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Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2013 16:42:21 +0400
From: Gleb Smirnoff <glebius@FreeBSD.org>
To: current@FreeBSD.org
Subject: [heads up] axing AppleTalk and IPX/SPX
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  Hello!

  [Cc to stable@, for wider audience]

  The plan is two axe two old networking protocols from FreeBSD head/,
meaning that FreeBSD 11.0-RELEASE, available in couple of years would
be shipped without them.

1) AppleTalk

   Last time claimed to be supported by vendor in 2007[1]. In practice
   had very little use since 90th.
   Discontinued by major routing equipment vendors since 2009[2].

2) IPX

   Last time claimed to be supported by vendor in 2007[3]. In practice
   had very little use since 90th.
   Discontinued by major routing equipment vendors since 2011[4].

Current status of these protocols in FreeBSD is "compilable". For the
next couple of years, we plan a lot of changes in networking stack,
many of which will require changing the protocols, as well. Keeping
them in compilable state would require additional manpower, but it
is very probable, that after all the changes they will be utterly
broken, albeit compilable.

P.S. I account any objector as taker of maintainership :)

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS_X_v10.5
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS_X_v10.6
[2] http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/iosswrel/ps8802/ps5460/product_bulletin_c25-520459.html
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Enterprise_Server#OES-NetWare
[4] http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/ios/novipx/configuration/guide/Novell_IPX_Discontinuation.html

-- 
Totus tuus, Glebius.