RIPE NCC Survey 2016 - Key Findings and Proposed Actions

Allow direct payments to the RIPE NCC in countries where international payments are an issue.

The RIPE NCC now offers different local payment options that are available through Adyen, direct debit, SEPA, etc.

Completed

Provide periodic payment options such as monthly direct debits.

Payment schedules are available per quarter, half yearly and annually. Payment by direct debit is available on request.

Completed

Problems when making payments with PayPal.

PayPal is an external party that the RIPE NCC cannot control but the new online payment system Adyen, which was implemented in November 2016, offers a range of payment options for members.

Completed

The current RIPE NCC fee structure is perceived as being unfair.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board Chairman initiated a discussion of this issue on the RIPE NCC Members Discuss mailing list to address this perception. The RIPE NCC will continue to monitor the members' opinion on issues relating to charging.

Completed

Improve awareness around new features and improvements to the LIR Portal.

Updates on the LIR Portal will be posted prominently in the RIPE NCC Member Update. News items will also be posted alerting people to developments with the LIR Portal and making them aware of usability improvements that they should be aware of. The RIPE NCC will continue to identify ways to provide better knowledge support for LIR Portal usage.

Completed

Various specific suggestions and feature requests.

The RIPE NCC makes an inventory of different features to be addressed on an individual basis. As features are implemented they will be reported to members.

Completed

Provide the ability to only receive emails on certain topics.

Subject tags have been implemented for all emails sent to ncc-announce. This was announced via email several times and included in the RIPE NCC Member Update. We have information that explains how to use subject tags on the website.

Completed

Provide more instructional videos.

The RIPE NCC identified topics of interest to our members and community based on the survey data. Helpful, instructional videos have been added, starting with how to use RIPE Atlas, and there are plans to produce more videos on a variety of topics.

Completed

Simplified language and basic step-by-step instructions on how to use services.

Content on the RIPE NCC’s websites and print materials are regularly reviewed and updated for simplicity and ease of understanding. Resources have been applied to develop brief tutorials and how-to guides. A recent video produced on how the RIPE NCC General Meeting registration and voting process works is one example.

Completed

Increased support in other languages was requested.

Core material about the RIPE NCC and how to obtain Internet number resources has been translated into Russian and Arabic and published on the website.

Completed

Make it less time consuming to follow this area and read all the materials.

The RIPE NCC Annual Report and RIPE NCC Activity Plan and Budget documents are now condensed to make them easier to follow. Monthly news items on RIPE NCC corporate governance are now included in the RIPE NCC member Update that goes to all members. The minutes of RIPE NCC Executive Board meetings are summaried and published for members. The membership section of the website is also now available on the RIPE NCC's home page.

Completed

Data accuracy is very important.

We are continuing to look for ways to improve data accuracy. Around 3,000 ARC reviews will be completed in 2017. In general, LIRs are selected randomly, but we also target LIRs through a different process if we notice outdated information, such as bouncing emails or LIRs without admin passwords. The RIPE NCC is working with the other RIRs to develop a common set of metrics to track and assess the health of registry data. We have also worked with resource holders to bring clarity to "ALLOCATED PI" and "ALLOCATED UNSPECIFIED" address blocks in the RIPE Database, based on guidance from the RIPE community.

Completed

Provide tools that require less effort or prior knowledge.

The interfaces for the LIR Portal and the RIPE Database have been merged - providing one seamless user experience regardless of the application being used. Users now only see information that is applicable to them: members see additional information regarding the type of resources they hold (Allocations, PI or PA assignment, legacy...), while non-members see information related to their RIPE NCC Access account. The IP Analyser functionality has also been integrated with My Resources, which allows users to see at a glance how much of their allocations are in use.

Completed

Provide ability for members to store customer data for private use.

We have investigated the feasibility of providing this service but have concluded that the added business value is not currently high enough. This may be re-evaluated in the future if members feel it is appropriate.

Completed

Simplify the transfers, mergers and acquisitions processes.

Continuous developments are being made in this area. A more secure document upload has been implemented. The process for LIR and End User transfers are being brought into alignment. Wizards have been introduced for a number of processes that result in registry updates and the remaining processes will also be covered over time.

Completed

Regular data quality checks by the RIPE NCC and enforcing confirmation of data correctness.

Efforts with ARCs have increased - around 3,000 will be carried out in 2017. Improvements in the LIR Portal have also been made that avoid incorrect data being submitted in registry change requests (e.g. LIRs select IP ranges from a menu rather than entering these manually).

Completed

Lack of time to implement RPKI in relation to other priorities.

Updates on RPKI and the RPKI Validator will be posted prominently in the RIPE NCC Member Update. News items will also be posted alerting people to developments with RPKI and highlighting the benefits of the service. The RIPE NCC will continue to identify ways to provide better knowledge support for RPKI implementation.

Completed

Lack of clarity as to whether hardware is appropriate or compatible with RPKI.

The RPKI webpages now contain documentation and instructions for all major hardware vendors and instructions on how to integrate RPKI with them. A sizable list of third-party tools that can be used to help with RPKI integration is also provided.

Completed

Lack of awareness of RPKI and its benefits.

Updates on RPKI and the RPKI Validator will be posted prominently in the RIPE NCC Member Update. News items will also be posted alerting people to developments with RPKI and highlighting the benefits of the service.

Completed

Course completion certificates should be approved by a recognised third party.

Options were investigated and the RIPE NCC participated in a workshop to learn more about third-party accreditation. The process to achieve third-party accreditation would be an extremely lengthy and costly process and the only certification applicable would be a "quality of training" certificate.

Completed

Improve PDP webpages to increase participation.

Updated information about regional participation in the PDP has been added. The monthly PDP updates are now included in this section. Further improvements are planned: summarising community opinions on recurring policy topics, reviewing the site structure of the PDP webpages.

Completed

More social media activity, regional outreach and RIPE Labs articles.

Twitter outreach has been increased. A series of RIPE Labs articles that summarise the history of RIPE policy developments are being created. There is ongoing community outreach during regional events and as part of RIPE NCC training courses.

Completed

The RIPE NCC should be a neutral, trusted advisor for governments rather than a lobbying party.

The RIPE NCC has moved to formalise its relationships with various actors in the public and private sectors, establishing MoUs with governments that document the neutral role the RIPE NCC plays.

Completed

The RIPE NCC should be giving governments insight on the technical environment of the Internet community and explaining related technical issues.

In Q1/Q2, the RIPE NCC will have held three Roundtable Meetings for governments. These offer governments and intergovernmental bodies the chance to interact with the RIPE NCC on technical issues and industry concerns.

Completed

Education is an important function of the RIPE NCC in this area.

To increase collaboration on external relations through training activities, the RIPE NCC is developing a webinar that highlights the important Internet governance issues to our membership and community, and facilitating their effective engagement in Internet governance events.

Completed

Improve awareness about RIPE Database developments and improvements.

Updates on the RIPE Database will be posted prominently in the RIPE NCC Member Update. News items will also be posted alerting people to developments with the RIPE Database and explaining functionality and usability upgrades.

Completed

Lack of technical knowledge was a commonly cited reason not to deploy IPv6.

The RIPE NCC is taking various actions to increase IPv6 training opportunities: the IPv6 Train the Trainer (TTT) programme is expanding; we organise and support events such as the IPv6 Roadshows and National IPv6 Weeks; we continue to increase the number of IPv6 training courses we offer; we now offer an advanced IPv6 online training course.

Completed

Help to convince customers to demand IPv6.

The RIPE NCC promotes awareness of the importance of IPv6 deployment. As well as developing our general IPv6 messaging strategy, we are also taking steps to boost awareness of, and demand for, IPv6 deployment in specific regions by arranging the IPv6 Roadshows and National IPv6 Weeks.

Completed

Provide training to help IPv6 deployment.

The RIPE NCC continues to expand its IPv6 Train-the-Trainer (TTT) programme. The goal of TTT is to have a group of highly-trained IPv6 trainers who can deliver the RIPE NCC's IPv6 training material and conduct the IPv6 Roadshows and workshops in their own country or region, alongside RIPE NCC trainers.

Completed

Build awareness of the benefits of RIPE Atlas.

The RIPE NCC is taking steps to build better awareness of RIPE Atlas. At the end of 2016, we produced a RIPE Atlas video aimed at informing potential users about the benefits of RIPE Atlas. New brochures are in production providing instructions on how to make the most of RIPE Atlas tools and features. Over 30 articles on RIPE Atlas have been published on RIPE Labs since November 2016, and we continue to use RIPE Labs to deliver detailed updates, use cases and analyses relating to RIPE Atlas.

Completed

Companies' security or legal policies sometimes won't allow probe installation.

The RIPE NCC is improving documentation and communication about how probes operate and the implications of installing them. Organisations will then be able to make more informed decisions on hosting RIPE Atlas probes and anchors.

Completed

Make the hardware/probes more stable.

In February 2017, the RIPE NCC took steps toward countering hardware issues by releasing a firmware update for RIPE Atlas probes. Plans are also underway to develop new hardware solutions, such as options for producing a more reliable version of the RIPE Atlas probes. We’re assessing the feasibility of developing ‘virtual probes’ that don’t require the installation of a physical device. RIPE Atlas anchors

Completed

Improve RIPE Atlas documentation.

The RIPE NCC will continue to regularly review and update all documentation relating to RIPE Atlas as well as exploring new avenues for future communication.

Completed

Build further awareness of RIPEstat.

The RIPE NCC is taking action to build awareness of RIPEstat. The first of a range of instructional videos is in production that will help provide information on key RIPEstat services to a wider audience. Since May 2017, Twitter has been integrated into RIPEstat feedback channels, enabling frequent updates to be sent out to people regarding updates. The RIPE NCC also continues to deliver updates, use cases and analyses relating to RIPEstat via RIPE Labs, and we assess new options for building awareness of RIPEstat in weekly RIPEstat meetings.

Completed

Provide real- or near real-time displays.

Achieving real-time displays is an ongoing goal of the RIPEstat project. As of September 2017, RIPEstat implements zero downtime deployments, meaning that new software updates for RIPEstat can now be rolled out without any interruption to users. This is an important initial step in ensuring that users can retrieve data via RIPEstat without interruption.

Completed

Make RIPEstat more mobile-friendly.

The RIPEstat webpages are now more mobile friendly due to a series of updates carried out over the course of August and September 2017. The changes are most apparent on the start and feedback pages of RIPEstat.

Completed

Simplify the user interface.

A number of improvements have made to the RIPEstat webpages in 2017 with the goal of simplifying the user interface. Again, most of the relevant changes affected the start and feedback pages for RIPEstat.

Completed

External network issues are the main reason for needing data in operations, as well as troubleshooting and abuse handling.

The RIPE NCC is continuing to develop and improve its channels for data provision. Going forward, we will carry on exploring new options for providing simple, user-friendly access to all our datasets.

Completed

Whois and routing data is most important for the RIPE NCC to provide. Geolocation data was also requested.

The RIPE NCC is committed to providing continued, easy access to Whois and routing data and we have been making substantial progress in terms of providing geolocation data also. Our new Geolocation APIs system and the OpenIPMap UI, both of which will significantly improve the RIPE NCC’s provision of geolocation data, will be made available in October 2017.

Completed

Historical and country analysis is also useful for the RIPE NCC to provide.

The RIPE NCC is publishing country focus articles on RIPE Labs that provide information on countries using RIPE NCC statistics and data. Work will continue in 2017 on providing more options for users to find the country data that they require.

Completed