Network Working Group M. Stahl

Request for Comments: 1032 SRI International

November 1987

DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE

STATUS OF THIS MEMO

This memo describes procedures for registering a domain with the

Network Information Center (NIC) of Defense Data Network (DDN), and

offers guidelines on the establishment and administration of a domain

in accordance with the requirements specified in RFC-920. It is

intended for use by domain administrators. This memo should be used

in conjunction with RFC-920, which is an official policy statement of

the Internet Activities Board (IAB) and the Defense Advanced Research

Projects Agency (DARPA). Distribution of this memo is unlimited.

BACKGROUND

Domains are administrative entities that provide decentralized

management of host naming and addressing. The domain-naming system

is distributed and hierarchical.

The NIC is designated by the Defense Communications Agency (DCA) to

provide registry services for the domain-naming system on the DDN and

DARPA portions of the Internet.

As registrar of top-level and second-level domains, as well as

administrator of the root domain name servers on behalf of DARPA and

DDN, the NIC is responsible for maintaining the root server zone

files and their binary equivalents. In addition, the NIC is

responsible for administering the top-level domains of "ARPA," "COM,"

"EDU," "ORG," "GOV," and "MIL" on behalf of DCA and DARPA until it

becomes feasible for other appropriate organizations to assume those

responsibilities.

It is recommended that the guidelines described in this document be

used by domain administrators in the establishment and control of

second-level domains.

THE DOMAIN ADMINISTRATOR

The role of the domain administrator (DA) is that of coordinator,

manager, and technician. If his domain is established at the second

level or lower in the tree, the DA must register by interacting with

the management of the domain directly above his, making certain that

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

his domain satisfies all the requirements of the administration under

which his domain would be situated. To find out who has authority

over the name space he wishes to join, the DA can ask the NIC

Hostmaster. Information on contacts for the top-level and second-

level domains can also be found on line in the file NETINFO:DOMAIN-

CONTACTS.TXT, which is available from the NIC via anonymous FTP.

The DA should be technically competent; he should understand the

concepts and procedures for operating a domain server, as described

in RFC-1034, and make sure that the service provided is reliable and

uninterrupted. It is his responsibility or that of his delegate to

ensure that the data will be current at all times. As a manager, the

DA must be able to handle complaints about service provided by his

domain name server. He must be aware of the behavior of the hosts in

his domain, and take prompt action on reports of problems, such as

protocol violations or other serious misbehavior. The administrator

of a domain must be a responsible person who has the authority to

either enforce these actions himself or delegate them to someone

else.

Name assignments within a domain are controlled by the DA, who should

verify that names are unique within his domain and that they conform

to standard naming conventions. He furnishes access to names and

name-related information to users both inside and outside his domain.

He should work closely with the personnel he has designated as the

"technical and zone" contacts for his domain, for many administrative

decisions will be made on the basis of input from these people.

THE DOMAIN TECHNICAL AND ZONE CONTACT

A zone consists of those contiguous parts of the domain tree for

which a domain server has complete information and over which it has

authority. A domain server may be authoritative for more than one

zone. The domain technical/zone contact is the person who tends to

the technical aspects of maintaining the domain's name server and

resolver software, and database files. He keeps the name server

running, and interacts with technical people in other domains and

zones to solve problems that affect his zone.

POLICIES

Domain or host name choices and the allocation of domain name space

are considered to be local matters. In the event of conflicts, it is

the policy of the NIC not to get involved in local disputes or in the

local decision-making process. The NIC will not act as referee in

disputes over such matters as who has the "right" to register a

particular top-level or second-level domain for an organization. The

NIC considers this a private local matter that must be settled among

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

the parties involved prior to their commencing the registration

process with the NIC. Therefore, it is assumed that the responsible

person for a domain will have resolved any local conflicts among the

members of his domain before registering that domain with the NIC.

The NIC will give guidance, if requested, by answering specific

technical questions, but will not provide arbitration in disputes at

the local level. This policy is also in keeping with the distributed

hierarchical nature of the domain-naming system in that it helps to

distribute the tasks of solving problems and handling questions.

Naming conventions for hosts should follow the rules specified in

RFC-952. From a technical standpoint, domain names can be very long.

Each segment of a domain name may contain up to 64 characters, but

the NIC strongly advises DAs to choose names that are 12 characters

or fewer, because behind every domain system there is a human being

who must keep track of the names, addresses, contacts, and other data

in a database. The longer the name, the more likely the data

maintainer is to make a mistake. Users also will appreciate shorter

names. Most people agree that short names are easier to remember and

type; most domain names registered so far are 12 characters or fewer.

Domain name assignments are made on a first-come-first-served basis.

The NIC has chosen not to register individual hosts directly under

the top-level domains it administers. One advantage of the domain

naming system is that administration and data maintenance can be

delegated down a hierarchical tree. Registration of hosts at the

same level in the tree as a second-level domain would dilute the

usefulness of this feature. In addition, the administrator of a

domain is responsible for the actions of hosts within his domain. We

would not want to find ourselves in the awkward position of policing

the actions of individual hosts. Rather, the subdomains registered

under these top-level domains retain the responsibility for this

function.

Countries that wish to be registered as top-level domains are

required to name themselves after the two-letter country code listed

in the international standard ISO-3166. In some cases, however, the

two-letter ISO country code is identical to a state code used by the

U.S. Postal Service. Requests made by countries to use the three-

letter form of country code specified in the ISO-3166 standard will

be considered in such cases so as to prevent possible conflicts and

confusion.

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

HOW TO REGISTER

Obtain a domain questionnaire from the NIC hostmaster, or FTP the

file NETINFO:DOMAIN-TEMPLATE.TXT from host SRI-NIC.ARPA.

Fill out the questionnaire completely. Return it via electronic mail

to HOSTMASTER@SRI-NIC.ARPA.

The APPENDIX to this memo contains the application form for

registering a top-level or second-level domain with the NIC. It

supersedes the version of the questionnaire found in RFC-920. The

application should be submitted by the person administratively

responsible for the domain, and must be filled out completely before

the NIC will authorize establishment of a top-level or second-level

domain. The DA is responsible for keeping his domain's data current

with the NIC or with the registration agent with which his domain is

registered. For example, the CSNET and UUCP managements act as

domain filters, processing domain applications for their own

organizations. They pass pertinent information along periodically to

the NIC for incorporation into the domain database and root server

files. The online file NETINFO:ALTERNATE-DOMAIN-PROCEDURE.TXT

outlines this procedure. It is highly recommended that the DA review

this information periodically and provide any corrections or

additions. Corrections should be submitted via electronic mail.

WHICH DOMAIN NAME?

The designers of the domain-naming system initiated several general

categories of names as top-level domain names, so that each could

accommodate a variety of organizations. The current top-level

domains registered with the DDN Network Information Center are ARPA,

COM, EDU, GOV, MIL, NET, and ORG, plus a number of top-level country

domains. To join one of these, a DA needs to be aware of the purpose

for which it was intended.

"ARPA" is a temporary domain. It is by default appended to the

names of hosts that have not yet joined a domain. When the system

was begun in 1984, the names of all hosts in the Official DoD

Internet Host Table maintained by the NIC were changed by adding

of the label ".ARPA" in order to accelerate a transition to the

domain-naming system. Another reason for the blanket name changes

was to force hosts to become accustomed to using the new style

names and to modify their network software, if necessary. This

was done on a network-wide basis and was directed by DCA in DDN

Management Bulletin No. 22. Hosts that fall into this domain will

eventually move to other branches of the domain tree.

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

"COM" is meant to incorporate subdomains of companies and

businesses.

"EDU" was initiated to accommodate subdomains set up by

universities and other educational institutions.

"GOV" exists to act as parent domain for subdomains set up by

government agencies.

"MIL" was initiated to act as parent to subdomains that are

developed by military organizations.

"NET" was introduced as a parent domain for various network-type

organizations. Organizations that belong within this top-level

domain are generic or network-specific, such as network service

centers and consortia. "NET" also encompasses network

management-related organizations, such as information centers and

operations centers.

"ORG" exists as a parent to subdomains that do not clearly fall

within the other top-level domains. This may include technical-

support groups, professional societies, or similar organizations.

One of the guidelines in effect in the domain-naming system is that a

host should have only one name regardless of what networks it is

connected to. This implies, that, in general, domain names should

not include routing information or addresses. For example, a host

that has one network connection to the Internet and another to BITNET

should use the same name when talking to either network. For a

description of the syntax of domain names, please refer to Section 3

of RFC-1034.

VERIFICATION OF DATA

The verification process can be accomplished in several ways. One of

these is through the NIC WHOIS server. If he has access to WHOIS,

the DA can type the command "whois domain <domain name><return>".

The reply from WHOIS will supply the following: the name and address

of the organization "owning" the domain; the name of the domain; its

administrative, technical, and zone contacts; the host names and

network addresses of sites providing name service for the domain.

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

Example:

@whois domain rice.edu<Return>

Rice University (RICE-DOM)

Advanced Studies and Research

Houston, TX 77001

Domain Name: RICE.EDU

Administrative Contact:

Kennedy, Ken (KK28) Kennedy@LLL-CRG.ARPA (713) 527-4834

Technical Contact, Zone Contact:

Riffle, Vicky R. (VRR) rif@RICE.EDU

(713) 527-8101 ext 3844

Domain servers:

RICE.EDU 128.42.5.1

PENDRAGON.CS.PURDUE.EDU 128.10.2.5

Alternatively, the DA can send an electronic mail message to

SERVICE@SRI-NIC.ARPA. In the subject line of the message header, the

DA should type "whois domain <domain name>". The requested

information will be returned via electronic mail. This method is

convenient for sites that do not have access to the NIC WHOIS

service.

The initial application for domain authorization should be submitted

via electronic mail, if possible, to HOSTMASTER@SRI-NIC.ARPA. The

questionnaire described in the appendix may be used or a separate

application can be FTPed from host SRI-NIC.ARPA. The information

provided by the administrator will be reviewed by hostmaster

personnel for completeness. There will most likely be a few

exchanges of correspondence via electronic mail, the preferred method

of communication, prior to authorization of the domain.

HOW TO GET MORE INFORMATION

An informational table of the top-level domains and their root

servers is contained in the file NETINFO:DOMAINS.TXT online at SRI-

NIC.ARPA. This table can be obtained by FTPing the file.

Alternatively, the information can be acquired by opening a TCP or

UDP connection to the NIC Host Name Server, port 101 on SRI-NIC.ARPA,

and invoking the command "ALL-DOM".

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The following online files, all available by FTP from SRI-NIC.ARPA,

contain pertinent domain information:

- NETINFO:DOMAINS.TXT, a table of all top-level domains and the

network addresses of the machines providing domain name

service for them. It is updated each time a new top-level

domain is approved.

- NETINFO:DOMAIN-INFO.TXT contains a concise list of all

top-level and second-level domain names registered with the

NIC and is updated monthly.

- NETINFO:DOMAIN-CONTACTS.TXT also contains a list of all the

top level and second-level domains, but includes the

administrative, technical and zone contacts for each as well.

- NETINFO:DOMAIN-TEMPLATE.TXT contains the questionnaire to be

completed before registering a top-level or second-level

domain.

For either general or specific information on the domain system, do

one or more of the following:

1. Send electronic mail to HOSTMASTER@SRI-NIC.ARPA

2. Call the toll-free NIC hotline at (800) 235-3155

3. Use FTP to get background RFCs and other files maintained

online at the NIC. Some pertinent RFCs are listed below in

the REFERENCES section of this memo.

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

REFERENCES

The references listed here provide important background information

on the domain-naming system. Path names of the online files

available via anonymous FTP from the SRI-NIC.ARPA host are noted in

brackets.

1. Defense Communications Agency DDN Defense Communications

System, DDN Management Bulletin No. 22, Domain Names

Transition, March 1984.

[ DDN-NEWS:DDN-MGT-BULLETIN-22.TXT ]

2. Defense Communications Agency DDN Defense Communications

System, DDN Management Bulletin No. 32, Phase I of the Domain

Name Implementation, January 1987.

[ DDN-NEWS:DDN-MGT-BULLETIN-32.TXT ]

3. Harrenstien, K., M. Stahl, and E. Feinler, "Hostname

Server", RFC-953, DDN Network Information Center, SRI

International, October 1985. [ RFC:RFC953.TXT ]

4. Harrenstien, K., M. Stahl, and E. Feinler, "Official DoD

Internet Host Table Specification", RFC-952, DDN Network

Information Center, SRI International, October 1985.

[ RFC:RFC952.TXT ]

5. ISO, "Codes for the Representation of Names of Countries",

ISO-3166, International Standards Organization, May 1981.

[ Not online ]

6. Lazear, W.D., "MILNET Name Domain Transition", RFC-1031,

Mitre Corporation, October 1987. [ RFC:RFC1031.TXT ]

7. Lottor, M.K., "Domain Administrators Operations Guide",

RFC-1033, DDN Network Information Center, SRI International,

July 1987. [ RFC:RFC1033.TXT ]

8. Mockapetris, P., "Domain Names - Concepts and Facilities",

RFC-1034, USC Information Sciences Institute, October 1987.

[ RFC:RFC1034.TXT ]

9. Mockapetris, P., "Domain Names - Implementation and

Specification", RFC-1035, USC Information Sciences Institute,

October 1987. [ RFC:RFC1035.TXT ]

10. Mockapetris, P., "The Domain Name System", Proceedings of the

IFIP 6.5 Working Conference on Computer Message Services,

Nottingham, England, May 1984. Also as ISI/RS-84-133, June

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

1984. [ Not online ]

11. Mockapetris, P., J. Postel, and P. Kirton, "Name Server

Design for Distributed Systems", Proceedings of the Seventh

International Conference on Computer Communication, October

30 to November 3 1984, Sidney, Australia. Also as

ISI/RS-84-132, June 1984. [ Not online ]

12. Partridge, C., "Mail Routing and the Domain System", RFC-974,

CSNET-CIC, BBN Laboratories, January 1986.

[ RFC:RFC974.TXT ]

13. Postel, J., "The Domain Names Plan and Schedule", RFC-881,

USC Information Sciences Institute, November 1983.

[ RFC:RFC881.TXT ]

14. Reynolds, J., and Postel, J., "Assigned Numbers", RFC-1010

USC Information Sciences Institute, May 1986.

[ RFC:RFC1010.TXT ]

15. Romano, S., and Stahl, M., "Internet Numbers", RFC-1020,

SRI, November 1987.

[ RFC:RFC1020.TXT ]

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

APPENDIX

The following questionnaire may be FTPed from SRI-NIC.ARPA as

NETINFO:DOMAIN-TEMPLATE.TXT.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

To establish a domain, the following information must be sent to the

NIC Domain Registrar (HOSTMASTER@SRI-NIC.ARPA):

NOTE: The key people must have electronic mailboxes and NIC

"handles," unique NIC database identifiers. If you have access to

"WHOIS", please check to see if you are registered and if so, make

sure the information is current. Include only your handle and any

changes (if any) that need to be made in your entry. If you do not

have access to "WHOIS", please provide all the information indicated

and a NIC handle will be assigned.

(1) The name of the top-level domain to join.

For example: COM

(2) The NIC handle of the administrative head of the organization.

Alternately, the person's name, title, mailing address, phone number,

organization, and network mailbox. This is the contact point for

administrative and policy questions about the domain. In the case of

a research project, this should be the principal investigator.

For example:

Administrator

Organization The NetWorthy Corporation

Name Penelope Q. Sassafrass

Title President

Mail Address The NetWorthy Corporation

4676 Andrews Way, Suite 100

Santa Clara, CA 94302-1212

Phone Number (415) 123-4567

Net Mailbox Sassafrass@ECHO.TNC.COM

NIC Handle PQS

(3) The NIC handle of the technical contact for the domain.

Alternately, the person's name, title, mailing address, phone number,

organization, and network mailbox. This is the contact point for

problems concerning the domain or zone, as well as for updating

information about the domain or zone.

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For example:

Technical and Zone Contact

Organization The NetWorthy Corporation

Name Ansel A. Aardvark

Title Executive Director

Mail Address The NetWorthy Corporation

4676 Andrews Way, Suite 100

Santa Clara, CA. 94302-1212

Phone Number (415) 123-6789

Net Mailbox Aardvark@ECHO.TNC.COM

NIC Handle AAA2

(4) The name of the domain (up to 12 characters). This is the name

that will be used in tables and lists associating the domain with the

domain server addresses. [While, from a technical standpoint, domain

names can be quite long (programmers beware), shorter names are

easier for people to cope with.]

For example: TNC

(5) A description of the servers that provide the domain service for

translating names to addresses for hosts in this domain, and the date

they will be operational.

A good way to answer this question is to say "Our server is

supplied by person or company X and does whatever their standard

issue server does."

For example: Our server is a copy of the one operated by

the NIC; it will be installed and made operational on

1 November 1987.

(6) Domains must provide at least two independent servers for the

domain. Establishing the servers in physically separate locations

and on different PSNs is strongly recommended. A description of the

server machine and its backup, including

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

(a) Hardware and software (using keywords from the Assigned

Numbers RFC).

(b) Host domain name and network addresses (which host on which

network for each connected network).

(c) Any domain-style nicknames (please limit your domain-style

nickname request to one)

For example:

- Hardware and software

VAX-11/750 and UNIX, or

IBM-PC and MS-DOS, or

DEC-1090 and TOPS-20

- Host domain names and network addresses

BAR.FOO.COM 10.9.0.193 on ARPANET

- Domain-style nickname

BR.FOO.COM (same as BAR.FOO.COM 10.9.0.13 on ARPANET)

(7) Planned mapping of names of any other network hosts, other than

the server machines, into the new domain's naming space.

For example:

BAR-FOO2.ARPA (10.8.0.193) -> FOO2.BAR.COM

BAR-FOO3.ARPA (10.7.0.193) -> FOO3.BAR.COM

BAR-FOO4.ARPA (10.6.0.193) -> FOO4.BAR.COM

(8) An estimate of the number of hosts that will be in the domain.

(a) Initially

(b) Within one year

(c) Two years

(d) Five years.

For example:

(a) Initially = 50

(b) One year = 100

(c) Two years = 200

(d) Five years = 500

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(9) The date you expect the fully qualified domain name to become

the official host name in HOSTS.TXT.

Please note: If changing to a fully qualified domain name (e.g.,

FOO.BAR.COM) causes a change in the official host name of an

ARPANET or MILNET host, DCA approval must be obtained beforehand.

Allow 10 working days for your requested changes to be processed.

ARPANET sites should contact ARPANETMGR@DDN1.ARPA. MILNET sites

should contact HOSTMASTER@SRI-NIC.ARPA, 800-235-3155, for

further instructions.

(10) Please describe your organization briefly.

For example: The NetWorthy Corporation is a consulting

organization of people working with UNIX and the C language in an

electronic networking environment. It sponsors two technical

conferences annually and distributes a bimonthly newsletter.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

This example of a completed application corresponds to the examples

found in the companion document RFC-1033, "Domain Administrators

Operations Guide."

(1) The name of the top-level domain to join.

COM

(2) The NIC handle of the administrative contact person.

NIC Handle JAKE

(3) The NIC handle of the domain's technical and zone

contact person.

NIC Handle DLE6

(4) The name of the domain.

SRI

(5) A description of the servers.

Our server is the TOPS20 server JEEVES supplied by ISI; it

will be installed and made operational on 1 July 1987.

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RFC 1032 DOMAIN ADMINISTRATORS GUIDE November 1987

(6) A description of the server machine and its backup:

(a) Hardware and software

DEC-1090T and TOPS20

DEC-2065 and TOPS20

(b) Host domain name and network address

KL.SRI.COM 10.1.0.2 on ARPANET, 128.18.10.6 on SRINET

STRIPE.SRI.COM 10.4.0.2 on ARPANET, 128.18.10.4 on SRINET

(c) Domain-style nickname

None

(7) Planned mapping of names of any other network hosts, other than

the server machines, into the new domain's naming space.

SRI-Blackjack.ARPA (128.18.2.1) -> Blackjack.SRI.COM

SRI-CSL.ARPA (192.12.33.2) -> CSL.SRI.COM

(8) An estimate of the number of hosts that will be directly within

this domain.

(a) Initially = 50

(b) One year = 100

(c) Two years = 200

(d) Five years = 500

(9) A date when you expect the fully qualified domain name to become

the official host name in HOSTS.TXT.

31 September 1987

(10) Brief description of organization.

SRI International is an independent, nonprofit, scientific

research organization. It performs basic and applied research

for government and commercial clients, and contributes to

worldwide economic, scientific, industrial, and social progress

through research and related services.

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