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Work item:
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Y.QKDN-pkpe-fr
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Subject/title:
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Quantum key distribution networks - Framework for proactive end-to-end key pre-establishment
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Status:
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Under study
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Approval process:
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AAP
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Type of work item:
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Recommendation
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Version:
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New
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Equivalent number:
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-
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Timing:
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2028-Q1 (Medium priority)
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Liaison:
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ITU-T SG11, SG17
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Supporting members:
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Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT); China Telecom; Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications (NJUPT); China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT).
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Summary:
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QKD enables point-to-point key generation with information-theoretic security, however, due to fibre attenuation and device-related constraints, the distance over which QKD can stably generate keys is typically limited, making it difficult to directly satisfy the long-distance end-to-end key distribution requirements in cross-domain and cross-metropolitan scenarios. To enable large-scale deployment of QKDNs, current implementations commonly rely on mechanisms such as trusted relays, which perform hop-by-hop key relaying across multiple links to provide end-to-end key for services between non-adjacent nodes. On-demand key establishment approach may incur relatively high latency. Therefore, in certain special scenarios, such as time-sensitive networking, a proactive key pre-establishment approach is needed. Proactive key pre-establishment can apply different strategies to pre-establish keys between non-adjacent end-to-end nodes in the network in advance. When a service request arrives, if usable keys already exist between the source and destination nodes, they can be used immediately. This not only reduces the latency of establishing and delivering keys for the service, but also lowers the risk of single-point failures.
To enable proactive key pre-established in QKDNs, this Recommendation specifies the overview, conceptual model, requirements, and operational procedures for proactive end-to-end key pre-establishment.
Security considerations are not the scope of this Recommendation.
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Comment:
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-
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Reference(s):
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Historic references:
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Contact(s):
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First registration in the WP:
2026-03-10 13:57:05
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Last update:
2026-03-10 14:00:07
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