Reading an RFC or standard efficiently

Goal

Extract the requirements that apply to your implementation without misreading examples or obsolete text as rules.

Prerequisites

The current version of the document: RFCs are updated or obsoleted by newer RFCs (the header says so), and standards have editions.

Steps

1. Check the status line: is the document a standard, informational or experimental; is it obsoleted or updated; are there errata.
2. Read the abstract and the terminology section; definitions decide what later sentences mean.
3. Locate the normative requirements: RFC 2119 key words in capitals (MUST, MUST NOT, SHOULD, MAY) carry different weight; examples and appendices are not requirements.
4. Note the security considerations section; it often lists the failure modes implementers hit.
5. Write down each requirement that applies to your component as a checklist item with the section number.
6. Test against the checklist and cite the section numbers in code comments and tests.

Expected result

An implementation that can state which requirements it meets, which optional ones it skips, and why; fewer interoperability surprises.

Limits and test basis

Standards leave room for interpretation; interoperability testing with real peers is still required. This procedure is general practice, anchored on the cited RFCs.