MIME Media Type: application/fastinfoset

(Last updated 2006-09-05)

The IESG has approved a request to register the "application/fastinfoset"
MIME media type in the standards tree.
This media type is a product of the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO).

The IESG contact persons are Ted Hardie and Scott Hollenbeck.

MIME media type name:
application

MIME subtype name:
fastinfoset

Required parameters:
None.

Optional parameters:
None.

Encoding considerations:
XML infosets encoded as fast infoset documents will result in the production
of binary data. This MIME media type may require further encoding on
transports not capable of handling binary data.

Security considerations:
Because XML infosets encoded as fast infoset documents can carry application
defined data whose semantics is independent from that of any MIME wrapper
(or context within which the MIME wrapper is used), one should not expect to
be able to understand the semantics of the fast infoset document based on
the semantics of the MIME wrapper alone. Therefore, whenever using the
"application/fastinfoset" media type, it is strongly recommended that the
security implications of the context within which the fast infoset document
is used is fully understood.

Interoperability considerations:
There are no known interoperability issues.

Published specification:
ITU-T Rec. X.891 | ISO/IEC 24824-1

Applications which use this media type:
No known applications currently use this media type.

Additional information:

Magic number(s):
A fast infoset document may begin with an optional XML declaration that
shall be one of the following strings encoded in UTF-8:
<?xml encoding='finf'?>
<?xml encoding='finf' standalone='yes'?>
<?xml encoding='finf' standalone='no'?>
<?xml version='1.0' encoding='finf'?>
<?xml version='1.0' encoding='finf' standalone='yes'?>
<?xml version='1.0' encoding='finf' standalone='no'?>
<?xml version='1.1' encoding='finf'?>
<?xml version='1.1' encoding='finf' standalone='yes'?>
<?xml version='1.1' encoding='finf' standalone='no'?>

The first five octets of the XML declaration encoded in UTF-8 are
hexadecimal 3C 3F 78 6D 6C. The four octets identifying a fast infoset
document corresponding to the sub-string "finf" encoded in UTF-8 are
hexadecimal 66 69 6E 66.

A fast infoset document shall begin with an octet sequence of hexadecimal E0

00 00 01 if the optional XML declaration is absent.

File extension(s):
*.finf

Person & email address to contact for further information:
ITU-T ASN.1 Rapporteur (contact via tsb&itu.int) ISO/IEC JTC1/SC6 ASN.1
Rapporteur (contact via secretariat&jtc1sc06.org)

Intended usage:
COMMON

Author/Change controller:
Joint ITU-T | ISO/IEC balloting procedures in accordance with ITU-T Rec.
A.23 Collaboration with the International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on information
technology, Annex A and ISO/IEC JTC1 Directives, Annex K.

(file created on 31 Oct 2005)