Published revision: draft-jurkovikj-http-semantic-validator-01 · Expires: 28 January 2027
A pair of HTTP fields for optimistic concurrency over server-defined semantic state rather than representation identity.
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Fields
- Semantic-ETag discloses a server-defined validator for semantic state.
- If-Semantic-Match lets a client condition a covered mutation on that semantic state.
Why it is separate
Ordinary ETags identify selected representations and drive HTTP caching and range semantics. A semantic validator can instead span multiple representations or resources in one concurrency domain. The two validator types are deliberately not interchangeable.
Server obligations
- Define the semantic state and equivalence domain.
- Disclose capability and protected method scope explicitly.
- Evaluate the semantic condition and commit under one atomic boundary.
- Fail closed when the semantic condition cannot be evaluated.
- Preserve ordinary HTTP validator and cache behavior.
This is an individual Internet-Draft, not an RFC or an IETF standard.