OFTP

The Odette File Transfer Protocol ( OFTP ) is under the umbrella of Odette International Ltd. protocol developed for the direct electronic transfer of files between two communication partners. It corresponds in its version 1 of the Recommendation 4914/2 of the Association of the Automotive Industry.

Flow of communication

The communication is initiated by a partner. After exchange of so-called Odette IDs that are assigned in Germany by the Association of the Automotive Industry, and passwords files can be exchanged in both directions. The files get a pre-configured virtual file name for transmission. Data can be encrypted via OFTP or unencrypted.

After the transfer, depending on the agreement for a confirmation in the form of End to End Response ( EERP ) take place. This can occur either immediately after the transfer within the same compound or the recipient chooses automatically again to the original sender to transfer a. If the transfer is via a third party, the EERP will only be submitted by the final receiver back.

Applications

Originally designed for EDI developed in the European automotive industry and there in use ( see, eg, various recommendations of the VDA 1988 ), OFTP is also used in other industries and applications, for example for the exchange of account balance data and payment data between banks and companies. Frequently it is also used to send between engineering CAD models ( ENGDAT ).

Strengthen

• It allows continuing after termination of the connection, it does not have the entire file to be re- transmitted.
• The implicit end-to -end response guarantees correct transmission and processing of the file by the recipient.
• It can be based on different transport layers: ISDN (B- and D- channel), X.25, TCP / IP ( RFC 2204 ).
• There is a variety of products available that dominate OFTP.
• It is often used to transfer files in ENX, the communication network of the European automotive industry.
• When version 2 is available via the Internet.