Another utilization of TCP options during connection establishment is to enable TCP extensions. For example, consider :rfc:`1323` (which is discussed in :ref:`TCPReliable`). :rfc:`1323` defines TCP extensions to support timestamps and larger windows. If the client supports :rfc:`1323`, it adds a :rfc:`1323` option to its `SYN` segment. If the server understands this :rfc:`1323` option and wishes to use it, it replies with a :rfc:`1323` option in the `SYN+ACK` segment and the extension defined in :rfc:`1323` is used throughout the TCP connection. Otherwise, if the server's `SYN+ACK` does not contain the :rfc:`1323` option, the client is not allowed to use this extension and the corresponding TCP header options throughout the TCP connection. TCP's option mechanism is flexible and it allows the extension of TCP while maintaining compatibility with older implementations.