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The Request for Comments (RFC) is not a single Internet protocol. It is a numbered publication series that began during ARPANET development in 1969 and now archives Internet standards and other technical documents. Some RFCs define standards; many do not.
What is an RFC?
RFC stands for “Request for Comments.” The name reflects the series’ origins as a way to circulate notes and proposals for discussion. Today, an RFC is a particular document in a permanent archive maintained by the RFC Editor. RFCs cover Internet specifications and standards, best current practices, research, process guidance, and other technical information.
That distinction matters: the RFC series is not itself a protocol that devices use to communicate. Individual RFCs may describe protocols, but the series is the publication and archival mechanism for those documents. Published RFCs are not changed or removed, so the archive preserves both current material and a historical record.
How the RFC series began
RFC 1, “Host Software,” was published in April 1969. Written by Steve (Stephen D.) Crocker, it helped organize discussion and notes related to ARPANET development; early RFCs were proposals and requests for discussion, not finished standards by default. The RFC Editor’s retrospective records the publication date and subsequent milestones.
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- April 1969: RFC 1 was published.
- January 1986: the first IETF meeting took place.
- October 2011: a two-stage standards process was formalized.
Looking back, Crocker cautioned against treating the modern archive as the product of a fully planned origin: “While much of the development proceeded according to plan, the initial design of the protocols and the creation of the RFCs was largely accidental.” (RFC 8700)
Are all RFCs Internet standards?
No. The RFC Editor publishes documents through multiple streams, and only the IETF stream creates Internet Standards. An RFC number identifies a published document; it does not, by itself, say that the document is a standard or that it remains current.
The five RFC publication streams
- IETF: protocol standards, best current practices, and informational documents. This is the only stream that creates Internet Standards.
- IRTF: longer-term Internet research.
- IAB: documents on long-range technical direction.
- Independent Submissions: relevant documents published outside the IETF, IAB, and IRTF processes.
- Editorial: RFC Series Working Group policy documents.
RFCs published before the streams existed may be identified as belonging to the Legacy Stream. The RFC Editor’s overview of the RFC Series explains these distinctions.
How to tell what an RFC means today
Before relying on or citing an RFC, check its record in the official archive. Look at its publication stream and status, then review its document history for updates, obsoletions, or corrections. The archive’s individual RFC record is the place to verify that history.
- RFC number: permanently identifies that particular published document.
- STD identifier: identifies a standards track role; it is not a replacement for the RFC number.
- BCP identifier: identifies a best-current-practice role. The RFC that defines a BCP can change over time, even while the BCP identifier persists.
These labels answer different questions: the number points to a document, while STD or BCP indicates a role or status. For any specific RFC, use the RFC Editor’s official archive to inspect the current record.
How Internet standards are developed
The standards process is intended to involve development, community review, and revision based on experience before a specification is adopted and published as a standard. RFC 2026, published in October 1996, describes goals such as technical excellence, prior implementation and testing, clear documentation, openness and fairness, and timeliness. It has since been updated by later RFCs, so it is useful as historical process background rather than a complete statement of current procedure. The RFC Editor’s records and the current BCP 9 documents are the appropriate references for procedural details.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where to read RFCs
Read and verify RFCs through the RFC Editor’s official archive. Search for the RFC number or document title, then open the record to see its publication information and related document history. This is also the right source when checking whether a document has been updated or obsoleted.
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