RFC 3798 on Message Disposition Notification

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        RFC 3798

        Title:      Message Disposition Notification
        Author(s):  T. Hansen, Ed., G. Vaudreuil, Ed.
        Status:     Standards Track
        Date:       May 2004
        Mailbox:    [e-mail], [e-mail]
        Pages:      30
        Characters: 64049
        Updates:    3461, 2046
        Obsoletes:  2298

        I-D Tag:    draft-vaudreuil-mdnbis-05.txt

        URL:        ftp://ftp.rfc-editor.org/in-notes/rfc3798.txt


This memo defines a MIME content-type that may be used by a mail user
agent (MUA) or electronic mail gateway to report the disposition of a
message after it has been successfully delivered to a recipient.  This
content-type is intended to be machine-processable.  Additional
message headers are also defined to permit Message Disposition
Notifications (MDNs) to be requested by the sender of a message.  The
purpose is to extend Internet Mail to support functionality often
found in other messaging systems, such as X.400 and the proprietary
"LAN-based" systems, and often referred to as "read receipts,"
"acknowledgements", or "receipt notifications."  The intention is to
do this while respecting privacy concerns, which have often been
expressed when such functions have been discussed in the past.

Because many messages are sent between the Internet and other
messaging systems (such as X.400 or the proprietary "LAN-based"
systems), the MDN protocol is designed to be useful in a
multi-protocol messaging environment.  To this end, the protocol
described in this memo provides for the carriage of "foreign"
addresses, in addition to those normally used in Internet Mail.
Additional attributes may also be defined to support "tunneling" of
foreign notifications through Internet Mail.

This is now a Draft Standard Protocol.

This document specifies an Internet standards track protocol for
the Internet community, and requests discussion and suggestions
for improvements.  Please refer to the current edition of the
"Internet Official Protocol Standards" (STD 1) for the
standardization state and status of this protocol.  Distribution
of this memo is unlimited.

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Joyce K. Reynolds and Sandy Ginoza
USC/Information Sciences Institute

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