This weekend I found an interesting RFC (Request For Comments). “RFC 8900 – IP Fragmentation Considered Fragile“. It was one of the few RFCs I read from start to finish without a professional interests or a certification in mind.

This RFC starts with a bit of background on the causes of IP fragmentation, MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit), PMTU (Path MTU) e PMTUD (Path MTU Discovery). It continues with the fragility of using IP fragmentation in some situations including inherent security vulnerabilities, alternatives to IP fragmentation ending with recommendations.

I also found very interesting that it always considered not only IPv4, but also IPv6 and the differences between both when it comes to fragmentation. The content is clear enough for you to understand if you are not familiar with the topic, but it also serves as the perfect refresher for the experts. The links and references are a rich source of information for associated topics.

Have a look and tell me if you liked it and would like to know more about IP fragmentation.

RFC 8900 IP Fragmentation Considered Fragile
https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc8900.html