A new IETF WG has been formed in the Web and Internet Transport. For
additional information, please contact the Area Directors or the WG Chairs.

Heuristics and Algorithms to Prioritize Protocol deploYment (happy)
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Current status: Proposed WG

Chairs:
  Tim Chown <[email protected]>
  Eric Kinnear <[email protected]>

Assigned Area Director:
  Zaheduzzaman Sarker <[email protected]>

Web and Internet Transport Directors:
  Francesca Palombini <[email protected]>
  Zaheduzzaman Sarker <[email protected]>

Mailing list:
  Address: [email protected]
  To subscribe: https://mailman3.ietf.org/mailman3/lists/happy.ietf.org/
  Archive: https://mailarchive.ietf.org/arch/browse/happy/

Group page: https://datatracker.ietf.org/group/happy/

Charter: https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/charter-ietf-happy/

RFC 8305 defined “Happy Eyeballs Version 2”, a client algorithm for resolving
and connecting to a server with different server IP address options, aiming
to improve IPv6 usage without degrading connection success rates due to
misconfigured networks, clients, or servers.

Since the publication of RFC 8305, several changes to common protocols,
clients, and server deployments have occurred that require a revision of the
algorithm. Some of these include:

- Standardization and increased use of QUIC, which require updating the
  TCP-specific parts of Happy Eyeballs.
- Introduction of Service Binding DNS resource records (SVCB and HTTPS RRs)
that
  provide richer service information and add priorities and parameters that
  will change the sorting of addresses for Happy Eyeballs.
- Preparations for the standardization of TLS Encrypted Client Hello, which
  can impact which servers a client is willing to connect to based on
  available security properties.
- Increased deployment and refinement of IPv6-only and IPv6-mostly networks.

The HAPPY working group will deliver an updated version of the Happy Eyeballs
algorithm, "Happy Eyeballs Version 3", that incorporates changes to account
for these developments. The working group will focus on realistic network
scenarios and performance data measured in deployed networks. Although the
algorithm needs to be generally applicable, platform-specific or
deployment-specific considerations should be included in the core algorithm
document. The algorithm should have tunable input values that allow for
variation between clients, with defaults based on working group consensus for
preferred behaviors.

The working group will also document the impact of the Happy Eyeballs
algorithm on the detection of misconfigured deployments, such as networks
with configured (but non-functional) IPv6 connectivity. This can include
recommendations for how to report issues that might otherwise be hidden by
the algorithm's automatic failover. Any reporting mechanisms need to preserve
user privacy, accurately detect broken deployments, and produce actionable
reports.

The Happy Eyeballs Version 3 algorithm will be scoped to connection
establishment that starts with a fully-qualified domain name (FQDN) and ends
with a single established connection to a server. While the algorithm may
apply to scenarios with multiple network links, or pools of multiple
connections, specific mechanisms for such scenarios are out of scope for the
working group.

The updated algorithm is expected to have increased cross-functional scope,
beyond the original versions of the algorithm developed in V6OPS. The HAPPY
working group will review its work with groups such as V6OPS, 6MAN, TSVWG,
QUIC, HTTPBIS, DNSOP, and TLS. The working group should also coordinate with
the Security Area, specifically around the security considerations for TLS
Encrypted Client Hello and the behavior of the algorithm with secure
protocols (TLS, QUIC, etc).

The working group’s core deliverables are:

- A standards-track document for Happy Eyeballs Version 3
- An informational document that explains the impact of Happy Eyeballs
  on detecting and measuring broken deployments, with recommendations on how
  to report errors in a privacy-preserving, accurate, and actionable way.

Milestones:

  Jul 2026 - A standards-track document for Happy Eyeballs Version 3

  Jul 2026 - An informational document to explain the impact of Happy
  Eyeballs on detecting and measuring broken deployments, with
  recommendations on how to report the errors



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