RFC 1031 (rfc1031) - Page 1 of 10

MILNET name domain transition

Networking Working Group                                       W. Lazear
Request for Comments: 1031                                         MITRE
                                                           November 1987


                     MILNET NAME DOMAIN TRANSITION


STATUS OF THIS MEMO

   This RFC consolidates information necessary for the implementation of
   domain style names throughout the DDN/MILNET Internet community.
   Although no official policy has been published, the introduction of
   domain style names will impact all hosts in the DDN/MILNET Internet.
   The RFC is designed as an aid to implementors and administrators by
   providing 1) an overview of the transition process from host tables
   to domains, 2) a potential timetable for the transition, and 3)
   references to documentation and software relating to the DDN/ARPANET
   domain system.  Distribution of this RFC is unlimited.

BACKGROUND

   All MILNET hosts are expected to have a way of translating the name
   of any other host into its Internet address.  Although the current
   method of name resolution is to look up the information in a table of
   all hosts, this method of operation is cumbersome and relies on a
   central point of information.  The Network Information Center (NIC)
   maintains a table of hosts registered in the MILNET Internet and
   their addresses.  The size of this table and the frequency of updates
   has reached the limits of manageability.  The central host table is
   FTP'd by a host on a timely basis from the NIC, processed locally (to
   pare or reformat the table), and used in name resolution.

   The domain system uses a distributed database and software to perform
   the same functions as the host table.  In this system, host resolvers
   query domain servers for name resolution.  They may cache answers for
   performance improvement.  The domain servers each maintain a portion
   of the hierarchical database under separate administrative authority
   and control.  Redundancy is obtained by transferring data between
   cooperating servers.

   The domain system has been operating successfully on the ARPANET for
   over a year.  One indication of success is that the NIC's central
   host table is no longer a complete list (i.e., ARPANET does not
   depend primarily on the host table).  The domain system is being
   implemented on the MILNET with DoD military standard protocols.  The
   first step in changing to the domain system has been taken, as
   required by DDN Management Bulletin #32 (22 Jan 1987).  All host



Lazear