IEEE P1003.0 Draft 14 - November 1991 Copyright (c) 1991 by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. 345 East 47th Street New York, NY 10017, USA All rights reserved as an unpublished work. This is an unapproved and unpublished IEEE Standards Draft, subject to change. The publication, distribution, or copying of this draft, as well as all derivative works based on this draft, is expressly prohibited except as set forth below. Permission is hereby granted for IEEE Standards Committee participants to reproduce this document for purposes of IEEE standardization activities only, and subject to the restrictions contained herein. Permission is hereby also granted for member bodies and technical committees of ISO and IEC to reproduce this document for purposes of developing a national position, subject to the restrictions contained herein. 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Box 1331 Piscataway, NJ 08855-1331, USA +1 (908) 562-3800 +1 (908) 562-1571 [FAX] ENVIRONMENT INTERIM DOCUMENT P1003.0/D14 small subset of the larger world of base standards. At the other end of the spectrum, organization-specific (e.g., company- specific) profiles are large in number and range even more widely in their coverage. (There are many more organizations procuring systems, and effectively writing profiles, than there are committees writing standards.) Industry-specific profiles are based on specific industry needs. From the point of view of the organization-specific profile writer, industry specific profiles are applicable to many organizations (in the same industry), and hence are possibly not precisely what any specific individual organization needs. They address the broad consensus of the industry, from which there is usually deviation when you look at individual organizations whose needs range further. Standardized Profiles are formal balloted documents. POSIX SPs are the subset of standardized profiles that pertain to the POSIX base standards. While not limited to just POSIX base standards, POSIX SPs nonetheless provide a distinctly POSIX-oriented view of the base standards. An organization wishing to procure a ``POSIX'' based system, then, could first develop its own organization-specific profile, which it could base on POSIX-oriented industry-specific profiles (if available), which in turn could be based on POSIX SPs, which of course are based on the various POSIX base standards. POSIX SPs provide an industry-neutral building block for creating industry specific profiles. The developers of POSIX SPs do not have to have knowledge of any particular industry. They furthermore help ensure coherence among the many base standards referenced, particularly among the various POSIX base standards. As such, probably, most POSIX SPs will be created by the IEEE POSIX working groups meeting concurrently with IEEE POSIX base standards working groups. Meeting concurrently at the same place helps ensure the coherence of the base standards and the harmony among the POSIX SPs. A.4 Special Rules for POSIX SPs While no rules have yet been developed by IEEE for POSIX SPs, the remainder of this annex gives examples of what such rules might say and identifies some issues for which rules might be drafted. The following criteria for calling a profile a POSIX SP were developed according to some general principles that have the aim of giving definite value to the word ``POSIX'' when used with regards to profiles. The general principles are: Copyright (c) 1991 IEEE. All rights reserved. This is an unapproved IEEE Standards Draft, subject to change. A.4 Special Rules for POSIX SPs 251 P1003.0/D14 GUIDE TO THE POSIX OPEN SYSTEMS (1) There is minimum content. Specifically, a POSIX SP must reference some part of the suite of POSIX base standards. (Which part specifically is contentious.) (2) The POSIX SP must follow a specific approach to conformance (specifically the P1003.3.1 test methodology.) (3) The POSIX SP must adhere to the POSIX Reference Model. (4) There is maximum content; i.e., some consideration must be given to how the POSIX SP goes beyond the POSIX OSE as described in this guide. (5) Exceptions to the previous principles are expected, requiring a rule-making and enforcement body to make those exception decisions. POSIX SPs are Standardized Profiles that are related to ``POSIX.'' This subclause specifies the rules that need to be followed that distinguish POSIX SPs from ``Non-POSIX SPs''. Each POSIX SP is based on, and shall include, one of the following two base standards sets: (1) POSIX.1 {2} or POSIX.2 (as verified by the P1003.3 methodology), or (2) A particular subset of POSIX.1 {2} and P1003.4 that is being specified for a Minimal Realtime profile (as verified by the P1003.3 methodology.) Additionally, each POSIX SP adheres to the structure defined by the POSIX OSE reference model. An approved POSIX SP shall make reference only to base standards identified in this guide (1003.0) as being part of the POSIX OSE. Two specific exceptions to this general rule are allowed for as described here: (1) Reference can be made to required base standards that are clearly outside of the scope of the POSIX OSE. Examples of the functionality that may require the use of this expedient are: - Physical connectors - Electrical characteristics - Safety requirements Copyright (c) 1991 IEEE. All rights reserved. This is an unapproved IEEE Standards Draft, subject to change. 252 A Considerations for Developers of POSIX SPs ENVIRONMENT INTERIM DOCUMENT P1003.0/D14 Such reference to items outside the scope of the POSIX OSE shall be justified on a case-by-case basis. It shall be accompanied by details of the body responsible for the distribution and maintenance of the referenced base standard. (2) Reference can be made to required base standards that are being proposed for inclusion in a future version of the guide. Examples of this would be specification of a later version of a base standard that is already included within the POSIX OSE, or of an additional programming language base standard, not yet included within the POSIX OSE. In such cases, the POSIX SP should be identified as a POSIX Preliminary SP and the specific references should be clearly noted and justified on a case by case basis. A POSIX Preliminary Standardized Profile (POSIX Preliminary SP) is a POSIX SP that satisfies all requirements of a POSIX SP except that it is not a subset of the POSIX OSE. [It therefore contains at least one standard or profile that is outside the POSIX OSE. It is expected that application would be made to POSIX.0 to include the standard(s) or profile(s) in the POSIX OSE.] A further restriction of POSIX SPs is the necessity to (normatively) reference only standards that are recognized by the IEEE. This is limited to IEEE and ISO standards. Approval of a POSIX SP shall not change the status of any documents referenced by it. The development of a POSIX SP may indicate the need to modify or to add to the requirements specified in a base standard. In this case, it is necessary for the POSIX SP developer to liaise with the body responsible for that base standard so that the required changes may be made through established methods such as defect reporting, amendment procedures, or the introduction of new work. A.5 Other Issues A significant number of issues remain to be addressed concerning the management of POSIX SP development. Some of the issues and the concerns are summarized here. Copyright (c) 1991 IEEE. All rights reserved. This is an unapproved IEEE Standards Draft, subject to change. A.5 Other Issues 253