RFC 1383 (rfc1383) - Page 1 of 14

An Experiment in DNS Based IP Routing

Network Working Group                                         C. Huitema
Request for Comments: 1383                                         INRIA
                                                           December 1992


                 An Experiment in DNS Based IP Routing

Status of this Memo

   This memo defines an Experimental Protocol for the Internet
   community.  Discussion and suggestions for improvement are requested.
   Please refer to the current edition of the "IAB Official Protocol
   Standards" for the standardization state and status of this protocol.
   Distribution of this memo is unlimited.

Table of Contents

   1. Routing, scaling and hierarchies ......................    1
   2. Routing based on MX records ...........................    2
   3. Evaluation of DNS routing .............................    3
   3.1 Loops and relays .....................................    4
   3.2 Performances and scaling .............................    5
   3.3 Tunneling or source routing ..........................    6
   3.4 Choosing a gateway ...................................    6
   3.5 Routing dynamics .....................................    6
   3.6 DNS connectivity .....................................    7
   3.7 On the way back ......................................    8
   3.8 Flirting with policy routing .........................    8
   4. Rationales for deployment .............................    9
   4.1 The good citizens ....................................   10
   4.2 The commercial approach ..............................   10
   5. The experimental development ..........................   11
   5.1 DNS record ...........................................   11
   5.2 Interface with the standard IP router ................   12
   5.3 The DNS query manager ................................   12
   5.4 The real time forwarder ..............................   12
   5.5 Interaction with routing protocols ...................   13
   6. Acknowledgments .......................................   13
   7. Conclusion ............................................   13
   8. References ............................................   14
   9. Security Considerations ...............................   14
   10. Author's Address .....................................   14

1.  Routing, scaling and hierarchies

   Several recent studies have outlined the risk of "routing explosion"
   in the current Internet: there are already more than 5000 networks
   announced in the NSFNET routing tables, more than 7000 in the EBONE



Huitema