rules of this document) will refuse to process the request, and
the application will receive no indication other than a failure to receive the requested
traffic.
RFC 4604 documents the behavior of an SSM-aware host with respect to sending
and receiving the following GMP message types:
. IGMPv1/v2 and MLDv1 Reports (2.2.1)

. IGMPv3 and MLDv2 Reports (2.2.2)
REFERENCES 233
. IGMPv1 Queries, IGMPv2 and MLDv1 General Queries (2.2.3)

. IGMPv2 Leave and MLDv1 Done (2.2.4)
. IGMPv2 and MLDv1 Group Specific Query (2.2.5)
. IGMPv3 and MLDv2 Group Specific Query (2.2.6)
. IGMPv3 and MLDv2 Group-and-Source Specific Query (2.2.7)
Refer to the RFC for details.
REFERENCES
[RFC2710] RFC 2710, Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) for IPv6, S. Deering, W. Fenner, B.
Haberman, October 1999, updated by RFC 3590, RFC 3810.
[RFC3810] RFC 3810, Multicast Listener Discovery Version 2 (MLDv2) for IPv6, R. Vida, Ed.,
L. Costa, Ed., June 2004.
[RFC4604] RFC 4604, Using Internet Group Management Protocol Version 3 (IGMPv3) and
Multicast Listener Discovery Protocol Version 2 (MLDv2)for Source-Specific Multicast, H.
Holbrook, B. Cain, B. Haberman, August 2006.
11
IPTV APPLICATIONS
Entertainment is “big business” all over the world. Major markets include North
America, Europe, Asia, and South America. The annual residential cable TV revenue
was estimated to be $75 billion in 2007 in the United States alone, providing services to
about 66 million subscribers. IPTV services are initially targeted by traditional telephone
companies as a way to enter the just-named market; eventually cable TV companies may
adopt the same technology. traditional telephone companies (“telcos”) have seen
erosions in their revenues and they seek ways to increase their ARPU (Average Revenue
Per User) using video services and “triple/quadruple play.”1 This chapter provides
a terse overview to the topic; the discussion is not intended to be comprehensive or
to be completely systematic: to do justice to the topic an entire lengthy textbook is
needed.
11.1 OVERVIEW AND MOTIVATION
As noted in Chapter 1, IPTV deals with approaches, technologies, and protocols

to deliver commercial-grade SD and HD entertainment-quality real-time linear and
1
Triple play is the delivery of voice, Internet, and video services to a customer. Quadruple play adds wireless
services.
234
OVERVIEW AND MOTIVATION 235
on-demand video content over IP-based networks, while meeting all prerequisite quality
of service, quality of experience, conditional access (security), blackout management
(for sporting events), emergency alert system, closed captions, parental controls,
Nielsen rating collection, secondary audio channel, picture-in-picture, and guide
data requirements of the content providers and/or regulatory entities. Typically,
IPTV makes use of MPEG-4 encoding to deliver 200–300 SD channels and
20–40 HD channels; viewers need to be able to switch channels within 2 s or less; also,
the need exists to support multi-STB/multiprogramming (say two to four) within a single
domicile.
IPTV (also known in some quarters as telco TV) is not to be confused with simple
delivery of video over an IP network, including video streaming, which has been possible
for over two decades; IPTV supports all business, billing, provisioning, and content
protection requirements that are associated with commercial video distribution. IP-based
service needs to be comparable to that received over cable TVor DBS. In addition to TV
sets, the content may also be delivered to a personal computer. MPEG-4, which operates
at 2.5 Mbps for SD video and 8–11 Mbps for HD video, is critical to telco-based video
delivery over a copper-based plant because of the bandwidth limitations of that plant,
particularly when multiple simultaneous streams need to be delivered to a domicile;
MPEG-2 would typically require a higher bit rate for the same perceived video quality
[MIN199501, MIN200301].
Hence, in summary, an IPTV system must provide, as a minimum, the same service
and content as extant cable networks, including broadcast television, local channels,
premium channels, Pay Per View (PPV), music, and Personal Digital Recorder (PDR2)
services. SD and HD channels must be supported. Very high availability (no less than
99.999%) must also be supported.
With the significant erosion in revenues from traditional voice services on
wireline-originated calls (both in terms of depressed pricing and a shift to VoIP
over broadband Internet services delivered over cable TV infrastructure), and with the
transition of many customers from wireline to wireless services, the traditional
telephone carriers find themselves in need of generating new revenues by seeking
to deliver video services to their customers. Traditional phone carriers
find themselves challenged in the voice arena (by VoIP and other providers);
their Internet services are also challenged in the broadband Internet access arena
(by cable TV companies); and, their video services are nascent and challenged by
a lack of deployed technology. Multimedia (and new media) services are a way to
improve telco revenues.
Table 11.1 depicts the gains in ARPU that can be achieved by adding linear
programming and nonlinear programming (e.g.,VoD and PDR services). Line rentals
and voice calls contribute an ARPU of $38; adding broadband brings
the figure to $68. Adding video services increases this figure by $52, to a total
of $120.
IPTV is in the early stage of technical and market development worldwide. The
U.S. telco IPTV market opportunity is projected by market research firms to reach
2
These are also called Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) or Personal Video Recorders (PVRs).
236 IPTV APPLICATIONS
T A B L E 11.1. Monthly ARPU for U.S. Telcos

Monthly Incremental Incremental Gross Profit per
Service ARPU Gross Margin User per Month
Line rental $16 94% $15
Voice calls $22 82% $18
Broadband $30 97% $29
Basic video $20 50% $10
VoD $12 75% $9
DVR $10 80% $8
HDTV $10 80% $8
Total $120 81% $97
Source: Light Reading, Nov. 28, 2005.
10 million subscribers by 2012 and about 65 million subscribers worldwide. That could
represent an IPTV services market of $6–$8 billion in the United States and $39–$52
billion worldwide by 2012; the Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) is 35–40% for
the next 5 years according to some. Table 11.2 depicts some press time stats and
Table 11.3 depicts a forecast for the next few years.
According to press time data from Infonetics Research, worldwide IPTVequipment
revenue reached about $425 million in the first quarter of 2007. According to the same
market research, worldwide IPTVequipment manufacturer revenue increased over 150%
in 2006, passing the $1 billion mark. While the IPTV equipment market is expected to
grow at a more moderate pace in coming years, most equipment categories are forecast to
at least double or triple between 2006 and 2010 [INF200701]. It has been estimated that
to deploy the systems needed to deliver IPTV, carriers will spend in the range of
$20 billion between 2007 and 2012 in the United States alone. There appears to be a
favorable regulatory support in the United States for the entrance of the telcos into the
video field. However, telcos may face franchising rights challenges. It is worth noting
that historically the cable TV/pay TV market has been insensitive to economic cycles.
Table 11.4 provides a basic glossary of IPTV service concepts from Nortel
[NOR200601]; refer to the glossary at the back of the book for a more exhaustive listing.
11.2 BASIC ARCHITECTURE
Figures 11.1–11.3 depict typical architectures for linear IPTV.

Figure 11.1 shows a content aggregator preparing the content at a single source S for
terrestrial distribution of the content to multiple remote telcos. This example depicts the
telcos acquiring the service from an aggregator/distributor, rather than performing that
fairly complex function on their own, which can be fairly expensive to architect, develop,
set up, and maintain. The operator must sign an agreement with each content provider;
hundreds of agreements are, therefore, required to cover the available channels and VoD
content. Aggregators provide the content to the operator, typically over satellite delivery,
and do a lot of the signal normalization and CAwork. However, an additional per-channel
agreement with one or more content aggregators is also needed.
BASIC ARCHITECTURE 237
T A B L E 11.2. Cable TV Statistics (2006/2007)

U.S. Cable TV U.S. Television Households (December 2006)a 111,600,000
Industry Statistics Basic Cable Subscribers (December 2006)a 65,600,000
Cable Penetration of TV Households 58.8%
(December 2006)a
Occupied Homes Passed by Cable 112,600,000
(December 2006)a
Cable Headends (March 2007)b 8,360
Premium Cable Units (December 2006)a 50,600,000
Cable Systems (2006)c 7,090
Annual Cable Revenue (residential) $74.7 billion
(2007 estimate)a
Total Advertising Revenue (2007 estimate)a $26.9 billion
Annual Franchise Fees Paid by Cable Industry $2.8 billion
(2006)d
Cable’s Private Cable Industry Construction/Upgrade Expenditures $12.4 billion
Investment (2006)a
Schools Served by Cable in the Classroom 81,665
(August 2006)e
Students Served by Cable in the Classroom 44,157,959
(August 2006)e
Broadband Digital Cable Customers (March 2007)a 34,012,000
Deployment Residential Cable High-Speed Data Subscribers 28,900,000
(December 2006)a
Total Cable High-Speed Data Subscribers 32,712,000
(March 2007)a (includes commercial customers)
Housing Units Passed by Cable High-Speed Data 119,100,000
Service (2006)f
Residential Cable Telephony Customers 10,800,000
(March 2007)d
Homes Passed by Cable HDTV Service (June 2006)d 97,000,000
Value and National Video Programming Services/Networks 531
Prices (June 2005)g
Major Television Awards Won by Cable in 2006h 61
Average Monthly Price for Expanded $42.76
Basic Programming Packages (2007 estimate)a
Competition Subscribers to Non-Cable Multichannel Video Program 32,100,000
Distributors (e.g., DBS, etc.) (December 2006)d
Courtesy: National Cable & Telecommunications Association
a
Kagan Research, LLC
b
A.C. Nielsen Media Research
c
Warren Communications News, Inc.
d
National Cable & Telecommunications Association
e
Cable in the Classroom
f
U.S. Census Bureau and Kagan Research, LLC estimates. Housing units include occupied, seasonal, and
vacant households
g
Federal Communications Commission, Twelfth Annual Video Competition Report (March 2006)
h
Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and Grady College of Journalism, University of Georgia
T A B L E 11.3. U.S. Television Subscription Households by Type of Service 2005–2011
100
Telco TV
80
Analog
U.S. TV 60 cable
subscriber
households
(in millions) 40 Digital
cable
20
0 Satellite
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Telco TV 0.1 0.4 1.2 2.7 4.7 6.6 9.3
Analog cable 33.6 30.4 27.5 24.5 21.5 18.6 15.5
Digital cable 26.4 29.2 32.3 35.3 38.2 41.3 44.0
Satellite 27.2 28.8 29.3 29.3 29.0 28.5 27.9
Total U.S. TV
subscriber households 87.3 88.8 90.3 91.8 93.4 95.0 96.7
Nonsubscribers 24.0 23.6 23.3 23.0 22.6 22.3 21.9
Total U.S.
households 111.3 112.4 113.6 114.8 116.0 117.3 118.6
Source: Forrester Research Inc.
Note: This figure shows DSL delivery, likely ADSL2þ/VDSL, but a FTTH can also
be used.
Note: This figure does not show the middleware server either distributed at the telco
headend or centralized at the content aggregator.
Note: This figure does not show the content acquisition; the uniform transcoding
(e.g., using MPEG-4) is only hinted by the device at the far left.
Note: This figure does not show the specifics of how the Entitlement Control Message
(ECM) and Entitlement Management Message (EMM) to support the conditional access
function are distributed resiliently. This is typically done in-band for the ECMs and
out-of-band [e.g., using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) over the Internet] for the EMMs.
Note: This figure does not show the video-on-demand overlay is deployed over the
same infrastructure to deliver this and other advanced services.
Note: This figure does not show a blackout management system, which is needed to
support substitution of programming for local sport events.
Note: This figure does not show how the tribune programming data is injected
into the IPTV system, which is needed for scheduling/programming support.
Figure 11.2 is an architecture that is basically similar to that of Figure 11.1, but
the distribution to the remote telcos is done via a satellite broadcast technology.
Satellite delivery is typical of how cable TV operators today receive their signals
T A B L E 11.4. Basic Glossary of IPTV Service Concepts

A la carte VoD VoD where one pays for each item viewed (similar to PPV).
Typically the subscriber has one day to view the content.
DVRs Devices (perhaps built into the STB) that provide the ability to
“time-shift” television viewing. DVRs use a hard disk to record the
content. As such, they can record hundreds of hours of content,
and subscribers can directly access any recording without “fast
forwarding” through other programs. DVRs are integrated into
the IPTV system. From the operator’s Electronic Program Guide
(EPG), the subscriber simply scrolls to the content to be recorded
and hits a “record” button.
Free on-Demand VoD VoD where access and content is free, as stimulus to buy the
overall service.
Linear programming Real-time TV content, including national channels, local channels,
sports channels, and premium channels.
Near Video on Service similar to PPV. While PPV service starts the movie
Demand (nVoD) every two hours, nVoD service shows the same movie on several
channels, each starting as little as 15 min apart. Hence the
subscriber has a short wait time until the movie begins.
PPV programming Services that are ordered on-the-fly (or prereserved at some point
prior to a broadcast), which requires that the subscriber pay an
additional fee to view specific content. Like standard television
service, PPV content is broadcast at a set time.
Premium VoD VoD where one pays an additional monthly fee for premium content
such as recent movies.
Pull VoD VoD system that stores content within the operator network. Upon
request, the content is streamed to the subscriber. The advantage
is that the user can select from a large, centrally stored content
library. The disadvantage is that bandwidth must be allocated to
each subscriber viewing VoD content.
Push VoD VoD system that automatically downloads the VoD content to the
subscriber’s DVR. This download is done during offpeak times or
at low priority, eliminating the need for additional bandwidth. The
downside is that this makes some of the DVR disk unavailable to
the subscriber. As such, this approach is practical only for the latest
content, which will be viewed by a relatively large number of
subscribers.
Subscription VoD VoD where one pays a monthly fee for access to all content in the
standard library.
Time-shifted viewing As enhancements to television service that allows content to be
viewed at a time which is more convenient to the subscriber.
VoD Service that allows the subscriber to view content whenever he or she
wants from a library of stored content. VoD supports a complete
set of VCR-like functions, including rewind, pause, and fast
forward.
Conditional-
Access System
Control Word DSLAM

Generator
Firewal
Encryptor
Content 1
Dense
or Sparse-Dense
Content 2
DSLAM
Dense
or Sparse-Dense
Content 3
Content n
Encryptor
Firewal Dense
or Sparse-Dense
Conditional-
Access System
DSLAM
Control Word
Generator
DSLAM
Figure 11.1. Typical Terrestrial-Based Single-Source IPTV System
from various media content producers (e.g., ABC/Disney, CNN, UPN, Discovery,
A&E). In the case of the cable TV/Multiple Systems Operators (MSOs), the operator
would typically have (multiple) satellite antenna(s) accessing multiple transponders
on a satellite or on multiple satellites and then combine these signals for distribution.
See Figure 11.3 for a pictorial example. In contrast, in the architecture of Figure 11.4,
the operator will need only one receive antenna because the signal aggregation
(conditional access, middleware administration, etc.) is done at the central point of
content aggregation.
Zooming in a bit, the technology elements (subsystems) involved in linear IPTV
include the following:
. Uniform transcoding
Conditional - rec
Access System
Control Word
Generator DSLAM
rec
Firewal
Encryptor
E Mo U HPA
Content 1
Mi
rec
Content 2
DSLAM
rec
Content 3
E Mo U HPA
Dense
or Sparce-Dense
Content n
Encryptor
rec
Firewal
Conditional -
Access System
DSLAM
Control Word
Generator rec
rec
E = Encapsulator DSLAM
Mo = Modulator rec
U = Up converter
HPA = High-Power Amplifier
MC = Mixer/combiner
rec = Receiver
Figure 11.2. Typical Satellite-Based Single-Source IPTV System
. Conditional-access management
. Encapusulation
. Long-haul distribution
. Local distribution
. Middleware
. STBs
. Catcher (for VoD services)
Each of these technologies/subcomponents has its own specific design require-

ments, architectures, and considerations. Furthermore, these systems have to interoper-
ate for an end-to-end complete solution that has a high QoE for the user, and it is easy to
manage and reliable.
In turn, each of these subsystems can be viewed as a vendor-provided platform.
Different vendors have different product solutions to support these subsystems; generally
Figure 11.3. Disadvantages of Distributed Source IPTV: Requires Need for Dish Farms at Each
Telco and for All Ancillary Subsystems
no one vendor has a true end-to-end solution. Hence, each of the following can be seen as
a subsystem platform in its own right:
. Uniform transcoding
. Conditional-access management
. Encapusulation
. Long-haul distribution
. Local distribution
. Middleware
. STBs
. Catcher (for VoD services)
Content
Providers
Source Receivers
Video Routing Uplink IP Receiver
H.264 Encoding DVB Modulation IP Router STB
IP Switch IP Encapsulation
DSLAM
Telco 1
IP Receiver
IP Router STB
Telco 2
DSLAM
Figure 11.4. Advantages of Single Source IPTV: Obviates Need for Dish Farms at Each Telco
Operators can be classified as follows:
. High-end telcos (tier 1)

. Midtier telcos (tier 2)
. Small telcos (tier 3)
. High-end cable TV (tier 1) (future)
. Midtier cable TV (tier 2) (future)
. Smallcable TV (tier 3) (future)
One can anticipate several phases in the deployment of IPTV as follows:

. Phase 1—IPTV introduced by the telcos for commercial delivery of entertainment-
grade video over their IP/MPLS networks (2007–2010).
. Phase 2—IPTV introduced by the cable TV companies for commercial delivery of
entertainment-grade video over their cable infrastructure (speculative, 2010þ).
. Phase 3—IPTV to morph to Internet TV for commercial delivery of any video

content but of entertainment-grade quality over the Internet/broadband Internet
access connections (2011þ).
Applications such as video are very sensitive to end-to-end delay, jitter, and
(uncorrectable) packet loss; QoS considerations are critical. These networks tend to
have fewer hops, and pruning may be somewhat trivially implemented by making use of a
simplified network topology.
11.2.1 Content Aggregation Subsystem

Content aggregation can be done in a distributed fashion or preferably (and more cost
effectively) at a central site. Central site aggregation has the advantage that a uniform
video/audio/conditional-access discipline can be applied to all video of interest.
Content can be downloaded from existing satellites (assuming that the proper
authorization from the content owner is secured) or even delivered to the central site
with a terrestrial facility (e.g., a point-to-point DS3 facility, a single-hop GbE connection),
or even via the Internet, although the latter may introduce degradation right up front. At
this juncture, the content from the satellites is received in encrypted form and needs to be
decrypted.
When using existing content already distributed by a group of satellites (say in
MPEG-2, MPEG-4, or other format), the content aggregation site can use a farm of
satellite dishes pointing to the various satellites (as shown in Figure 11.4) or a single
simulsat antenna, which is a large antenna that can look at 24–36 satellites
simultaneously.
Generally C-band links are used (4 GHz in the downlink, 6 GHz in the uplink,
500 MHz bandwidth over 24 transponders using vertical and horizontal polarization,
resulting in a usable transponder capacity of 45–75 Mbps—depending on modulation/FEC
scheme). C-band has been used for several decades and has good transmission character-
istics, particularly in the presence of rain, which typically affects high-frequency trans-
mission. See Table 11.5 for some details. The individual C-band dishes are typically
3.8–4.5 m in diameter, and the simulsat antenna is usually 7 or 11 m in (toroidal) size.
The various signals are received by Integrated Receiver-Decoders (IRDs) that are
tuned to the specific transponder (and subchannel) of interest. The IRDs have to be
authorized by the ultimate content provider in order to be decrypted and
decoded. The output of the IRDs is typically in Serial Digital Interface (SDI) format. See
Appendix 11.A for some information on SDI.
The signals are typically routed (via a video router) to a bank of MPEG-4 encoders
that generate both an SD (or an HD if that was the original format) version and a more
compact SD (or HD) Picture-in-Picture (PIP) version (including PIP audio). MPEG-4
operates at 2.5 Mbps for SD video and 8–11 Mbps for HD video. The encoders typically
output IP packets, each containing seven Transport Stream (TS) datagrams for that video
program. See Figures 11.5 and 11.6. The approach is taken that an MPEG-2 infrastructure
exists, and so an overlay of IP onto MPEG-2 TS is done [just as was the case a few years
T A B L E 11.5. Satellite Band Details

Band Characteristics Considerations
C-band (5 GHz uplink * Relatively immune to * Requires large antennas
and 4 GHz downlink) atmospheric effects (3.8–4.5 m or larger,
* Popular band, but on occasion especially on the
it is congested on the ground transmit side)
(see note at right) * Large footprints
* Bandwidth (500 MHz/36-MHz * Best performing band in
transponders) allows video the context of rain
and high data rates attenuation
* Provides good performance * Potential interference
for video transmission due to terrestrial
* Proven technology with long microwave systems
heritage and good track record
* Common in heavy-rain zones
Ku-band (14–14.5 GHz * Moderate- to low-cost * Attenuated by rain and
uplink and 11.7–12.2 hardware other atmospheric moisture
GHz downlink) * Highly suited to * Spot beams generally
VSAT networks focused on land masses
* Spot beam footprint permits * Not ideal in heavy-rain
use of smaller earth terminals, zones
1–3 m wide in moderate
rain zones
DBS-band * Simplex * Attenuated by rain and
(12.2–12.7 GHz * Multiple feeds for access to other atmospheric moisture
downlink) satellite neighborhoods
* Small RO antennas
Ka-band * Microspot footprint * Rain attenuation
(18.3–18.8 GHz and * Very small terminals, * Obstruction interference
19.7–20.2 GHz much less than 1 m due to heavy rainfall
downlink) * High data rates are
possible, 500–1000 Mbps
back with overlaying IP over an Asynchronus Transfer Mode (ATM) infrastructure].

Really, all that means is that chipsets had previously developed for MPEG-2 devices (e.g.,
receivers) and a desire existed in manufacturers to make use of that existing hardware
technology. The IP Encapsulator (IPE), as this technology is known, receives IP packets
from an Ethernet/IP connection and encapsulates selected packets into an MPEG-2
transport stream per DVB or Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC)
specifications.
11.2.2 Uniform Transcoding Subsystem

At this stage all signals are uniformly encoded with MPEG-4 encoders, with the goal of
achieving a consistent aggregate signal in terms of video and audio quality. Figure 11.7
MPEG2 Transport
4 bytes
MPE or
17 bytes
Ethernet
14 bytes
IP
20 bytes
IP Multicast UDP 7 TSs -- same PID
8 bytes
Output of encoders TS TS TS TS TS TS TS
MPEG2 Transport
4 bytes
Video or
Audio or
Data
184 bytes
Encoder 1
Encoder 2 Satellite network

L2S IPE
184 bytes
Encoder 3
TS
Encoder m
Figure 11.5. Encapsulation Function over Existing MPEG-2 Infrastructure
depicts the basic MPEG-2/4 framework. Each Elementary Stream (ES) output by an
MPEG audio, video, and (some) data encoders contain a single type of (usually
compressed) signal. There are a number of types of ES, including:
. Digital control data

. Digital audio
. Digital video
. Digital data
IP Packet
Encapsulator (for SAR function
IP
to MEPG-2 TS datagrams) 20 bytes
IP Multicast UDP
8 bytes 7 TSs -- same PID
IPE
MPEG-2 Transport Infrastructure TS TS TS TS TS TS TS
IP Packet Rcv
(Backbone Network)
IP 20 bytes Receiver (”tunes” to appropriate
IP Multicast UDP 8 bytes 7 TSs -- same PID frequency band and reassembles the
TS TS TS TS TS TS TS SARed TS datagrams into IP
Mullticase Packet)
Content Aggregation Site Telco HE site
Figure 11.6. Segmentation and Reassembly over ‘Existing’ MPEG-2 Infrastructure

Uncompressed
Video stream MPEG-2
Elementary Packetizer
Source MPEG
Encoder
encoded stream
PES Systems Layer Transport Stream

MUX
Uncompressed
stream MPEG-2
Audio Elementary Packetizer
Source Encoder MPEG
encoded stream
Data Packetizer
Source
Figure 11.7. MPEG-2 Framework
For video and audio, the information is organized into access units, each
representing a fundamental unit of encoding. For example, in video, an access unit
will usually be a complete encoded video frame. Each ES is an input to an MPEG-2
processor (e.g., a video compressor) which accumulates the data into a stream of
Packetized Elementary Stream (PES) packets. The compression is achieved using the
Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT). A PES packet may be a fixed- or variable-sized
block, with up to 65,536 octets per block, and includes a 6-byte protocol header. A PES
is usually organized to contain an integral number of ES access units. In MPEG-2
networks, an IP address must be associated with a PID3 and a specific transmission
multiplex.
Video compression is the basic enabler for IPTV and DVB-H. Compression—
decompression (codec) algorithms make it possible to capture, store, and transmit
digital video signals. Codec technology has continuously improved in the last decade.
One has
. industry standards, such as MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC (aka, MPEG-4 Part 10),
H.264/AVC [ITU Joint Video Team (JVT) with the International Organization
for Standardization (ISO)], and AVS (Chinese national video coding standard)
and
. proprietary algorithms, such as On2, Real Video, Nancy, and Windows Media
Video (WMV). WMV was originally a Microsoft proprietary algorithm that is
now also standardized by SMPTE as VC-1.
The most recent codecs, H.264/AVC and VC-1, represent the third generation of
video compression technology. Both codecs achieve very high compression ratios
utilizing the available processing power in low-cost Integrated Circuits (ICs). Compres-
sion ratios of 100:1–400:1, but with good quality, are desirable and are achievable.
Codecs now being developed by the ITU and MPEG include ITU/MPEG Joint Scalable
3
Some also call this the Program ID.
T A B L E 11.6. Data Rates of Video, Which Mandates the Use of Compression Algorithms
Uncompressed Bit Rate (Mbps)
Picture Pixels Lines 10 fps B&W 10 fps Color 10 fps B&W 30 fps Color
SQCIF 128 96 0.98 1.47 2.95 4.42
QCIF 176 144 2.03 3.04 6.08 9.12
CIF 352 288 8.11 12.17 24.33 36.50
4CIF 704 576 32.44 48.66 97.32 145.98
16CIF 1408 1152 129.76 194.4 380.28 583.93
Video Coding, an amendment to H.264/AVC, and PEG multiview video coding.

Table 11.6 depicts the data rates encountered in digital video, which mandates the use
of compression algorithms [SIP200701]. Figure 11.8 illustrates the history of video
codec standardization.
The encoder will typically generate IP packets. See Figure 11.9. These have a
source IP address and a multicast IP address. Video content can also be identified by the
PID, as was shown in Figure 2.7. As noted in Chapter 2, the PID is a 13-bit field that is
used to uniquely identify the stream to which the packet belongs (e.g., PES packets
corresponding to an ES) generated by the MPEG-4 encoder/multiplexer. The PID
allows the receiver to differentiate the stream to which each received packet belongs;
effectively, it allows the receiver to accept or reject PES packets at a high level without
burdening the receiver with extensive processing. A packet with an unknown PID or
one with a PID which is not required by the receiver is discarded. Some PID values are
predefined and are used to indicate various streams of control information. For a user to
receive a particular transport stream, the user must first determine the PID being used
and then filter packets which have a matching PID value. To enable the user to identify
which PID corresponds to which program, a special set of streams, known as signaling
tables, are transmitted with a description of each program carried within the MPEG-2
transport stream [FAI200101]. Signaling tables are sent separately to PES and are not
ITU-T
H.261 H.263 H.263+ H.263++
standards
Joint
ITU-T/MPEG
H.262/MPEG-2 H.264/MPEG-4 AVC
standards
MPEG MPEG-1 MPEG-4

standards
1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004
Figure 11.8. Compression Standards That Have Evolved over the Years (Approximate Publica-
tion Date)
Content
provider
Content
provider
Content
provider
Receivers
Receivers
Receivers
Receivers
SDI SDI
MPEG-4 encoder
Layer 1 video MPEG-4 encoder
switching matrix
aka “video router” MPEG-4 encoder
MPEG-4 encoder
Figure 11.9. Transcoding Stage
synchronized with the elementary streams (i.e., they are an independent control
channel).
Considerations for the encoder include:
. Bandwidth requirements for SD channels
. Ability to cap the variable bit rate, particularly for DSL delivery systems
. Bandwidth requirements for PIP for SD channels
. Types of audio/secondary audio channels to be supported
. Bandwidth requirements for audio
. Bandwidth requirements for HD channels
. Ability to cap the variable bit rate, particularly for DSL delivery systems
. Bandwidth requirements for PIP for HD channels
. Types of audio/secondary audio channels to be supported
250
T A B L E 11.7. Compression Applications/Characteristics
Design Concern
Low Multiformal Right High Random Low Error Current Target

Application Bitrate Decoders Management Quality Access Cost Robustness Technology Technology
Internet streaming * * * WMV9, Real Video,
MPEG-4, Quicktime
DVD * * * MPEG-2MP H.264, WMV9
Digital terrestrial TV * * MPEG-2 MPEG-2, H.264,
AVS 1.0
Satellite TV * * * MPEG-2 H.264 HP
IPTV * * * * MPEG-2, MPEG-4 MPEG-4
Digital video to handset * * * * * WMV9, H.264, MPEG-4 MPEG-4
Personal video recorders * * MPEG-2 H.264, WMV9
T A B L E 11.8. MPEG-4 Profiles

Estimated Improved
Efficiency over Decoder Complexity
Profile MPEG-2 over MPEG-2 Application
Baseline 1.5 times better 2.5 times more complex Low delay, video phone
Extended 1.75 times better 3.5 times more complex DVB-H
Main 2.0 times better 4 times more complex IPTV, broadcast video
applications, packaged
media
. Bandwidth requirements for HD audio

. Alarms and auto switchover upon device failure
. Power consumption and physical size
Tables 11.7 and 11.8 provide some basic information on encoder applications and
features.
More details on MPEG-2/4 are provided in Appendix 11.3B.
11.2.3 Conditional-Access Management Subsystem

Satellite and cable delivery-based video streams are made available only to authorized
users by the use of one or more of a variety of CASs. CA is basically a user authorization
system that provides the STB with credentials to decode the encrypted video signal. CA is
implemented using a CAS typically residing in a physically secure (separate) room at the
content aggregation site. As can be seen in Figures 11.1 and 11.2, the individual IP
multicast streams are encrypted for secure delivery to entitled users. In IPTV (and cable
TV for that matter), symmetric encryption is typically the norm (although some systems
do use public-key encryption).
Content streams are individually encrypted using triple DES (Data Encryption
Standard) or AES. Keys are rotated, typically every 15 s. Also, portions of the key may be
sent via different means (e.g., a portion over the satellite and a portion over another
network, e.g., a VPN tunnel). CASs are very complex and not well documented in
general.
A CAS relies on two types of messages:
. Entitlement Control Message. Message sent at periodic intervals (e.g., 15 s) that
contains the encrypted code word, that is, the encrypted decryption key to be used
by the STB to descramble the packets. They represent a method to send secret
keys. ECMs have their PIDs at the TS level and their multicast address at the IP
level.
. Entitlement Management Message. Message that controls the remote decryption
client in the STB. EMMs entitle the subscriber to watch events by sending an
authorization to the STB. They are usually sent every 12 h. EMMs have their PIDs
at the TS level and their multicast address at the IP level.
ECM keys are extracted from the multicast stream. ECMs control the decryption of
the events. To watch an event the subscriber must be entitled to watch the event (receive
the EMM) and be able to decrypt the scrambled event (have the latest ECM). EMMs
might be sent (but not always) via a separate path. Different CAS systems make use of the
ECMs/EMMs in somewhat different ways.
11.2.3.1 Overview. In a DVB context, CA is a security mechanism used to

control the access to broadcast content (including video and audio, interactive services,
etc.) through the transmission of encrypted signals and the programmable regulation of
their decryption by a system such as smart cards [CON200701]. There are some
standards available for CA, but vendors have generally developed vendor-proprietary
systems.
A CAS uses encryption to prevent unauthorized reception. There also has to be a
process to protect the secret keys that are transmitted with the signal to enable the
descrambler to operate. The algorithm that is used for the encryption itself is
generally a public algorithm (e.g., Triple DES and AES) or it is an open (but not
publicly known) algorithm, such as the DVB-CSA. However, the key distribution
mechanism is typically proprietary to each CA vendor. To handle key distribution the
CAS adds two types of data to the multicast stream; these are known as CA messages.
CA messages consist of already named ECMs and EMMs. Together these control the
ability of individual users (or groups of users) to watch scrambled content. The
scrambler key, called the control word, must be transmitted to the receiver in
encrypted form as an ECM (sometimes called the multisession key). The CA
subsystem in the receiver decrypts the control word only when authorized to do so;
that authority is sent to the receiver in the form of an EMM. This layered approach is
fundamental to all proprietary CAS in use today. The control word is typically
changed at intervals of 10–15 s; this interval is called the crypto period. The ECM
changes at the same frequency. The EMM is typically changed every 12–24 h.
Encrypting of signal is typically done using dedicated hardware. See Figure 11.10
[DIG200701].
Signal Scrambler Scrambled

Signal
Descrambler
CW
CW
Control word ECM ECM Tx
encryption Mux Demux
generator
(router)
CA subsystem
Subscriber Subscriber
management authorisation
Figure 11.10. Basic CAS

The CAS supports the following two types of IPTV traffic [NOR200601]:
. Broadcast/Linear TV Broadcast television traffic must be encrypted “on the fly”

to protect against piracy and service theft.
. Video on Demand Content providers require that VoD content be encrypted
before it is stored on the VoD server. Stored content must be periodically
reencrypted as a further preventive measure.
One simplified example is shown in Figures 11.11 and 11.12. Here a code word
generator sends a newly generated key (generated every 15 s) for symmetric encryption
to the stream encryptor. The code word is also sent to an Entitlement Management
Messages Generator (EMMG) and Entitlement Control Messages Generator (ECMG).
The SMS (Service Management System) portion of the system manages subscriber
information, subscribers device information, and ordered program information. The
smart card is used for the management and control of subscriber and program delivery.
The ECMG/EMMG manages encryption and packaging of entitlements and controls
words for scrambled service. The EMMG has a database of preregistered smart cards,
which tells it if the card that is associated with a specific STB is entitled to the overall
program/service (where program is a collection of individual video channels). The ECM
contains a scrambled version of the code word. In this system, the STB is equipped with a
smart card. The client on the STB uses the arriving EMMs to update entitlement
information on the smart card and keys in the arriving ECMs to decrypt the IP streams
comprising the program/service. These messages enable or disable a clients access to
privileged data content coming through the CAS.
In this example ECMs contain the code word; the data required by the smart card or
SoftClient to decrypt the content are sent in ECMs. Control words change on a regular
basis and so an ECM always contains two ECMs (now and next) to ensure continuous
Encryptor Multicast
Data
Clear Multicast Data Clear Multicast Data

mux (port)
Encryptor (router) Decryptor
TRANSMISSION demux
LINK
CW (encryption
key)
ECMs 227.92.12.8:52128
CWS EMMs 227.92.12.8:52129
Softclient
(Code Word Generator)
CW (encryption
key)
ECMs Decryption key

EMMs
Subscription Management
(ECM & EMM Generator) Smart Card
(Service Management System)
Figure 11.11. Example of CAS—Logical View

254
Conditional- rec
Access System
Control Word DSLAM

Generator
rec
Firewal smart card smart card
Encryptor
E Mc U HPA smart card

content 1
M
content 2
content 3
E
rec
Mc U HPA
content n DSLAM
rec
Encryptor smart card
smart card
Firewal
E = Encapsulator
Control Word smart card
Mo = Modulator
Generator
U = Up Converter
Conditional- HPA = High-Power Amplifier
Access System rec = Receiver
Figure 11.12. Example of CAS—Physical View

viewing. ECMs are specific to the scrambled content and are the same for all subscribers.
EMMs are used to deliver the entitlements to, and manage, the entitlements on the
Smart Card or SoftClient. EMMs are subscriber-specific, and can be divided into three
categories:
. Messages for managing a subscribers entitlements

. Messages for performing security-related functions
. Messages relating to the management of applications on the STB
The code words are generated randomly and are changed frequently. ECM and
EMM messages are encrypted with the multilevel keys.
11.2.3.2 Standards. As noted, vendors have developed vendor-specific solutions.

Conditional access is not fully specified in DVB, but a collection of tools are available,
specifically (i) DVB Common Scrambling Algorithm and (ii) the DVB Simulcrypt
Mechanism (DVB-SIM), which allows different CAS to coexist on one service. In DVB,
there are two CA interoperability scenarios envisaged [DVB200701]:
SimulCrypt is a mechanism whereby a single transport stream can contain several
CAS. This enables different CA decoder populations (potentially with different CAS
installed) to receive and correctly decode the same video and audio streams.
MultiCrypt revolves around the specification of a Common Interface (CI) which,
when installed in the set-top box or television, permits the user to switch manually
between CAS. Thus, a viewer presented with a CAS that is not installed in his or her box
simply switches cards.
The DVB standards are:
. DVB-CSA, Standard Ref: ETR 289, Edition: 1.0, Support for Use of Scrambling
and Conditional Access within Digital Broadcasting Systems
. Standard Ref: TR 102 035, Edition: 1.1.1, Implementation Guidelines of the DVB
Simulcrypt Standard
. Standard Ref: ETSI TS 101 197, Edition: 1.2.1, DVB SimulCrypt: Headend
Architecture and Synchronization
. Standard Ref: ETSI TS 103 197, Edition: 1.4.1, Headend Implementation of
SimulCrypt
Common Interface. In the mid 1990s the DVB came to the realization that a single
standard could not be agreed upon and thus settled for defining a common framework
within which different systems could exist and compete. They defined an interface
structure, the common interface, to allow the STB to receive signals from several service
providers operating different CAS (the common interface connector also allows plug-in
cards for other functions besides CA; e.g., it is proposed to provide audio description for
the visually impaired using a common interface card). Since then the European
Commission has required the use of a common interface mechanism for all integrated
TV sets (excluding STBs, which may employ embedded CAS) [DIG200701].
Decoder A Decoder B
(CA X) (CA Y)
cw cw
Demux Demux
Signal
Scrambler CA sub-
CA sub-
system
system
Mux
Random no.
generator Tx
ECM X ECM Y
Msk X Msk Y
Figure 11.13. SimulCrypt
SimulCrypt. This allows two CAS to work side by side, transmitting separate entitlement
messages to two separate types of STBs, with different CAS. It also gives the multiplex
provider the opportunity to increase the viewer base by cooperating with other multiplex
operators. See Figure 11.13. If a viewer wishes to receive services from different
providers who do not simulcrypt each others ECMs, the only option is to acquire
separate decryption for each CAS. The common interface enables a MultiCrypt
environment, allowing an additional CA system to be added as a module. In practice,
the possibility of MultiCrypt encourages the parties to conclude a SimulCrypt agreement
[DIG200701].
11.2.3.3 Additional Details.4 In a DVB system, scrambling can operate at

either the level of the entire transport stream or the level of individual elementary
streams. There is no provision for scrambling a service in its own right, but the same
effect is achieved by scrambling all of the elementary streams in a service. In the case of
scrambled elementary streams, not all of the data are actually scrambled; the packet
headers are left unscrambled so that the decoder can work out their contents and handle
them correctly. In the case of transport stream scrambling, only the headers of the
transport packets are left unencrypted; everything else is scrambled. The scrambling (and
descrambling) process relies on three pieces of information:
. The code word (aka control word)

. The service key
. The user key
The code word is encrypted using the service key, providing the first level of
protection. This service key may be common to a group of users, and typically each
4
This section is based on reference [BRO200701].
EMM ECM
Service key Control word
(encrypted with (encrypted with
user key 1) service key)
Service key
(encrypted with
user key 1)
Service key
(encrypted with
user key 1)
Figure 11.14. Embedding Code Words and Service Keys in ECMs and EMMs
encrypted service will have one service key. This encrypted code word is broadcast in an
ECM every few seconds and is what the decoder in the STB needs to descramble a
service.
Next, one has to make sure that authorized users (i.e., those who have paid) can
decrypt the code word, but that only authorized users can decrypt it. To do this, the service
key is itself encrypted using the user key. Each user key is unique to a single user, and so the
service key must be encrypted with the user key for each user that is authorized to view the
content. Once the system has encrypted the service key, it is broadcast as part of an EMM.
Since there is a lot more information to be broadcast (the encrypted service key must be
broadcast for each user), these are broadcast less frequently; each EMM is broadcast every
12–24 h, although some CASs broadcast them every half hour. See Figure 11.14.
Often (but not always) the encryption algorithm is symmetric, where the same key is
used for encryption and decryption in the case of the service and user keys. When the
receiver gets a CA message, it is passed to the CAS. In the case of an EMM, the receiver
will check whether the EMM is intended for that receiver (usually by checking the CA
serial number or smart card number); and if it is, it will use its copy of the user key to
decrypt the service key. The service key is then used to decrypt any ECMs that are
received for that service and recover the control word. Once the receiver has the correct
control word, it can use this to initialize the descrambling hardware and actually
descramble the content.
While not all CAS use the same algorithms (and it is impossible to know, because
technical details of the CA algorithms are not made public), they all work in basically
the same way. There may be some differences, and the EMMs may sometimes be used
for other CA-related tasks besides decrypting service keys, such as controlling the
pairing of a smart card and an STB so that the smart card will work correctly in that
receiver.
In order to generate the EMMs correctly, the CAS needs to have some information
about which subscribers are entitled to watch which shows. The SMS is used to set which
channels (or shows) an individual subscriber can watch. This is typically a large database
of all the subscribers that is connected to the billing system and to the CA system and is
used to control the CAS and decide which entitlements should be generated
for which users. The SMS and CAS are usually part of the same package from the
CA vendor.
The ECMs and EMMs are broadcast as part of the service. The PIDs for the CA data
are listed in the Conditional Access Table (CAT), and different PIDs can be used for the
ECMs and EMMs. This makes it easier for remultiplexing, where some of the CA data
(the ECMs) may be kept, while other data (the EMMs) may be replaced.
A DVB receiver may contain several descrambling modules, each of which takes a
transport stream as input. Each module is logically the same, as we have described above,
but different modules may be capable of handling different CASs. The DVB-CI allows a
receiver to swap CA modules by defining a standard interface for the CAS. The DVB-CI
uses a PCMCIA interface for the CA module—any module that complies with the
DVB-CI specification will work in any receiver equipped with a DVB-CI slot. DVB-CI is
not the only standard interface for scrambling systems; the OpenCable POD interface is
also in use and in some cases is more popular that DVB-CI.
While NDS and Nagravision are the two most common CASs on the market at press
time, other CASs are provided by Conax, Irdeto Access, Verimatrix, Widevine, Philips
(the CryptoWorks system), and France Telecom (the Viaccess system). There are other
systems from companies, such as Motorola, who make CASs, but these are not often used
in DVB systems. DVB systems can offer pluggable encryption modules using the
DVB-CI, which uses a PCMCIA card to contain the encryption hardware and software.
This means that the user can switch encryption systems (for instance, if they change
their cable company) without having to replace the entire STB. This is a big advantage for
open standards and really enables the move from a vertical market to a horizontal one.
Some companies (NDS, for instance) are reportedly not convinced of the security of
the DVB-CI system, and so not all CASs are available as CI modules. The Advanced
Television Systems Committee (ATSC) uses a similar, though slightly more secure,
mechanism called the POD (Point of Deployment) module, known as CableCARD in
OpenCable systems. These are more widely deployed in U.S. markets, and all OCAP
receivers will include a CableCARD slot.
11.2.4 Encapsulation Subsystem

The MPEG standard (ISO138181) [ISO200001] defines mechanisms of multiplexing
more than one stream (video, audio, and data) to produce one program. The standard
provides basic framework for integrated video, audio and, data services. As noted, the
service provided by a MPEG-2 transport multiplex offers a number of parallel channels,
which correspond to logical links (forming the MPEG TS) [ISO200001, CLA200301].
The MPEG-2 TS has been widely accepted not only for providing digital TV services but
also as a subnetwork technology for building IP networks. Each MPEG-2 TS channel is
uniquely identified by the PID value carried in the header of fixed-length MPEG-2 TS
packets. The PID value is a 13-bit field and, thus, the number of channels is limited to 8192,
some of which are reserved. Nonreserved TS logical channels may be used to carry audio
[ISO200003], video [ISO200002], IP datagrams [ISO200004, ETS200301], ATS200001],
or other private data.
Figure 11.15. Encapsulation of a Subnetwork IPv4 or IPv6 PDU to Form an MPEG-2 Payload
Unit
MPE is a scheme used in DVB that encapsulates PDUs; each Section is sent in a
series of TS packets using a single TS logical channel [ETS200301]. The MPEG-2 TS
has been widely accepted not only for providing digital TV services but also as a
subnetwork technology for building IP networks. Examples of systems using MPEG-2
include the DVB and ATSC standards for digital television. To make use of an MPEG-2
TS environment, a network device, known as an encapsulator,5 receives PDUs (e.g., IP
packets or Ethernet frames) and formats these into Subnetwork Data Units (SNDUs).
An encapsulation (or convergence) protocol transports each SNDU over the MPEG-2
TS service and provides the appropriate mechanisms to deliver the encapsulated PDU
to the receiver IP interface. In forming an SNDU, the encapsulation protocol typically
adds header fields that carry protocol control information, such as the length of SNDU,
receiver address, multiplexing information, payload type, and sequence numbers. The
SNDU payload is typically followed by a trailer which carries an integrity check [e.g.,
Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC)]. When required, an SNDU may be fragmented
across a number of TS packets. See Figures 11.15 and 11.16 [RFC4259]. Examples of
existing encapsulation/convergence protocols include AAL5 an ITU standard)
and MPEG-2 MPE (an ETSI/DVB standard). In summary, the standard DVB
way of carrying IP datagrams in an MPEG-2 TS is to use MPE; with MPE each IP
datagram is encapsulated into one MPE section. A stream of MPE sections is then put
into an ES, that is, a stream of MPEG-2 TS packets with a particular PID. Each MPE
section has a 12-B header, a 4-B CRC (CRC-32) tail, and a payload length, which is
identical to the length of the IP datagram, which is carried by the MPE section
[FAR200601].
+-----------------------------------------+
| Encap Header|Subnetwork Data Unit |
+-----------------------------------------+
+------+----------+ +------+----------+ +------+----------+

|MPEG-2| MPEG-2 |..|MPEG-2| MPEG-2 |...|MPEG-2| MPEG-2 |
|header| payload | |header| payload | |header| payload |
+------+----------+ +------+----------+ +------+----------+
Figure 11.16. Encapsulation of a PDU (e.g., IP Packet) into a Series of MPEG-2 TS Packets. Each TS
Packet Carries a Header with a Common ID Value Denoting the MPEG-2 TS Logical Channel
5
This is also known as an IP Encapsulator (IPE)
Other Sources, e.g.,

DTV
MPEG-2
Digital Video
ASI
IP over IP over
MPEG-4 Ethernet MPEG-2 TS
Digital Video ASI ASI DVB-S2
1000BaseT
Multiplexer Modulator
IP encapsulator (IPE)
IPE receivers IP traffic on its Ethernet interface

and segments the IP datagrams into
smaller packets and places them inside
MPEG-2 transport stream packets. The IPE
ASI output is fed into the multiplexer or
directly into a modulator
Figure 11.17. Encapsulator Function
Data for transmission over the MPEG-2 transport multiplex is passed to an

encapsulator that typically receives PDUs (Ethernet frames, IP datagrams, or other
network layer packets). It formats each PDU into a series of TS packets (usually after
adding an encapsulation header), which is sent over a TS logical channel. In a simple
example, one or more TS logical channels are processed by a MPEG-2 multiplexor
resulting in a TS multiplex. In more complex examples, the same TS logical channel may
be fed to multiple MPEG-2 multiplexors and these may, in turn, feed other MPEG-2
multiplexors (remultiplexing). In all cases, the final result is a TS multiplex, which is
transmitted over the physical bearer towards the receiver [CLA200301]. The output of an
encapsulator is typically ASI (Asynchronous Serial Interface). See Figure 11.17 for a
pictorial view. Appendix 11.C provides additional information on the encapsulation
process.
Note: DVB-ASI is a serial data transmission protocol that transports MPEG-2
(compressed) TS packets over copper-based cables or optical links, typically within a
center. DVB-ASI is used as a serial link between equipment in broadcast facilities. The
maximum line rate is 270 Mbps and multiple transport streams can be multiplexed on the
270 Mbps. The encoder/statistical multiplexer places stuffing data when there is no
MPEG data to send; for example, 11 Mbps of MPEG is sent such that only 11 Mbps is
used in the network and not the full 270 Mbps. ASI is defined in TR 101 891 Version 1.1.1
“Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB); Professional Interfaces: Guidelines for the Imple-
mentation and Usage of the DVB Asynchronous Serial Interface (ASI),” and in EN
50083–9 CENELEC/December 2002 “Cable Networks for Television Signals, Sound
Signals and Interactive Services. Part 9: Interfaces for CATV/SMATV Headends.” See
Figure 11.18.
Video Input Interface
(Analog. SDI. SDI Video Output Interface
TS TS (Analog. SDI .SDI
embedded) Output Output embedded)
(ATM. (ATM.
DS3.) DS3.)
Audio Input Interface MPEG-2 ASI MPEG-2
ASI Audio output Interface
Encoder Encoder
Data Input Interface Data output Interface
Figure 11.18. ASI Application
261
11.2.5 Long-Haul Distribution Subsystem

The long-haul network can be a high-quality routed network with very tightly controlled
latency, jitter, and packet loss (e.g., Figure 11.1), or a satellite-based one-hop network
(e.g., Figure 11.2). The backbone network supports IP multicast, very typically PIM DM
or PIM sparse-dense.
For satellite delivery, the norm is to use the newer DVB-S2 modulation scheme. It is
an 8-PSK-based technology with FEC. The ratio Eb/No (energy per bit over noise) is a
reasonable guide for quality of the link (although the Es/No—energy per symbol over
noise—would be an even better metric). See Figure 11.19. Because satellite transmission
can attenuate the signal by up to 200 dB, FEC is critical. FEC is a family of well-known
simplex error correction techniques that add “coding” bits to the information bits at the
transmit end (encoder) which enables the decoder to determine which bits are in error and
correct them (up to a limit). For example, R 5/4 FEC means one coding bit is added for
every four information bits. The more coding bits, the “stronger” the code (requires less
transmit power or link quality to get the same performance), but more coding bits mean
more bandwidth required. High coding is an environment where one uses R 1/2; low
coding is an environment where one uses, for example, R 7/8. Typical satellite FEC is
either convolutional/Viterbi with Reed–Solomon or turbo coding. Typical turbo codes
provide about a 2-dB advantage over conventional codes. Viterbi soft-decision decoding
has been the norm (4.4 dB gain). Turbo coding advanced recently (6.3 dB gain).
Low-Density Parity Check (LDPC) is the newest (7.8 dB gain).
Bit error rate

10–1
10–2
10–3
10–4 No coding
Code rate = 7/8
Code rate = 3/4
10–5 Code rate = 1/2
Coding gain
10–6
10–7
10–8
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Eb/No, dB
Figure 11.19. Advantage of FEC

T A B L E 11.9. Link Performance Requirements for Satellite Links

Operating with Various Modulation Technologies
Coding/Modulation Required Eb/No (dB)
DVB/QPSK R 1/2 4.5
R 2/3 5.0
R 3/4 5.5
R 7/8 6.4
DVB/8PSK R 2/3 6.9
R 5/6 8.9
Turbo QPSK R 1/2 2.7
R 5/8 3.3
R 3/4 3.9
R 5/6 4.5
R 7/8 4.7
Turbo 8PSK R 2/3 5.4
R 3/4 6.4
R 5/6 7.7
Table 11.9 shows the DVB specs for Eb/No required for various modulation and
coding rates (includes RS); Turbo values are from vendor specs; the new DVB-S2
standard specifies LDPC coding in lieu of Turbo codes, which are slightly better than the
values shown in the table for turbo. An Eb/No of 6–9 dB (and a C/N—carrier-to-noise
ratio—of 12 dB) is desirable. In this satellite-based design, jitter is nonexistent.
A set of international standards for digital TV has been developed by the DVB
Project, an industry consortium with about 300 members, and published by a Joint
Technical Committee (JTC) of ETSI, CENELEC, and European Broadcasting Union
(EBU). These are collectively known as Digital Video Broadcast. IPTV makes use of a
number of these standards, particularly when making use of satellite links. Standards
have emerged in the past 10 years for defining the physical layer and data-link layer of a
distribution system, as follows:
. Satellite video distribution (DVB-S and DVB-S2)

. Cable video distribution (DVB-C)
. Terrestrial television video distribution (DVB-T)
. Terrestrial television for handheld mobile devices (DVB-H)
Distribution systems differ mainly in the modulation schemes used (because of

specific technical constraints):
. DVB-S (SHF) employs QPSK.

. DVB-S2 employs QPSK, 8PSK, 16APSK or 32APSK; 8PSK is the most common
at this time (it supports 30 megasymbols pre satellite transponder and provides a
usable rate in the 75-Mbps range, or about 25 SD-equivalent MPEG-4 video

channels).
. DVB-C (VHF/UHF) employs Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM): 64-
QAM or 256-QAM.
. DVB-T (VHF/UHF) employs 16-QAM or 64-QAM (or QPSK) along with Coded
Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (COFDM).
Devices interact with the physical layer via a Synchronous Parallel Interface
(SPI), Synchronous Serial Interface (SSI), or ASI. All information in DVB is
transmitted in MPEG-2 transport streams with some additional constraints
(DVB-MPEG).
11.2.6 Local Distribution Subsystem

The local distribution network is typically a high-quality routed network with very
tightly controlled latency, jitter, and packet loss. The local distribution network is
typically comprised of a metropolitan core tier and a consumer distribution tier. See
Figure 11.20.
In the metropolitan core tier, IPTV is generally transmitted using the telcos
private “carrier-grade” IP network. The network engine can be pure IP based, MPLS
based (layer “2.5”), metro Ethernet based (Layer 2), optical SONET/Optical Trans-
port Network (OTN) based (layer 1), or a combination thereof. A (private) wireless
network, such as WiMax, can also be used. The backbone network supports IP
multicast, very typically PIM DM or PIM sparse–dense.
The consumer distribution tier, the final leg, is generally (but not always) DSL based
at this time (e.g., VDSL or ADSL2þ); other technologies, such as PON (Passive Optical
Network) may also be used (see Table 11.10). A bandwidth in the range 20–50 Mbps is
generally desirable for delivery of IPTV services. For example, the simultaneous viewing
of an HD channel along with two SD channels would require about 17 Mbps; Internet
access would require additional bandwidth. Therefore, the 20 Mbps is seen as a lower
bound on the bandwidth. As an example, in the United States Verizon is implementing
Fiber to the Premises (FTTP) technologies, delivering fiber to the subscribers domicile;
this supports high bandwidth, but it requires significant investments. AT&T is imple-
menting Fiber To The Curb (FTTC) in some markets, using existing copper for only the
last 1/10 of a mile, and Fiber to the Node (FTTN) in other markets, terminating the fiber
run within a few thousand feet of the subscriber. These approaches lower the upfront cost
but limit the total bandwidth.
The receivers (STBs) use IGMP to gain real-time access to programming.
It is important to keep the telco-level network (the metropolitan core tier)
streamlined with as few routed hops as possible and with plenty of bandwidth
between links and with high-power nodal routers in order to meet the QoS require-
ments of IPTV. Otherwise, pixilation, tiling, waterfall effects, and even blank
screens will be an issue. It is important to properly size all layer 2 and layer 3
Consumer distribution tier
DSLAM
Conditional-
access system
Metropolitan core
Content 1
Content 2 Consumer distribution tier
DSLAM
Backbone core
Content 3
Content n
Conditional-
access system
Metropolitan core
Consumer distribution tier
DSLAM
265
Figure 11.20. Distribution Networks
T A B L E 11.10. Consumer Distribution Tier

Approach for the Consumer
Distribution Tier Description
“Classical” DSL delivers digital data over a copper connection, typically
using the existing local loop. There are multiple DSL variants
(as covered in Chapter 1) with ADSL2 and ADSL2þ being the
most prevalent. DSL is distance sensitive and has limited
bandwidth. As a result, DSL oftencannot be used alone; fiber
must be deployed to connect to a DSLAM located in an
outside plant cabinet.
Under deployment Fiber to the Neighborhood: Fiber is extended to each
neighborhood where IPTV service is to be supported. A
small-size DSLAM in each neighborhood supports a few
dozen subscribers.
Fiber to the Curb: Fiber is extended to within (typically) less
than 1/10th of a mile from the subscriber site. Each fiber
typically supports one to three subscribers.
Fiber to the Premises/Home/Subscriber/Business
(FTTP, FTTH, FTTS, FTTB): Fiber reaches the subscriber
site
New/future PON technology can be used to deliver service using
end-to-end fiber. A single fiber emanates from the
central office, and a passive splitter in the outside
plant splits the signal to support multiple subscribers.
Broadband PON (BPON) supports up to 32 subscribers per
port, whereas Gigabit PON (GPON) supports up to 128
subscribers per port.
Fixed wireless WiMax. Note that WiMax-supports only
17 Mbps of shared bandwidth over a 2.5-mile radius (and less
at higher distances) and is therefore rather limited.
Cable operators Hybrid Fiber Coax (HFC) is the traditional technology used by
cable operators. Fiber is used for the first section, from the
headend to the subscribers neighborhood. The link is then
converted to coax for the remainder of the connection,
terminating at the subscriber premises.
devices in the network. It is also important to keep multicast traffic from “splashing
back” and flood unrelated ports. IGMP snooping and other techniques may be
appropriate.
Keep in mind that the end-off point at the headend, the demark between the IPTV
content provider and the telco, will need administrative and management connectivity
back to the CAS (for the EMMs) and also for the middleware function when that is done
in a centralized fashion.
11.2.7 Middleware Subsystem

Middleware is the software system used for delivering an IPTV service to the consumer.
IPTV middleware is the software that manages the interaction of network elements from
the headend through to the STB. There may be a server portion to the middleware in the
headend, or at a central network point, and a client portion that resides in the STB. The
middleware allows a customer to select from a list of available video programs. Press time
providers included Microsoft, Widevine, Myrio/Siemens, Minerva, and Orca, among
others. Companies using Microsofts IPTV platform include AT&T U-Verse TV, BT,
Swisscom, Bell Canada, Telecom Italia, among others. Functions include subscriber
control, service definition, content control, and systems control. IPTV middleware
supports the basic operation of the IPTV system with functions such as subscriber
authentication, channel selection, an electronic program guide, and VoD services.
The middleware is typically a client/server architecture where the client resides on
the STB. The middleware controls the user experience and, because of this, it defines how
the consumer interacts with the service. For example, the user interface and services
available to a consumer [such as electronic program guide (EPG), VoD, or pay-per-view
service] are all made available and controlled through the middleware. The ease of
managing multiple services is a function of the two-way IP network. This IP architecture
provides a standard for applications and services to be integrated into the network, and
IPTV becomes just one of these applications. The differentiating factor in an IP service
model is convergence. Because of the common structure for applications and services,
convergence can be realized for network elements, applications, and Operations/
Business Support Systems (OSS/BSS). Therefore, managing multiple services becomes
a matter of managing the same services through the network and distributing them to
multiple end-user environments [BRD200701].
Typical capabilities include [FOU200701]:
User Management The middleware provides the dynamic User Interface (UI) to the
STB. It also keeps trackof the STB securityID, as well as maintaining the STB usage
log for billing and security purposes. It provides the Web-based STB remote control
capability. The STBs can also be remotely upgraded. The UI of the STB may be
customized and assigned to individual users or multiple user groups.
Content Management The software provides flexible control over that content. For
example, one can apply different costs to different content types, decide on the
usage pattern, or create different packages for different content groups.
Infrastructure Management The middleware allows the administrator to configure
server roles and functions and control input and output parameters. The middle-
ware provides manual and automated tools for load balancing. It can monitor the
availability of all servers and can activate a failover mechanism in the event of
finding a component failure.
11.2.8 Set-Top Boxes

The STB is the subscribers device that provides access to the IPTV services and network.
On the network side it has an Ethernet interface (e.g., 100Base-T) and on the user side a
268
NATIONAL REGIONS
Pitcher Catchers Asset

manager
Advertisements Entitlement
schedules/ server/ Profiling Session Playlists
Ad exchange
Campaigns Subscriber resource
targeting
management manager
engines
system Video server
Ad exchange
advertising Targeting results
campaign VPN
manager Targeting results
Courtesy: IMAKE OpenVision®
Figure 11.21. Example of Pitcher/Catcher Architecture

APPENDIX 11.A 269
variety of TV interfaces. The STB must decrypt the incoming signal; therefore, it must
have access to the CAS both at provisioning time as well as in real time to process the
ECMs and EMMs. It needs a chipset to run the decryption. Also, it must be able to take IP
packets that contain the encapsulated MPEG-4 TS and convert that into a displayable
video signal by supporting the deencapsulation and the decoding function. Importantly,
the STB must support the middleware function. The middleware supports the user
interface and the ability to navigate the EPG, order new channels, VoD, DVR, etc. Also, it
must support SAP, closed captions, EAS (Emergency Alert System), parental controls,
picture-in-picture display, and multistream viewing (e.g., support three separate TV sets
in three separate rooms—this is sometimes done by packaging three units into one
chassis and using short-distance RF signaling to support the two secondary room remote
Controls). Typical STB manufactures include, but are not limited to, Cisco Scientific
Atlanta, Amino, LG Electronics, Motorola, Philips, Samsung, and Thomson
Multimedia.
11.2.9 Catcher (for VoD Services)

There are three primary components to a VoD system [NOR200601]:
. VoD Server This device stores the content. Some VoD servers are proprietary
hardware; others are software that works with commercial server and storage
equipment.
. VoD Catcher This equipment receives new content from the content provider
(such as a movie studio) via satellite. The brand/model of a VoD catcher is
specified by the content provider to work with the “VoD pitcher” used by the
content provider since there are no industry standards. An operator may need
several VoD catchers to receive content from multiple sources.
. VoD Cache The VoD cache is a distributed VoD server. Frequently accessed
content may be pushed to caching equipment located closer to the user.
The broad pitcher/catcher architecture has been defined by CableLabs.

Figure11.21 shows an example of a commercial implementation. Video server providers
include, but are not limited to, Kasenna and Bitband.
APPENDIX 11.A: SERIAL DIGITAL INTERFACE BASICS
SDI is a standard for transporting uncompressed standard-definition digital video

serially over coax cable. It is defined by ANSI/SMPTE 259 M, ITU-R BT.656, and
other related standards and practices. SDI is the most common interface used by the
media industry for production (e.g., editing machines, storage, cameras, and moni-
tors). It is used both for PAL/Europe and NTSC/North America/Asia. The SDI signal
is typically used locally in the production facilities (e.g., TV station) or between
closely located sites using point-to-point fiber solutions. SDI carries uncompressed
video of different formats as well as SDTI (Serial Digital Transport Interface)
SMPTE 259M:
Video type Standard Bit rate

NTSC composite digital video SMPTE 244M 143 Mbps
PAL composite digital video IEC 61179 177 Mbps

NTSC & PAL 4:2:2 component digital video SMPTE 125M
(13.5 MHz sample rate) 270 Mbps
ITU-R BT.601
16x9 wide-screen NTSC & PAL 4:2:2 component SMPTE 267M

360 Mbps
digital video (18 MHz sample rate) ITU-R BT.601
SMPTE 344M: 540 Mbps SDI bit rate
High-Definition SDI (HD-SDI):

Transports uncompressed high-definition video serially over video coax cable or fiber
Two bit rates:
–1.485 Gbps
–1.485/1.001 Gbps-primarily used in North America
Figure 11.A1. SDI Rates
Figure 11.A2. Typical SDI Applications
270
APPENDIX 11.B 271
transport streams. SDIs basic data rate is uncompressed-270 Mbps streams; it

supports distances on 100 m on coax and 2 km on fiber. Figure 11.A1 depicts other
supported rates. An uncompressed HD version has also been defined. Figure 11.A2
depicts a typical application.
APPENDIX 11.B: MPEG BASICS
11.B.1 MPEG-2 Transport/Multiplexing Mechanisms

In its true form, the MPEG standards define multiplexing methodologies for transporting
video (or other signals); specifically, the MPEG-2 systems layer provides a standardized
method of providing integrated video, audio, and data services. In a more colloquial
fashion, they define video compression technologies6 that transcode digital TV signals
from uncompressed (SD) signals at around 170 Mbps to 2.5–4 Mbps and from uncom-
pressed (HD) signals at around 500 Mbps to 8–12 Mbps. Typically “programs” consist of
primarily one video channel and one or more audio channels; the data streams also
handled by MPEG are used to broadcast program-related data and close captioning (other
applications may be supported at a future time, e.g., data download or Internet-based
information). Figure 11.B1 is a simplified protocol stack that will assist understanding of
the protocol hierarchy.
+-+-+-+-+-------------------+----+---+
|T|V|A|O| | |
|e|i|u|t| | S |
|l|d|d|h| IP | I |
|e|e|i|e| | |
|t|o|o|r| | T |
|e| | | | | a |
|x| | | | +---+----+-+ b |
|t| | | | | | MPE | l |
| | | | +--+--+ +------+ e |
| | | | | AAL5 |ULE | | |
Priv.
+-+-+-+-+------+ | Sect. +-+--+--+
| PES | ATM | | | Section |
+--------------+---+-----+-------+
| MPEG--2 TS |
+------------------------- -- ---- -+
Figure 11.B1. Simplified Protocol Hierarchy
6
ISO/IEC MPEG-4 Part-2 video specification does not specify the design of an encoder. It defines only the
syntax and semantics of a coded bit stream. Therefore, an encoder has proprietary design.
The most basic component in MPEG is the elementary stream. A program (e.g., a
television video program) typically contains a combination of ESs (say, one for video,
one or more for audio, one for control data). Each ES generated at the output of an MPEG
audio encoder and an MPEG video encoder contains a single type of (usually com-
pressed) signal. For video and audio, the information is organized into access units, each
representing a fundamental unit of encoding; for example, in video, an access unit usually
is a complete encoded video frame [FAI200101]. A packetization function (typically
within the encoder stage) accumulates the data into a stream of packetized elementary
stream packets. See Figure 11.B2.
A PES datagram is a fixed (or variable) sized block, with up to 65,536 bytes per
block. A PES is usually organized to contain an integral number of ES access units.
Figure 11.B3 depicts the PES format.
The MPEG-2 standard defines two ways for multiplexing different elementary
stream types: (i) program stream, and (ii) transport stream. See Figure 11.B4.
An MPEG-2 program stream (MPEG-2 PS) is principally intended for storage and
retrieval from storage media. It supports grouping of video, audio, and data elementary
streams that have a common time base. Each PS consists of only one content (TV)
program. The PS is used in error-free environments; for example, DVDs use the
MPEG-2 PS. A PS is a group of tightly coupled PES packets referenced to the same
time base.
An MPEG-2 transport stream (MPEG-2 TS) combines multiple PESs (which may
or may not have a common time base) into a single stream and multiplexes these PESs
into one stream, along with information for synchronizing between them. At the same
time, the TS segments the PES into the smaller fixed-size TS packets. An entire video
frame may be mapped in one PES packet. PES headers distinguish PES packets of
various streams and also contain time stamp information. PESs are generated by the
packetization process; the payload consists of the data bytes taken sequentially from
the original ES. There are some constraints for forming TS packets: (i) The first byte of
the PES packet must be the first byte of the transport packet payload and (ii) each
transport packet must contain data from only one PES packet.
A TS may correspond to a single TV program; this type of TS is normally called a
Single-Program Transport Stream (SPTS). In most cases one or more SPTSs are
combined to form a Multiple-Program Transport Stream (MPTS). This larger aggre-
gate also contains the control information [Program-Specific Information (PSI)]
required to coordinate the DVB system and any other data that is to be sent
[FAI200101].
As noted, the TS consists of a stream of short fixed-length TS packets. A TS is
intended for non-error-free environments (i.e., environments that entail a transmission
link). The MPEG-2 TS packet length is 188 bytes long7 (4-byte header þ adaptation
field, or payload, or both); hence, each packet comprises 184 bytes of payload and a
4-byte header. A TS packet starts with a TS header of 4 bytes, followed by 184-byte
Adaptation field (a header extension) and payload (information section).
7
The MPEG TS packet size equates to eight ATM cells, assuming 8 B overhead from the ATM Adaptation
Layer (AAL).
Uncompressed
stream MPEG-2 ES
Video elementary Packetizer
encoder MPEG
PES
encoded
(compressed) stream Systems Layer
multiplexer
PES and SAR
Uncompressed (segmentation/ Transport Stream
stream MPEG-2 ES
Audio elementary Packetizer reassembly) TS
encoder MPEG
encoded
(compressed) stream PES
Data ES Packetizer
Header PES Payload
packet start stream PES optional

24 8 16
Figure 11.B2 Combining of PESs into a TS
273
Header PES payload: ES data
packet start stream PES optional

24 8 16
PES Indicators (provide additional information about the stream to assist the decoder at
the receiver):
– PES_Scrambling_Control—defines whether scrambling is used and the chosen

scrambling method
– PES_Priority—indicates priority of the current PES packet
– data_alignment_indicator—indicates if the payload starts with a video or audio start
code
– copyright information—indicates if the payload is copyright protected
– original_or_copy—Indicates if this is the original ES
Flags field (1 byte) (defines the following optional fields, which, if present, are inserted
before the start of the PES payload):
– Presentation Time Stamp (PTS) and possibly a Decode Time Stamp (DTS)—For
audio/video streams these are time stamps, which may be used to synchronise a set of
elementary streams and control the rate at which they are replayed by the receiver
– Elementary Stream Clock Reference (ESCR)
– Elementary Stream rate—Rate at which the ES was encoded
– Trick Mode—indicates the video/audio is not the normal ES
– Copyright Information—set to 1 to indicate a copyright ES
– CRC—this may be used to monitor errors in the previous PES packet
– PES Extension Information—may be used to support MPEG-1 streams
Figure 11.B3. PES Packet Format
Other Data MPEG Video MPEG Audio

Elementary Stream Elementary Stream
MPEG-2 MPEG-2 Packetized Elementary Streams MPEG-2

PSs (Single-Program TS) PSI
MPEG-2 Transport Stream (Multiprogram TS)
Figure 11.B4. ES/PES Carriage in PSs and/or TSs

APPENDIX 11.B 275
188 bytes
Header Adaptation field Payload
4 bytes
0×47 flag Option Stuffing byte

field
PID
cotinuity_counter Elementary-stream-priority indicator
transport_priority
adaptation_field_control Random access indicator
payload_unit_start_indicator
transport_scrambling_control Nondiscontinuity indicator
transport_error_indicator
Sync_byte Adaptation field length
Figure 11.B5. MPEG-2 TS Format
A key field in the TS header, which plays the important role in the downstream use of
the TS, is the 13-bit PID. The PID8 determines to which program a TS packet belongs to,
and the PID is also unique for each program. In MPEG-2 systems, TS logical channels are
identified by their PIDs and provide multiplexing, addressing, and error reporting. The
PID value is a 13-bit field; thus, the number of available channels ranges from 0 to 8191
decimal (0 · 1FFF in hexadecimal), some of which are reserved for transmission of PSI
(also called SI) tables. Nonreserved TS logical channels may be used to carry audio,
video, IP packets, or other data. The value 8191 decimal (0 · 1FFF) indicates a null
packet that is used to maintain the physical bearer bit rate when there are no other
MPEG-2 TS packets to be sent [RFC4259]. The Adaptation field supports various
options and it may or may not be present. The presence of an Adaptation field is indicated
by the Adaptation field control bits in a TS packet. If present, the Adaptation field directly
follows the 4-byte packet header, before any user payload data; it contains a variety of
information used for timing and control, including the Program Clock Reference (PCR)
field. Byte stuffing is used to ascertain that the TS packet is always 188 bytes long; any
remainder portion of the TS packet payload is stuffed with bytes with value 0 · FF (in
some instances the Adaptation field is present only to provide the stuffing function). See
Figure 11.B5. The MPEG-TS is not a time division multiplex function because packets
with any PID may be inserted into the TS at any time by the TS multiplexor. If no packets
are available at the multiplexor, it inserts null packets (denoted by a PID value of
0 · 1FFF) to retain the specified TS bit rate [FAI200101]. By comparison with PS, with
TS it is easy to detect start and end of frames; it is also easy to recover from packet loss/
corruption. However, it is more difficult to produce and demultiplex than the PS.
Mapping functions are required to relate TS logical channels to IP addresses, to map
8
There are similarities between the way PIDs are used and the operation of virtual channels in ATM. However,
unlike ATM, a PID defines a unidirectional broadcast channel and not a point-to-point link. Contrary to
ATM, there is, as yet, no specified standard interface for MPEG-2 connection setup or for signaling.
TS logical channels to IP-level QoS, and to associate IP flows with specific subnetwork
capabilities.
Figure 11.B6 puts the PES and TS concepts together. Two options are available for
inserting a PES packet into the TS packet payload [FAI200101]:
1. Carry only one PES (or part of a single PES) in a TS packet. This is the simplest
environment from both the encoder and receiver viewpoints. This allows the TS
packet header to indicate the start of the PES, but since a PES packet may have an
arbitrary length, it also requires the remainder of the TS packet to be padded,
ensuring correct alignment of the next PES to the start of a TS packet.
2. In general, a given PES packet spans several TS packets, so that the majority of
TS packets contain continuation data in their payloads. When a PES packet
begins, the payload_unit_start_indicator bit is set to 1, which means the first byte
of the TS payload contains the first byte of the PES packet header. Only one PES
packet can start in any single TS packet. The TS header also contains the PID so
that the receiver can accept or reject PES packets at a high level without
burdening the receiver with excessive processing. This approach, however, has
an efficiency impact on short PES packets.
The TS stream also includes PSI information. PSI consists of transport packets used by
the decoder to acquire information about the TS. The tables consist of a description of the
ESs that need to be combined to build programs and a description of the programs. Each
PSI table is carried in a sequence of PSI sections; the length of a section allows a decoder to
identify the next section in a packet. Tables are sent periodically by including them in the
transmitted transport multiplex [FAI200101]. PSI tables include:
. Program Association Table (PAT)—contains list of all programs in the TS along

with the PID for the program map table for each program. The PAT is sent with the
well-known PID value of 0 · 000.
. Program Map Table (PMT)—contains the PID for each of the channels associated
with a particular program.
. Network Information Table (NIT)—(Optional; content is private—not part of
MPEG standard) used to provide information about the physical network, for
example, channel frequencies, service originator, and service name.
. Conditional-Access Table (CAT)—defines type of scrambling used and PID
values of TSs which contain the conditional-access management and entitlement
information (EMMs)). The CAT is sent with the well-known PID value of 0 · 001.
To identify the required PID to demultiplex a particular PES, the remote device
searches for a description in the PAT. The PAT lists all programs in the multiplex; each
content program is associated with a set of PIDs (one for each PES) that correspond to a
PMT carried as a separate PSI section. There is one PMT per program. DVB also adds a
number of additional tables. See Figure 11.B7 for a pictorial example.
PES PES
Hdr PES packet payload Hdr PES packet payload
TS TS TS TS
Hdr TS payload Hdr TS payload Hdr TS payload Hdr TS payload
Adaptation field
(used for stuffing here)
188 bytes
4 bytes
Adaptation field Payload

Header (may not be present)
• sync_byte (sync the decoder)

• transport_error_indicator
• payload_unit_start_indicator (PSI or PES packet) • discontinuity_indicator
• transport priority • random_access_indicator
• PID (13 bit id for each stream) • ES_priority_indicator
• transport_scrambling control • flags (PCR_flag...)
• adaption_field_control • PCR (if PCR_flag is set) (system time clock,
• continuity_counter (counts packets of PES) every 0.1 sec, to sync decoder and encoder time)
• PES packet lenght • other fields depending on flags
Figure 11.B6. A Sequence of PESs Leads to a Sequence of Uniform TS Packets
277
278
Figure 11.B7. Single-Program Transport Stream (Video, Audio, and PSI PES)
APPENDIX 11.B 279
As implied pictorially in Figure 11.B7, TSs consist of a number of related ESs (e.g.,
the video and audio of a TV program), where the decoding of the ESs requires
synchronization to ensure that the audio playback is aligned with the corresponding
video frames. Time stamps are typically sent in the transport stream. Threre are two types
of time stamps:
. Reference Time Stamp—time stamps that provide an indication of the current

time. Reference time stamps are found in the transport packet adaptation PCR
field.
. DTS or PTS—These time stamps are inserted in the proximity of the material to
which they refer (normally in the PES packet header). They indicate the exact
moment where a video frame or an audio frame has to be decoded or presented to
the user, respectively. These rely on reference time stamps for operation.
11.B.2 IPTV/IP Transmission over TS Logical Channels

The mechanisms discussed above are used in typical IPTV applications. RFC 4259
captures this process very well. The description that follows below is based directly on
RFC 4259.
An MPEG-2 transport multiplex offers a number of parallel channels, which are
known as TS logical channels. Each TS logical channel is uniquely identified by the
PID value that is carried in the header of each MPEG-2 TS packet. TS logical channels
are independently numbered on each MPEG-2 TS multiplex (MUX). In most cases,
the data sent over the TS logical channels will differ for different multiplexes.
Figure 11.B8 shows a set of TS logical channels sent using two MPEG-2 TS
multiplexes (A and B). There are cases where the same data may be distributed over
two or more multiplexes (e.g., some PSI tables; multicast content that needs to be
received by receivers tuned to either MPEG-2 TS; unicast data where the receiver may
be in either/both of two potentially overlapping MPEG-2 transmission cells). In
Figure 11.B8, each multiplex carries three MPEG-2 TS logical channels. These TS
logical channels may differ (TS-LC-A-1, TS-LC-A-2, TS-LC-B-2, TS-LC-B-1) or
may be common to both MPEG-2 TS multiplexes (i.e., TS-LC-A-3 and TS-LC-B-3
carry identical content).
In a simple example, one or more TS logical channels are processed by an MPEG-2
multiplexor, resulting in a TS multiplex. The TS multiplex is forwarded over a physical
bearer toward one or more receivers (see Figure 11.B9). In a more complex example, the
same TS may be fed to multiple MPEG-2 multiplexors and these may, in turn, feed other
MPEG-2 multiplexors (remultiplexing). Remultiplexing may occur in several places.
One example is a satellite that provides on-board processing of the TS packets, multi-
plexing the TS logical channels received from one or more uplink physical bearers (TS
multiplex) to one (or more in the case of broadcast/multicast) downlink physical bearer
(TS multiplex). As part of the remultiplexing process, a remultiplexor may renumber the
PID values associated with one or more TS logical channels to prevent clashes between
input TS logical channels with the same PID carried on different input multiplexes. It
may also modify and/or insert new SI data into the control plane.
Figure 11.B8. Example Showing MPEG-2 TS Logical Channels Carried over Two MPEG-2 TS
Multiplexes
In all cases, the final result is a TS multiplex that is transmitted over the physical
bearer toward the receiver.
Packet data for transmission over an MPEG-2 transport multiplex is passed to an
encapsulator, sometimes known as a gateway. This receives PDUs such as Ethernet
frames or IP packets and formats each into an SNDU by adding an encapsulation header
and trailer. The SNDUs are subsequently fragmented into a series of TS packets. To
receive IP packets over an MPEG-2 TS multiplex, a receiver needs to identify the specific
TS multiplex (physical link) and also the TS logical channel (the PID value of a logical
link). It is common for a number of MPEG-2 TS logical channels to carry SNDUs;
therefore, a receiver must filter (accept) IP packets sent with a number of PID values and
must independently reassemble each SNDU.
A receiver that simultaneously receives from several TS logical channels must filter
the other unwanted TS logical channels by employing, for example, specific hardware
support. Packets for one IP flow (i.e., a specific combination of IP source and destination
addresses) must be sent using the same PID. It should not be assumed that all IP packets
are carried on a single PID, as in some cable modem implementations, and multiple PIDs
must be allowed in the architecture. Many current hardware filters limit the maximum
number of active PIDs (e.g., 32), although if needed, future systems may reasonably be
expected to support more.
APPENDIX 11.B 281
Figure 11.B9. An Example Configuration for a Unidirectional Service for IP Transport over
MPEG-2
In some cases, receivers may need to select TS logical channels from a number of
simultaneously active TS multiplexes. To do this, they need a multiple physical receive
interfaces [e.g., radio frequency (RF) front ends and demodulators]. Some applications
also envisage the concurrent reception of IP packets over other media that may not
necessarily use MPEG-2 transmission.
11.B.3 Compression Technology

This section provides a brief overview of compression technology.
The goal of IPTV is to deliver digital video using an IP network infrastructure;
however, this must be done using video compression methods. Standard-definition
(NTSC) video is typically digitized at 720 · 480 using 4:2:2 YCrCb at 30 frames per
second, which results in an uncompressed data rate of over 165 Mbps. Even lower
resolution video, such as Common Intermediate Format (CIF9) (352 · 288 4:2:0 at
30 frames/second), utilized in video streaming applications, requires over 36 Mbps.
Direct delivery of these video streams is not possible except on a true fiber-based FTTH
system—since this data rate is many times more than what can be achieved over DSL
systems. Furthermore, storing one 90-min NTSC video movie in the uncompressed
4:2:2 YCrCb form requires over 110 Gbytes—this is not possible on consumer media
such as DVD-R since this data is 25 times the storage capability of a standard DVD-R.
Obviously, compression is needed to store or transmit digital video. A compression of
ratio of 100 : 1 (for IPTV) and 400 : 1 (for DVB-H) is sought; one wishes to encode digital
video by using as few bits as possible while maintaining visual quality. Typical factors to
consider when selecting the codec for an application include the visual quality require-
ments for the application, the environment (speed, latency, and error characteristics) of
the transmission channel or storage media, the desired resolution, the target bit rate, the
color depth, the number of frames per second, whether the content and/or display are
progressive or interlaced, and the cost of real-time implementation of the encoding and
decoding. Typically newer algorithms, such as H.264/AVC, achieve higher compression
but require increased processing, which can impact the cost for encoding and decoding
devices, system power dissipation, and system memory [GOL200601]. For IPTV, the
industry is settling on MPEG-4 at 2.5–3 Mbps for SD, 8–11 Mbps for HD, and 384 kbps
for DVB-H.
Two key standards organizations that have defined video codecs over the years are:
. The ITU, which is focused on telecommunication applications and has developed

the H.261, H.262, H.263, and H.264 standards for low-bit-rate video telephony.
. The ISO, which is focused on consumer applications and has defined MPEG-1,
MPEG-2, and MPEG-4.
On occasions, the groups have worked together, such as in the Joint Video Team
(JVT), to define the MPEG-4 Part 10. ITU and MPEG continue to define new standards
for improved efficiency; for example, standards being developed at press time included
ITU/MPEG Joint Scalable Video Coding (an amendment to H.264/AVC) and MPEG
Multiview Video Coding. H.264 also recently defined a new mode, Fidelity Range
Extension, to address professional digital editing, HD-DVD, and lossless coding
applications. In addition to industry standards, a number of vendor-developed solutions
have emerged in recent years, especially for Internet-based streaming media applica-
tions. These proprietary systems include Real Networks Real Video (RV10), Microsoft
Windows Media Video 9 (WMV9) series, ON2 VP6, and Nancy. In 2003, Microsoft
proposed to the Society for Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) that the
WMV9 bitstream and syntax be standardized, which is now the SMPTE VC-1 standard.
These codecs, however, are not generally used in IPTV applications.
9
Common Intermediate Format is a set of standard video formats used principally in videoconferencing
applications. The original CIF [also known as Full CIF (FCIF)] has a resolution of 352 · 288; QCIF—
Quarter CIF has a resolution 176 · 144; SQCIF—Subquarter CIF (resolution 128 · 96); 4CIF—4 · CIF has
a resolution 704 · 576; 16CIF—16 · CIF has a resolution 1408 · 1152.
APPENDIX 11.B 283
NTSC NTSC
Matrix Encoder Decoder Matrix
R Y Y R
G R –Y NTSC R –Y G
Transmission
B B –Y B –Y B
Figure 11.B10. Traditional Mapping of Color Space
In the next few paragraphs we provide a basic overview of video digitization;

eventually a digitized signal is delivered to an encoder.
Color spaces are mathematical representations of color. Three common color spaces
are RGB, YUV, and YCbCr.
The Video signal originating from a TV studio camera is considered a baseband
component where the three-color components (red, green, and blue) are distinct signals.
Original NTSC systems sought to maintain compatibility with black-and-white TV sets,
and to do so, the R, G, B color space in video signals was converted to the Y, U, V color
space where
. Y is luminous information (lightness)

. U¼BY
. V ¼ R Y
(see Figure11.B10). Hence, in a composite signal, which is the signal used for traditional
analog TV distribution:
. RGB components from the camera are generally translated to a set of color
difference components (such as Y, R Y, B Y) before being encoded to NTSC
or PAL for transmission (in modern equipment all these operations may take place
in the camera).
. The composite signal must be decoded in the receiver to a color difference format
and then translated to RGB for display.
If RGB-to-YUV color space conversion is done maintaining full-bandwidth chroma

(hue plus saturation), the conversion is called a 4 : 4 : 4 sampling. If conversion is carried
out on chroma samples every other pixel, it is termed a 4 : 2 : 2 sampling scheme.
Specifically:
. A 4:2:2 sampling halves chroma resolution horizontally, resulting in a 33% saving

in bandwidth compared to a 4 : 4 : 4 sampling.
. A 4:2:0 sampling reduces chroma bandwidth even more, halving overall
bandwidth.
In noninterlaced video scan, lines are displayed sequentially down the display unit
(that is, display line 1, 2, 3, 4, . . ., n). This is also called progressive scanning. In
interlaced video, alternate scan lines are displayed sequentially down the display, with
even fields being shown in one frame (lines 2, 4, 6, 8, . . ., n) and odd fields being shown in
the next frame (1, 3, 5, 7, . . ., n 1).
Similar concepts apply to digital TV. YCbCr is the component color space defined
by ITU-R BT.601 to support digital TV: Cr ¼ R Y and Cb ¼ B Y. The ranges of the
digital numbers are
. Y nominal range: 16–235
. Cb and Cr nominal range: 16–240 with zero corresponding to 128
. Y and CbCr components have different bandwidth and dynamic ranges
YCbCr components are not independent; it is possible to generate “invalid” RGB

values if YCbCr values are improperly modified.
As in the YUV case, various sampling rates are possible: sampling ratio of Y: Cb : Cr
are 4:4:4; 4:2:2; 4:1:1; 4:2:0.
. YCbCr Color Space—4:4:4 YCbCr
- See Figure 11.B11
- Each sample has Y, Cb, and Cr data
- 13.5 or 18 MHz sample rate
- 720 or 960 active samples per line
- See Figure 11.B12
- Consumer and PC applications
Scan
line
1
314
315
Figure 11.B11. YCbCr Color Space—4 : 4 : 4 YCbCr Sampling (625-Line System)

APPENDIX 11.B 285
Scan
line
1
314
315
Y, Cb, Cr sample
Y sample only
Figure 11.B12. YCbCr Color Space—4:2:2 YCbCr
- Each sample has Y data

T13.5 or 18 MHz sample rate
T720 or 960 active samples per line
- Every other sample (horizontally) has Cb and Cr data
- See Figure 11.B13
- Consumer applications (DVC and TV)
- Each sample has Y data
- Every fourth sample (horizontally) has Cb and Cr data
T3.375 or 4.5 MHz sample rate
- Two types of 4:2:0 notation
TVersion used for internal processing by MPEG 1, H.261, and H.263: Noninterlaced
video only
TVersion used for internal processing by MPEG 2: Noninterlaced or interlaced Video
- YCbCr Color Space—4:2:0 Sampling for MPEG 1/2/4, H.261, and H.263: see
Figure 11.B14
- YCbCr Color Space—4:2:0 Sampling for MPEG 2 (noninterlaced): see Figure 11.B15.
Scan
line
1
314
315
Y, Cb, Cr sample
Y sample only
Figure 11.B13. YCbCr Color Space—4:1:1 YCbCr
Scan
line
1
Calculated Cb, Cr sample
Y sample
Figure 11.B14. YCbCr Color Space—4:2:0 Sampling for MPEG 1/2/4

APPENDIX 11.B 287
Scan
line
1
Calculated Cb, Cr sample
Y sample
Figure 11.B15 YCbCr Color Space—4:2:0 Sampling for MPEG 2 (Noninterlaced)
A typical IPTV codec has interlaced 4:2:2 input and outputs ESs or PESs. See
Figure 11.B16.
Next we discuss some basic constructs that are part of the MPEG coding schemes.
A video sequence is a sequence of frames that begins with a sequence header (may
contain additional sequence headers), includes one or more groups of pictures, and ends
with an end-of-sequence code. A Group of Pictures (GOP) is comprised of a header and a
series of one or more pictures intended to allow random access into the video sequence. A
picture is the primary coding unit of a video sequence. A picture consists of three
rectangular matrices representing luminance (Y) and two chrominance (Cb and Cr)
values. The Y matrix has an even number of rows and columns. The Cb and Cr matrices
are (usually) half the size of the Y matrix in each direction (horizontal and vertical)
(details on this below). A slice is one or more “contiguous” macroblocks (the order of the
macroblocks within a slice is from left to right and top to bottom). Slices are important in
the handling of errors—if the bit stream contains an error, the decoder can skip to the start
of the next slice. A Macroblock (MB) is a16-pixel by 16-line section of luminance
components and the corresponding 8-pixel by 8-line section of the two chrominance
components. Figure 11.B15 shows the spatial location of luminance and chrominance
components. A macroblock contains four Y blocks, one Cb block, and one Cr block.
Numbers correspond to the ordering of the blocks in the data stream, with block 1 first.
Each macroblock relates to 16 pixels by 16 lines of Y and the spatially corresponding 8
pixels by 8 lines of Cb and Cr. That is, a macroblock consists of four luminance blocks
DCT/ VLC
Q/IQ
(4:2:2, interlaced)
IDCT
Video signal
(ES or PES)
Bit Stream
DCT/IDCT — Discrete cosine transform/
inverse discrete cosine transform
Q/IQ — Quantization/inverse quantization
VLC — Variable length coding
Figure 11.B16. High-Level View of Encoder
and two spatially corresponding color difference blocks: (i) Each luminance block thus
relates to 8 pixels by 8 lines of Y (16 · 16 Y pixels). (ii) Each chrominance block thus relates to 8
pixels by 8 lines of Cb or Cr, but these last are in 4:2:2 mode, resulting in 4 points for them in each
8 · 8 Y block (4:2:2 -> “8:4:4”, namely: 8 · 8 : 4 · 4 : 4 · 4) (8 · 8 Cr and 8 · 8 Cb). Figure 11.
B.17 illustrates some of these concepts.
A Cb and Cr diagram shows the relative x-y locations of the luminance and
chrominance components. Note that for every four luminance values, there are two
associated chrominance values: one Cb value and one Cr value. See Figure 11.B18;
note that the location of the Cb and Cr values is the same, so only one circle is shown
in the figure.
Video sequence
Group of pictures
... ...
Block
Picture
Slice Macroblock
8
pixels
8
pixels
Figure 11.B17. Cb and Cr Values

APPENDIX 11.B 289
= Y value = Cb, Cr value
Y Cb Cr
1 2 5 6
3 4
Figure 11.B18. Cb and Cr Values
Intra pictures (I-pictures) are coded using only information present in the picture itself:
. I-pictures provide potential random access points into the compressed video data.
. I-pictures use only transform coding and provide moderate compression.
. I-pictures typically use about 2 bits per coded pixel.
Predicted pictures (P-pictures) are coded with respect to the nearest previous I- or
P-picture (technique is called forward prediction; see Figure 11.B19):
. P-pictures serve as a prediction reference for B-pictures (bidirectionally interpo-

lated pictures) and future P-pictures. P-pictures use motion compensation to
provide more compression than is possible with I-pictures. Unlike I-pictures,
P-pictures can propagate coding errors because P-pictures are predicted from
previous reference (I- or P-) pictures.
Bidirectional pictures (B-pictures) are pictures that use both a past and future picture as a
reference (technique is called bidirectional prediction; see Figure 11.B19):
. B-pictures provide the most compression and do not propagate errors because they
are never used as a reference.
. Bidirectional prediction also decreases the effect of noise by averaging two
pictures.
The MPEG algorithms allow the encoder to choose the frequency and location of
I-pictures; the choice is based on an applications need for random accessibility and
location of scene cuts in a video sequence (in applications where random access is
important, I-pictures are typically used two times a second). The encoder also chooses
Forward prediction
I B B P B B P
Bidirectional prediction
I B B P B B P
Figure 11.B19. Basic Sequence of Frames
the number of B-pictures between any pair of reference (I- or P-) pictures. The choice is
based on factors such as the amount of memory in the encoder and the characteristics of
the material being coded. A typical arrangement of I-, P-, and B-pictures, in the order in
which they are displayed, is shown in Figure 11.B20.
11.B.3.1 Video Coding Principles

The next few paragraphs provide a quick overview of the topic based on an excellent
paper by Golston and A. Rao [GOL200601].
Figure 11.B21 shows a typical video codec. Video coding is based on the principles
of quantization, Motion-Compensated (MC) prediction, discrete transforms, and entropy
coding. Modern video coders utilize block-based processing; each macroblock typically
contains four 8 · 8 luminance blocks and two 8 · 8 chrominance blocks (for chroma
format 4:2:0). In MC, compression is achieved by predicting each macroblock of pixels
in a frame of video from a similar region of a recently coded (“reference”) video frame.
For example, background areas often stay the same from one frame to the next and do not
need to be retransmitted in each frame.
Motion Estimation (ME) is the process of determining for each MB in the current
frame, the 16 · 16 region of the reference frame that is most similar to it. ME is usually the
1
2B-pictures between 1-picture every 15th frame
reference (P)pictures (1/2 second at 30 Hz)
Picture type: I B B P B B P B B P B B P B B I B B P B B P B B P B B P B B
Display order: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1112 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Figure 11.B20. Basic Sequence of Frames

APPENDIX 11.B 291
Quanlizer VLC
+ DCT (Q) encoder
Input PM- Frame

Q Buffer
Processing memory Output
(uncompressed Predicted
digital video) frames (compressed
IDCT digital video)
Regulator
16 x 16 blocks
+
Motion Frame
compensation memory
motion
Motion
vectors
estimation
Figure 11.B21. Motion-Compensated Video Coder
most performance-intensive function in video compression. Information on the relative

location of the most similar region for each block in the current frame (“motion vector”) is
transmitted to the decoder. The residual after MC is divided into 8 · 8 blocks, each
encoded using a combination of transform coding, quantization, and variable-length
coding. Transform coding, such as Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT), exploits spatial
redundancy in the residual signal. Quantization removes perceptual redundancy and
reduces the amount of data required to encode the residual. Variable-length coding
exploits the statistical nature of the residual coefficients. The process of redundancy
removal via MC is reversed in the decoder, and the predicted data from the reference frame
is combined with the encoded residual data to generate back a representation of the
original video frame.
In a video codec, an individual frame may be encoded using one of the three modes:
I, P, or B, as discussed above. A few frames referred to as Intra (I) frames are encoded
independently without reference to any other frame (no motion compensation). Some
frames may be coded using MC with a previous frame as reference (forward prediction).
These frames are referred to as Predicted (P) frames. B frames, or Bidirectional predicted
frames, are predicted from both past frames as well as frames slated to appear after the
current frame. A benefit of B frames is the ability to match a background area that was
occluded in the previous frame but can be found in a subsequent frame using backward
prediction. Bidirectional prediction can allow for decreased noise by averaging both
forward and backward prediction. Leveraging this feature in encoders requires additional
processing since ME has to be performed for both forward and backward prediction,
which can effectively double the motion estimation computational requirements.
Additional memory is also needed at both encoder and decoder to store two reference
frames. B frame tools require a more complex data flow since frames are decoded out of
order with respect to how they are captured and need to be displayed. This feature results
in increased latency and, thus, is not suitable for some real-time sensitive applications.
Until the introduction of H.264, B frames were not used for prediction allowing tradeoffs
to be made for some applications. For example, they can be skipped in low-frame-rate
applications without impacting the decoding of future I and P frames.
11.B.3.1.1 MPEG-2/H.262. MPEG-2 was developed targeting digital televi-

sion and soon became the most successful video compression standard thus far. MPEG-2
addressed both standard progressive video (where a video sequence consists of a
succession of frames each captured at regularly spaced time instants) as well as interlaced
video, which is popular in the television world. In interlaced video, two sets of alternate
rows of pixels (each called a field) in the image are captured and displayed alternately.
Until recently, this approach was particularly suited to the physics of most TV displays on
the market. MPEG-2 supports standard television resolutions, including interlaced
720 · 480 at 60 fields per second for NTSC used in the United States and Japan and
interlaced 720 · 576 at 50 fields per second for PAL used in Europe and other countries.
MPEG-2 builds on MPEG-1 with extensions to support interlaced video and also
much wider motion compensation ranges. MPEG-2 encoders, taking full advantage of
the wider search range and the higher resolution, require significantly more processing
than H.261 and MPEG-1. Interlaced coding tools in MPEG-2 include the ability to
optimize the motion compensation supporting both field- and frame-based predictions
and support for both field- and frame-based DCT/Inverse Discrete Cosine Transform
(IDCT). MPEG-2 performs well at compression ratios around 30:1. The quality achieved
with MPEG-2 at 4–8 Mbps was acceptable for consumer video applications, and it soon
became deployed in applications including digital satellite, digital cable, DVDs, and
lately high-definition TV.
In addition, MPEG-2 adds scalable video coding tools to support multiple layer
video coding, namely, temporal scalability, spatial scalability, SNR (Signal-to-Noise
Ratio) scalability, and data partitioning. Although related profiles were defined in
MPEG-2 for scalable video applications, the main profile that supports single-layer
coding is the sole MPEG-2 profile that is widely deployed in the mass market today. The
MPEG-2 main profile is often referred to as simply MPEG-2. The processing require-
ments for MPEG-2 decoding were initially very high for general purpose processors and
even DSPs. Optimized fixed-function MPEG-2 decoders were developed and became
inexpensive over time due to the high volumes. MPEG-2 proved that the availability of
cost-effective silicon solutions is a key ingredient for the success and deployment of
video codec standards.
11.B.3.1.2 MPEG-4. MPEG-4 was initiated by the ISO as a follow-on to the

success of MPEG-2. Some of the early objectives were increased error robustness to
support wireless networks, better support for low-bit-rate applications, and a variety of
new tools to support merging graphic objects with video. Most of the graphics features
have not yet gained significant traction in products, and implementations have focused
primarily on the improved low-bit-rate compression and error resiliency.
MPEG-4 Simple Profile (SP) starts from H.263 baseline and adds new tools for
improved compression, including:
. Unrestricted Motion Vectors—supports prediction for objects when they partially

move outside of the boundaries of the frame.
. Variable Block Size Motion Compensation—allows motion compensation at
either 16 · 16 or 8 · 8 block granularity.
APPENDIX 11.B 293
. Context Adaptive Intra DCT DC/AC Prediction—allows the DC/AC DCT

coefficients to be predicted from neighboring blocks either to the left or above
the current block.
. Extended dynamic range of quantized AC coefficients from [127 : 127] in H.263
to [2047, 2047] to support high-fidelity video.
Error resiliency features added to support recovery in packet loss conditions include:
. Slice Resynchronization—establishes slices within images that allow quicker

resynchronization after an error has occurred. Unlike MPEG-2 packet sizes,
MPEG-4 packet sizes are delinked from the number of bits used to represent an
MB. As a result, resynchronization is possible at equal intervals in the bit stream
irrespective of the amount of information per MB.
. Data Partitioning—a mode that allows partitioning the data within a video packet
into a motion part and DCT data part by separating these with a unique motion
boundary marker. This allows more stringent checks on the validity of motionvector
data. If an error occurs, you can have better visibility into the point where the error
occurs, thus avoiding the discarding of all the motion data when an error is found.
. Reversible Variable-Length Coding (VLC–VLC)—code tables designed to allow
decoding backward as well as forward. When an error is encountered, it is possible
to sync at the next slice or start code and work back to the point where the error
occurred.
. New Prediction (NEWPRED)—mainly designed for fast error recovery in
real-time applications, where the decoder uses a reverse channel to request
additional information from the encoder in the event of packet losses.
The MPEG-4 Advanced Simple Profile (ASP) starts from the simple profile and
adds B frames and interlaced tools (for level 4 and up) similar to MPEG-2. It also adds
quarter-pixel motion compensation and an option for global motion compensation.
MPEG-4 advanced simple profile requires significantly more processing performance
than the simple profile and has higher complexity and coding efficiency than MPEG-2.
MPEG-4 was used initially in Internet streaming and became adopted, for example,
by Apples QuickTime player. MPEG-4 simple profile is now finding usage in mobile
streaming applications.
11.B.3.1.3 H.264/MPEG-4 AVC. One of the most important developments in

video coding in the last few years has been the definition of the H.264/MPEG-4 AVC
standard by the JVT of the ITU and the ISO/IEC. The ITU approved the new H.264
standard in May 2003. The ISO approved the standard in October 2003 as MPEG-4 Part
10, Advanced Video Coding. H.264/AVC delivers a significant breakthrough in com-
pression efficiency generally achieving around 2x compression versus MPEG-2 and
MPEG-4 simple profile. In formal tests conducted by the JVT, H.264 delivered a coding
efficiency improvement of 1.5x or greater in 78% of the 85 test cases, with 77% of those
showing improvements of 2x or greater and as high as 4x for some cases. The
improvement offered by H.264 creates new market opportunity, such as the following
possibilities:
. VHS-quality video at about 600 kbps. This can enable video delivery on demand
over ADSL lines.
. An HD movie can fit on one ordinary DVD instead of requiring new laser optics.
When H.264 was standardized, it supported three profiles—baseline, main, and
extended. Later, an amendment called Fidelity Range Extension (FRExt) introduced four
additional profiles referred to as the high profiles. Earlier, the baseline profile and main
profile generated interest the most. The baseline profile requires less computation and
system memory and is optimized for low latency. It does not include B frames due to its
inherent latency or CABAC due to the computational complexity. The baseline profile is
a good match for video telephony applications as well as other applications that require
cost-effective real-time encoding.
The main profile provides the highest compression but requires significantly more
processing than the baseline profile, making it difficult to use in low-cost real-time
encoding and low-latency applications. Broadcast and content storage applications
are primarily interested in the main profile to leverage the highest possible video quality
at the lowest bit rate.
While H.264 uses the same general coding techniques as previous standards, it has
many new features that distinguish it from previous standards, which combined improve
coding efficiency. The main differences are:
. Intraprediction and Coding—H.264 uses spatial domain of intraprediction to
predict the pixels in an intra-MB from the neighboring pixels in adjacent blocks.
The prediction residual along with the prediction modes is coded, rather than the
actual pixels in the block. This results in a significant improvement in intracoding
efficiency.
. Interprediction and Coding—Interframe coding in H.264 leverages most of the
key features in earlier standards and adds both flexibility and functionality,
including multiple options for block sizes for motion compensation, quarter-pel
motion compensation, multiple reference frames, generalized bidirectional pre-
diction, and adaptive loop deblocking.
. Variable Vector Block Sizes—Motion compensation can be performed using a
number of different block sizes. Individual motion vectors can be transmitted for
blocks as small as 4 · 4, so, up to 32 motion vectors may be transmitted for a single
MB in the case of bidirectional prediction. Block sizes of 16 · 8, 8 · 16, 8 · 8, 8 · 4,
and 4 · 8 are also supported. Smaller block sizes improve the ability to handle fine
motion detail and results in better subjective quality, including the absence of large
blocking artifacts.
. Multiple Reference Frame Prediction—Up to 16 different reference frames can be
used for interpicture coding, resulting in better subjective video quality and more
efficient coding. Providing multiple reference frames can also help make the
H.264 bit stream more error resilient. Note that this feature leads to increased
APPENDIX 11.B 295
memory requirement for both the encoder and the decoder since multiple
reference frames must be maintained in memory.
. Adaptive Loop Deblocking Filter—H.264 uses an adaptive deblocking filter that
operates on the horizontal and vertical block edges within the prediction loop to
remove artifacts caused by the block prediction errors. The filtering is generally
based on 4 · 4 block boundaries, in which up to three pixels on either side of the
boundary may be updated using a four-tap filter.
. Integer Transform—Previous standards that use DCT had to define rounding-
error tolerances for fixed-point implementations of the inverse transform. Drifts
caused by mismatches in the IDCT precision between the encoder and decoder
were a source of quality loss. H.264 gets around the problem by using an integer
4 · 4 spatial transform, which is an approximation of the DCT. The small 4 · 4
shape also helps reduce blocking and ringing artifacts.
. Quantization and Transform Coefficient Scanning—Transform coefficients are
quantized using scalar quantization with no widened dead zone. Different quanti-
zation step sizes can be chosen for each MB, similar to prior standards, but the step
sizes are increased at a compounding rate of approximately 12.5%, rather than by a
constant increment. Also, finer quantization step sizes are used for the chrominance
component, especially when the luminance coefficients are coarsely quantized.
. Entropy Coding—Unlike previous standards that offered a number of static VLC
tables depending on the type of data under consideration, H.264 uses a context-
adaptive VLC for the transform coefficients and a single universal VLC approach for
all the other symbols. The main profile also supports a new Context-Adaptive Binary
Arithmetic Coder (CABAC). The CAVLC is superior to previous VLC implementa-
tions but without the full cost of CABAC.
. CABAC—It uses a probability model to encode and decode the syntax elements,
such as transform coefficients and motion vectors. To increase the coding
efficiency of arithmetic coding, the underlying probability model is adapted to
the changing statistics within a video frame through a process called context
modeling. Context modeling provides estimates of conditional probabilities of the
coding symbols. Utilizing suitable context models, the given intersymbol redun-
dancy can be exploited by switching between different probability models,
according to already coded symbols in the neighborhood of the current symbol.
Each syntax element maintains a different model (e.g., motion vectors and
transform coefficients have different models). CABAC can provide up to about
10% bitrate improvement over CAVLC.
. Weighted Prediction—It forms the prediction for bidirectionally interpolated
macroblocks by using the weighted sum of forward and backward predictions,
which leads to higher coding efficiency when scene changes fade.
11.B.3.1.4 Fidelity Range Extension. In 2004, a new amendment called

Fidelity Range Extension was added to the H.264 standard. This extension introduced
an additional set of tools into H.264 and also allowed the use of additional color spaces,
video formats, and bit depths. Additional support for lossless interframe coding and
stereo-view video was introduced. The FRExt amendment introduced four new profiles to
H.264:
. High Profile (HP) for standard 4:2:0 chroma sampling with 8-bit color per
component.
. New tools were introduced for this profile; described in more detail below.
. High 10 Profile (Hi10P) for 10-bit color with standard 4:2:0 chroma sampling for
higher fidelity video displays.
. High 4:2:2 10-bit color profile (H422P) useful for source editing functions such as
alpha blending.
. High 4:4:4 12-bit color profile (H444P) for the highest quality source editing and
color fidelity supporting lossless coding for regions of the video and a new integer
color space transform (from RGB to YUV and back).
Among the new profiles, H.264 HP, which maintains 8-bit components and 4:2:0
chroma sampling, appears especially promising to the broadcast and DVD community.
Some experiments show as much as 3x gain for H.264 HP over MPEG-2. Below are the
key additional tools introduced in H.264 HP:
. Adaptive Residual Block Size and Integer 8 · 8 Transform—The residual blocks

can be switched between 8 · 8 and 4 · 4 blocks for transform coding. A new 16-bit
integer transform for 8 · 8 blocks. The older 4 · 4 transform can continue to be
used for smaller block sizes.
. 8 · 8 Luma Intraprediction—Additional eight modes were added to allow luma
intra-macroblocks to perform intraprediction on 8 · 8 blocks in addition to
previously 16 · 16 and 4 · 4 blocks.
. Quantization Weighting—New quantization weighting matrices for quantization
of 8 · 8 transform coefficients.
. Monochrome—Supports coding of black-and-white video.
11.B.3.2 Windows Media Video 9/VC-1

Windows Media is a leading format for music and video subscription services and
streaming video on the Internet. In 2002, Microsoft introduced the Windows Media
Video 9 (WMV9) series codec providing a major improvement in video compression
efficiency. WMV9 is also standardized in SMPTE as VC-1. Similar to H.264, the WMV9
series codec includes many advanced coding tools, although there are differences in the
specifics. WMV9s ME allows quarter-pel bicubic (using four-tap approximate bicubic
filters) interpolation in addition to support for 1/2 pixel bilinear interpolation. It also
includes an in-loop deblocking filter similar to H.264, but with different details on the
filters and decisions. Some other important features are:
. Multiple VLC Tables—WMV9 main profile contains multiple sets of VLC tables
that are optimized for different types of content. Tables can be switched at a frame
level to adjust to the characteristics of the input video.
APPENDIX 11.B 297
. DCT/IDCT Transform Switch—WMV9 supports multiple DCT block sizes,

including 8 · 8, 8 · 4, 4 · 8, and 4 · 4, and uses a special 16-bit integer transform
and inverse transform.
. Quantization—Both regular step-size-based quantization and dead-zone quanti-
zation are used. Use of dead-zone quantization allows substantial savings at lower
bit rates.
Another interesting feature is the ability to use an explicit fading compensating for
scenes involving fading. This improves the quality of motion compensation in these
scenarios. WMV9/VC-1 achieves significant performance improvements over MPEG-2
and MPEG-4 simple profile and has fared well in some perceptual quality rating
comparisons with H.264. WMV9 is also standardized as a compression option for the
upcoming HD-DVD and Blu-ray formats.
11.B.3.3 AVS
In 2002, the Audio-Video Standard Working Group established by the Ministry of
Information Industry of China announced an effort to create a national standard for
mobile multimedia, broadcast, DVD, etc. The video standard, referred to as AVS,
consists of two related parts, a AVS-M for mobile video applications and AVS1.0 for
broadcast and DVD. The AVS standards are similar to H.264. AVS1.0 supports both
interlaced and progressive modes. AVS allows the use of two previous reference frames
for P frames while allowing one future and one previous frame for B frames. In the
interlaced mode, up to four fields are allowed for reference. Frame/field coding in the
interlaced mode can be performed at a frame-level only, unlike H.264, where MB-level
adaptation of this option is allowed. AVS has a loop filter similar to H.264, which can be
disabled at a frame level. Also, no loop filter is required in B-pictures. The intrapredic-
tion is done on 8 · 8 blocks. MC allows up to 1/4 pel for luma blocks. The block sizes for
ME can be 16 · 16, 16 · 8, 8 · 16, or 8 · 8. The transform is a 16-bit based 8 · 8 integer
transform, similar to WMV9. VLC is based on context-adaptive 2-D run/level coding.
Four different Exp-Golomb codes are used. The code used for each quantized
coefficient is adaptive to the previous symbols within the same 8 · 8 block. Since
Exp-Golomb tables are parametric, table sizes are small. The visual quality of AVS 1.0
for progressive video sequences is marginally inferior to H.264 main profile at the same
bit rate. AVS-M is targeted especially at mobile video applications and overlaps with
H.264 baseline profile. It only supports progressive video, I and P frames, and no
B frames. The main AVS-M coding tools include 4 · 4 block-based intraprediction,
quarter-pel motion compensation, integer transform and quantization, context-
adaptive VLC, and a highly simplified loop-filter. Similar to H.264 baseline profile,
in AVS-M the motion vector block size can be down to 4 · 4, and consequently an MB
can have up to 16 motion vectors. Multiple frame prediction is used, but it only requires
up to two reference frames. A subset of H.264 HRD/SEI messages is also defined in
AVS-M. On average and with similar settings, the coding efficiency of AVS-M is about
0.3 dB, worse than the H.264 baseline profile, whereas decoder complexity is about
20% lower.
The material in this section is based directly on a paper by Golston and Rao
[GOL200601].
APPENDIX 11.C: ENCAPSULATION FOR TRANSMISSION OF IP

DATAGRAMS OVER MPEG-2/DVB NETWORKS
To make use of an MPEG-2 TS environment, a network device, known as an encapsu-

lator, receives PDUs (e.g., IP packets or Ethernet frames) and formats these into SNDUs.
The MPE method provides a mechanism for transporting data network protocols, such as
IP on top of the MPEG-2 TSs DVB networks. The DVB family of standards currently
defines a mechanism for transporting an IP packet or Ethernet frame using the MPE; an
equivalent scheme is also supported in ATSC. MPE allows transmission of IP packets or
[by using Logical Link Control (LLC)] Ethernet frames by encapsulation within a table
section (with the format used by the control plane associated with the MPEG-2
transmission). The MPE specification includes a set of optional header components
and requires decoding of the control headers. This processing is suboptimal for Internet
traffic, since it incurs significant receiver processing overhead and some extra link
overhead [RFC4259].
MPE is a data link-layer protocol defined by DVB (included in ETSI TS 301 192 and
also ATSC A/90) MPE uses MPEG-2 private table sections to carry the user datagrams.
The section header is used to convey
. the frames destination MAC address,

. optional ISO/IEC 8802-2 LLC and ISO/IEC 8802-1 Subnetwork Attachment
Point (SNAP) information,
. a payload scrambling indication, and
. a MAC address scrambling indication.
Figure 11.C1 depicts the positioning of MPE [RFC4259].

MPE supports unicast (datagrams targeted to a single receiver), multicast (data-
grams targeted to a group of receivers), and broadcast (datagrams targeted to all
receivers). The 48-bit MAC addresses are used for addressing receivers; however, DVB
does not specify how the MAC addresses are allocated to the receivers. IP packets are
processed at the edge of a MPEG-2 transmission network by an encapsulator gateway
that fragments and forwards the packets using MPEG-2 TS. As the data leave the
MPEG-2 networks, a receiver restores the original IP packets and forwards these to the
end host or IP network. Using MPE, each IP packet arriving at an MPEG encapsulator
gateway has an MPE header attached to form a PDU. The amount of overhead is a
function of the size and timing of the IP packets being sent. The entire PDU is then
fragmented to form a series of MPEG-2 TS packets. MPE usually adds a lot of overhead
for encapsulation, for example, 17 bytes of header/trailer for IPv4 and 25 bytes for IPv6
(use of LLC/SNAP). The current MPE, defined by DVB, is based on the MPEG-2 control
plane [using Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC)]. This scheme has
APPENDIX 11.C 299
+-+-+-+-+------+------------+---+--+--+---------+
|T|V|A|O| O | | O |S |O | |
|e|i|u|t| t | | t |I |t | |
|l|d|d|h| h | IP | h | |h | Other |
|e|e|i|e| e | | e |T |e |protocols|
|t|o|o|r| r | | r |a |r | native |
|e| | | | | | |b | | over |
|x| | | | | +---+----+-+ |l | |MPEG-2 TS|
|t| | | | | | | MPE | |e | | |
| | | | | +--+---+ +------+ | | | |
| | | | | | AAL5 |ULE|Priv. | | | | |
+-+-+-+-+---+------+ | +-+--+--+ |
| PES | ATM | |Sect. |Section| |
+-------+----------+---+------+-------+---------+
| MPEG-2 TS |
+---------+-------+----------------+------------+
|Satellite| Cable | Terrestrial TV | Other PHY |
+---------+-------+----------------+------------+
Figure 11.C1. MPE Positioning
seen widespread use in a variety of MPEG-2 transmission networks, including DVB-S.

DSM-CC is a format for transmission of data and control information defined by the ISO
MPEG-2 standard that is carried in an MPEG-2 private section. Figure 11.C2 illustrates
the packet format of the MPE method [HON200501].
The existing standards carry heritage from legacy implementations. These have
reflected the limitations of technology at the time of their deployment (e.g., design
decisions driven by audio/video considerations, rather than IP networking requirements).
IPv6, MPLS, and other network layer protocols are not natively supported. Together,
these justify the development of a new encapsulation that will be truly IP centric.
Carrying IP packets over a TS logical channel involves several convergence protocol
functions. New encapsulation mechanisms are now being sought. Since a majority of
MPEG-2 transmission networks are bandwidth limited, encapsulation protocols must,
therefore, add minimal overhead to ensure good link efficiency while providing adequate
network services. They also need to be simple to minimize processing, robust to errors
and security threats, and extensible to a wide range of services [RFC4259].
Work was underway at press time in the IETF [IP over DVB (ipdvb) Group] to
develop new protocols and architectures to enable better deployment of IP over MPEG-2
transport and provide easier interworking with IP networks. Appropriate standards are
needed to support transmission of IPv4 and IPv6 datagrams between IP networks
connected using MPEG-2 transport subnetworks. This includes options for encapsula-
tion, dynamic unicast address resolution for IPv4/IPv6, and the mechanisms needed to
map routed IP multicast traffic to the MPEG-2 transport subnetwork. Standards will be
Multiprotocol Encapsulation Header
Mac_address_3
Mac_address_5
Mac_address_4
section_syntax_indicator Mac_address_6
LLC_SNAP_flag
table_id section_length
Private_indicator Reserved Reserved Mac_address_1
payload_scrambling_control Mac_address_2
address_scrambling_control
current_next_indicator
LLC_SNAP IP_Datagram CRC or Checksum
Figure 11.C2. MPE Header
appropriate to both MPE and any alternative encapsulation method developed (MPE will
continue to be deployed in the future to develop new markets; any alternative encapsu-
lation would need to coexist with MPE). The developed protocols may also be applicable
to other multicast-enabled subnetwork technologies supporting large numbers of directly
connected systems.
An encapsulation method that has emerged recently is the Unidirectional Lightweight
Encapsulation (ULE) defined in RFC 4326. An ULE is layered direct on TS. This
approach is known as data piping and it is a new encapsulation method or mechanism for
the transport of IPv4 and IPv6 datagrams directly over ISO MPEG-2 TS as TS private data.
ULE also supports DVB architecture, the ATSC system, and other similar MPEG-2-based
transmission systems. ULE encapsulation does not add a lot of overhead for encapsula-
tion. The ULE header is much smaller and less complex than the MPE header
[HON200501].
REFERENCES
[ATS200001] A/90, ATSC Data Broadcast Standard, Advanced Television Systems Committee
(ATSC), Doc. A/090, 2000.
[BRD200701] Broadband Services Forum, IPTV Explained—Part 1 in a BSF Series, Fremont, CA,
www.broadbandserivcesforum.org.
[BRO200701] Broadcast Engineering Basics, http://www.interactivetvweb.org/tutorial/dtv-intro/
dtv-transmission.shtml.
REFERENCES 301
[CLA200301] H. D. Clausen Bernhard, Collini-Nocker, et al., Simple Encapsulation for

Transmission of IP Datagrams over MPEG-2/DVB Networks, Internet Engineering Task
Force, draft-unisal-ipdvb-enc-00.txt, May 2003.
[DIG200701] Digital TV Group, Conditional Access (CA) Tutorial, http://www.dtg.org.uk/
reference/tutorial_ca.html.
[DVB200701] DVB Organization, Standards, http://www.dvb.org/technology/standards_ specifications/
conditional_access/index.xml.
[ETS200301] EN 301 192, Specifications for Data Broadcasting, v1.3.1, European Telecommu-
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[FAI200101] G. Fairhurst, MPEG-2 Digital Video, Background to Digital Video, University of
Aberdeen, Kings College, Dept. of Engineering, Aberdeen, UK, http://www.erg.abdn.ac.uk/
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[FAI200501] G. Fairhurst, M-J. Montpetit, Address Resolution for IP Datagrams over MPEG-2
Networks, Internet Draft, draft-ietf-ipdvb-ar-00.txt, IETF ipdvb, June 2005.
[FAR200601] G. Faria, J. A. Henriksson, E. Stare, P. Talmola, DVB-H: Digital Broadcast Services
to Handheld Devices, Proceedings of the IEEE, vol. 94, no. 1, January 2006, page 194.
[FOU200701] FOURCAST MEDIA Ltd., IPTV Middleware, Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
[GOL200601] J. Golston, A. Rao, Video Codecs Tutorial: Trade-Offs with H.264, VC-1, and Other
Advanced Codecs, EE Times, March 30, 2006.
[HON200501] T. C. Hong, W. T. Chee, R. Budiarto, Simulation and Design of IP over DVB Using
Multi-Protocol Encapsulation and Ultra Lightweight Encapsulation, National Computer
Science Postgraduate Colloquium 2005 (NaCSPC05), Penang, Malaysia June 27–28, 2005.
[INF200701] Infonetics Reports on IPTV, Light Reading, June 28, 2007.
[ISO200001] ISO/IEC IS 13818-1, ‘Information Technology—Generic Coding of Moving Pictures
and Associated Audio Information—Part 1: Systems,’ International Organization for
Standardization (ISO), 2000.
[ISO200002] ISO/IEC DIS 13818-2, Information Technology—Generic Coding of Moving
Pictures and Associated Audio Information: Video, International Organization for
Standardization (ISO).
[ISO200003] ISO/IEC 13818-3: Information Technology—Generic Coding of Moving Pictures
and Associated Audio Information—Part 3: Audio, International Organization for
Standardization (ISO), 1995.
[ISO200004] ISO/IEC IS 13818–6, Information Technology—Generic Coding of Moving Pictures
and Associated Audio Information—Part 6: Extensions for DSM-CC Is a Full Software
Implementation, International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
[JAC200601] M. Jacklin, Going DVB: Getting Started, http://broadcastengineering. com/mag/
broadcasting_going_dvb_getting, March 1, 2006.
[MIN199501] D. Minoli, Video Dialtone Technology: Digital Video over ADSL, HFC, FTTC, and
ATM, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1995.
[MIN200001] D. Minoli, Digital Video Technologies, video section in K. Terplan and Morreale,
Editors, The Telecommunications Handbook, IEEE Press, 2000.
[MIN200301] D. Minoli, Telecommunications Technology Handbook, 2nd ed., Artech House,
Norwood, MA, 2003.
[NOR200601] Nortel, Position Paper: Introduction to IPTV, Nortel, Research Triangle Park, NC,
2006.
[RFC4259] RFC 4259, A Framework for Transmission of IP Datagrams over MPEG-2 Networks,
M-J. Montpetit, G. Fairhurst, et al., November 2005.
[SIP200701] Spirent Communications, High Quality Mobile TV: The Challenge for Operators to
Deliver High-Quality TV to Mobiles, White Paper, Spirent, Eatontown, NJ, February 2007.
12
DVB-H: HIGH-QUALITY TV
TO CELL PHONES
This chapter discusses standards-based technologies used to deliver high-quality real-time

TV to cell phones. This global standard behind these open technologies is DVB-H
developed by the ETSI.1 DVB-H focuses on physical layer technology; encapsulation is
used at the data link layer and IP multicast technology is used at the network layer. This
environment is also known as Mobile Digital TV (mDTV). There appears to be strong
market interest for mobile TV services to be delivered on cell phones and/or PDAs. mDTV
services are expected to grow very rapidly: some analysts are predicting yearly sales of
over 250 million DVB-H terminals by 2010. This chapter provides a terse overview to the
topic; the discussion is not intended to be comprehensive or completely systematic: to do
justice to the topic an entire lengthy textbook is needed.
1
At press time an initiative by the newly formed Open Mobile Video Coalition (OMVC) sought to develop a
different technology intended to be used by the U.S. TVover-the-air broadcasters to deliver video to handheld
(cell phones) without using cellular technology. However DVB-H has been around for several years and it is
already a standard. The OMVC work targeted a standard by February 17, 2009, when analog TV broadcasting
ceases in the United States.

303
304 DVB-H: HIGH-QUALITY TV TO CELL PHONES
12.1 BACKGROUND AND MOTIVATION
The cell phone/PDA screen is considered a “third” content delivery interface point by
many (the first is the TV screen, and the second is the PC screen). There is keen industry
interest in delivering video to cell phones as a way to support an unmet need and also
increase Average Rate per User2 (ARPU). Figure 12.1 depicts one industry forecast for
mDTV services in the United States.
mDTV is of interest to the entire wireless market—operators, handset OEMs,
infrastructure, and semiconductor providers, but for the DTV market in the United States
to take off, open standards must see implementation [TEX200701]. Initial mDTV
services use streaming video over the cellular network; the downside of this approach
is that it uses voice bandwidth and in so doing lowers the overall capacity of the network
for all users. The commercial breakthrough will arise from live broadcast TV. By design,
mDTV will offer high-quality live broadcast TV (20–30 frames per second; QCIF-QVGA
format) accompanied by full audio. Additional services will be available as a
menu/guide system and pay-per-view channels to enhance the viewing experience
[PIE200501]. Open standards offer advantages over proprietary technologies and
networks controlled by a single company; consumers benefit from the innovation and
less expensive devices. Portable handsets with relatively large, high-resolution Liquid
Crystal Display (LCD) screens, powerful CPUs, and long battery life provide users
viewing enjoyment along with freedom of movement. Compression/decompression
standards with reduced bandwidth requirements and acceptable quality video signals
have emerged in the past 15 years as discussed in the previous chapter. Also, fueling
expansion is the development of cellular networks from second generation (2G)
through third generation (3G) and soon to fourth generation (4G) [SIP200701].
1600.00 Preminum mobile video streaming revenues ($ Mn)

1400.00 Preminum mobile video downloadable revenues ($ Mn)
Revenues ($ Mn)
1200.00
1000.00 Mobile video multicasting revenues ($ Mn)
800.00
600.00
400.00
200.00
0.00
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Year
Note: All figues are rounded; the base year is 2005. Source: Frost & Sullivan
Figure 12.1. Mobile Video Server Market: Revenues from Different Types of Mobile Video
Servers (U.S.) 2004–2010
2
Some also favor the expansion average rate per unit.
BACKGROUND AND MOTIVATION 305
Video-to-cell phone services (real-time TV or looped stored content) have by and

large used vendor-proprietary approaches up to now. In order to make the service more
broadly available, standards are needed, just like off-the-air TV is possible through the
use of open standards. There are several standards for mDTV used in various geographies
[TEX200701]:
. DMB (Digital Media Broadcast) has deployed today in Korea with several
handsets already in the market to support the standard and is expanding to Europe
and other parts of Asia.
. ISDB-T (Integrated Services Digital Broadcast-Terrestrial) is the standard in Japan.
. DVB-H is quickly gaining ground with trials in Europe, the United States, and
parts of Asia.
. 3G networks: While the economics and bandwidth requirements of streaming live
broadcasts over the cellular network are still being assessed at this time, the use of
3G networks to download clips or full television shows to PDA/cell-phone
memory is practical.3
. OMVC — see Appendix 12.A.
Asimplied above, thereare other“nonopen” technologies that have been developed for
mDTV, including MediaFLO. Table 12.1 provides a comparison [TEX200701]. This
chapter focuses on DVB-H. While there are number of frequency plans to support DVB-H,
especially internationally, in the United States, the 700–800-MHz area is now being
considered; this relieves (at least initially) the 3G bandwidth-limitation issues just noted for
video delivery to handhelds. DVB-H is an extension of the DVB-T standard. Additional
features have been added to support handheld and mobile reception. Lower power
consumption for mobile terminals and secured reception in the mobility environments
are key features of the standard. It is meant for IP-based services. DVB-H can share the
DVB-T MUX with MPEG-2/MPEG-4 services, so it can be part of the IPTVinfrastructure
described in the previous chapter, except that lower bit rates are used for transmission
(typically in the 384-kbps range). The content aggregation point is similar to that described
in Chapter 11, including the use of CASs. Since the middle of this decade, a number of
network operators, equipment providers, and content providers have conducted or are
conducting several DVB-H trials around the world.
DVB-H was published as ETSI standard EN 302 304 in November 2004. This
standard is an umbrella standard defining how to combine the existing (now updated)
ETSI standards to form the DVB-H system. The basic standards in DVB-H are as follows:
. ETSI EN 302 304: “Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB); Transmission System for
Handheld Terminals (DVB-H)”
3
One of the issues with 3G is bandwidth. One could recall from the recent discussions regarding Apples
release of the iPhone that the handheld (iPhone) got much better reviews than the (specific) carrier that one had
to subscribe to in order to use that device: the carrier did not have its 3G (high-speed) data network deployed
throughout the United States, which means that some of the key features (such as Web browsing) do not run as
fast as consumers may have hoped.
T A B L E 12.1. Mobile DTV Technologies

DVB-H MediaFLO ISDB-T DMB 3G OMVC
Standard Open Proprietary Open Open Open Open
(future)
Regions U.S., Europe, U.S. Japan Korea, Worldwide U.S.
parts of Asia expanding
to other
countries
Air interface Orthogonal OFDM OFDM OFDM — AVSB
Frequency (subbanded)
Division
Multiplexing
(OFDM)
Service Mid 2005, 2006 (locally Early 2006 Today Today None
availability open U.S. through expanding
spectrum analog TV rollout
nationwide channels)
today
Handset Today from 2006 2006 Today from Today from 2009
availability several OEMs several OEMs several
vendors
. Draft ETSI TR 102 377 V1.1.1 (2005-01): “Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB);
DVB-H Implementation Guidelines”
. Draft ETSI TR 159 r12: “Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB); DVB-H Implemen-
tation Guidelines”
Mobile DTV has the potential to positively impact the bottom line, ARPU, of dis-
tributors, multimedia content suppliers, and telcos. Specifically, there are a number of
business opportunities for mobile DTV, including the following [PIE200501]:
Carriers (telcos)
. DVB-H allows them to increase ARPU with a new service to existing customers
. Reduce churn rate
. Attract new customers with competitive services and channel offerings through
mobile DTV
. Gain additional revenue from interactive services and advertising
. Make deals with content providers or aggregators on their own to deliver content
to their subscribers.
Content providers/broadcasters
. Deliver the programming for the mobile phone

. Gain additional viewers for their content with no or low investment
. Gain additional revenue from ads and content
BACKGROUND AND MOTIVATION 307
. Play in multiple areas of the value chain as desired, including possibility of

purchasing spectrum and deploying their own broadcast network if desired
Infrastructure companies: Provide the towers and transmitting equipment.

Handset OEMs: Develop handset for consumers. DVB-H allows them to:
. Gain revenue with phone upgrades as mobile DTV services increases in popularity
. Develop new mobile phone designs that are small but deliver the performance and
screen resolution for crisp, clear images
Some, however, including this author, have a concern that in an attempt to add a
screen to a cell phone handset, the speaker portion of the handset is being severely
compromised in size. In some cell phone models, where the ear would naturally
line up when the cell phone is in use, there is instead a 200 · 200 screen with a trivial
speaker element placed literally on the rim (rather than center) of the upper shell
portion of the phone. This arrangement runs quite contrary to the physiognomy of
the ear, which would prefer the speaker closer to the center of the upper portion of
the phone. This design has the effect of making the voice quality really marginal,
especially for use in noisy environments (e.g., in a car) or for older users.
Manufacturers need to ascertain that the voice quality remains at an acceptable
level as they contemplate the video use of the cell phone. The potential use of a
Bluetooth earpiece does not invalidate this design concern, because the earpiece is
not always in use or is pragmatically inappropriate
Silicon vendors: Develop chip sets and software for mobile phones.
Software third parties: Deliver additional software and applications for mobile
phones.
Figures 12.2–12.4 provide basic graphical views of DVB-H/mobile DTV environ-
ments. Notice the CAS. The backbones make use of IP multicast. A DVB-H network is
typically a combination of [PIE200501]:
. Terrestrial fixed lines (e.g., SONET/SDH/OTN) between the TV production

center and the satellite teleport.
. A satellite primary distribution network from the Earth station to the individual terre-
strial microwave towers present in several markets distributed over the country or
market regions. Satellite, in general, is the most efficient and lowest cost solution for
primary distribution and broadcast applications over a wide geographic coverage.
. Terrestrial DVB-H SFN per market cell or region. The SFN allows the reuse of the
frequency spectrum over adjacent DVB-H cells. In the United States, bandwidth in
the range 700–800 MHz is being targeted for use, but other bands may also be used.
Delivery (transmission) mechanisms for cell phone reception fall into two categories
[SIP200701]:
. Unicast transmission where each subscriber receives a dedicated video

channel. The various 3G protocols—e.g., evolutions of either Universal Mobile
Figure 12.2. Mobile DTV With Terrestrial Backbone Distribution
Telecommunications System (UMTS) [Wideband Code Division Multiple

Access (WCDMA)] or CDMA2000—are unicast protocols with fixed limits
using their total upper bandwidth. WCDMA is a symmetric protocol, whereas all
other protocols are asymmetric with most of their bandwidth devoted to the
downlink, as shown in Table 12.2.
. Multicast or broadcast transmissions, through which all subscribers in range
receive the same signal containing multiple channels. Subscribers select the
channel they wish to display. Traditional TV is a broadcast mechanism; IPTV is a
multicast mechanism, as are DVB-H, DMB, and MediaFLO.
DVB-H, DMB, and MediaFLO need to deal with bandwidth constraints because
while each video channel may be watched by many subscribers simultaneously, the
bandwidth available per channel is limited. These bandwidth constraints are mitigated
through the use of state-of-the-art compression standards that provide good-enough
quality for a handheld at 384 kbps. Because of the constrained data rates suggested for
individual DVB-H services and the small displays of typical handheld terminals, the
classical audio and video coding schemes used in digital broadcasting do not suit
DVB-H well; therefore, the DVB-H standard replaces MPEG-2 video with H.264/AVC
or other high-efficiency video coding standards [FAR200601]. As noted in the previous
Conditional-
Access System rec
Control Word
Generator
MPEG-2 TV Service rec
Firewall MPEG-2 TV Service -DVB-M signalling
MPEG-2 TV Service -8k or 2k
MPEG-2 TV Service
Encrytor MUX
DVB-H IPE Mc U HPA
Content 1 DVB-H IPE
M
rec
Content 2
Content 3 rec
-DVB-M signalling
DVB-H IPE Mc U HPA -8k or 2k
Dense
Content n or Sparce-Dense
Encrytor DVB-H IPE

-Time Slicing
Firewall
-MPE-FEC
Conditional - rec
Access System
IPE = IP Encapsulator
Control Word
Mo = Modulator Generator
U = Upconverter rec -DVB-M signalling
-8k or 2k
HPA = High-Power Amplifier
Figure 12.3. Mobile DTV With Satellite Backbone Distribution
309
MPEG-2 New to DVB-H

DVB-H IPE DVB-T Modulator
IP Mux
MPE MPE FEC Time Slicing 8K 4K 2K DVB-H TPS
Channel
DVB-H IPE
IP
MPE MPE FEC Time Slicing
DVB-H IPE
IP
MPE MPE FEC Time Slicing
DVB-H Decapsulator DVB-T Demodulator

IP
MPE MPE FEC Time Slicing DVB-H TPS 2K 4K 8K

IP

IP
TPS = Transmission Parameter Signaling
Figure 12.4. DVB-H Framework
T A B L E 12.2. Unicast Protocols: 3G Approaches
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2009 2010

EVDO EVDO
CDMA2000 1XEVDO EVDO Rev. C
Rev. A Rev. B
HSUPA HSPA+ HSPA+
UMTS WCDMA Rel. 99 HSDPA Rel. 5 Rel. 6 Rel. 7 Rel. 8
CDMA2000 CDMA2000
(Mbit/s) 1xEVDO Rev. A Rev. B Rev. C (Mbit/s) WCDMA HSDPA HSUPA HSPA+
Down link 2.4 3.1 3.1-73 70-200 Down link 0.384 1.8-72 7.2 40
Data rate Data rate
Up link 0.153 1.8 1.8-27 30-45 Up link 10
Data rate Data rate 0.384 0.384 5.8
Note: Total cell (sector) bandwidth is comparatively small, typically 2–3 Mbps at the low end and 20 Mbps at the
higher end. This puts an upper limit on the total number of simultaneous subscribers who can watch video
(perhaps an absolute maximum of 100 or so). WiMAX is better for total system throughput (approximately
40–80 Mbps) but may reach a bottleneck when subscribers reach a few hundred.
Courtesy: Spirent Communications.
BASIC DVB-H TECHNOLOGY 311
T A B L E 12.3. Vendor-Proprietary Mobile DTV Systems (Partial List)

MediaFLO Modeo
Spectrum 6 MHz at 700 MHz 5 MHz at 1.6 GHz
Transmission Standard Proprietary non-IP based DVB-H
Strength Carrier commitment DVB-H open standard
Weakness Proprietary system Limited spectrum
Low-power spectrum license
Need carrier commitment
chapter, H.264/AVC/MPEG-4 Part 10 embodies significant advances in compression

capability and recently was adopted for PlayStation Portable, iPod, Nero Digital
product suite, CoreAVC video decoder, Mac OS X v10.4, and HD-DVD/Blu-ray.
Several prototype DVB-H phones have been developed by major handset manufac-
turers (e.g., but not limited to LG). It is expected that there will be a number of trials in
the United States launching in 2007, with full-scale deployments starting in 2008 into
2009.
Qualcomm (MediaFLO) and Crown Castle (Modeo) both publicly announced
mobile video services. A quick snapshot of these technologies is provided in Table 12.3.
These are not currently DVB-H-based.
12.2 BASIC DVB-H TECHNOLOGY
DVB-H is seen as a “proven technology” because it is based on the DVB standard used in
Europe for terrestrial and satellite DTV transmission but has a low-power mode for
battery-powered devices. A DVB-H system is a combination of elements of the physical
and link layers, as well as service information. At the physical layer, it uses an OFDM air
interface technology and includes a technique for power reduction in the tuner. OFDM is
a good choice for mobile TV air interface because it offers good spectral efficiency,
immunity to multipath interference, and good mobile performance and works well in
single-frequency networks such as those planned for mobile TV. DVB-H uses time
slicing so that the tuner can be switched off most of the time and is only on during short
transmission bursts. This allows the tuner to operate over a reduced input bandwidth and
also conserves power. In the United States, DVB-H will be deployed using clear and
“ready-for-use” spectrum available today, without interfering with the existing analog
TV stations or other TV or wireless services [TEX200701].
The Digital Video Broadcast (DVB) Project started research work related to mobile
reception of DVB—Terrestrial (DVB-T) signals in 1998, accompanying the introduction
of commercial terrestrial digital TV services in Europe. In 2000, the EU-sponsored
Motivate (Mobile Television and Innovative Receivers) Project concluded that mobile
reception of DVB-T is possible, but it implies dedicated broadcast networks. It was
recognized that mobile services are more demanding in robustness (i.e., constellation and
coding rate) than broadcast networks planned for fixed DVB-T reception. Later in 2002,
the EU-sponsored Multimedia Car Platform (MCP) Project explored the behavior of
antenna diversity reception that by introducing spatial diversity in addition to the
frequency and time diversities provided by the DVB-T transmission layer improved
sufficiently reception performance to allow a mobile receiver to access DVB-T signals
broadcast for fixed receivers. While DVB-T shows sufficient flexibility to permit mobile
broadcast services, it is not ideally suited for these applications. As a consequence, in early
2002, the DVB community was asked to provide technical specifications to allow delivery
of rich multimedia contents to handheld terminals, a property that has been missing in the
original DVB-T. This would make it possible to receive TV-type services in a small,
handheld device like a mobile phone [FAR200601].
Handheld terminals (defined as a lightweight, battery-powered apparatus) require
specific features from the transmission system serving them, as defined in ETSI TR 102
377 V1.2.1 (2005-11):
. The transmission system must offer the possibility to repeatedly turn the power off
to some parts of the reception chain. This reduces the average power consumption
of the receiver.
. The transmission system must ensure that it is easy for receivers to move from one
transmission cell to another while maintaining the DVB-H service.
. For a number of reception scenarios (indoor, outdoor, pedestrian, and inside a
moving vehicle), the transmission system must offer sufficient flexibility and
scalability to allow the reception of DVB-H services at various speeds while
optimizing transmitter coverage.
. Since services are expected to be delivered in environments that suffer high levels
of human-made electromagnetic noise, the transmission system needs to offer the
means to mitigate their effects on the performance of the receiving terminal.
. Since DVB-H aims to provide a generic way to serve handheld terminals in various
parts of the world, the transmission system must offer the flexibility to be used in
various transmission bands and channel bandwidths.
As noted, the DVB-H system is defined based on the existing DVB-T standard for
fixed and in-car reception of digital TV; the main additional elements in the link layer
(i.e., the layer above the physical layer) are time slicing and additional FEC coding.
Figure12.5 depicts the DVB-H protocol stack.
DVB-H makes use of the following technological elements for the link and physical
layers:
. Link layer:
– Time slicing is used in order to reduce the average power consumption of the
receiving terminal and enable smooth and seamless frequency handover when
the user leaves one service area in order to enter a new cell. Time slicing reduces
the average power in the receiver front end up to about 90–95%. Time slicing is
mandatory for DVB-H. With DVB-H, a device has a need to receive audio/video
IP
MPE-FEC frame MPE-FEC frame
191 columns 64 columns
MPE MPE-FEC
sections sections
MPEG-2 TS
Application padding columns
Punctured data columns

DVB-T
256 - 1024 rows
Padding
RS data
Application data table
table (RS parity
(IP datagrams) bytes)
Figure 12.5. DVB-H Protocol Stack
services transmitted over IP on ESs at a relatively low bit rate, typically at

384 kbps. The MPEG-2 TS may, however, have a much higher bit rate, for
example, 10 Mbps. The particular ES of interest thus occupies only a fraction
(in this example, 3.8%) of the total MPEG-2 TS bit rate. In order to reduce
power consumption, one would ideally like the receiver to demodulate and
decode only the 3.8% portion of interest, and not the full MPEG-2 TS. With
time slicing this is possible, since the MPE sections of a particular ES are sent
in high-bit-rate bursts instead of with a constant low bit rate. During the time
between the bursts—the off-time—no sections of the particular ES are
transmitted. This allows the receiver to power off completely during the
off-time. The receiver, however, needs to know when to power on again to
receive the next burst. Refer to [FAR200601] for a tutorial description of this
process or to the standard itself.
– Forward error correction for multiprotocol encapsulated data (MPE-FEC) is
not mandatory for DVB-H. MPE-FEC is used to improve signal robustness.
The objective of MPE-FEC is to improve the C/N and Doppler performance
in mobile channels and to improve the tolerance to impulse interference.
This is accomplished through the introduction of an additional level of error
correction where the parity data is sent in separate MPE-FEC sections. With
MPE-FEC, a flexible amount of the transmission capacity is allocated to
parity overhead. The MPE-FEC overhead can be fully compensated
by choosing a slightly weaker transmission code rate while still providing
far better performance than DVB-T (without MPE-FEC) for the same
Encoder
RF
DVB-T Modulator Transmission
MPEG-2 TV Service TS
MUX 8k 4k 2k DVB-H TPS
DVB-H IP
L2S encapsulator
IP
MPE- Time
MPE
FEC Slicing
CAS
RF
Reception DVB-H IP Deencapsulator Display
DVB-T Demodulator TS IP
Time MPE-
MPE
8k 4k 2k DVB-H TPS Slicing FEC
L2S = Layer 2 Switch

CAS = Conditional-Access–System
TS = Transport Stream
Figure 12.6. A DVB-H System
throughput. This MPE-FEC scheme allows high-speed single-antenna

DVB-T reception using 8K/16-QAM or even 8K/64-QAM signals. In
addition, MPE-FEC provides good immunity to impulse noise interference.
The payload of DVB-H is IP datagrams or other network layer datagrams are
encapsulated into MPE sections. Figure 12.6 expands the view shown in
Figure 12.4.
These functions are typically implemented in the IP Encapsulator (IPE) at the

transmission end and in the DVB-H device at the receiving end.
. Physical layer: DVB-H makes use of DVB-T but with the following technical
elements specifically targeting DVB-H use:
– DVB-H signaling in the Transmission Parameter Signaling (TPS) bits to
enhance and speed up service discovery. A cell identifier is also carried in
the TPS-bits to support quicker signal scan and frequency handover on mobile
receivers. DVB-H signaling is mandatory for DVB-H.
– 4K mode for trading off mobility and SFN cell size, allowing single-antenna
reception in medium SFNs at very high speed, adding flexibility for the network
design. 4K mode is not mandatory for DVB-H.
– In-depth symbol interleaver for the 2K and 4K modes to further improve the
robustness in mobile environments and impulse noise conditions. In-depth
symbol interleavers for 2K and 4K are not mandatory for DVB-H.
Hence, the physical layer has four extensions to the existing DVB-T physical layer
[FAR200601]:
1. The bits in TPS have been upgraded to include two additional bits to indicate
presence of DVB-H services and possible use of MPE-FEC to enhance and speed
up the service discovery.
2. A new 4K OFDM mode is adopted for trading off mobility and SFN cell size,
allowing single-antenna reception in medium SFNs at very high speeds. 4K
mode is an option for DVB-H complementing the 2K and 8K modes that are
available as well. The objective of the 4K mode is to improve network planning
flexibility by trading off mobility and SFN size.
3. A new way of using the symbol interleaver of DVB-T has been defined. For 2K
and 4K modes, the operator may select (instead of native interleaver that
interleaves the bits over one OFDM symbol) the option of an in-depth interleaver
that interleaves the bits over four or two OFDM symbols, respectively. This
approach brings the basic tolerance to impulse noise of these modes up to the
level attainable with the 8K mode and also improves the robustness in mobile
environment. To further improve robustness of the DVB-H 2K and 4K modes in a
mobile environment and impulse noise reception conditions, an in-depth symbol
interleaver has also been added to the standard.
4. The 5 MHz channel bandwidth to be used in nonbroadcast bands. This is of
interest, for example, in the United States, where a network of about 1.7 GHz is
running using DVB-H with a 5-MHz channel.
DVB-T only has 2K (1705 carriers) and 8K (6817 carriers) modes. DVB-H adds a
4K (3409 carriers) mode; it allows the designer to trade off mobility and SFN cell size.
See Figure 12.7. Enhanced in-depth interleavers (distributes burst errors over a larger
timescale so that FEC is able to correct the errors) in 2K and 4K modes. DVB-H is
backward compatible to DVB-T.
12.2.1 DVB-H Mobile Devices

A DVB-H terminal device includes the following functionality (see Figure 12.8)
[FAR200601]:
. DVB-H receiver (a DVB-T demodulator, a time-slicing module, and an optional

MPE-FEC module). The DVB-T demodulator recovers the MPEG-2 TS packets
from the received DVB-T RF signal. It offers three transmission modes: 8K, 4K,
and 2K with the corresponding signaling. The time-slicing module controls the
2K mode 4K mode 8K mode

(1705 carriers) (3409 carriers) (6817 carriers)
8 MHz 8 MHz 8 MHz
f f f
Each
carrier
QPSK,
16 QAM,
or
n n+2 64 QAM n n+2 n n+2
n+1 n+1 n+1
modulated
Figure 12.7. Modulation In DVB-H
receiver to decode the wanted service and shut off during the other service bits. It
aims to reduce receiver power consumption while also enabling a smooth and
seamless frequency handover. The MPE-FEC module provided by DVB-H offers,
in addition to the error correction in the physical layer transmission, a comple-
mentary FEC function that allows the receiver to cope with particularly difficult
reception situations.
. The DVB-H terminal itself. The handheld terminal decodes/uses IP services only.
Note that the 4K mode and the in-depth interleavers are not available, for
compatibility reasons, in cases where the multiplex is shared between services
intended for fixed DVB-T receivers and services for DVB-H devices.
Power control
Time slicing
IP Datagrams
DVB-T signal DVB-T Demodulator

ETε 300 744 MPE - FEC
RF input 8K, 2K
4K, TPS
IP Deencapsulator
DVB-H Demodulator DVB-H Terminal
Figure 12.8. DVB-H Terminal

APPENDIX 12.A: OPEN MOBILE VIDEO COALITION EFFORTS
At press time, a coalition of almost 800 local stations in the United States were
working to bring live over-the-air broadcast TV to mobile television devices by 2008.
The broadcasting groups were working with the Digital TV (DTV) standard body
ATSC to create a new standard to allow broadcasters to transmit live video and
non-real-time data services to mobile phones and other handheld devices via their
existing digital TV spectrum without interfering with their current HD or SD
programming. The Open Mobile Video Coalition (OMVC) has established the goal
to have the technology standard in place by February 17, 2009, when analog TV
broadcasts will cease in the United States [DIC200701]. The OMVC, which has
enlisted financial support form the National Association of Broadcasters and technical
help from the Association for Maximum Service Television (MSTV), represents 422
commercial stations in 142 markets covering 103 million U.S. TV households as well
as 361 public TV stations. Members include station groups ION, Belo, Fox, Gannett,
Gray, NBC/Telemundo, Sinclair, Tribune, Cox, Dispatch, Freedom, LIN, Meredith,
Media General, Post-Newsweek, Raycom, Schurz, and the Association of Public
Television Stations.
The technical challenge is not trivial. It requires the transmission of robust signals
to small, portable devices within the existing 6-MHz DTV channel, without interfering
with the core programming services stations are already providing with their 19.4 Mbps
of digital throughput. The request for proposals that the ATSC circulated in mid-2007
asked for a system that could not only deliver live, advertiser-supported TV to
cellphones but also support subscription services, non-real-time download services
for on-demand playback, datacasting applications, interactive TV, and real-time
navigation data for automobiles. Preliminary proposals were submitted in 2007 by
10 companies and/or groups of companies, including Coding Technologies, Coherent
Logix, DTS, LG Electronics and Harris Corp., Mobile DTV Alliance, Micronas
Semiconductor, Nokia, Samsung Electronics Co., and Rohde & Schwarz, Thomson,
and Qualcomm. Some proposals related to full mobile DTV systems, such as MPH
(Mobile Pedestrian Handheld) from LG/Harris and A-VSB (Advanced-Vestigial Side
Band) from Samsung/Rohde & Schwarz, both of which were demonstrated at the NAB
show in Las Vegas in April 2007. There were two proposals being considered at press
time. (1) The MPH system, which LG and Harris formally documented in an 80-page
submission to the ATSC late in 2007, has been undergoing continual development since
it was first unveiled at the NAB show. LG has created an MPH receiver chip that will
allow it to soon demonstrate much smaller from-factor mobile devices than the “big
box” it used to demonstrate MPH in Las Vegas; such devices would have a single
antenna less than 3 inches long. (2) As an alternative proposal, Samsung was refining its
A-VSB system since first demonstrating it in a shuttle bus at the Consumer Electronics
Show in early 2007. The goal of OMVC was to reach a compromise, inclusive solution
and then proceed to implementation, in competition with DVB-H-based solutions
[DIC200701].
REFERENCES
[DIC200701] G. Dickson, Mobile TV Takes Flight, Broadcasting & Cable, November 12, 2007.
[FAR200601] G. Faria, J. A. Henriksson, E. Stare, P. Talmola, DVB-H: Digital Broadcast Services
to Handheld Devices, Proceedings of the IEEE, vol. 94, no. 1, January 2006, page 194.
[PIE200501] R. Pieck, DVB-H Broadcast to Mobile Devices, White Paper, Newtec America, Inc.,
Stamford, CT, www.newtecamerica.com, September 14, 2005.
[SIP200701] Spirent Communications, High Quality Mobile TV The Challenge for Operators to
Deliver High-Quality TV to Mobiles, White Paper, Spirent, Eatontown, NJ, February 2007.
[TEX200701] Texas Instruments, DVB-H Mobile Digital TV for the U.S., White Paper, Texas
Instruments, Dallas, TX.
GLOSSARY
This Glossary contains basic multicast/IPTV terminology compiled from numerous

industry sources, as noted.
(*,*,RP) Route Entry In PIM SM, (*,*,RP) refers to any source and any multicast
group that maps to the RP included in the entry. The routers
along the shortest path branches between a domains RP(s)
and its PMBRs keep (*,*,RP) state and use it to determine
how to deliver packets toward the PMBRs if data packets
arrive for which there is not a longer match. The wildcard
group in the (*,*,RP) route entry is represented by a group
address of 224.0.0.0 and a mask length of 4 bits [RFC2362].
(*,G) Route Entry In PIM SM, group members join the shared RP-tree for a
particular group. This tree is represented by (*,G) multicast
route entries along the shortest path branches between the
RP and the group members [RFC2362].
(S,G) Pair Source S and destination group G associated with an IP
packet [RFC2362].
(S,G) Route Entry In PIM SM, (S,G) is a source-specific route entry. It may be
created in response to data packets, Join/Prune messages, or
asserts. The (S,G) state in routers creates a source-rooted,
shortest path (or reverse shortest path) distribution tree.
(S,G)RPT bit entries are source-specific entries on the
shared RP-tree; these entries are used to prune particular
sources off of the shared tree [RFC2362].

319
320 GLOSSARY
A la carte VoD VoD where one pays for each item viewed (similar to pay
per view). Typically the subscriber has one day to view the
content [NOR200601].
Adaptation Field An optional variable-length extension field of the fixed-
length TS packet header, intended to convey clock
references and timing and synchronization informa-
tion as well as stuffing over an MPEG-2 multiplex
[CLA200301].
ADSL (Full-Rate Access technology that offers differing upload and down-
Asymmetric DSL) load speeds and can be configured to deliver up to six
megabits of data per second (6000 kbps) from the net-
work to the customer. ADSL enables voice and high-
speed data to be sent simultaneously over the existing
telephone line. This type of DSL is the most predominant
in commercial use for business and residential customers
around the world. Good for general Internet access and
for applications where downstream speed is most impor-
tant, such as video on demand. ITU-T recommendation
G.992.1 and ANSI standard T1.413-1998 specify full-
rate ADSL. ITU recommendation G.992.3 specifies
ADSL2, which provides advanced diagnostics, power
saving functions, PSD shaping, and better performance
than G.992.1. ITU recommendation G.992.5 specifies
ADSL2Plus, which provides the benefits of ADSL2Plus
twice the bandwidth so that bit rates as high as 20 Mbps
downstream can be achieved on relatively short lines
[DSL200701].
AES (Advanced Cryptographic algorithm; NIST-approved standard. The
Encryption Standard) current AES is Rijndael. It was chosen by NIST because
it is considered to be both faster and smaller than its
competitors. See also DES and 3DES [CON200701].
AFC Adaptation Field Control.
Asymmetric Algorithm Same as public key algorithm.
Asymmetric Encryption Type of encryption in which encryption keys are different
from decryption keys, and one key is computationally
difficult to determine from the other. Uses an asymmetric
algorithm [CON200701].
ATSC (Advanced A set of framework and associated standards for the trans-
Television mission of video, audio, and data, using the ISO MPEG-2
Systems Committee) standard [CLA200301].
Authentication The process of proving the genuineness of an entity (such as
a smart card) by means of a cryptographic procedure. Put
simply, authentication amounts to using a fixed procedure
GLOSSARY 321
to determine whether someone is actually the person he or

she claims to be [CON200701].
Authorization An authorization gives access (or legal power) to some
protected service. In a CA system, the authorization gives
access to encrypted services (channels, movies, etc.)
[CON200701].
Bootstrap Router (BSR) In PIM SM a BSR is a dynamically elected router within
a PIM domain. It is responsible for constructing the
RP-set and originating Bootstrap messages [RFC2362].
A router with multiple potential RPs; the BSRs provide
mechanisms that identify RPs for various multicast groups
[ROD200701].
Broadcast Environment Environment where one system communicates to all
systems.
Broadcast Interface In CBT, any interface that supports multicast transmission
[ROD200701].
CA (Conditional Access) DVB conditional access encryption and key management
scheme [CLA200301].
CableCARD A device that consumers can plug into their DCR TV
sets that permits for the descrambling of digital program-
ming. The card works in place of a traditional STB
[CON200701].
Candidate BSR (CBSR) In PIM SM it is a router that can potentially play the role of a
BSR, provided it wins an automated BSR election process
[ROD200701].
Candidate RP (C-RP) In PIM SM, a C-RP is a router configured to send
periodic C-RP-Adv messages to the BSR and act as an RP
when it receives Join/Prune or Register messages for the
advertised group prefix [RFC2362].
CAT (Conditional MPEG signaling table that defines type of scrambling used
Access Table) and PID values of transport streams which contain the
conditional access management and entitlement informa-
tion (EMM)). The CAT is sent with the well-known PID
value of 0x001 [FAI200101].
Center-Based Trees Same as core-based trees.
Certificate A digital certificate consists of three things: (1) The
public-key portion of the certificate holders public and
private-key pair. (2) Information that identifies the
holder of the certificate (the owner of the corresponding
private key). (3) The digital signature of a trusted entity
attesting to the validity of the certificate (i.e., that the
key and the certificate information truly go together)
[CON200701].
322 GLOSSARY
Cisco Group A Cisco-developed group management protocol that limits

Management the forwarding of IP multicast packets to only those ports
Protocol (CGMP) associated with IP multicast clients. These clients automat-
ically join and leave groups that receive IP multicast traffic,
and the switch dynamically changes its forwarding behav-
ior according to these requests.
Conditional-Access In a DVB context, conditional access is a security technol-
System (CAS) ogy used to control the access to broadcast content (includ-
ing video and audio, interactive services, etc.) through the
transmission of encrypted signals and the programmable
regulation of their decryption by a system such as smart
cards [CON200701].
Content Provider An entity that acts as the agent for or is the prime distributor
of the content.
Core-Based Tree (aka center-based tree) A bidirectional shared tree where
the routing state is “bidirectional,” namely, packets can
flow both down the tree away from the core and up the tree
toward the core, depending on the location of the source in
the network, and the tree is “shared” by all sources to the
group. Core-based forwarding trees have a single node, for
example, a router, known as the core of the tree, from which
branches emanate. These branches are made up of other
routers, so-called noncore routers, which form a shortest
path between a member hosts directly attached router and
the core. A router at the end of a branch is known as a leaf
router on the tree. The core need not be topologically
centered between the nodes on the tree, since multicasts
vary in nature, and correspondingly, so can the form of a
core-based tree [BAL199301].
Core-Based Tree A multicast routing architecture that builds a single deliv-
(CBT) Multicasting ery tree per group, which is shared by all of the groups
senders and receivers. Most multicast algorithms build one
multicast tree per sender (subnetwork), the tree being
rooted at the senders subnetwork. The primary advantage
of the shared tree approach is that it typically offers more
favorable scaling characteristics than all other multicast
algorithms. The CBT protocol is a network layer
multicast routing protocol that builds and maintains a
shared delivery tree for a multicast group. The sending
and receiving of multicast data by hosts on a subnetwork
conform to the traditional IP multicast service model
[RFC2201].
Core Router (or just In CBT, a “core router” is a router which acts as a “meeting
“core”) point” between a sender and group receivers. The term
GLOSSARY 323
“Rendezvous Point (RP)” is used equivalently in some

contexts. A core router need not be configured to know it
is a core router [RFC2189].
CW (Control Word) (aka code word) The key used to encrypt the payload in a
transport stream.
Datagram Another name for an IP-level packet.
Decoding Time stamps are inserted close to the material to which
Time Stamp (DTS) they refer (normally in the PES packet header). They
or Presentation indicate the exact moment where a video frame or an
Time Stamp (PTS) audio frame has to be decoded or presented to the user
respectively. These rely on reference time stamps for
operation [FAI200101].
Dense-Mode Multicast routing protocols designed on the assumption that
(DM) Protocols the majority of routers in the network will need to distribute
multicast traffic for each multicast group. DM protocols
build distribution trees by initially flooding the entire net-
work and then pruning out the (presumably small number
of) paths without active receivers. The DM protocols are
used in Local-Area Network (LAN) environments, where
bandwidth considerations are less important, but can also be
used in Wide-Area Networks (WANs) in special cases (for
example where the backbone is a one-hop broadcast medi-
um such as a satellite beam with wide geographic illumina-
tion, for example, in some IPTV applications).
DES (Data A 64-bit block cipher, symmetric algorithm also known as
Encryption Standard) Data Encryption Algorithm (DEA) by ANSI and DEA-1 by
ISO. Widely used for over 20 years, adopted in 1976 as
FIPS 46. See also AES and 3DES [CON200701].
Designated Router (DR) In PIM SM, the router on a subnet that is selected to control
multicast routes for the members on its directly attached
subnet. When more than one PIM-capable router is located
on a subnet, the selected DR is the router with the highest IP
address [ROD200701]. The DR sets up multicast route
entries and sends corresponding Join/Prune and Register
messages on behalf of directly connected receivers and
sources, respectively. The DR may or may not be the same
router as the IGMP querier. The DR may or may not be the
long-term, last-hop router for the group; a router on the
LAN that has a lower metric route to the data source, or to
the groups RP, may take over the role of sending Join/
Prune messages [RFC2362].
Digital Subscriber Telephone carrier equipment typically residing at the cen-
Line Access tral office that terminates multiple DSL lines (usually 96,
Multiplexer (DSLAM) 192, or 384) and multiplexes the combined output to an
324 GLOSSARY
ATM, MPLS, or IP uplink. The uplink is typically an OC-3

(155 Mbps) or an OC-12 (622 Mbps).
Digital Video Properly a protocol. More broadly approaches and tech-
Broadcast—Handheld nologies to deliver commercial-grade medium-quality
(DVB-H) real-time linear and on-demand video content to handheld,
battery-powered devices, such as mobile telephones and
PDAs. IP multicast is typically employed.
Digital Video Devices (perhaps built into the STB) that provide the ability
Recorders (DVRs) to “time-shift” television viewing. DVRs use a hard disk to
record the content. As such, they can record hundreds of
hours of content, and subscribers can directly access any
recording without “fast forwarding” through other pro-
grams. DVRs are integrated into the IPTV system. From
the operators Electronic Program Guide (EPG), the sub-
scriber simply scrolls to the content to be recorded and hits a
“record” button [NOR200601].
Distance Vector A routing protocol, originally defined in RFC 1075, to
Multicast Routing support internetwork multicasting. DVMRP combines
Protocol (DVMRP) many of the features of RIP with the Truncated Reverse
Path Broadcasting (TRPB) algorithm. DVMRP is an
“interior gateway protocol,” suitable for use within an
autonomous system but not between different autonomous
systems. The multicast forwarding algorithm requires the
building of trees based on routing information. This tree
building needs more state information than RIP was de-
signed to provide, so DVMRP is much more complicated
in some places than RIP [RFC1075]. DVMRP is based
on RIP.
Downstream Interface In CBT A “downstream” interface (or router) is one which
(or Router) is on the path away from the groups core router with respect
to this interface (or router) [RFC2189]. All interfaces that
are not the upstream interface, including the router itself
[RFC3973].
DRM (Digital System that enables secure distribution of digital content
Rights Management) and that prevents unauthorised access to and illegal and
perfect copying of same [CON200701].
DSL (Digital A technology that exploits unused frequencies on copper
Subscriber Line) telephone lines to transmit traffic typically at multi-me-
gabit speeds. DSL can allow voice and high-speed data to
be sent simultaneously over the same line. Because the
service is “always available,” end users do not need to dial
in or wait for call setup. Variations include: ADSL, G.lite
ADSL (or simply G.lite), VDSL (ITU G.993.1), and
VDSL2 (ITU G.993.2). The standard forms of ADSL
GLOSSARY 325
(ITU G.992.3, G.992.5, and ANSI T1.413-Issue 2) are all

built upon the same technical foundation, Discrete Multi-
tone (DMT). The suite of ADSL standards facilitates
interoperability between all standard forms of ADSL
[DSL200701].
DSM-CC Digital Storage Management Command and Control. A
formatting defined by the ISO MPEG-2 standard, which is
carried in an MPEG-2 private section [CLA200301]. A
format for transmission of data and control information in
an MPEG-2 private section, defined by the ISO MPEG-2
standard [FAI200501].
DTH (Direct to Home) A generic term used to describe the overall system of signal
transmissions from an earth station to a satellite and then
to a home satellite dish. Generally encompasses all fre-
quency ranges including C-band, medium- and high-power
Ku-bands, and Ka-bands [CON200701].
DVB (Digital (aka ETSI-DVB). A set of framework and associated stan-
Video Broadcasting) dards published by the European Telecommunications
Standards Institute (ETSI) for the transmission of video,
audio, and data using the ISO MPEG-2 standard
[CLA200301]. Organization defined transmission standards
for digital broadcasting systems using cable (DVB-C),
satellite (DVB-S), terrestrial (DVB-T), and handheld
(DVB-H) devices. See www.dvb.org [CON200701].
Dynamic Host A mechanism that informs the network that a host (receiver)
Registration is a member of a particular group (otherwise, the network
would have to flood rather than multicast the transmissions
for each group). For IP networks, the Internet Group
Management Protocol (IGMP) serves this purpose.
Emergency Alert In the United States, the government mandates that opera-
System (EAS) tors support the Emergency Alert System. Each operator
must listen for any alerts and translate these encoded
messages for presenting to viewers. An EAS receiver
provides this function [NOR200601].
Encapsulator A network device that receives PDUs (also known as
SNDUs) (Ethernet frames or IP datagrams) and formats
these for output as a transport stream of TS packets
[NOR200601].
Encoder A device that converts an audio or video signal to a specific
streaming format, for example, MPEG-4 (or MPEG-2). The
conversion typically includes compression and generation
on an IP packet.
Encryption The process of making a message unintelligible for all who
do not have the proper key.
326 GLOSSARY
Entitlement Access criteria authorizations.

Entitlement Control A conditional-access message that contains the key for
Messages (ECMs) decrypting transmitted programs. It is transmitted with the
entitlement management message. Private conditional-
access information that specifies authorization levels or
the services of specific decoders. Encrypted message that
contains access criteria and Control Words (CWs). The
ECM is decrypted and checked against the access criteria in
order to provide authorization. If authorization is granted,
the CW will be released [CON200701].
Entitlement A satellite conditional access specifies customer entitle-
Management ments. It is transmitted with the entitlement control message.
Messages (EMMs) Encrypted messages sent to the smart card or STB to autho-
rize it for certain access criteria. The EMM contains the
actual authorization data (i.e., Entitlements) [CON200701].
EPG (Electronic A listing of all available TV programs covering a few days
Program Guide) which displays on a TV screen.
ES (Elementary A DVB/MPEG-2, raw bit stream consisting of digitized
Stream) video or audio.
ETSI (European An independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is to
Telecommunications produce telecommunications standards for today and for
Standards Institute) the future. See www.etsi.org.
Footprint The geographic area of the earth on which a satellites direct
transmissions can be received by a ground-based station or
home dish.
Forward Direction The dominant direction of data transfer over a network
path. Data transfer in the forward direction is called
“forward transfer.” Packets traveling in the forward direc-
tion follow the forward path through the IP network
[CLA200301].
Forward Error FEC is a family of well-known simplex error correction
Correction (FEC) techniques that add “coding” bits to the information bits at
the transmit end (encoder) that enables the decoder to
determine which bits are in error and correct them (up to
a limit). For example, R 5/4 FEC means 1 coding bit is
added for every 4 information bits; the more coding bits the
“stronger” the code (requires less transmit power or link
quality to get the same performance) but more coding bits
mean more bandwidth required. Because satellite transmis-
sion can attenuate the signal by up to 200 dB, FEC is
critical. High coding: R 1/2; low coding: R 7/8. Typical
satellite FEC is either convolutional/Viterbi with Reed–
Solomon or turbo coding. Typical turbo codes provide about
GLOSSARY 327
a 2-dB advantage over conventional codes. “Viterbi” soft-

decision decoding has been the norm (4.4-dB gain).
“Turbo coding” advanced recently (6.3-dB gain). “Low
Density Parity Check (LDPC)” newest (7.8-dB gain).
Free on Demand VoD VoD where access and content are free, as stimulus to buy
the overall service.
GARP Multicast A layer 2 network protocol defined in the IEEE 02.1D
Registration specification. It provides multicast pruning and dynamic
Protocol (GMRP) group membership for multicast. Typically used in layer 2
switches. A switch can exchange multicast group informa-
tion with other GMRP switches, prune unnecessary broad-
cast traffic, and dynamically create and manage multicast
groups.
G.lite ADSL A standard that was specifically developed to meet
(or simply G.lite) the plug-and-play requirements of the consumer market
segment. G.lite is a medium-bandwidth version of ADSL
that allows Internet access at up to 30 times the speed of the
fastest 56-kB analog modems—up to 1.5 Mbps down-
stream and up to 500 Kbps upstream. G.lite is an Interna-
tional Telecommunications Union (ITU) standard. G.lite
has seen comparatively little use, but it did introduce the
valuable concept of splitterless installation [DSL200701].
GLOP Addressing RFC 2770 recommended that the 233.0.0.0/8 address range
be reserved for statically defined addresses by organiza-
tions that already have an AS number reserved. The AS
number of the domain is embedded into the second and
third octets of the 233.0.0.0/8 range. GLOP is a mechanism
that allocates multicast addresses to ASs (GLOP is neither
an acronym nor an abbreviation.).
HDSL (High-Data- A DSL variety created in the late 1980s that delivers
Rate DSL) symmetric service at speeds up to 2.3 Mbps in both
directions. Available at 1.5 or 2.3 Mbps, this symmetric
fixed-rate application does not provide standard telephone
service over the same line and is already standardized
through the European Telecommunications Standards
Institute (ETSI) and International Telecommunications
Union (ITU). Seen as an economical replacement for
T1 or E1, it uses one, two, or three twisted copper pairs
[DSL200701].
HDSL2 (Second- A variant of DSL that delivers 1.5-Mbps service each way,
Generation HDSL) supporting voice, data, and video using either ATM (Asyn-
chronous Transfer Mode), private-line service, or frame
relay over a single copper pair. This ATIS standard (T1.418)
supports a fixed 1.5-Mbps rate both up- and downstream.
328 GLOSSARY
HDSL2 does not provide standard voice telephone service

on the same wire pair. HSDL2 differs from HDSL in that
HDSL2 uses one pair of wires to convey 1.5 Mbps whereas
ANSI HDSL uses two wire pairs [DSL200701].
HDSL4 A high-data-rate DSL that is virtually the same as HDSL2
except it achieves about 30% greater distance than HDSL or
HDSL2 by using two pairs of wire (thus, four conductors),
whereas HDSL2 uses one pair of wires [DSL200701].
Homes Passed Number of domiciles that are “passed” by cable plant.
Alternatively, the number of homes in a defined geographic
area within the footprint of satellite transmission.
IDSL (Integrated A form of DSL that supports symmetric data rates of up to
Services Digital 144 kbps using existing phone lines. It is unique in that it
Network DSL) has the ability to deliver services through a DLC (Digital
Loop Carrier: a remote device often placed in newer
neighborhoods to simplify the distribution of cable and
wiring from the phone company). While DLCs provide a
means of simplifying the delivery of traditional voice
services to newer neighborhoods, they also provide a
unique challenge in delivering DSL into those same neigh-
borhoods. IDSL addresses this market along with ADSL
and G.lite as they are implemented directly into those
DLCs. IDSL differs from its relative ISDN (Integrated
Services Digital Network) in that it is an “always-available”
service, but capable of using the same terminal adapter, or
modem, used for ISDN [DSL200701].
IGMP Snooping A method by which a switch can constrain multicast
packets to only those ports that have requested the
stream.
IGMP Snooping Local-Area network switches that do not adhere to the
Switches conceptual model that provides the strict separation of
functionality between different communications layers in
the ISO model and instead utilize information in the upper
level protocol headers as factors to be considered in pro-
cessing at the lower levels. This is analogous to the manner
in which a router can act as a firewall by looking into the
transport protocols header before allowing a packet to be
forwarded to its destination address. In the case of IP
multicast traffic, an IGMP snooping switch provides the
benefit of conserving bandwidth on those segments of the
network where no node has expressed interest in receiving
packets addressed to the group address. This is in contrast to
normal switch behavior where multicast traffic is typically
forwarded on all interfaces [RFC4541].
GLOSSARY 329
Incoming Interface In PIM SM, the iif of a multicast route entry indicates the
(iif) interface from which multicast data packets are accepted
for forwarding. The iif is initialized when the entry is
created [RFC2362].
Internet Group The protocol used by IP Version 4 (IPv4) hosts to commu-
Management nicate multicast group membership states to multicast
Protocol (IGMP) routers. IGMP is used to dynamically register individual
hosts/receivers on a particular local subnet to a multicast
group. IGMPv1 defined the basic mechanism. It supports
a Membership Query (MQ) message and Membership
Report (MR) message. Most implementations at press time
employed IGMPv2; Version 2 adds Leave Group (LG)
messages. Version 3 adds source awareness allowing the
inclusion or exclusion of sources. IGMP allows group
membership lists to be dynamically maintained. The host
(user) sends an IGMP “report,” or join, to the router to be
included in the group. Periodically, the router sends a
“query” to learn which hosts (users) are still part of a
group. If a host wishes to continue its group membership,
it responds to the query with a report. If the host does not
send a report, the router prunes the group list to delete
this host; this eliminates unnecessary network transmis-
sions. With IGMPv2, a host may send a Leave Group
message to alert the router that it is no longer participating
in a multicast group; this allows the router to prune the
group list to delete this host before the next query is
scheduled, thereby minimizing the time period during
which unneeded transmissions are forwarded to the
network.
IPTV (IP-Based TV) Approaches, technologies, or protocols to deliver commer-
cial-grade Standard-Definition (SD) and High-Definition
(HD) entertainment-quality real-time linear and on-
demand video content over IP-based networks, while
meeting all prerequisite quality of service, quality of
experience, conditional access (security), blackout
management (for sporting events), emergency alert system,
closed captions, parental controls, Nielsen rating collection,
secondary audio channel, picture-in-picture, and guide data
requirements of the content providers and/or regulatory
entities. Typically, IPTV makes use of Moving Pictures
Expert Group 4 (MPEG-4) encoding to deliver 200–300 SD
channels and 20–40 HD channels; viewers need to be able to
switch channels within 2 s or less; also, the need exists to
support multiset-top boxes/multiprogramming (say 2–4)
330 GLOSSARY
within a single domicile. Not to be confused with simple

delivery of video over an IP network, which has been
possible for over two decades; IPTV supports all business,
billing, provisioning, and content protection requirements
that are associated with commercial video distribution.
Service needs to be comparable to that received over cable
TV or direct broadcast satellite. IP multicast is typically
employed.
Join List In PIM SM, the join list is one of two lists of addresses that
is included in a Join/Prune message; each address refers to a
source or RP. It indicates those sources or RPs to which
downstream receiver(s) wish to join [RFC2362].
Key A digital code used to encrypt, sign, decrypt, and verify
messages and files.
Key Management Generation, distribution, storage, replacement, and de-
struction of keys.
Key Pair A public key and its complementary private key. In pub-
lic-key systems, each user has at least one key pair.
Last-Hop Router In PIM SM, the last-hop router is the last router to receive
multicast data packets before they are delivered to di-
rectly connected member hosts. In general the last-hop
router is the DR for the LAN. However, under various
conditions described in this document a parallel router
connected to the same LAN may take over as the last-hop
router in place of the DR [RFC2362]. It is generally the
same as the DR and is responsible for forwarding packets
to its directly connected members. There are some spe-
cial conditions where this last-hop router is not the DR
[ROD200701].
Limited-Scope The range of addresses from 239.0.0.0 through
Addresses (or 239.255.255.255. RFC 2365 defines these addresses to be
Administratively limited to a local group or organization. Routers are
Scoped Addresses) required to be configured with packet filters to prevent
multicast traffic in this address range from flowing outside
of an autonomous system (AS).
Linear Programming Real-time TV content, including national channels, local
channels, sports channels, and premium channels.
Link-Local Addresses IP multicast addresses that have been reserved for specific
functions. Addresses in the range 224.0.0.0–224.0.0.255
are reserved to be used by network protocols on a local
network segment. Network protocols make use of these
addressesforautomaticrouterdiscoveryandtocommunicate
routing information (e.g., OSPF uses 224.0.0.5 and 224.0.0.6
to exchange link-state information). IP packets with these
GLOSSARY 331
addressesarenotforwardedbyarouter;theyremainlocalona
particular LAN segment [they have a Time-to-Live (TTL)
parameterset to1;eveniftheTTLisdifferentfrom1,theystill
are not forwarded by the router].
MAC Medium Access and Control of the Ethernet IEEE 802
standard of protocols [CLA200301].
MAC Header The link-layer header of the IEEE 802.3 standard or
Ethernet v2. It consists of a 6B destination address, 6B
source address, and 2B type field (see also NPA)
[FAI200501].
Member In PIM SM it is the host that is to receive multicast
transmissions. The protocol documentation also refers to
a member as a “receiver” [ROD200701].
MPE A scheme that encapsulates PDUs, forming a DSM-CC
(Multiprotocol table section. Each section is sent in a series of TS packets
Encapsulation) using a single TS logical channel [FAI200501].
MPEG-2 (Motion A set of multiplexing/encoding standards specified by the
Picture Experts Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG) and standardized
Group–2) by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO/
IEC 113818-1), and ITU-T (H.220). Both MPG-2 and
MPEG-4 are important for IPTV, but the recent trend is
in favor of MPEG-4.
MPEG-7 An ISO/IEC standard for description and search of audio
and visual content.
Multicast Address An identifier for a group of nodes. An IP multicast address
or group address, as defined in “Host Extensions for IP
Multicasting,” STD 5, RFC 1112, August 1989, and in “IP
Version 6 Addressing Architecture,” RFC 2373, July
1998. The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA)
controls the assignment of IP multicast addresses.
IANA has allocated what has been known as the
Class D address space to be utilized for IP multicast. IP
multicast group addresses are in the range 224.0.0.0–
239.255.255.255.
Multicast Address A protocol defined in RFC 2730 that allows hosts to request
Dynamic Client multicast addresses from multicast address allocation
Allocation servers. This protocol is part of the IETF multicast address
Protocol (MADCAP) allocation architecture.
Multicast Protocol defined in RFC 2909 that can be used for inter-
Address Set domain multicast address set allocation. MASC is used by
Claim Protocol a node (typically a router) to claim and allocate one or
(MASC) more address prefixes to that nodes domain. While a
domain does not necessarily need to allocate an address
332 GLOSSARY
set for hosts in that domain to be able to allocate group

addresses, allocating an address set to the domain does
ensure that interdomain group-specific distribution trees
will be locally rooted and that traffic will be sent outside
the domain only when and where external receivers
exist.
Multicast Environment Environment where one system communicates to a select
group of other systems.
Multicast Listener MLDv2 is a multicast listener discovery protocol that is
Discovery used by an IPv6 router to discover the presence of multicast
Protocol (MLDv2) listeners on directly attached links and to discover which
multicast addresses are of interest to those neighboring
nodes. MLDv2 is designed to be interoperable with
MLDv1. MLDv2 adds the ability for a node to report
interest in listening to packets with a particular multicast
address only from specific source addresses or from all
sources except for specific source addresses [RFC3810].
The Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP)
(RFC1112, IGMPv2, IGMPv3) allows an IPv4 host to
communicate IP multicast group membership information
to its neighboring routers; IGMPv3 provides the ability for
a host to selectively request or filter traffic from individual
sources within a multicast group. MLD, defined in RFC
2710 (MLDv2), offers similar functionality for IPv6 hosts.
MLDv2 provides the analogous “source filtering”
functionality of IGMPv3 for IPv6 [RFC4604].
Multicast OSPF Protocol defined in RFC 1584 that provides enhancements
(MOSPF) to OSPF Version 2 to support IP multicast routing. With
MOSPF an IP multicast packet is routed based on both the
packets source and its multicast destination (commonly
referred to as source/destination routing). As it is routed,
the multicast packet follows a shortest path to each multi-
cast destination. During packet forwarding, any common-
ality of paths is exploited; when multiple hosts belong to a
single multicast group, a multicast packet will be replicated
only when the paths to the separate hosts diverge.
OSPF, a link-state routing protocol, provides a database
describing the autonomous systems topology. A new OSPF
link-state advertisement has been added describing the
location of multicast destinations. A multicast packets
path is then calculated by building a pruned shortest path
tree rooted at the packets IP source. These trees are built on
demand, and the results of the calculation are cached for use
by subsequent packets [RFC1584].
GLOSSARY 333
Multicast Communication mechanism to forward payload. Almost

Payload Forwarding invariably this is IP based at the network layer. Typical IP
multicast applications make use of User Datagram Protocol
(UDP) at the Transport Layer (TA); however, Transmission
Control Protocol (TCP) can also be used in the same
applications.
Multicast Routing A mechanism to build distribution trees that define a unique
forwarding path between the subnet of the content source
and each subnet containing members of the multicast
group, specifically, receivers.
Multicast Routing This is the multicast topology table, which is typically
Information Base derived from the unicast routing table or from routing
(MRIB) protocols such as MBGP that carry multicast-specific to-
pology information. PIM DM uses the MRIB to make
decisions regarding RPF interfaces [RFC3973].
Multicast Scope A range of multicast addresses configured so that traffic
sent to these addresses is limited to some subset of the
internetwork. Defined in “Administratively Scoped IP
Multicast,” BCP 23, RFC 2365, July 1998.
Multicast Source A protocol that allows multiple PIM sparse-mode domains
Discovery Protocol to share information about active sources. The protocol
(MSDP) announces active sources to MSDP peers. It is a BGP-like
protocol that allows a Rendezvous Point (RP) to forward
source and multicast group information to other RPs
[e.g., to support redundant RPs or multidomain applications
where each ISP can each have its own RP(s)] [WEL200101].
MultiCrypt The specification of a common interface which, when
installed in the set-top box or television, permits the user
to switch manually between CA systems. Thus when viewers
are presented with a CA system which is not installed in their
box, they simply switch cards [DVB200701].
Multiple Systems Term used to describe cable operators that own more than
Operator (MSO) one franchise.
Multiprotocol Border (also referred to by the acronym MBGP) A protocol that
Gateway defines multiprotocol extensions to the Border Gateway
Protocol (MP-BGP) Protocol (BGP), the unicast interdomain protocol that
supports multicast-specific routing information. MP-BGP
augments BGP to enable multicast routing policy and
connect multicast topologies within and between BGP
autonomous systems. It carries multiple instances of routes
for unicast routing as well as multicast routing. Protocol
that carries routing information about several protocols,
including IP multicast (and also IPv6 and MPLS VPN
information, among others). In IP multicast, MP-BGP
334 GLOSSARY
carries a separate copy of unicast routes. MP-BGP helps

establish links that the PIM Join messages use, which in
turn allows us to control links that the multicast traffic
traverses [WEL200101].
Multiprotocol A scheme that encapsulates Ethernet frames or IP
Encapsulation (MPE) datagrams, creating a DSM-CC section. The section will
be sent in a series of TS packets over a TS logical channel
[CLA200301].
Multiroom Enables simultaneous management and consumption of
CA protected content on several TV sets located within the
same household. The STBs must be subject to physical or
logical grouping of devices. May or may not utilize a home
network solution [CON200701].
Near Video on Service similar to PPV. While PPV service starts the movie
Demand (nVoD) every 2 hs, nVoD service shows the same movie on several
channels, each starting as little as 15 min apart. Hence, the
subscriber has a short wait time until the movie begins
[NOR200601].
NIT (Network MPEG signaling table that contains details of the bearer
Information Table) network used to transmit the MPEG multiplex, including
the carrier frequency (PID ¼ 10) [FAI200101].
Nonbroadcast Networks A network supporting the attachment of more than two
stations but not supporting the delivery of a single physical
datagram to multiple destinations (i.e., not supporting
data-link multicast). OSPF describes these networks as
nonbroadcast, multiaccess networks. An example of a
nonbroadcast network is an X.25 public data network
[RFC1584].
Nonmulticast Router In the context of MOSPF, a router running OSPF Version 2
but not the multicast extensions. These routers do not
forward multicast datagrams but can interoperate with
MOSPF routers in the forwarding of unicast packets.
Routers running the MOSPF protocol are referred to as
either multicast-capable routers or MOSPF routers
[RFC1584].
NPA (Network A 6-byte destination address (resembling an IEEE MAC
Point of Attachment) address) within the MPEG-2 transmission network that is
used to identify individual receivers or groups of receivers
[FAI200501].
NVOD (Near-Video Systems that deliver programming at a time acceptable to
on Demand) the consumer, although not instantaneous, accomplished by
repeating the same programs on several channels simulta-
neously at frequent intervals, for example, every 15 or
30 min [CON200701].
GLOSSARY 335
OCAP Defines a set of common application interfaces, data for-

mats, and protocols for interactive cable devices, allowing
cable operators, content providers, and consumer electron-
ics manufacturers to write applications one time that will
run on all OCAP-compliant devices [CON200701].
On-Tree Router In CBT, a router that is part of a CBT distribution tree is
known as an “on-tree” router. An on-tree router maintains
an active state for the group [RFC2189].
OpenCable A CableLabs project with the goal of helping the cable
industry deploy interactive services over cable. See www.
opencable.com.
Outgoing Interface In PIM SM, each multicast route entry has an oif list
(oif) List containing the outgoing interfaces to which multicast pack-
ets should be forwarded [RFC2362].
PAT (Program MPEG signaling table that lists the PIDs of tables describ-
Association Table) ing each program. The PAT is sent with the well-known PID
value of 0x000 [FAI200101].
Pay Per View Services that are ordered on-the-fly (or prereserved at some
(PPV) Programming point prior to a broadcast), which requires that the sub-
scriber pay an additional fee to view specific content. Like
standard television service, PPV content is broadcast at a
set time [NOR200601].
Permanent Host Groups Applications that are part of this type of group have an IP
address permanently assigned by the IANA. A permanent
group continues to exist even if it has no members. Mem-
bership in this type of host group is not permanent: a host
(receiver) can join or leave the group as desired. An applica-
tion can use DNS to obtain the IP address assigned to a
permanent host group using the domain mcast.net.
The application can determine the permanent group from
anaddressbyusingapointerqueryinthedomain224.in-addr.
arpa.
PES Program Elementary Scheme of MPEG-2 [CLA200301].
PID (Packet Identifier) A field carried in the header of all MPEG-2 Transport
Stream (TS) packets. This is used to identify the TS logical
channel to which it belongs [CLA200301]. A 13-bit field
carried in the header of TS packets. This is used to
identify the TS logical channel to which a TS packet
belongs. The TS packets forming the parts of a table
section, PES, or other payload unit must all carry the same
PID value. The all-ones PID value indicates a null TS
packet introduced to maintain a constant bit rate of a TS
multiplex. There is no required relationship between the
336 GLOSSARY
PID values used for TS logical channels transmitted using

different TS multiplexes [FAI200501].
PIM Dense Mode PIM DM (RFC 3973, January 2005) is a multicast routing
(PIM DM) protocol that uses the underlying unicast routing informa-
tion base to flood multicast datagrams to all multicast
routers. Prune messages are used to prevent future mes-
sages from propagating to routers without group member-
ship information.
PIM Multicast Border In PIM SM it is a router that connects the PIM domain
Router (PMBR) to other multicast routing domains. The gateway
functions provided by the PMBR address the need to
interoperate with other multicast routing protocols
[ROD200701].
PIM Source-Specific A multicast protocol where forwarding uses only sour-
Multicast (SSM) ce-based forwarding trees. IGMPv3 is used to support
SSM. SSM mapping allows SSM routing to occur without
IGMPv3 being present. SSM mapping uses statically
configured tables or dynamic Domain Name System
(DNS) discovery of the source address for a SSM
channel.
PIM Sparse Mode Protocol defined in RFC 2362 that uses a pull mechanism to
(PIM SM) deliver multicast traffic. Only subnetworks (network seg-
ments) that have active receivers that have explicitly re-
quested the information via IGMP joins are forwarded the
traffic. PIM SM makes use of a shared tree to distribute the
information to active sources. The PIM SM protocol shared
tree algorithm actually uses a variant of the center-based
tree algorithm. PIM SM makes use of a Rendezvous Point
(RP).
PKCS (Public-Key Set of standards for public-key cryptography from RSA
Cryptography Security Inc. See www.rsasecurity.com [CON200701].
Standards)
PKI (Public-Key System that provides public-key encryption and digital
Infrastructure) signature services.
Plaintext Ordinary readable text before being encrypted into cipher-
text or after being decrypted.
PMT (Program Map MPEG signaling table that defines the set of PIDs associ-
Table) ated with a program, for example, audio and video)
[FAI200101].
POD (Point of Obsolete name for CableCARD.
Deployment)
P-PPV (Prebooked PPV services offered in a way that the consumer has to order
PPV) the service within a given time in advance.
GLOSSARY 337
PPT (Pay Per Time) The consumer pays for consuming a media file once within
a time limit.
PPV (Pay Per View) Services offered in a way that the consumer will pay for the
service on a PPV basis. PPV services can be offered either
as prebooked (P-PPV) or impulse (I-PPV).
Pragmatic General A reliable multicast transport protocol for applications that
Multicast (PGM) require ordered, duplicate-free multicast data delivery. The
protocol guarantees that a receiver in a multicast group
receives all data packets from direct transmissions or via
retransmissions of lost packets. PGM can detect unrecov-
erable data packet loss.
Premium VoD VoD where one pays an additional monthly fee for premium
content such as recent movies.
Private Key Decryption key is often called private key in public-key
systems. A private key is also used for signing a message.
Private Section A syntactic structure used for mapping all service informa-
tion (e.g., an SI table) into TS packets. A table may be
divided into a number of sections. All sections of a table must
be carried over a single TS (Transport Stream) logical
channel [CLA200301]. A structure constructed in accor-
dance with Table 2-30 of ISO-MPEG-2. The structure may
be used to identify private information (i.e., not defined by
ISO-MPEG-2) relating to one or more elementary streams,
or a specific MPEG-2 program, or the entire TS. Other
standards bodies, for example, ETSI and ATSC, have defined
sets of table structures using the private-section structure. A
private section is transmitted as a sequence of TS packets
using a TS logical channel. A TS logical channel may carry
sections from more than one set of tables [FAI200501].
Product Metadata Metadata related to a media file, including product ID,
category, protecting services, access modes, usage rights,
pricing info, scheduling info, maturity rating, and addres-
sing [CON200701].
Program Television program or multimedia streams.
Program Stream A PES packet multiplex that carries several elementary
streams that were encoded using the same master clock or
system time clock.
Protocol Independent A protocol that provides intradomain multicast forwarding
Multicast (PIM) for all underlying unicast routing protocols [e.g., Open
Shortest Path First (OSPF) or Border Gateway Protocol
(BGP)], independent from the intrinsic unicast protocol.
Two modes exist: PIM Sparse Mode (PIM SM) and PIM
Dense Mode (PIM DM).
338 GLOSSARY
Prune List In PIM SM, the prune list is the second list of addresses that
is included in a Join/Prune message. It indicates those
sources or RPs from which downstream receiver(s) wish
to prune [RFC2362].
PSI (Program- PSI is used to convey information about services carried in a
Specific Information) TS multiplex.It is carried in oneoffour specifically identified
table section constructs; see also SI Table [FAI200501].
Public Key Encryption key is often called public key in public-key
systems. A public key can also be used for verification of
signatures [CON200701].
Public-Key Algorithm An algorithm where the key used for encryption is different
from the key used for decryption. Furthermore, the private
(decryption) key cannot be calculated from the public
(encryption) key [CON200701].
Pull VoD VoD system that stores content within the operator network.
Upon request, the content is streamed to the subscriber. The
advantage is that the user can select from a large, centrally
stored content library. The disadvantage is that bandwidth
must be allocated to each subscriber viewing VoD content
[NOR200601].
Push VOD (aka virtual VOD) A system where movies are broadcast in
encrypted format and stored directly on hard disks in the
STBs. A consumer can later purchase access to the movies
[CON200701].
Push VoD VoD system that automatically downloads the VoD content to
the subscribers DVR. This download is done during off-peak
times or at low priority, eliminating the need for additional
bandwidth. The downside is that this makes some of the DVR
disk unavailable to the subscriber. As such, this approach is
practical only for the latest content, which will beviewed by a
relatively large number of subscribers [NOR200601].
PUSI Payload_Unit_Start_Indicator of MPEG-2. A PUSI value
of zero indicates that the TS packet does not carry the start
of a new payload. The TS packet does carry the start of a
new payload [CLA200301].
PVR (Personal DVR and PDR are used interchangeably with this term.
Video Recorder)
QAM (Quadrature Modulation technique for cable broadcasting.
Amplitude Modulation)
QPSK (Quaternary Modulation technique for satellite broadcasting.
Phase Shift Keying)
Querier (also known as IGMP querier) The sender of a query
message—the querier is a multicast router. A multicast
GLOSSARY 339
router keeps a list of multicast group memberships and a

timer for each membership; querier routers periodically
send a general MQ to solicit membership information.
Hosts respond to this general MQ to report their member-
ship status for each multicast group [ITU200201].
RADSL (Rate Adaptive A nonstandard version of ADSL. Note that standard ADSL
DSL) also permits the ADSL modem to adapt speeds of data
transfer [DSL200701].
Receiver Equipment that processes the signal from a TS multiplex
and performs filtering and forwarding of encapsulated
PDUs to the network layer service (or bridging module
when operating at the link layer) [FAI200501].
Reference Time Stamp Time stamp providing the indication of the current time.
Reference time stamps are to be found in the PES syntax
(ESCR), in the program syntax (SCR), and in the transport
packet adaption Program Clock Reference (PCR) field
[FAI200101].
Rendezvous Point (RP) In PIM SM, each multicast group has a shared tree via,
which receivers hear of new sources and new receivers hear
of all sources. The RP is the root of this per-group shared
tree, called the RP-tree [RFC2362]. An RP is the root of a
shared multicast distribution tree. Similar to the core router
in CBT protocols.
Rendezvous Point PIM SM uses RP, a router with a special function, to support
(RP) Operation how a multicast source and receiver get connected. When a
multicast source wishes to transmit multicast, it just starts
sending; it is up to network routers to forward the multicast
packets to the RP. In turn, the RP is aware of sources and
multicasts in the network.
Reverse Direction The direction in which feedback control messages gener-
ally flow (e.g., acknowledgments of a forward TCP transfer
flow). Data transfer could also happen in this direction (and
it is termed “reverse transfer”) [CLA200301].
Reverse Path In PIM SM, RPF is used to select the appropriate incoming
Forwarding (RPF) interface for a multicast route entry. RPF is a multicast
forwarding mode in which a data packet is accepted for
forwarding only if it is received on an interface used to
reach the source in unicast [RFC3973]. The RPF neighbor
for an address X is the next-hop router used to forward
packets toward X. The RPF interface is the interface to that
RPF neighbor. In the common case this is the next hop used
by the unicast routing protocol for sending unicast packets
toward X. For example, in cases where unicast and multi-
cast routes are not congruent, it can be different [RFC2362].
340 GLOSSARY
Route Entry In PIM SM, a multicast route entry state is maintained in a

router along the distribution tree and is created and updated
based on incoming control messages. The route entry may
be different from the forwarding entry; the latter is used to
forward data packets in real time. Typically a forwarding
entry is not created until data packets arrive, the forwarding
entrys iif and oif list are copied from the route entry, and the
forwarding entry may be flushed and re-created at will
[RFC2362]. A route entry may include such fields as the
source address, the group address, the incoming interface
from which packets are accepted, the list of outgoing
interfaces to which packets are sent, timers, flag bits, and
so on.
Router-Port Group A protocol that constrains IP multicast on switches that
Management have only routers attached.
Protocol (RGMP)
RP-Set In PIM SM, the RP-set is a set of RP addresses constructed
by the BSR based on C-RP advertisements received. The
RP-set information is distributed to all PIM routers in the
BSRs PIM domain [RFC2362].
Scope Zone One multicast scope may have several instances, which are
known as scope zones or zones, for short. For instance, an
organization may have multiple sites. Each site might have
its own site-local scope zone, each of which would be an
instance of the site-local scope. However, a given interface
on a given host would only ever be in at most one instance of
a given scope. Messages sent by a host in a site-local scope
zone to an address in the site-local scope would be limited
to the site-local scope zone containing the host [RFC2730].
Scrambling Term used for weaker encryption or controlled distortion of
an analog signal. The distortion can be removed by posses-
sing and using the descrambling equipment and proper keys
[CON200701].
SDSL A vendor-proprietary version of symmetric DSL that may
(Symmetric DSL) include bit rates to and from the customer ranging from
128 kbps to 2.32 Mbps. SDSL is an umbrella term for a
number of supplier-specific implementations over a single
copper pair providing variable rates of symmetric service.
SDSL uses 2B1Q. HDSL runs on a single pair with an
Ethernet interface to the customer [DSL200701].
Session Key A key (normally symmetric) used to encrypt each set of data
on a transaction basis. A different session key is used for
each communication session. The session key is normally
transferred to the receiver using a key exchange mechanism
GLOSSARY 341
or by encrypting the key under the receivers public key

[CON200701].
Shared Tree A tree that uses a single common root placed at some
chosen point in the network. This shared root is called a
Rendezvous Point (RP) (also called core or center). All
sources in the multicast group use the common shared tree.
The notation (*, G) is used to represent the tree. In this case
“*” is a wildcard to mean all sources.
Shared Tree In PIM SM it is a routing tree that supports one or more
(or RP-tree) multicast groups. Its architecture is essentially the same as
the core-based trees we discussed last month. The RP-tree is
constructed to connect all receivers to the RP [ROD200701].
SHDSL A state-of-the-art, industry standard symmetric DSL,
SHDSL equipment conforms to the ITU recommendation
G.991.2, also known as G.shdsl, approved by the ITU-T in
2001. SHDSL achieves 20% better loop reach than
older versions of symmetric DSL, and it causes much less
cross talk into other transmission systems in the same
cable. SHDSL systems may operate at many bit rates from
192 kbps to 5.7 Mbps, thereby maximizing the bit rate for
each customer. G.shdsl specifies operation via one pair of
wires, or for operation on longer loops, two pairs of wire
may be used. For example, with two pairs of wire, 1.2 Mbps
can be sent over 20,000 feet of 26 AWG wire. SHDSL is best
suited to data-only applications that need high upstream bit
rates. Though SHDSL does not carry voice like ADSL, new
voice-over-DSL techniques may be used to convey digitized
voice and data via SHDSL. SHDSL is being deployed
primarily for business customers [DSL200701].
Shortest Path Tree (SPT) In PIM SM, the shortest path tree is based on the merged
shortest paths from all receivers to the multicast source.
This is one of the features that distinguishes PIM SM from
CBT. When appropriate, the use of the shortest path tree
provides an optimal distribution network that helps to keep
the multicast traffic closer to the minimum required to
deliver the information to all members [ROD200701]. In
PIM SM, the SPT is the multicast distribution tree created
by the merger of all of the shortest paths that connect
receivers to the source (as determined by unicast routing)
[RFC2362].
SI Table Service Information Table. Any table used to convey infor-
mation about the service carried in a TS multiplex (e.g.,
ISO-MPEG). SI tables are carried in MPEG-2 private sec-
tions [CLA200301]. A table may consist of one or more table
342 GLOSSARY
sections; however, all sections of a particular SI table must

be carried over a single TS logical channel [FAI200501].
Signaling Tables For a user to receive a particular transport stream, the user
must first determine the PID being used and then filter
packets that have a matching PID value. To help the user
identify what PID corresponds to which program, a special
set of streams, known as signaling tables, are transmitted
with a description of each program carried within the
MPEG-2 transport stream [FAI200101].
SimulCrypt A mechanism whereby a single transport stream can con-
tain several Conditional Access (CA) systems. This enables
different CA decoder populations (potentially with differ-
ent CA systems installed) to receive and correctly decode
the same video and audio streams [DVB200701].
SNDU Subnetwork Data Unit, an IPv4 or IPv6 datagram (or other
subnetwork packet, for example, an arp message or bridged
Ethernet frame) [CLA200301]. An encapsulated PDU sent
as an MPEG-2 payload unit.
Source Tree A tree that has its root at the multicast source and has
branches forming a spanning tree over the network to the
receivers. The tree uses the shortest path through the
network and hence. A separate SPT exists for each individ-
ual source sending to each group. The notation (S,G) is used
to describe an SPT where S is the IP address of the source
and G is the multicast group address.
Source-Specific A form of multicast in which a receiver is required to
Multicast (SSM) specify both the network layer address of the source and the
multicast destination address in order to receive the multi-
cast transmission. The 232/8 IPv4 address range is current-
ly allocated for SSM by IANA. In IPv6, the FF3x:/32 range
(where x is a valid IPv6 multicast scope value) is reserved
for SSM semantics, although today SSM allocations are
restricted to FF3x:/96 [RFC4604].
Sparse–Dense A Cisco alternative to choosing just dense mode or just
sparse mode on a router interface. This was necessitated by
a change in the paradigm for forwarding multicast traffic
via PIM that became apparent during its development: it
turned out that it was more efficient to choose sparse or
dense on a per group basis rather than a per-router interface
basis. Sparse–dense mode facilitates this ability. Network
administrators can also configure the “sparse–dense”
mode. This configuration option allows individual groups
to be run in either sparse or dense mode depending on
whether Rendezvous Point (RP) information is available
GLOSSARY 343
for that group. If the router learns RP information for a

particular group, it will be treated as sparse mode, otherwise
that group will be treated as dense [CIS200701].
Sparse-Mode SM is one mode of operation of a multicast protocol. PIM
(SM) Protocols SM uses explicit Join/Prune messages and rendezvous
points in place of dense-mode PIMs and DVMRPs broad-
cast and prune mechanism [RFC2362]. Multicast routing
protocols designed on the assumption that only few routers
in the network will need to distribute multicast traffic for
each multicast group. SM protocols start out with an empty
distribution tree and add drop-off branches only upon
explicit requests from receivers to join the distribution. SM
protocols are generally used in WAN environments, where
bandwidth considerations are important.
Sparse-Mode PIM In sparse-mode PIM only network segments with active
receivers that have explicitly requested multicast data are
forwarded the traffic. PIM SM relies on an explicit joining
request before attempting to send multicast data to recei-
vers of a multicast group. In a PIM SM network, sources
must send their traffic to a Rendezvous Point (RP); this
traffic is in turn forwarded to receivers on a shared distri-
bution tree.
SPTS (Single An MPEG-2-compliant transport stream that contains a
Program Transport single program. Because it contains only one program, an
Stream) SPTS is referenced to a single time base. The time base is
encoded into the SPTS using MPEG-2 PCRs. An SPTS may
contain multiple elementary streams [CON200701].
SSM-Aware Host A host that knows the Source-Specific Multicast (SSM)
address range and is capable of applying SSM semantics to
it [RFC4604].
STB (Set-Top Box) A device that enables a TV to receive and decode digital/
cable/IPTV television broadcasts.
Stream Cipher Algorithms that simply produce a keystream to be XORed
with the plaintext. The same keystream is reproduced at
receiver side for decryption [CON200701].
Stream Cipher Modes Used for block cipher operation mode that operates the
algorithm as a stream cipher.
STUB Multicast A mechanism that allows IGMP messages to be forwarded
Routing through a non-PIM-enabled router toward a PIM-enabled
router.
Stub Network A network having only a single OSPF router attached. A
network belonging to an OSPF system is either a transit or a
stub network, but never both [RFC1584].
344 GLOSSARY
Subscriber A household or business that legally receives and pays for

cable or pay TV services for its own use (not for
retransmission).
Subscription The consumer subscribes for some (protected) services and
pays for the subscription (e.g., by invoice).
Subscription VoD VoD where one pays a monthly fee for access to all content
in the standard library.
Symmetric Encryption Type of encryption in which encryption and decryption
keys are the same key or can easily be derived from each
other. In most cryptographic systems, the decryption and
encryption keys are identical [CON200701].
Symmetric Flavors Symmetric variations of DSL that include: SDSL, SHDSL,
DSL HDSL, HDSL2, and IDSL. The equal speeds make sym-
metric DSLs useful for LAN (Local-Area Network) access,
video-conferencing, and locations hosting Web sites
[DSL200701].
Table Section A payload unit carrying all or a part of an SI or PSI table.
Telco Traditional telephone company.
Time-Shifted An enhancement to television service that allows content to
Viewing be viewed at a time which is more convenient to the
subscriber [NOR200601].
Transient Host Groups Any group that is not permanent is by definition transient.
The group is available for dynamic assignment as needed.
Transient groups cease to exist when the number of mem-
bers drops to zero,
Transit Network A network having two or more OSPF routers attached.
These networks can forward data traffic that is neither
locally originated nor locally destined. In OSPF, with the
exception of point-to-point networks and virtual links, the
neighborhood of each transit network is described by a
network link advertisement [RFC1584].
Transport Stream (TS) Format for transmission of DVB content. A multiplex
of several program streams that are carried in packets.
Tree Information Base The collection of state maintained by a PIM router and
(TIB) created by receiving PIM messages and IGMP informa-
tion from local hosts. It essentially stores the state of all
multicast distribution trees at that router [RFC3973].
TS Logical Channel Transport Stream Logical Channel. A channel identified
at the MPEG-2 level; it represents level 2 of the ISO/OSI
reference model. All packets sent over a channel carry the
same PID value [CLA200301]. Term identifies a channel at
the MPEG-2 level. This exists at level 2 of the ISO/OSI
reference model. All packets sent over a TS logical channel
GLOSSARY 345
carry the same PID value (this value is unique within a

specific TS multiplex). The term “stream” is defined in
MPEG-2. This describes the content carried by a specific
TS logical channel. Some PID values are reserved (by
MPEG-2) for specific signalling. Other standards (e.g.,
ATSC, DVB) also reserve specific PID values
[FAI200501].
TS Multiplex A set of MPEG-2 Transport Stream (TS) logical channels
sent over a single lower layer connection. This may be a
common physical link (i.e., a transmission at a specified
symbol rate, FEC setting, and transmission frequency) or
an encapsulation provided by another protocol layer (e.g.,
Ethernet or RTP over IP). The same TS logical channel
may be repeated over more than one TS multiplex (pos-
sibly associated with a different PID value), for example,
to redistribute the same multicast content to two terres-
trial TV transmission cells [FAI200501].
TS Packet A fixed-length 188B unit of data sent over an MPEG-2
multiplex (ISO-MPEG); it corresponds to the cells of, for
example, ATM networks and is frequently also referred to
as a TS_cell. Each TS packet carries a 4B header, plus
optional overhead including an adaptation field, encryption
details, and time stamp information to synchronize a set of
TSs [CLA200301].
TS (Transport A method of transmission at the MPEG-2 level using TS
Stream) (ISO-MPEG) packets; it represents level 2 of the ISO/OSI reference
model. See also TS Logical Channel and TS Multiplex
[CLA200301].
UDL (Unidirectional A one way transmission IP over DVB link, for example, a
Link) broadcast satellite link.
Unicast Environment Environment where one system communicates directly to
another system.
Upstream Interface Interface toward the source of the datagram. Also known as
the RPF Interface [RFC3973].
Upstream Interface In CBT, an “upstream” interface (or router) is one that is on
(or Router) the path toward the groups core router with respect to this
interface (or router) [RFC2189].
VDSL (Very High Bit A standard for up to 26 Mbps over distances up to 50 m on
Rate DSL) short loops such as from fiber to the curb. In most cases,
VDSL lines are served from neighborhood cabinets that
link to a central office via optical fiber. It is useful for
“campus” environments, for example, universities and
business parks. VDSL is currently being introduced in
market trials to deliver video services over existing phone
346 GLOSSARY
lines. VDSL can also be configured in symmetric mode

[DSL200701].
VDSL2 (Second- An ITU recommendation G.993.2 specifies eight profiles
Generation VDSL) that address a range of applications including up to
100-Mbps symmetric transmission on loops about 100 m
long (using a bandwidth of 30 MHz), symmetric bit rates in
the 10–30-Mbps range on intermediate-length loops (using
a bandwidth of 12 MHz), and asymmetric operation with
downstream rates in the range of 10–40-Mbps on
loops of lengths ranging from 3 to 1 km (using a bandwidth
of 8.5 MHz). VDSL2 includes most of the advanced feature
from ADSL2. The rate/reach performance of VDSL2 is
better than VDSL [DSL200701].
Video Compression Performing a digital compression process on a video signal.
Compression techniques are used to enable efficient trans-
mission of video signals.
Video on Demand Service that allows the subscriber to view content whenever
(VoD) he or she wants from a library of stored content. VoD
supports a complete set of VCR-like functions, including
rewind, pause, and fast forward [NOR200601].
Watermarking Process that lets one add hidden information in data files to
prove the origin of the files.
Wildcard (WC) In PIM SM, wildcard multicast route entries are those
Multicast Route Entry entries that may be used to forward packets for any source
sending to the specified group. Wildcard bots in the join list
of a Join/Prune message represent either a (*,G) or (*,*,RP)
join; in the prune list they represent a (*,G) prune
[RFC2362].
Zone Name A human-readable name for a scope zone. An ISO 10646
character string with an RFC 1766 language tag. One zone
may have several zone names, each in a different language.
For instance, a zone for use within IBMs locations in
Switzerland might have the names “IBM Suisse,” “IBM
Switzerland,” “IBM Schweiz,” and “IBM Svizzera” with
language tags “fr,” “en,” “de,” and “it” [RFC2730].
REFERENCES
[BAL199301] T. Ballardie, P. Francist, J. Crowcroft, Core-Based Trees (CBT): An

Architecture for Scalable InterDomain Multicast Routing, ACM SIGCOMM93, Ithaca,
NY.
[CLA200301] C. D. Horst, B. Collini-Nocker, et al., Simple Encapsulation for Transmission
of IP Datagrams over MPEG-2/DVB networks, Internet Engineering Task Force,
draft-unisal-ipdvb-enc-00.txt, May 2003.
GLOSSARY 347
[CIS200701] Cisco Systems, Internet Protocol (IP) Multicast Technology Overview, Cisco
Systems, San Jose, CA.
[CON200701] Conax AS, Glossary of Terms, Oslo, Norway.
[DSL200701] DSL Forum, Fremont, CA, http://www.dslforum.org.
[DVB200701] DVB Organization, Standards, http://www.dvb.org.
[FAI200101] G. Fairhurst, MPEG-2 Digital Video, Background to Digital Video, University
of Aberdeen, Kings College, Dept. of Engineering, Aberdeen, UK, January 2001, http://www.
erg.abdn.ac.uk/research/future-net/digital-video/mpeg2-trans.html.
[FAI200501] G. Fairhurst, M-J. Montpetit, Address Resolution for IP Datagrams over MPEG-2
Networks, Internet Draft, draft-ietf-ipdvb-ar-00.txt, June 2005.
[NOR200601] Nortel, Position Paper: Introduction to IPTV, Triangle Park, NC, 2006.
[RFC1075] RFC 1075, Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol, D. Waitzman, C. Partridge,
S. Deering, November 1988.
[RFC1584] RFC 1584, Multicast Extensions to OSPF, J. Moy, March 1994.
[RFC2189] RFC 2189, Core-Based Trees (CBT Version 2) Multicast Routing—Protocol
[RFC2201] RFC 2201, Core-Based Trees (CBT) Multicast Routing Architecture, A. Ballardie,
September 1997.
[RFC2362] RFC 2362, Protocol Independent Multicast Sparse-Mode (PIM-SM): Protocol
[RFC2730] RFC 2730, Multicast Address Dynamic Client Allocation Protocol (MADCAP),
S. Hanna, B. Patel, M. Shah, December 1999.
[RFC2909] RFC 2909, The Multicast Address-Set Claim (MASC) Protocol, P. Radoslavov,
D. Estrin, et al., September 2000.
[RFC3810] RFC 3810, Multicast Listener Discovery Version 2 (MLDv2) for IPv6, R. Vida,
L. Costa, Editors, June 2004.
[RFC3973] RFC 3973, Protocol Independent Multicast Dense Mode (PIM DM): Protocol
Specification (Revised), A. Adams, A. Nicholas, W. Siadak, January 2005.
[RFC4541] RFC 4541, Considerations for Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) and
Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) Snooping Switches. M. Christensen, K. Kimball,
F. Solensky, May 2006 (status: informational).
[RFC4604] RFC4604, Using Internet Group Management Protocol Version 3 (IGMPv3) and
Multicast Listener Discovery Protocol Version 2 (MLDv2) for Source-Specific Multicast,
H. Holbrook, B. Cain, B. Haberman, August 2006.
[ROD200701] M. Rodbell, Protocol Independent Multicast Sparse Mode, CMP COMMs
Design, an EE Times Community, June 3, 2007, http://www.commsdesign.com/main/9811/
9811standards.htm.
INDEX
3G Networks 305 Bandwidth Advantage of IP Multicast 4

4K Mode 20, 314 Bandwidth Requirements 249
6 to 4 relay 32 BER 6
8 PSK 263 Bidirectional Pictures (B-Pictures) 289
Bit Error Rates (BER) 6
AAL5 36 Bootstrap Mechanism 143
Adaptive Loop Deblocking 295 Bootstrap Message 90, 105, 122
Addressing for Payload 5 Bootstrap Message Format 144
Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) 40 Bootstrap Router (BSR) 9, 132
ADSL2þ 264 Broadcast 3
Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) 251 Broadcast LANs 149
Advanced Television Systems Committee Broadcast/Linear TV 253
(ATSC) 245 BSR 9, 132
Advanced Video Coding (AVC) 13, 18, 247
AES 251 CA 2, 236
ARP 40 CABAC 295
ARPU 235, 306 Cable Operators 266
AS 29, 82, 186, 190 Cable TV Statistics 237
ASDL 14 CA Message 252, 257
ASI Application 261 Candidate Core Advertisement Message
Assert 104 Format 144
Assert Message 121, 123 Candidate-RP-Advertisement 105, 124
Assigned Numbers 28 CAS 252, 254
Asymmetric DSL (ADSL) 14 CAT 258
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) 12 Catcher 269
ATM 12 Cb 288
ATM Adaptation Layer 5 (AAL5) 36 C-Band Links 244
ATSC 245 CBT 7, 46, 125
AT&T U-Verse TV 267 CBT Common Control Packet Header 139
Autoconfiguration 206 CBT Components 129
Automatic Tunneling of IPv6 over IPv4 209 CBT Control Message Retransmission
Autonomous System (AS) 29, 82, Strategy 131
186, 190 CBT Functions 129
Auto-RP 9 CBT Hello Protocol 133
AVC 13, 18, 247 CBT Multicast Tree 130
AVS 247, 297 CBT Packet Formats 138

349
350 INDEX
CBT Protocol 82, 132 Data Encryption Standard 251

CBT Tree, Example of 46 Data Packet Forwarding Rules 158
CBT Trees 127 Data Partitioning 293
CBT Version 3 145 Data Rates of Video 248
Center-Based Tree Algorithm 48 Data Triggered Switch to Shortest Path Tree
Center Point 48 (SP-Tree) 103
Checksum 53 DCT 247, 291
Chrominance 287 Dense-Mode (DM) Protocols 6, 90
CIDR 198 Dense Mode (DM) 78
CIF 282 Dependent Downstream Routers 187
Class A Address 198 DES 251
Class B Address 198 Designated Forwarder 187
Class C Address 198 Designated Router (DR) 9, 86, 130, 146, 191
Class D Address 27, 32, 30, 54, 198 Designated Router Election 92
Classless Interdomain Routing (CIDR) 198 Digital Rights Management/Conditional
Closed Captions 2, 235 Access (DRM/CA) 18
Code Word 256 Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) 12, 14
Code Words and Service Keys in ECMs Digital Terrestrial TV 250
and EMMs 257 Digital Video Broadcast (DVB) 245
Common Interface (DVB-CI) 19, 255 Digital Video Broadcast—Handheld
Commons Intermediate Format (CIF) 282 (DVB-H) 2, 303
Common Scrambling Algorithm, Digital Digital Video Recorder (DVR) 239
Video Broadcast (DVB-CSA) 19 Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) 247, 291
Composite Signal 283 Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol
Compression Applications/ (DVMRP) 7, 185
Characteristics 250 Distribution Networks 265
Compression Standards 248 DM 6, 7, 78, 90
Compression Technology 281 DMB (Digital Media Broadcast) 305
Conditional Access (CA) 2, 235, 236 DM Protocols 6, 7, 78, 90
Conditional Access Management 241 DNS 10
Conditional Access Management Domain Name System (DNS) 10
Subsystem 251 Downstream Interface State Machine 167
Conditional Access Table (CAT) 258, 276 Downstream Prune 167
Configured Tunneling 209 DR 9, 86, 130, 146, 191
Configured Tunneling of IPv6 over IPv4 209 DRM 18
Content Aggregation 13, 240, 242, 244 DSL 12, 14
Content Encoding 13 Dual IP Layer 209
Content Management 267 DVB-CI 19
Content Protection 2 DVB Common Scrambling Algorithm
Context Adaptive Binary Arithmetic Coder (DVB-CSA) 252
(CABAC) 295 DVB-CSA 19
Control Message Precedence 149 DVB-CSA, Standard Ref: ETR 289, Edition
Core-Based Trees (CBT) 7, 46, 125 1.0 255
Core-Based Tree Version 2 (CBTv2) 126 DVB-H 2, 11, 19, 44, 305, 313
Core Router Discovery 131 DVB-H Framework 309
Cr 288 DVB-H Link Layer 313
Creation of CBT Bidirectional Shared DVB-H Mobile Devices 315
Tree 128 DVB-H Network, Block-Level View 20
Creation of a Multicast Datagram 40 DVB-H Protocol Stack 312
INDEX 351
DVB-H Signaling 314 FEC 6

DVB-H System 314 Fiber to the Curb (FTTC) 264
DVB Packet 35 Fiber to the Home (FTTH) 12
DVB Project 19, 252 Fiber to the Node (FTTN) 264
DVB-S2 18, 263 Flood-and-Prune Operation 154
DVB-T 263 FLUSH_TREE Packet Format 143
DVD 250 Flush_Tree Processing 137
DVMRP 7 Forward Error Correction (FEC) 6
DVMRP Operation 186 Forwarding Cache 147
DVMRP Tunnel 189 FTTC 264
DVR 239 FTTH 12
Dynamic Host Registration 6 FTTN 264
Eb/No (Energy per bit over Noise) 262 GARP 49

ECHO_REPLY Packet Format 142 General MQ 61
ECHO Reply Processing 137 General Query 55, 64, 217, 219
ECHO_REQUEST Packet Format 141 Generic Attribute Registration Protocol
ECHO_Request Processing 136 (GARP) 49
ECM Keys 252 Generic IPv4 Addressing 30
ECMs 251, 258 Getting On-Tree 146
Electronic Program Guide (EPG) 267 G.lite ADSL (or simply G.lite) 14
Elementary Streams (ESs) 34 Global Addresses 202, 204
EMMs 251, 257, 258 Globally Scoped Addresses 29
Encapsulation 26, 241, 298 GLOP 7
Encapsulator Function 260 GLOP Addressing 30
Encapsulation Function over “Existing” GOP 287
MPEG-2 Infrastructure 246 Graft 155
Encapsulation Packet 38 Graft-Ack Message 123
Encapsulation of a PDU 259 Graft Ack Message Format 183
Encapsulation Subsystem 258 Graft Message 123, 160
Encoded Source and Group Address Graft Message Format 183
Formats 114 Group Address Field 57
Encoded-Group Address 115 Group of Pictures (GOP) 287
Encoded-Source Address 116 Group-Specific Query 55
Encoded-Unicast Address 115
Entitlement Control Message (ECM) 251 H.264/AVC 247
Entitlement Control Message Generator H.264/MPEG-4 AVC 293
(ECMG) 253 Handheld Terminals 312
Entitlement Management Message Hash Function 107
(EMM) 251 HD 234, 271
Entitlement Management Message HDSL (High-Data-Rate DSL) 15
Generator (EMMG) 253 HDSL2 (2nd generation HDSL) 15
Entropy Coding 295 HDSL-4 16
EPG 18 HDTV 3
ES 34 Hello 94
Establishing the RP-Rooted Hello Message 116, 117, 159
Shared Tree 87 HELLO Packet Format 139
ETSI Standard EN 302 304 306 High-Definition (HD) 2, 234
Exclude Mode 55 High-Definition TV (HDTV) 3
352 INDEX
High Profile (HP) 296 IPE Protocol Stack 37

HMR 129 IP Multicast Address 26, 27, 28
Host Membership Report (HMR) 129 IP Multicast Group 71
Host Operations 61 IP Packet Format 54
Hosts Sending to a Group 87 IP QoS (diffserv) 6
Host State Diagram 66 IPTV 11, 16, 234, 242, 250
IPTV Example of SPT 43
IANA 27 IPTV Multicast Arrangement 17
IEEE 802.3 MAC Address Format 31 IPv4 Address Block Allocation 32
IGMP 1, 7, 9, 10, 51 IPv4 Local Scope 30
IGMP Join Message 9, 52 IPv4 Organization Local Scope 30
IGMP Operation 61 IPv4 Over IPv6 Addresses Automatic
IGMP Queries 73 Representation 201
IGMP Snooping Functionality 73 IPv6 194, 201, 232
IGMP Snooping Switch 72, 74, 75 IPv6 Address Space 200
IGMP Version 2 52 IPv6 Autoconfiguration 204
IGMPv1 53, 63 IPv6 Base Header 205
IGMPv2 Message Format 53 IPv6 Destination Address 219
IGMPv2 Protocol Details 63 IPv6 Multicast Addresses 211, 212
IGMPv2 53, 63 IPv6 Multicast Address Mapping to Derive an
IGMPv3 Membership Query Message 56 Ethernet Address 212
IGMPv3 Messages 55 IPv6 Over IPv4 Dynamic/Automatic Tunnel
Include Mode 55 Addresses 201
Infrastructure Management 267 IPv6-over-IPv4 Tunneling 209
Integer Transform 295 IPv6, Overview 196
Integrated Receiver-Decoder (IRD) 244 IPv6 Terminology 202
Integrated Service Digital IRD 244
Broadcast-Terrestrial (ISDB-T) 305 Irdeto 258
Interarea Multicast Forwarder 192 ISDB-T 305
Interlaced Coding 292
Internet Assigned Numbers Authority Join 155, 160
(IANA) 27 JOIN-ACK Processing 135
Internet Control Message Protocol for IPv6 JOIN_ACK Packet Format 141
(ICMPv6) 203 Join/Prune 94
Internet Group Management Protocol Join/Prune Message 118, 119
(IGMP) 1, 7, 9, 10, 51 Join/Prune Suppression 93
Internet Protocol (IP) 1 JOIN_REQUEST Packet Format 140
Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) 11, 16, Joint Video Team (JVT) 282
234, 242, 250
Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4) 51 Keep-Alive Protocol 148
Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) Key IPv6 Protocols 203
194, 203
Inter Prediction 294 Last-Mile Distribution 18
Intra Pictures 289 Layer 2 Switches 49
Intra Prediction 294 LDPC 263
IP-Based Television (IPTV) 2 Leave Group (LG) Message 9, 52,
IP Multicast 1, 5, 39, 49 65, 67
IPE 245 LG Message 9, 52, 65, 67
IP Encapsulator (IPE) 245 Limited Scope Addresses 29
INDEX 353
Linear Programming 239 Mobile DTV with Terrestrial Backbone

Linear TV 236 Distribution 307
Link Local 32 Mobile Video Server Market 304
Link-Local Addresses 28 MOSPF 7, 82, 185, 190
Link Performance Requirements 263 Motion Compensated (MC) 290
Local Hosts Joining a Group 87 Motion Compensated Video Coder 291
Low-Density Parity Check (LDPC) 262 Motion Estimation (ME) 290
Luminance (Y) 287 Moving Picture Expert Group (MPEG) 34
Moving Pictures Expert Group 4
MAC 31, 40, 72, 211 (MPEG-4) 2
Macroblock 287 MP-BGP 10
Macros Used in the Descriptions of the MPE 36, 298, 299
State Machines 157 MPE Header 300
Mapping of Color Space 283 MPE Packet 37
Mapping of IP Multicast to Ethernet MAC MPE-FEC 20, 313
Address 33 MPEG 34
Maximum Transfer Unit (MTU) 58 MPEG-1, Layer II 18
Max Response Code 56 MPEG-2 18, 244, 260, 306
Max Response Time 53 MPEG-2/H.262 292
MC 290 MPEG-2 Program Stream (MPEG-2 PS) 272
ME 290, 291 MPEG-2 Transport/Multiplexing
Media Access Control (MAC) 31, Mechanisms 271
40, 72 MPEG-2 TS 34, 259, 272, 298
Media Access Control (MAC) Layer MPEG-2 TS Format 275
Addresses 211 MPEG-2 TS Logical Channels 280
MediaFLO 305, 310 MPEG-2 TS Multiplexes 279
Membership Query (MQ) 9, 52 MPEG-4 2, 45, 235, 244, 292
Membership Report 188, 191 MPEG-4 Part 10 311
Membership Report (MR) 9, 52, 59, 65 MPEG-Layer Addresses 33
Message Format 216 MPEG Standard 258
Messages between the Querier and the MPTS 272
Listening Nodes 228 MQ 9
Microsoft IPTV Platform 267 MR 9
Middleware Subsystem 267 MSDP 7
MLD 203, 216, 218 MTU 58
MLD Message 221, 229 Multicast 3
MLD Messages Format 217 Multicast Address Listener State 230
MLD Protocol Description 218 Multicast Address-Specific Query 217, 219
MLD State Transitions 220 Multicast Data Packet Forwarding 102
MLD Version 1 (MLDv1) 215 Multicast Data Packet Processing 91
MLD Version 2 (MLDv2) 215 Multicast Dense-Mode (PIM-DM) 262
MLDv1 215 Multicast Distribution Trees 41
MLDv1, Overview 216 Multicasting between Network Segments 40
MLDv2 10, 215 Multicasting on a LAN Segment 40
MLDv2, Overview 226 Multicast Group Memberships 64
Mobile Digital TV (mDTV) 303 Multicast with IPv6 211
Mobile DTV Technologies 305 Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) 203
Mobile DTV with Satellite Backbone Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) for
Distribution 308 IPv6 215
354 INDEX
Multicast Listener Discovery Protocol Nonquerier 64, 70

Version 2 (MLDv2) 10 Nonquerier State 225
Multicast Listener Discovery Version 2 NTP 28
(MLDv2 for IPv6) 215 NTSC 281
Multicast Listener Done 217
Multicast Listener Query 217 Obtaining RP Information 89
Multicast Listener Report 217 OFDM 311
Multicast Listening State 228 Operation over Multiaccess Networks 92
Multicast Open Shortcut Path First Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing
(MOSPF) 7, 82, 185, 190 (OFDM) 311
Multicast Payload Forwarding 6 OSPF Area 190
Multicast Process 63
Multicast Protocols 5 Packet Forwarding 148
Multicast Protocols Usage in a Typical Packet Identifier (PID) 33, 36, 248, 275, 280
Multicast Network 11 Packetized Elementary Stream (PES) 247, 273
Multicast Router Operations 61 Parallel Paths to a Source or the RP—Assert
Multicast Router Solicitation Messages 73 Process 92
Multicast Routing 6 Parental Controls 2, 235
Multicast Source Discovery Protocol PAT 276
(MSDP) 7 Pay-Per-View (PPV)
Multicast Transmission Mechanisms 5 Programming 235, 239
MultiCrypt 255 PCR 275
Multiple-Program Transport Stream PDA 1
(MPTS) 272 PDR 235
Multiple Reference Frame Prediction 294 PDU 34
Multiple VLC Tables 296 Periodic Join/Prune Messages 95
Multiprotocol Border Gateway Protocol Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) 1
(MP-BGP) 10 Personal Digital Recorder (PDR) 235
Multiprotocol Encapsulation (MPE) 36, 259 PES 247, 273, 276, 277
Multiprotocol Encapsulation-Forward Error PES Packet Format 274
Correction (MPE-FEC) 20 PES and TS Multiplexing 35
MultiProtocol Label Switching PGM 10
(MPLS) 49 Phase Shift Keying 263
Physical Layer 313
NAT 195, 199, 208 PID 33, 36, 248, 275, 280
ND 203 PIM 7, 78, 79
NDS 258 PIM Assert Messages 175
Neighbor Discovery (ND) 203 PIM Control Manager 182
Network Address Translation (NAT) PIM Control Messages 114
195, 199 PIM Dense Mode (PIM DM) 8, 44, 80,
Network Information Table (NIT) 276 152, 154
Network Infrastructure 49 PIM DM Behavior 153
Network Interface Card 31 PIM DM Packet Formats 155
Network Time Protocol (NTP) 28 PIM DM Prune 160
NIC 31 PIM Message Format 85
Nielsen Rating 2, 235 PIM Multicast Border Routers (PMBRs) 90
NIT 276 PIM Packet Formula 182
Node-Local Addresses 202, 204 PIM Protocol State 156
Non-Group-Specific State 156 PIM SM 78, 81, 82
INDEX 355
PIM SM Details 83 Query 67

PIM Source Specific Multicast (SSM) 10 QUIT_NOTIFICATION Packet
PIM Sparse–Dense 262 Format 141
PIM Version 2 (PIMv2) 8 QUIT_NOTIFICATION Processing 135
PIMv2 8
Pitcher/Catcher Architecture 268 RADSL 14
PMBR 90 Rate Adaptive DSL 14
PPV 235 Real-Time Pruning 44
Pragmatic General Multicast (PGM) 10 Receiver (Host) State Diagram 65
Predicted Pictures (P-Pictures) 289 Receiving Asserts 104
Premium VoD 239 Receiving C-RP-Advs and Originating
Presentation Time Stamp (PTS) 279 Bootstrap 106
Processing Timer Events 108 Receiving ECHO_Requests 136
Program Association Table (PAT) 276 Receiving and Forwarding Bootstrap 107
Program Clock Reference (PCR) 275 Receiving Hello Messages 159
Program Map Table (PMT) 276 Receiving Hellos 94, 133
Program-Specific Information (PSI) 272 Receiving JOIN_ACKs 135
Protocol Data Unit (PDU) 34 Receiving Join/Prune Messages 97
Protocol Details for IGMPv2 63 Receiving Join_Requests 134
Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM) 7, 78 Receiving Quit_ Notifications 136
Protocol Independent Multicast Receiving Register Messages and Sending
Dense-Mode (PIM DM) 152 Register-Stops 101
Protocol State Machine 222 Record Type Field 58
Proxy Reporting 73 Reference Time Stamp 279
Prune 155 Refresh Message 183
Prune (S,G) Downstream State Machine Regional Internet Registries (RIRs) 208
States 168 Register Message 117
Prune (S,G) Downstream State Machine Register Register-Stop 100
Timers 169 Register-Stop Message 118
Pruning of the Multicast Tree 188 Rendezvous Point (RP) 8, 81
Pruning Prune State 147 Report 67
Pruning of the RP-Based Delivery Tree 85 Request for Comments (RFC), IETF 21
PSI 272 Reverse Path Forwarding (RFP) 47, 78
PTS 279 Reversible VLC 293
Pull Mechanism 80 RFP 47, 78, 79
Push Mechanism 80 RGB Components 283
Push VoD 239 RGMP 10
RIRs 208
QoE 2, 18, 235 Router Configurations 76
QoS 2, 18, 195, 235 Router-Port Group Management
QPSK 263 Protocol (RGMP) 10
Quality of Experience (QoE) 2, 18, 235 Router State Diagram 68, 223
Quality of Service (QoS) 2, 18, 195, 235 Router State Transitions 71
Quantization and Transform Coefficient Routing Information Protocol (RIP) 187
Scanning 295 RP 8, 81
Querier 64, 70 RPF 47
Queriers Query Interval Code 58 RPF Check 48
Queriers Robustness Variable 58 RP-Rooted Reverse Path
Querier State 220, 225 Delivery Tree 83
356 INDEX
Slice 287
SAR 60 Slice Resynchronization 293
Satellite TV 250 SM 6, 8, 78
Satellite-Based Single-Source IPTV SM Protocols 7, 8, 78
System 241 SMPTE VC-1 247
Scalability 126 SMS 253
Scope in IPv6 203 SNAP 298
SD 2, 234, 271 Snooping of IGMP queries 49
SDI 13, 244 Source Addresses 58
SDI Application 270 Source-Based Delivery Tree Optimization 84
SDI Rates 270 Source Filtering 232
SDSL 15 Source Registration 84
Second-Generation VDSL (VDSL2) 14 Source Trees 42
Segmentation and Reassembly (SAR) 60 Sparse Mode (PIM SM) 8, 78
Segmentation and Reassembly over “Existing” Sparse Mode (SM) 6, 8, 78
MPEG-2 Infrastructure 246 Specific MQs 61
Sending Asserts 104 SPT 42
Sending Candidate-RP- SSM 10
Advertisements 106 Standard Definition (SD) 2, 234, 271
Sending ECHO_Requests 136 State Change Report 229
Sending Hello 133 State Diagram for a Router in Nonquerier
Sending Hello Messages 159 State 69, 70
Sending Hellos 94 “Stateful” Configuration 206
Sending JOIN_ACKs 135 “Stateless” Autoconfiguration 206
Sending Join/Prune Messages 94 State-Machine-Specific Timers 162
Sending Join_Requests 134 State Refresh 170
Sending Quit_Notifications 135 States for Origination (S,G) State
Sending Registers and Receiving Machine 174
Register-Stops 100 State Transition Diagram for a Router in
Sequence of Frames 290 Nonquerier State 227
Serial Digital Interface (SDI) 13, 244, 269 State Transition Diagram for a Router in
Service Key 256 Querier State 226
Service Management System (SMS) 253 State Transitions 224
Set-Top Box (STB) 18, 241, 257 Statically Assigned Link–Local Scope 28
SFN 309 STB 18, 241, 257
S,G 42, 80, 88 Steady State Maintenance of Distribution
(S,G) Assert Message State Machine 177 Tree 89
S,G State 157 SubNetwork Attachment Point
Shared Distribution Tree 45 (SNAP) 298
Shared Trees 42, 43, 45 Subscription VoD 239
SHDSL 15 Switches Using IGMP Snooping 62
Shortest Path Tree (SPT) 42 Symmetric DSL (SDSL) 15
Show ip igmp groups 76
Show ip mroute 76 TCP 6
Simplified Protocol Hierarchy 271 Telco TV 235
SimulCrypt 255, 256 Telcos 243
Single-Frequency Network (SFN) 309 Timers Related to Tree Maintenance 108
Single-Program Transport Stream Timers Relating to Neighbor
(SPTS) 272, 278 Discovery 111
INDEX 357
Timers Relating to RP Information 111 Unicast Routing 47

Timers Used State Machine 174 Unicast Routing Changes 93
Time Shifted 239 Upstream Interface State Machine 161
Time Slicing 20 Upstream (S,G) State Machine States 161
Time-to-Live (TTL) 28, 41 User Datagram Protocol (UDP) 6, 35
Timing Out Neighbor Entries 94 User Key 256
Traditional Addressing Classes User Management 267
for IPv4 198 U.S. Television Subscription Households by
Traditional IPv4 Address Classes 31 Type of Service 238
Transcoding 240, 245, 249
Transition from the AckPending (AP) Variable Vector Block 294
State 163, 166 VDSL 14, 264
Transition from the Forwarding (F) VDSL2 12
State 163, 164 Very High Bit Rate DSL (VDSL) 14, 264
Transition from the “I am Assert Loser” Video Dialtone 12, 13
State 181 Video on Demand (VoD) 239, 253
Transition from the NoInfo (NI) State 169, 179 Viterbi Coding 262
Transitions from the Pruned (P) State 163 VLANs 49
Transition from the Upstream (S,G) VoD 239
State 165 VoD Cache 269
Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) 6 VoD Catcher 269
Transport Stream (MPEG-2 TS) 34, 272 VoD Server 269
Transport System 244 Voice Over IP (VoIP) 12, 195
Tree Creation 126 VoIP 12, 195
Triple DES 251
Triple/Quadruple Play 11 Wildcard 43
TS 34, 272 Wildcard Multicast Receiver 192
TS Logical Channels 279, 299 Windows Media Video (WMV) 247
TS Multiplex 260 Windows Media Video 9/VC-1 296
TS Packets 277 WMV 247
TTL 28, 41
Turbo Coding 262 YCbCr 283
Typical Terrestrial-Based Single-Source IPTV YCbCr Color Space—4:1:1 YCbCr 286
System 240 YCbCr Color Space—4:2:2 YCbCr 285
YCbCr Color Space—4:4:4 YCbCr
UDP 6, 35 Sampling 284
Unicast 3 YUV 283

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What is the book about?

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IP MULTICAST WITH

A JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC., PUBLICATION

A JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC., PUBLICATION

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Published simultaneously in Canada

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Minoli, Daniel, 1952-

Printed in the United States of America

2 MULTICAST ADDRESSING FOR PAYLOAD 26

3 MULTICAST PAYLOAD FORWARDING 39

4 DYNAMIC HOST REGISTRATION—INTERNET

5 MULTICAST ROUTING—SPARSE-MODE PROTOCOLS:

6 MULTICAST ROUTING—SPARSE-MODE PROTOCOLS:

6.5.7 FLUSH_TREE Processing 137

8 OTHER DENSE-MODE MULTICAST ROUTING PROTOCOLS:

8.2 Multicast OSPF 190

9 IP MULTICASTING IN IPv6 ENVIRONMENTS 194

10 MULTICAST LISTENER DISCOVERY 215

11 IPTV APPLICATIONS 234

12 DVB-H: HIGH-QUALITY TV TO CELL PHONES 303

Monmouth University (1984–2006). Also, he was a Technology Analyst At-Large, for

IP Multicast with Applications to IPTV and Mobile DVB-H by Daniel Minoli

Properly, DVB-H is a protocol. More broadly, DVB-H deals with approaches

1.2 WHY MULTICAST PROTOCOLS ARE WANTED/NEEDED

There are three types of communication between systems in an IP network:

. Unicast—here one system communicates directly to another system

In traditional IP networks, a packet is typically sent by a source to a single destination

Figure 1.1. Bandwidth Advantage of IP Multicast

One important design principle of IP multicast is to allow receiver-initiated

1.3 BASIC MULTICAST PROTOCOLS AND CONCEPTS

Multicast communication is based on the construct of a group of receivers (hosts) that

T A B L E 1.1. Multicast Protocols At a Glance

. DM protocols are designed on the assumption that the majority of routers in

Other basic multicast protocols/mechanisms include the following:

. IGMP snooping is a method by which a switch can constrain multicast packets to

Multicast source Designated RP

Figure 1.2. Multicast Protocols Usage in a Typical Multicast Network

1.4 IPTV AND DVB-H APPLICATIONS

traditional voice services on wireline-originated calls (both in terms of depressed pricing

Aggregation Designated router

Figure 1.3. Simpliﬁed IPTV Application

Figure 1.4. Another Simpliﬁed IPTV Multicast Arrangement

. Digital rights management/conditional access: encryption Digital Video Broad-

In reference to encoding, typical H.264 SD encoder parameters are as follows:

. Advanced Video Coding (AVC)/H.264/(MPEG-4, Part 10)

A CAS is a system by which electronic transmission of digital media (e.g., satellite

. Signal is encrypted and is unavailable for unauthorized reception

. DVB system providers develop their proprietary conditional access systems

DVB-H is based on DVB-T, a standard for digital transmission of terrestrial

Content Content Provisioning Operation of

Operation of Buy content

Figure 1.5. Block-Level View of a DVB-H Network

1.5 COURSE OF INVESTIGATION

Following this introductory discussion, Chapter 2 covers multicast addressing for

APPENDIX 1.A: MULTICAST IETF REQUEST FOR COMMENTS