diff --git a/Makefile.am b/Makefile.am
index d14b0b8..6ed2873 100644
--- a/Makefile.am
+++ b/Makefile.am
@@ -82,6 +82,7 @@
   src/encoding/binary-xml-encoder.hpp \
   src/encoding/binary-xml-structure-decoder.hpp \
   src/encoding/binary-xml-wire-format.cpp \
+  src/encoding/block.cpp \
   src/encoding/der/der-exception.cpp \
   src/encoding/der/der-exception.hpp \
   src/encoding/der/der.cpp \
diff --git a/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/block-helpers.hpp b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/block-helpers.hpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c3ae196
--- /dev/null
+++ b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/block-helpers.hpp
@@ -0,0 +1,62 @@
+/* -*- Mode:C++; c-file-style:"gnu"; indent-tabs-mode:nil -*- */
+/*
+ * Copyright (c) 2013, Regents of the University of California
+ *
+ * BSD license, See the LICENSE file for more information
+ *
+ * Author: Alexander Afanasyev <alexander.afanasyev@ucla.edu>
+ */
+
+#ifndef NDN_BLOCK_HELPERS_HPP
+#define NDN_BLOCK_HELPERS_HPP
+
+#include "block.hpp"
+
+namespace ndn {
+
+inline Block
+nonNegativeIntegerBlock(uint32_t type, uint64_t value)
+{
+  OBufferStream os;
+  Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, type);
+  Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, Tlv::sizeOfNonNegativeInteger(value));
+  Tlv::writeNonNegativeInteger(os, value);
+  return Block(os.buf());
+}
+
+inline uint64_t
+readNonNegativeInteger(const Block &block)
+{
+  Buffer::const_iterator begin = block.value_begin();
+  return Tlv::readNonNegativeInteger(block.value_size(), begin, block.value_end());
+}
+
+inline Block
+booleanBlock(uint32_t type)
+{
+  OBufferStream os;
+  Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, type);
+  Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, 0);
+  return Block(os.buf());
+}
+
+inline Block
+dataBlock(uint32_t type, const char *data, size_t dataSize)
+{
+  OBufferStream os;
+  Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, type);
+  Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, dataSize);
+  os.write(data, dataSize);
+
+  return Block(os.buf());
+}
+
+inline Block
+dataBlock(uint32_t type, const unsigned char *data, size_t dataSize)
+{
+  return dataBlock(type, reinterpret_cast<const char*>(data), dataSize);
+}
+
+} // namespace ndn
+
+#endif // NDN_BLOCK_HELPERS_HPP
diff --git a/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/block.hpp b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/block.hpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6d104b1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/block.hpp
@@ -0,0 +1,377 @@
+/* -*- Mode:C++; c-file-style:"gnu"; indent-tabs-mode:nil -*- */
+/*
+ * Copyright (c) 2013, Regents of the University of California
+ *
+ * BSD license, See the LICENSE file for more information
+ *
+ * Author: Alexander Afanasyev <alexander.afanasyev@ucla.edu>
+ */
+
+#ifndef NDN_BLOCK_HPP
+#define NDN_BLOCK_HPP
+
+#include <ndn-cpp/common.hpp>
+
+#include <list>
+#include <exception>
+
+#include "buffer.hpp"
+#include "tlv.hpp"
+
+#include <boost/lexical_cast.hpp>
+
+namespace ndn {
+
+/**
+ * @brief Class representing wire element of the NDN packet
+ */
+class Block
+{
+public:
+  typedef std::list<Block>::iterator element_iterator;
+  typedef std::list<Block>::const_iterator element_const_iterator;
+
+  /// @brief Error that can be thrown from the block
+  struct Error : public std::runtime_error { Error(const std::string &what) : std::runtime_error(what) {} };
+  
+  /**
+   * @brief Default constructor to create an empty Block
+   */
+  Block();
+
+  /**
+   * @brief A helper version of a constructor to create Block from the raw buffer (type and value-length parsing)
+   */
+  Block(const ConstBufferPtr &buffer);
+
+  /**
+   * @brief A helper version of a constructor to create Block from the raw buffer (type and value-length parsing)
+   */
+  Block(const uint8_t *buffer, size_t maxlength);
+
+  Block(const void *buffer, size_t maxlength);
+  
+  /**
+   * @brief Create Block from the wire buffer (no parsing)
+   *
+   * This version of the constructor does not do any parsing
+   */
+  Block(const ConstBufferPtr &wire,
+        uint32_t type,
+        const Buffer::const_iterator &begin, Buffer::const_iterator &end,
+        const Buffer::const_iterator &valueBegin, Buffer::const_iterator &valueEnd);
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Create Block of a specific type with empty wire buffer
+   */
+  Block(uint32_t type);
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Create Block of a specific type with the specified value
+   *
+   * The underlying buffer hold only value, additional operations are needed
+   * to construct wire encoding, one need to prepend the wire buffer with type
+   * and value-length VAR-NUMBERs
+   */
+  Block(uint32_t type, const ConstBufferPtr &value);
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Create nested Block of a specific type with the specified value
+   *
+   * The underlying buffer hold only value, additional operations are needed
+   * to construct wire encoding, one need to prepend the wire buffer with type
+   * and value-length VAR-NUMBERs
+   */
+  Block(uint32_t type, const Block &value);
+  
+  /**
+   * @brief Check if the Block has fully encoded wire
+   */
+  inline bool
+  hasWire() const;
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Check if the Block has value block (no type and length are encoded)
+   */
+  inline bool
+  hasValue() const;
+  
+  /**
+   * @brief Reset wire buffer of the element
+   */
+  inline void
+  reset();
+
+  void
+  parse();
+
+  void
+  encode();
+  
+  inline uint32_t
+  type() const;
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Get the first subelement of the requested type
+   */
+  inline const Block &
+  get(uint32_t type) const;
+
+  inline Block &
+  get(uint32_t type);
+  
+  inline element_iterator
+  find(uint32_t type);
+
+  inline element_const_iterator
+  find(uint32_t type) const;
+
+  inline void
+  push_back(const Block &element);
+  
+  /**
+   * @brief Get all subelements
+   */
+  inline const std::list<Block>&
+  getAll () const;
+
+  inline std::list<Block>&
+  getAll ();
+  
+  /**
+   * @brief Get all elements of the requested type
+   */
+  std::list<Block>
+  getAll(uint32_t type) const;
+
+  inline Buffer::const_iterator
+  begin() const;
+
+  inline Buffer::const_iterator
+  end() const;
+
+  inline size_t
+  size() const;
+
+  inline Buffer::const_iterator
+  value_begin() const;
+
+  inline Buffer::const_iterator
+  value_end() const;
+
+  inline const uint8_t*
+  wire() const;
+  
+  inline const uint8_t*
+  value() const;
+
+  inline size_t
+  value_size() const;
+
+protected:
+  ConstBufferPtr m_buffer;
+
+  uint32_t m_type;
+  
+  Buffer::const_iterator m_begin;
+  Buffer::const_iterator m_end;
+  uint32_t m_size;
+  
+  Buffer::const_iterator m_value_begin;
+  Buffer::const_iterator m_value_end;
+
+  std::list<Block> m_subBlocks;
+};
+
+////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+
+inline bool
+Block::hasWire() const
+{
+  return m_buffer && (m_begin != m_end);
+}
+
+inline bool
+Block::hasValue() const
+{
+  return static_cast<bool>(m_buffer);
+}
+
+inline void
+Block::reset()
+{
+  m_buffer.reset(); // reset of the shared_ptr
+  m_subBlocks.clear(); // remove all parsed subelements
+
+  m_type = std::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max();
+  m_begin = m_end = m_value_begin = m_value_end = Buffer::const_iterator(); // not really necessary, but for safety
+}
+
+inline uint32_t
+Block::type() const
+{
+  return m_type;
+}
+
+inline const Block &
+Block::get(uint32_t type) const
+{
+  for (element_const_iterator i = m_subBlocks.begin ();
+       i != m_subBlocks.end();
+       i++)
+    {
+      if (i->type () == type)
+        {
+          return *i;
+        }
+    }
+
+  throw Error("(Block::get) Requested a non-existed type [" + boost::lexical_cast<std::string>(type) + "] from Block");
+}
+
+inline Block &
+Block::get(uint32_t type)
+{
+  for (element_iterator i = m_subBlocks.begin ();
+       i != m_subBlocks.end();
+       i++)
+    {
+      if (i->type () == type)
+        {
+          return *i;
+        }
+    }
+
+  throw Error("(Block::get) Requested a non-existed type [" + boost::lexical_cast<std::string>(type) + "] from Block");
+}
+  
+inline Block::element_const_iterator
+Block::find(uint32_t type) const
+{
+  for (element_const_iterator i = m_subBlocks.begin ();
+       i != m_subBlocks.end();
+       i++)
+    {
+      if (i->type () == type)
+        {
+          return i;
+        }
+    }
+  return m_subBlocks.end();
+}
+
+inline Block::element_iterator
+Block::find(uint32_t type)
+{
+  for (element_iterator i = m_subBlocks.begin ();
+       i != m_subBlocks.end();
+       i++)
+    {
+      if (i->type () == type)
+        {
+          return i;
+        }
+    }
+  return m_subBlocks.end();
+}
+
+inline void
+Block::push_back(const Block &element)
+{
+  m_subBlocks.push_back(element);
+}
+
+
+inline const std::list<Block>&
+Block::getAll () const
+{
+  return m_subBlocks;
+}
+
+inline std::list<Block>&
+Block::getAll ()
+{
+  return m_subBlocks;
+}
+
+
+inline Buffer::const_iterator
+Block::begin() const
+{
+  if (!hasWire())
+      throw Error("Underlying wire buffer is empty");
+
+  return m_begin;
+}
+
+inline Buffer::const_iterator
+Block::end() const
+{
+  if (!hasWire())
+      throw Error("Underlying wire buffer is empty");
+
+  return m_end;
+}
+
+inline size_t
+Block::size() const
+{
+  if (hasWire() || hasValue()) {
+    return m_size;
+  }
+  else
+    throw Error("Block size cannot be determined (undefined block size)");
+}
+
+inline Buffer::const_iterator
+Block::value_begin() const
+{
+  if (!hasValue())
+      throw Error("(Block::value_begin) Underlying value buffer is empty");
+
+  return m_value_begin;
+}
+
+inline Buffer::const_iterator
+Block::value_end() const
+{
+  if (!hasValue())
+      throw Error("(Block::value_end) Underlying value buffer is empty");
+
+  return m_value_end;
+}
+
+inline const uint8_t*
+Block::wire() const
+{
+  if (!hasWire())
+      throw Error("(Block::wire) Underlying wire buffer is empty");
+
+  return &*m_begin;
+}
+
+inline const uint8_t*
+Block::value() const
+{
+  if (!hasValue())
+      throw Error("(Block::value) Underlying value buffer is empty");
+  
+  return &*m_value_begin;
+}
+
+inline size_t
+Block::value_size() const
+{
+  if (!hasValue())
+    throw Error("(Block::value_size) Underlying value buffer is empty");
+
+  return m_value_end - m_value_begin;
+}
+
+} // ndn
+
+#include "block-helpers.hpp"
+
+#endif // NDN_BLOCK_HPP
diff --git a/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/buffer.hpp b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/buffer.hpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ec71112
--- /dev/null
+++ b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/buffer.hpp
@@ -0,0 +1,199 @@
+/* -*- Mode:C++; c-file-style:"gnu"; indent-tabs-mode:nil -*- */
+/*
+ * Copyright (c) 2013, Regents of the University of California
+ *
+ * BSD license, See the LICENSE file for more information
+ *
+ * Author: Alexander Afanasyev <alexander.afanasyev@ucla.edu>
+ */
+
+#ifndef NDN_BUFFER_HPP
+#define NDN_BUFFER_HPP
+
+#include <ndn-cpp/common.hpp>
+
+#include <boost/iostreams/detail/ios.hpp>
+#include <boost/iostreams/categories.hpp>
+#include <boost/iostreams/stream.hpp>
+
+#include <vector>
+
+namespace ndn {
+
+class Buffer;
+typedef ptr_lib::shared_ptr<const Buffer> ConstBufferPtr;
+typedef ptr_lib::shared_ptr<Buffer> BufferPtr;
+
+/**
+ * @brief Class representing a general-use automatically managed/resized buffer
+ *
+ * In most respect, Buffer class is equivalent to std::vector<uint8_t> and is in fact
+ * uses it as a base class.  In addition to that, it provides buf() and buf<T>() helper
+ * method for easier access to the underlying data (buf<T>() casts pointer to the requested class)
+ */
+class Buffer : public std::vector<uint8_t>
+{
+public:
+  /**
+   * @brief Creates an empty buffer
+   */
+  Buffer ()
+  {
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Create a buffer by copying the supplied data from a const buffer
+   * @param buf const pointer to buffer
+   * @param length length of the buffer to copy
+   */
+  Buffer (const void *buf, size_t length)
+    : std::vector<uint8_t> (reinterpret_cast<const uint8_t*> (buf), reinterpret_cast<const uint8_t*> (buf) + length)
+  {
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Create a buffer by copying the supplied data using iterator interface
+   *
+   * Note that the supplied iterators must be compatible with std::vector<uint8_t> interface
+   *
+   * @param first iterator to a first element to copy
+   * @param last  iterator to an element immediately following the last element to copy
+   */
+  template <class InputIterator>
+  Buffer (InputIterator first, InputIterator last)
+    : std::vector<uint8_t> (first, last)
+  {
+  }
+  
+  /**
+   * @brief Get pointer to the first byte of the buffer
+   */
+  inline uint8_t*
+  get ()
+  {
+    return &front ();
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Get pointer to the first byte of the buffer (alternative version)
+   */
+  inline uint8_t*
+  buf ()
+  {
+    return &front ();
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Get pointer to the first byte of the buffer and cast
+   * it (reinterpret_cast) to the requested type T
+   */
+  template<class T>
+  inline T*
+  get ()
+  {
+    return reinterpret_cast<T *>(&front ());
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Get pointer to the first byte of the buffer (alternative version)
+   */
+  inline const uint8_t*
+  buf () const
+  {
+    return &front ();
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Get const pointer to the first byte of the buffer
+   */
+  inline const uint8_t*
+  get () const
+  {
+    return &front ();
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @brief Get const pointer to the first byte of the buffer and cast
+   * it (reinterpret_cast) to the requested type T
+   */
+  template<class T>
+  inline const T*
+  get () const
+  {
+    return reinterpret_cast<const T *>(&front ());
+  }  
+};
+
+/// @cond include_hidden
+namespace iostreams
+{
+
+class buffer_append_device {
+public:
+  typedef char  char_type;
+  typedef boost::iostreams::sink_tag       category;
+  
+  buffer_append_device (Buffer& container)
+  : m_container (container)
+  {
+  }
+  
+  std::streamsize
+  write(const char_type* s, std::streamsize n)
+  {
+    std::copy (s, s+n, std::back_inserter(m_container));
+    return n;
+  }
+  
+protected:
+  Buffer& m_container;
+};
+
+} // iostreams
+/// @endcond
+
+/**
+ * Class implementing interface similar to ostringstream, but to construct ndn::Buffer
+ *
+ * The benefit of using stream interface is that it provides automatic buffering of written data
+ * and eliminates (or reduces) overhead of resizing the underlying buffer when writing small pieces of data.
+ *
+ * Usage example:
+ * @code
+ *      OBufferStream obuf;
+ *      obuf.put(0);
+ *      obuf.write(another_buffer, another_buffer_size);
+ *      ptr_lib::shared_ptr<Buffer> buf = obuf.get();
+ * @endcode
+ */
+struct OBufferStream : public boost::iostreams::stream<iostreams::buffer_append_device>
+{
+  /**
+   * Default constructor
+   */
+  OBufferStream ()
+    : m_buffer (ptr_lib::make_shared<Buffer> ())
+    , m_device (*m_buffer)
+  {
+    open (m_device);
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Flush written data to the stream and return shared pointer to the underlying buffer
+   */
+  ptr_lib::shared_ptr<Buffer>
+  buf ()
+  {
+    flush ();
+    return m_buffer;
+  }
+
+private:
+  BufferPtr m_buffer;
+  iostreams::buffer_append_device m_device;
+};
+
+
+} // ndn
+
+#endif // NDN_BUFFER_HPP
diff --git a/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/endian.h b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/endian.h
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9ea5c96
--- /dev/null
+++ b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/endian.h
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+/* -*- Mode:C++; c-file-style:"gnu"; indent-tabs-mode:nil -*- */
+/*
+ * Copyright (c) 2013, Regents of the University of California
+ *
+ * BSD license, See the LICENSE file for more information
+ *
+ * Author: Junxiao Shi <shijunxiao@email.arizona.edu>
+ */
+
+#ifdef __linux__
+
+#include <endian.h>
+
+#endif
+
+#ifdef __FreeBSD__
+
+#include <sys/endian.h>
+
+#endif
+
+#ifdef __APPLE__
+
+#include <libkern/OSByteOrder.h>
+#define htobe16(x) OSSwapHostToBigInt16(x)
+#define htole16(x) OSSwapHostToLittleInt16(x)
+#define be16toh(x) OSSwapBigToHostInt16(x)
+#define le16toh(x) OSSwapLittleToHostInt16(x)
+#define htobe32(x) OSSwapHostToBigInt32(x)
+#define htole32(x) OSSwapHostToLittleInt32(x)
+#define be32toh(x) OSSwapBigToHostInt32(x)
+#define le32toh(x) OSSwapLittleToHostInt32(x)
+#define htobe64(x) OSSwapHostToBigInt64(x)
+#define htole64(x) OSSwapHostToLittleInt64(x)
+#define be64toh(x) OSSwapBigToHostInt64(x)
+#define le64toh(x) OSSwapLittleToHostInt64(x)
+
+#endif
+
diff --git a/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/tlv.hpp b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/tlv.hpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0edf94a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/include/ndn-cpp/encoding/tlv.hpp
@@ -0,0 +1,326 @@
+/* -*- Mode:C++; c-file-style:"gnu"; indent-tabs-mode:nil -*- */
+/*
+ * Copyright (c) 2013, Regents of the University of California
+ *
+ * BSD license, See the LICENSE file for more information
+ *
+ * Author: Alexander Afanasyev <alexander.afanasyev@ucla.edu>
+ */
+
+#ifndef NDN_TLV_HPP
+#define NDN_TLV_HPP
+
+#include "buffer.hpp"
+#include "endian.h"
+
+namespace ndn {
+
+/**
+ * @brief Namespace defining NDN-TLV related constants and procedures
+ */
+namespace Tlv {
+
+struct Error : public std::runtime_error { Error(const std::string &what) : std::runtime_error(what) {} };
+
+enum {
+  Interest      = 0,
+  Data          = 1,
+  Name          = 2,
+  NameComponent = 3,
+  Selectors     = 4,
+  Nonce         = 5,
+  Scope         = 6,
+  InterestLifetime          = 7,
+  MinSuffixComponents       = 8,
+  MaxSuffixComponents       = 9,
+  PublisherPublicKeyLocator = 10,
+  Exclude       = 11,
+  ChildSelector = 12,
+  MustBeFresh   = 13,
+  Any           = 14,
+  MetaInfo      = 15,
+  Content       = 16,
+  SignatureInfo = 17,
+  SignatureValue = 18,
+  ContentType   = 19,
+  FreshnessPeriod = 20,
+  SignatureType = 21,
+  KeyLocator    = 22,
+  KeyLocatorDigest = 23,
+
+  AppPrivateBlock1 = 128,
+  AppPrivateBlock2 = 32767
+};
+
+enum SignatureType {
+  DigestSha256 = 0,
+  SignatureSha256WithRsa = 1,
+};
+
+enum ConentType {
+  ContentType_Default = 0,
+  ContentType_Link = 1,
+  ContentType_Key = 2,
+};
+
+/**
+ * @brief Read VAR-NUMBER in NDN-TLV encoding
+ *
+ * This call will throw ndn::Tlv::Error (aka std::runtime_error) if number cannot be read
+ *
+ * Note that after call finished, begin will point to the first byte after the read VAR-NUMBER
+ */
+template<class InputIterator>
+inline uint64_t
+readVarNumber(InputIterator &begin, const InputIterator &end);
+
+/**
+ * @brief Read TLV Type
+ *
+ * This call is largely equivalent to tlv::readVarNumber, but exception will be thrown if type
+ * is larger than 2^32-1 (type in this library is implemented as uint32_t)
+ */
+template<class InputIterator>
+inline uint32_t
+readType(InputIterator &begin, const InputIterator &end);
+
+/**
+ * @brief Get number of bytes necessary to hold value of VAR-NUMBER
+ */
+inline size_t
+sizeOfVarNumber(uint64_t varNumber);
+
+/**
+ * @brief Write VAR-NUMBER to the specified stream
+ */
+inline size_t
+writeVarNumber(std::ostream &os, uint64_t varNumber);
+
+/**
+ * @brief Read nonNegativeInteger in NDN-TLV encoding
+ *
+ * This call will throw ndn::Tlv::Error (aka std::runtime_error) if number cannot be read
+ *
+ * Note that after call finished, begin will point to the first byte after the read VAR-NUMBER
+ *
+ * How many bytes will be read is directly controlled by the size parameter, which can be either
+ * 1, 2, 4, or 8.  If the value of size is different, then an exception will be thrown.
+ */
+template<class InputIterator>
+inline uint64_t
+readNonNegativeInteger(size_t size, InputIterator &begin, const InputIterator &end);
+
+/**
+ * @brief Get number of bytes necessary to hold value of nonNegativeInteger
+ */
+inline size_t
+sizeOfNonNegativeInteger(uint64_t varNumber);
+
+/**
+ * @brief Write nonNegativeInteger to the specified stream
+ */
+inline size_t
+writeNonNegativeInteger(std::ostream &os, uint64_t varNumber);
+
+/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+
+// Inline implementations
+
+/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+
+template<class InputIterator>
+inline uint64_t
+readVarNumber(InputIterator &begin, const InputIterator &end)
+{
+  if (begin == end)
+    throw Error("Empty buffer during TLV processing");
+  
+  uint8_t value = *begin;
+  ++begin;
+  if (value < 253)
+    {
+      return value;
+    }
+  else if (value == 253)
+    {
+      if (end - begin < 2)
+        throw Error("Insufficient data during TLV processing");
+      
+      uint16_t value = *reinterpret_cast<const uint16_t*>(&*begin); // kind of dangerous... but should be efficient
+      begin += 2;
+      return be16toh(value);
+    }
+  else if (value == 254)
+    {
+      if (end - begin < 4)
+        throw Error("Insufficient data during TLV processing");
+      
+      uint32_t value = *reinterpret_cast<const uint32_t*>(&*begin); // kind of dangerous... but should be efficient
+      begin += 4;
+      return be32toh(value);
+    }
+  else // if (value == 255)
+    {
+      if (end - begin < 8)
+        throw Error("Insufficient data during TLV processing");
+      
+      uint64_t value = *reinterpret_cast<const uint64_t*>(&*begin);
+      begin += 8;
+
+      return be64toh(value);
+    }
+}
+
+template<class InputIterator>
+inline uint32_t
+readType(InputIterator &begin, const InputIterator &end)
+{
+  uint64_t type   = readVarNumber(begin, end);
+  if (type > std::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max())
+    {
+      throw Error("TLV type code exceeds allowed maximum");
+    }
+
+  return static_cast<uint32_t> (type);
+}
+
+size_t
+sizeOfVarNumber(uint64_t varNumber)
+{
+  if (varNumber < 253) {
+    return 1;
+  }
+  else if (varNumber <= std::numeric_limits<uint16_t>::max()) {
+    return 3;
+  }
+  else if (varNumber <= std::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max()) {
+    return 5;
+  }
+  else {
+    return 9;
+  }
+}
+
+inline size_t
+writeVarNumber(std::ostream &os, uint64_t varNumber)
+{
+  if (varNumber < 253) {
+    os.put(static_cast<uint8_t> (varNumber));
+    return 1;
+  }
+  else if (varNumber <= std::numeric_limits<uint16_t>::max()) {
+    os.put(253);
+    uint16_t value = htobe16(static_cast<uint16_t> (varNumber));
+    os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*> (&value), 2);
+    return 3;
+  }
+  else if (varNumber <= std::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max()) {
+    os.put(254);
+    uint32_t value = htobe32(static_cast<uint32_t> (varNumber));
+    os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*> (&value), 4);
+    return 5;
+  }
+  else {
+    os.put(255);
+    uint64_t value = htobe64(varNumber);
+    os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*> (&value), 8);
+    return 9;
+  }
+}
+
+template<class InputIterator>
+inline uint64_t
+readNonNegativeInteger(size_t size, InputIterator &begin, const InputIterator &end)
+{
+  switch (size) {
+  case 1:
+    {
+      if (end - begin < 1)
+        throw Error("Insufficient data during TLV processing");
+      
+      uint8_t value = *begin;
+      begin++;
+      return value;
+    }
+  case 2:
+    {
+      if (end - begin < 2)
+        throw Error("Insufficient data during TLV processing");
+      
+      uint16_t value = *reinterpret_cast<const uint16_t*>(&*begin); // kind of dangerous... but should be efficient
+      begin += 2;
+      return be16toh(value);
+    }
+  case 4:
+    {
+      if (end - begin < 4)
+        throw Error("Insufficient data during TLV processing");
+      
+      uint32_t value = *reinterpret_cast<const uint32_t*>(&*begin); // kind of dangerous... but should be efficient
+      begin += 4;
+      return be32toh(value);
+    }
+  case 8:
+    {
+      if (end - begin < 8)
+        throw Error("Insufficient data during TLV processing");
+      
+      uint64_t value = *reinterpret_cast<const uint64_t*>(&*begin);
+      begin += 8;
+      return be64toh(value);
+    }
+  }
+  throw Error("Invalid length for nonNegativeInteger (only 1, 2, 4, and 8 are allowed)");
+}
+
+inline size_t
+sizeOfNonNegativeInteger(uint64_t varNumber)
+{
+  if (varNumber < 253) {
+    return 1;
+  }
+  else if (varNumber <= std::numeric_limits<uint16_t>::max()) {
+    return 2;
+  }
+  else if (varNumber <= std::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max()) {
+    return 4;
+  }
+  else {
+    return 8;
+  }
+}
+
+
+inline size_t
+writeNonNegativeInteger(std::ostream &os, uint64_t varNumber)
+{
+  if (varNumber < 253) {
+    os.put(static_cast<uint8_t> (varNumber));
+    return 1;
+  }
+  else if (varNumber <= std::numeric_limits<uint16_t>::max()) {
+    uint16_t value = htobe16(static_cast<uint16_t> (varNumber));
+    os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*> (&value), 2);
+    return 2;
+  }
+  else if (varNumber <= std::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max()) {
+    uint32_t value = htobe32(static_cast<uint32_t> (varNumber));
+    os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*> (&value), 4);
+    return 4;
+  }
+  else {
+    uint64_t value = htobe64(varNumber);
+    os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*> (&value), 8);
+    return 8;
+  }
+}
+
+
+} // namespace tlv
+} // namespace ndn
+
+#endif // NDN_TLV_HPP
diff --git a/src/encoding/block.cpp b/src/encoding/block.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c19cee7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/encoding/block.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,210 @@
+/* -*- Mode:C++; c-file-style:"gnu"; indent-tabs-mode:nil -*- */
+/*
+ * Copyright (c) 2013, Regents of the University of California
+ *
+ * BSD license, See the LICENSE file for more information
+ *
+ * Author: Alexander Afanasyev <alexander.afanasyev@ucla.edu>
+ */
+
+#include <ndn-cpp/encoding/block.hpp>
+#include <ndn-cpp/encoding/tlv.hpp>
+
+namespace ndn {
+
+Block::Block()
+  : m_type(std::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max())
+{
+}
+
+Block::Block(const ConstBufferPtr &wire,
+             uint32_t type,
+             const Buffer::const_iterator &begin, Buffer::const_iterator &end,
+             const Buffer::const_iterator &valueBegin, Buffer::const_iterator &valueEnd)
+  : m_buffer(wire)
+  , m_type(type)
+  , m_begin(begin)
+  , m_end(end)
+  , m_size(m_end - m_begin)
+  , m_value_begin(valueBegin)
+  , m_value_end(valueEnd)
+{
+}
+
+Block::Block(const ConstBufferPtr &buffer)
+  : m_buffer(buffer)
+  , m_begin(m_buffer->begin())
+  , m_end(m_buffer->end())
+  , m_size(m_end - m_begin)
+{
+  m_value_begin = m_buffer->begin();
+  m_value_end   = m_buffer->end();
+  
+  m_type = Tlv::readType(m_value_begin, m_value_end);
+
+  uint64_t length = Tlv::readVarNumber(m_value_begin, m_value_end);
+  if (length != (m_value_end - m_value_begin))
+    {
+      throw Tlv::Error("TLV length doesn't match buffer length");
+    }
+}
+
+Block::Block(const uint8_t *buffer, size_t maxlength)
+{
+  const uint8_t * tmp_begin = buffer;
+  const uint8_t * tmp_end   = buffer + maxlength;  
+  
+  m_type = Tlv::readType(tmp_begin, tmp_end);
+  uint64_t length = Tlv::readVarNumber(tmp_begin, tmp_end);
+  
+  if (length > (tmp_end - tmp_begin))
+    {
+      throw Tlv::Error("Not enough data in the buffer to fully parse TLV");
+    }
+
+  m_buffer = ptr_lib::make_shared<Buffer> (buffer, (tmp_begin - buffer) + length);
+
+  m_begin = m_buffer->begin();
+  m_end = m_buffer->end();
+  m_size = m_end - m_begin;
+
+  m_value_begin = m_buffer->begin() + (tmp_begin - buffer);
+  m_value_end   = m_buffer->end();
+}
+
+Block::Block(const void *bufferX, size_t maxlength)
+{
+  const uint8_t * buffer = reinterpret_cast<const uint8_t*>(bufferX);
+  
+  const uint8_t * tmp_begin = buffer;
+  const uint8_t * tmp_end   = buffer + maxlength;  
+  
+  m_type = Tlv::readType(tmp_begin, tmp_end);
+  uint64_t length = Tlv::readVarNumber(tmp_begin, tmp_end);
+  
+  if (length > (tmp_end - tmp_begin))
+    {
+      throw Tlv::Error("Not enough data in the buffer to fully parse TLV");
+    }
+
+  m_buffer = ptr_lib::make_shared<Buffer> (buffer, (tmp_begin - buffer) + length);
+
+  m_begin = m_buffer->begin();
+  m_end = m_buffer->end();
+  m_size = m_end - m_begin;
+
+  m_value_begin = m_buffer->begin() + (tmp_begin - buffer);
+  m_value_end   = m_buffer->end();
+}
+
+Block::Block(uint32_t type)
+  : m_type(type)
+{
+}
+
+Block::Block(uint32_t type, const ConstBufferPtr &value)
+  : m_buffer(value)
+  , m_type(type)
+  , m_begin(m_buffer->end())
+  , m_end(m_buffer->end())
+  , m_value_begin(m_buffer->begin())
+  , m_value_end(m_buffer->end())
+{
+  m_size = Tlv::sizeOfVarNumber(m_type) + Tlv::sizeOfVarNumber(value_size()) + value_size();
+}
+
+Block::Block(uint32_t type, const Block &value)
+  : m_buffer(value.m_buffer)
+  , m_type(type)
+  , m_begin(m_buffer->end())
+  , m_end(m_buffer->end())
+  , m_value_begin(m_buffer->begin())
+  , m_value_end(m_buffer->end())
+{
+  m_size = Tlv::sizeOfVarNumber(m_type) + Tlv::sizeOfVarNumber(value_size()) + value_size();
+}
+
+void
+Block::parse()
+{
+  if (!m_subBlocks.empty() || value_size()==0)
+    return;
+  
+  Buffer::const_iterator begin = value_begin(),
+    end = value_end();
+
+  while (begin != end)
+    {
+      Buffer::const_iterator element_begin = begin;
+      
+      uint32_t type = Tlv::readType(begin, end);
+      uint64_t length = Tlv::readVarNumber(begin, end);
+
+      if (end-begin < length)
+        {
+          m_subBlocks.clear();
+          throw Tlv::Error("TLV length exceeds buffer length");
+        }
+      Buffer::const_iterator element_end = begin + length;
+      
+      m_subBlocks.push_back(Block(m_buffer,
+                                  type,
+                                  element_begin, element_end,
+                                  begin, element_end));
+
+      begin = element_end;
+      // don't do recursive parsing, just the top level
+    }
+}
+
+void
+Block::encode()
+{
+  if (hasWire())
+    return;
+
+  OBufferStream os;
+  Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, type());
+
+  if (hasValue())
+    {
+      Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, value_size());
+      os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*>(value()), value_size());
+    }
+  else
+    {
+      size_t valueSize = 0;
+      for (element_const_iterator i = m_subBlocks.begin(); i != m_subBlocks.end(); ++i) {
+        valueSize += i->size();
+      }
+  
+      Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, valueSize);
+
+      for (element_const_iterator i = m_subBlocks.begin(); i != m_subBlocks.end(); ++i) {
+        if (i->hasWire())
+          os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*>(i->wire()), i->size());
+        else if (i->hasValue()) {
+          Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, i->type());
+          Tlv::writeVarNumber(os, i->value_size());
+          os.write(reinterpret_cast<const char*>(i->value()), i->value_size());
+        }
+        else
+          throw Error("Underlying value buffer is empty");
+      }
+    }
+
+  // now assign correct block
+
+  m_buffer = os.buf();
+  m_begin = m_buffer->begin();
+  m_end   = m_buffer->end();
+  m_size  = m_end - m_begin;
+
+  m_value_begin = m_buffer->begin();
+  m_value_end   = m_buffer->end();
+  
+  Tlv::readType(m_value_begin, m_value_end);
+  Tlv::readVarNumber(m_value_begin, m_value_end);
+}
+
+} // namespace ndn