Editing PCI Express (section)

=== Draft process ===
There are 5 primary releases/checkpoints in a PCI-SIG specification:<ref name="yT5P8" />
* Draft 0.3 (Concept): this release may have few details, but outlines the general approach and goals.
* Draft 0.5 (First draft): this release has a complete set of architectural requirements and must fully address the goals set out in the 0.3 draft.
* Draft 0.7 (Complete draft): this release must have a complete set of functional requirements and methods defined, and no new functionality may be added to the specification after this release. Before the release of this draft, electrical specifications must have been validated via test silicon.
* Draft 0.9 (Final draft): this release allows PCI-SIG member companies to perform an internal review for intellectual property, and no functional changes are permitted after this draft.
* 1.0 (Final release): this is the final and definitive specification, and any changes or enhancements are through Errata documentation and Engineering Change Notices (ECNs) respectively.

Historically, the earliest adopters of a new PCIe specification generally begin designing with the Draft 0.5 as they can confidently build up their application logic around the new bandwidth definition and often even start developing for any new protocol features. At the Draft 0.5 stage, however, there is still a strong likelihood of changes in the actual PCIe protocol layer implementation, so designers responsible for developing these blocks internally may be more hesitant to begin work than those using interface IP from external sources.