[dns-wg] Re: ORSN-SERVERS.NET

On Fri, 22 Oct 2004, Markus Grundmann/ORSN wrote:

> >In total 76 instances of a root-server of which are 25 in the
> >EU, 26 in the US, and 50 outside EU/US.
>
> >And this network is growing and growing
>
> I'm very happy about this posting ;-)

Y'welcome.

> 76 copies of an single database source managed by an organization
> outside from europe and controlled by the U.S. DOC. Great!

No, just sanctioned by ICANN. Different organisations manage these boxes,
and they do this very well.

> When it comes the master corrupt all AnyCast servers will use this
> information. Very great and very stable!

If data in the database becomes corrupt, ORSN's data will become corrupt
as well. ORSN's copy of the root-zone file is downloaded by ftp once a day
from ICANN.

Note that every ICANN sanctioned root is updated twice per day. While
changes occur in the ICANN sanctioned root-zone, it takes in worst case a
day before the ORSN root-zone is updated.

> ORSN is an DNS system with all the same information provided by ICANN.
> The difference: We have our own managed and independent database!!!

You can't have it both ways. Either you have an independent root-zone, or
it is ICANN based. If you have any technical concerns about the
database management of the ICANN sanctioned servers, then you would have a
point if the argument would be valid. It seems to me however you have
political concerns with regards to database management (as in who manages
the CONTENT of the root-zone). Then why copy the ICANN source ? IMHO it is
really not in the best interest in ORSN to spread fear, uncertainty and
doubt wrt database management, while blindly serving the ICANN source
published on ftp://rs.internic.net/domain/root.zone.gz

But be assured. The folks at ISI, ISC, Autonomica, RIPE, WIDE, etc, etc,
who publish the ICANN sanctioned root-zone are very critical and concerned
with process, procedures and policy around the root. They take their
technical concerns to IETF workgroups. Publish informationals and
standards endorsed by ISOC, organise workshops at NANOG, RIPE, ARIN (etc,
etc) meetings. They are open, transparant, approachable, visible and at
times very loud when in their view ICANN, or any associated party crosses
some line somewhere. In fact, they all take part in the DNS Root Server
System Advisory Commitee to make sure their concerns are heard.

Ofcourse you could start your own root. Then again, you could go driving
backwards on the opposite side of the road, and convince some to do the
same.

Roy