Numbered Work Items

In order to facilitate discussion about issues and solutions, as well as report on the progress made with solution implementation, the RIPE Database Working Group employs a process using Numbered Work Items (NWIs). Please note that this does not replace the Policy Development Process. Instead it is used for smaller work items and helps to facilitate the communication between the DB WG and the RIPE NCC.

Kickstart:
Anyone can contact the RIPE DB WG co-chairs and present a proposal or a problem statement. Alternatively this can also be sent to the WG mailing list directly. If there is interest in this work item, the Database WG co-chairs will ask the RIPE NCC to assign a number to this work item and include it on the list of numbered work items (NWIs).

Problem definition:
After an NWI is created, the proposal or problem statement will be discussed in the WG. This can mean further specifying the problem statement and including example cases of the problem to clarify the scope. After two to three weeks the WG co-chairs will determine of there is a consensus and will either post a clearly defined problem statement to the list, or if there is no agreement on a problem statement, the NWI will be closed.

Solution definition:
Anyone, including RIPE NCC staff, can propose solutions to a work item's problem statement. The RIPE NCC will also provide an implementation analysis that can include feasibility, expected workload, proposed solutions, impact on other work items etc. In this phase, the RIPE NCC together with the RIPE DB WG co-chairs will also determine if the NWI might have an impact on an existing policy or if the NWI might in fact lead to a change in policy or a new policy. In this case, the WG co-chairs are advised to use the more formal Policy Development Process (PDP) instead of the NWI process.

Implementation:
Once the WG agrees on the proposed solution, the RIPE NCC can start implementing it, keeping the WG up to date about the timeframe, milestones, documentation etc. The RIPE NCC will also update the entry of the NWI on the table of NWIs accordingly.

Finished:
The project ends when the change has been deployed in the production
environment.

Cancelled:
The project can also end when the working group decides to cancel it.

The RIPE NCC will update the list of NWIs on a regular basis to reflect the status of each NWI.

Text updated on 3 November 2025 after review and approval by the RIPE Database Working Group (DB WG).

List of Numbered Work Items