CMIP services includes a management information base (MIB) application program interface (API), which application programs use to send information to CMIP services. Application programs send data to CMIP services by using API functions, which are described under Overview of CMIP services API functions. The data sent in some of the parameters of the API functions can be in any format that is accepted as standard ASN.1 syntax. ASN.1 syntax is the data definition language used by OSI management.

This section describes how application programs can send data to CMIP services (using the API functions) and how CMIP services sends data to application programs.

The application program can send strings that are composed of values that are specified according to the rules in the ASN.1 syntax. For a particular ASN.1 syntax, an application program has some flexibility in the exact format of a string.

CMIP services returns information to application programs in a specific format. For example, when the application program sends a string to CMIP Services that includes a BOOLEAN value, the application program can use a variety of formats. But when CMIP services sends a BOOLEAN value in a string to the application program, CMIP services uses only one format for BOOLEAN values.