RIPE and European network resources registry
- Date: Mon, 14 Sep 1992 16:13:30 +0200
At the last RIPE meeting in Amsterdam, we have extensively discussed
the need for a metainformation service about network resources and
accessible services at european level. The result of the discussion
has been the founding of the NIDUS WG.
Network Metainformation Server
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The general feeling was that the RIPE User Information Service (if defined
and set up) should act as a starting point for further search. It shouldn't
(in most areas) store the information itself but rather pointers to other
information sources and network resources and even pointers to pointers.
Lets call this function the Network Metainformation Server (because I want
it to cover a wider area than that covered by the current NIC's).
1. In order to implement a NMS we need first to study the overall structure
of the information and resources accessible today and in the near future
by the network and to define how the information in the NMS should be
ORGANIZED.
2. Then we have to define tools which would be suitable to support the
type of data organization required (access tools, maintenance and update
tools)
3. Then we must define the mechanisms (algorithms & responsabilities)
to maintain the NMS up to date - links to other such activities on
the network (formal and automated)
At the last RIPE meeting in the NIDUS WG I have proposed to study
a little bit what a structure of a RIPE metainformation server could
be. This has lead me directly to reflections about how could the
information about existing and future network resources be organized.
Many things in many different ways are being done on many places in
the area of network resource registry/discovery. One can easily be
wrong because of incompleteness, wrong tools used, insufficient
availability etc.
Nevertheless a european resource registry is a reasonable need, the RIPE
community is probably one of the best places to start such an activity
and the RIPE NCC is a reasonable place to do it. That's why I propose
to use the well established RIPE database mechanism to register available
network resources in the european IP [CLNP] network. RIPE has succeeded
in implementing a pan-european data collection and maintenance machanism
which I find really suitable for the purpose of creating a pan-european
network resource registry.
Using the RIPE database framework would bring elements of solution
to all tasks 1.-3. stated above.
If there is enough interest in this topic I think it should be discussed
during the next RIPE meeting in Paris in the NIDUS and the DB WG's.
I will be happy to receive your comments before the meeting to be
able to prepare a more detailed proposal (or to withdraw it if it doesn't
make sense).
Follows a proposal of a template of the new "resource" object of the
RIPE database.
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Description of the "resource" RIPE database object
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resname: Resource name in human
Mandatory
admin-c: Name of administrative contact person
Format : <firstname> <initials> <lastname>
Mandatory
tech-c: Name of the technical contact person
Format : <firstname> <initials> <lastname>
Mandatory
restype: Type of the resource
Describes in one word the nature of the resource
(the list of the most common should be agreed
upon at RIPE)
Format : one of the strings listed bellow
meta = server of servers
library = library catalogue
docs = document store
database = structured data base
local = local information system
(e.g. university information system)
archive = specific data objects archive
(e.g. public domain software)
super = supercomputer facility
Mandatory
acc-method: Access protocol to the service
This should be the name of the IP [CLNP]
service which allows to access the server
Format: sequence of bellow listed strings
separated by space
telnet | ftp | ftam | wais | gopher | www |
e-mail | prospero | archie | ...
Mandatory
acc-key: Access info necessary to access the first
level service
(e.g. login name for public telnet sessions or
port number and database name for wais servers)
Format: depends on the access protocol
acc-right: Access rights to the resource
Format : sequence of strings bellow separated
by space
ANY | see connect attribute in network object |
LIMITED
Mandatory
topics: Keyword description of the topics covered
by the resource
Each topic should be mentioned in a new
topic attribute.
e.g. economy, mollecular biology,
computer networks, software
Mandatory
description: Short description of the resource
Postal address is not needed, it can
be found via the contacts
host: List of hosts for this resource
Format: fully qualified domainname
without trailing "."
Mandatory
media: Type of data stored on the server
Format: sequence of strings bellow
separated by space
ascii = ascii texts
text = other textual data
(e.g. in native language or various
text processing formats - PostScript)
struct = record oriented data
graphics = graphical data (images)
sound = self explanatory
video = dtto
binaries = computer programs in binary form
sources = computer program sources
etc.
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Other open issues :
- description of CLNP services
- description of other services (accessible via other network protocols)
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