Middleboxes: Taxonomy and Issues
Brian E. Carpenter, Scott Brim · 2002
This document is intended as part of an IETF discussion about middleboxes - defined as any intermediary box performing functions apart from normal, standard functions of an IP router on the data path between a source host and destination host. This document establishes a catalogue or taxonomy of middleboxes, cites previous and current IETF work concerning middleboxes, and attempts to identify some preliminary conclusions. It does not, however, claim to be definitive.