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Making RFCs easier to find and use through a re-imagined RFC Editor website
- Alexis Rossi RFC Series Consulting Editor
21 Aug 2025
The widespread dissemination, understanding, and use of the open standards published in RFCs is critical to the development of an open Internet—and a reimagined RFC-Editor.org website aims to make them more available and accessible than ever.
For more than 25 years, RFC-Editor.org has been the official distribution channel of RFCs, making all RFCs available free of charge in multiple formats both for online reading and download. Since its inception, however, the website has been designed primarily around the needs of RFC producers rather than RFC consumers. User experience research shows a significant gap between features on the current site and the expectations of the developers and implementers who consume RFCs.
A project to fully reimagine the RFC Editor website aims to directly address the needs of RFC consumers. This effort builds on another project currently underway to redevelop the underlying database for the site and the web framework that connects to this database. It also complements another project to modernize the tools used by the RFC Production Center, who are the team of professional editors that prepares and publishes the output of the Editorial, Internet Architecture Board (IAB), Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), Internet Research Task Force (IRTF), and Independent Series Editor (ISE) Stream documents that make up the RFC Series.
Features the new RFC-Editor.org website will include:
- Faster, more comprehensive searching of RFCs,
- Updated presentation of RFCs for an easier and faster reading experience,
- Improved site accessibility for those with visual impairments,
- More clear routes for RFC consumers to participate in the RFC creation process, and
- Easier identification and use of a set of related RFCs
Work to develop the site is already underway, engaging experts in areas such as web accessibility and UI, and with managers of the various Streams providing initial feedback. Testing and feedback gathered from target audiences will inform further development and refinement of the site. A subset of the new website is expected to launch by March 2026, and further updates will be shared as work progresses.
This initiative is funded by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) through the ICANN Grant Program.