1 Overview

There is an IETF Zero Configuration Networking group (http://www.zeroconf.org). The "goals" of Zeroconf are as follows:

Notes

I think that Wikipedia's Zeroconf site is incorrect or at least misleading.
IP allocation has been standardized first, is used by Apple, Microsoft and others and is defined in RFC 3927 (uses 169.254.0.0/16), IPv6 auto-configuration is straight-forward
Apple's Bonjour is Apple's implementation of Zeroconf. It uses Multicast DNS (mDNS) and DNS service discovery (DNS-SD)
LLMNR (Link-Local Multicast Name Resolution) is Microsoft's version. First appeared in WinVista and Win2008 Server. Differs slightly from Bonjour.

2 Bonjour

aka. Rendezvous, mDNS, multicast-DNS

Uses Multicast addresses.
IPs and ports:
- 224.0.0.251
- FF02::FB
- Port 5353/UDP
Currently an Internet Draft: draft-cheshire-dnsext-multicastdns.txt
?? Uses .local as DNS domain name.
DNS service discovery (DNS-SD) extends mDNS to locate services like printers, etc. using DNS SRV (and TXT) resource records.
- It also works with Unicast DNS.
- See http://www.dns-sd.org/
- IETF draft: http://files.dns-sd.org/draft-cheshire-dnsext-dns-sd.txt

aka. Link-Local Multicast Name Resolution Protocol.

Introduced by Microsoft with Windows Vista and Windows 2008 Server. Similar but slightly different from Bonjour. LLMNR seems to be little used

Specified in (informational) RFC 4795
Uses Multicast addresses.
IPs and ports:
- 224.0.0.252
- FF02::1:3
- Port 5355/UDP [sic] (!= 5353)
Supports any query, including SRV, but I don't know yet if/how service discovery is specified to work for LLMNR

These services provides similar auto-configuration, but seem to be considered different from Zeroconf.

Microsoft's Simple Service Discovery Protocol (SSDP). SSDP is UPnP's service discovery protocol.
- HTTP-like but over UDP. Uses NOTIFY method.
- Port 1900, Port 2869 (older implementations used 5000) (don't know which one is the "real" port used, but 1900 seems fairly common).
- 239.255.255.250
- FF0x::C, where x can be 2 (link-local), 5 (site-local), 8 (organization-local), E (global)
- And IPv6 source, prefix specific multicast.
Windows Internet Naming Service (WINS).
- Microsoft's implementation of NetBIOS nameservice.
- Provides serverless NetBIOS name <--> IP translation
- Port 137/UDP, (multicast?, broadcast?, unicast?)
- Superseded since Win2000 by hierarchical dynamic DNS updates. However, Exchange, and MS-SQL (2000 and 2003) still require WINS.
Hierarchical dynamic DNS updates:
- Superseded WINS. But requires a central DNS server.
- WINS still around for serverless networks
- Presumably LLMNR will fully eradicate the need for WINS, as LLMNR is serverless as well.
More information on WINS, dynamic DNS, SMB, and NetBIOS are on a separate page.
WS-Discovery (web service discovery). SOAP-over-UDP. Does anybody use it?
Service Location Protocol (SLP, SRVLOC).
- Seems to be outdated, but is specified in RFCs:
- RFC 2608 RFC 3224
- Port 427/UDP
- According to Wikipedia, CUPS might use it (otherwise ancient version of MacOSX, Netware, SUSE, Sun)