RE: What is Content-Length?

> ----------
> From: 	John Franks[SMTP:john@math.nwu.edu]
> Sent: 	Friday, December 12, 1997 3:41 PM
> 
<snip>

> > When Paul writes:
> >     Under these rules, Content-Length is still logically end-to-end --
> >     the header may not physically be present, but its value if it is
> >     ever present is well-defined end-to-end and the same end-to-end.
> > I'm not sure it makes sense to talk about a header being "end-to-end"
> > if it isn't actually transmitted on some hops.
> 
> What I would most like to see is the assertion that if a Content-length
> header is present its value is the length of the entity-body.
> 
That cat may be out of the bag, if anyone has implemented any TEs other than
chunked or identity. They will almost for sure have used Content-length as
the length of the message-body.

>  It may not be too important that it be officially end-to-end.
> 
I don't care either. I only care that "length of entity-body" be
well-defined and determinable at each hop.

Paul