Re: [Idr] WG Last Call on draft-ietf-idr-as4bytes-11.txt

The deployment of as4bytes is likely to be similar to the deployment
of bgp4 itself.  In both cases it is known that "bad things can
happen" if a subset of core AS deploy "the new stuff" and enable "the
new features", in this case start using 4 byte AS numbers.  Since the
day that we are actaully forced to use 4 byte AS numbers is still
quite a ways off it is likely that tier-1 and tier-2 providers will
deploy as4bytes capable code long before any 4 byte AS is advertised.
It is also likely that providers will coordinate the deployment
advertising some test AS numbers first.  It is also possible that
straglers will remain that have not deployed as4bytes capable code or
have not enabled it, but like NASA in 1994 who were still running EGP
on their Proteon routers and couldn't handle CIDR routes for a while,
it is likely that these straglers are not providing major transit and
won't have any impact on the rest of the Internet.

Just as at the point of CIDR deployment the rule was "support CIDR or
use a default route" the rule when as4bytes is deployed may have to be
"support as4bytes or use a default route".

If we persisted in discussing what happens in arbitrary mixed
CIDR/non-CIDR and BGP/EGP networks we'd still be running EGP and the
Internet would have collapsed long ago.  This is not to say that some
discussion isn't good but at this point we are beating a dead horse.

Lets move on with as4bytes.  We hopefully can assume that intelligent
people are at the controls at the tier-1 and tier-2 networks for some
value of intelligent that is sufficient to get this deployment right.

Curtis

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