Exploring the roots of Public IP address

Gerard Ross at APNIC's server room

APNIC, ARIN, LACNIC and RIPE NCC are the four RIRs that maintain the internet protocol addresses worldwide performing their tasks invariably. Gerard Ross (GR), documentation manager, Asia Pacific Network Information Center (APNIC), explained their systems and services in an exclusive online interview with Saad Bin Fazle Hammadi(SH).

SH: Please tell us about the Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) and its services?

GR: The APNIC, the Asia Pacific Network Information Centre, is one of four regional internet registries currently operating worldwide. It provides allocation and registration services which support the operation of the internet across the globe. It is a not-for-profit, membership-based organisation whose members include internet service providers, National Internet Registries and similar organisations. The APNIC represents the Asia Pacific region, comprising 62 economies. It distributes and registers IPv4 and IPv6 addresses and autonomous system numbers (ASNs) and provides reverse DNS delegations for those resources. The APNIC also holds open public policy meetings and conducts training sessions around the region.

SH: Who are national internet registries (NIRs)?

GR: A National Internet Registry (NIR) is a member of the APNIC that primarily allocates address space to its members or constituents, which are generally local internet registries (LIRs) organised at a national or distinct economy level.

The NIRs are expected to apply their policies and procedures fairly and equitably to all members of their constituency. The current NIRs are JPNIC (Japan), KRNIC (Korea), TWNIC (Taiwan), CNNIC (China), APJII (Indonesia), and VNNIC (Vietnam).

The NIRs have long existed within the APNIC structure and have fulfilled an important role in serving organisations within their respective countries or economies. The NIRs can satisfy the need for procedures and services that take account of local cultural differences; however, it is important to note that the NIRs must operate in a way that is consistent with regional and global resource management policies. It is also essential that the NIRs are neutral, open, and transparent in all their operations.

A fundamental aspect of the NIR structure in the APNIC region is that responsibilities which have been delegated to the APNIC are partially re-delegated to another body, namely the NIR. The conduct of that NIR in carrying out its delegated responsibilities may have serious impact on the overall management of IP resources in the Asia-Pacific region, and is therefore of critical ongoing interest to the APNIC.

An organisation wishing to be recognised by the APNIC as an NIR must have formal endorsement at the national level by the appropriate government body.

SH: What is the contribution of the APNIC in Bangladesh? Who are the national internet registries (NIRs) of Bangladesh?

GR: The APNIC provides the same service to all economies within its region, including Bangladesh. Currently there are 24 Bangladeshi organisations which are members of the APNIC. These organisations receive resource services from the APNIC, are able to attend the APNIC meetings, and participate in the policy development process. The APNIC has conducted Internet resource management training courses in Bangladesh in January 2002, January 2003, and October 2003, which have benefited several hundred attendees.

The APNIC is also a major sponsor of, and participant in, the PANAsia research & development grants program, which provides funding to ICT-based projects in developing countries. Organisations planning to undertake such projects in Bangladesh are encouraged to consider applying for funding under this program: http://www.panasia.org.sg/

SH: What classes of internet protocol (IP) addresses do Bangladesh receive?

GR: The system of classful internet addressing (Class A, Class B, and Class C) was phased out many years ago. Classful addressing was very wasteful of IP addresses, so more efficient ways of allocating and routing addresses were developed, to allow networks to be allocated sufficient addresses to meet their actual need.

APNIC's allocation policies apply equally to all organisations in our region, no matter where they are. All organisations in the APNIC region, including Bangladeshi organisations, may request IPv4 or IPv6 addresses to meet their documented network requirements.

SH: BRAC BDMail Network Ltd. is one of the founder members of the APNIC representing Bangladesh. How does it contribute to the APNIC?

GR: All founding and incumbent members of the APNIC have helped APNIC develop into a well-established, stable, and successful organisation. Members support the APNIC by paying membership fees, which fund the APNIC services and activities, and by participating in the open policy development process which ensures that APNIC's services remain responsive to the needs of the regional and global Internet communities.

SH: Please explain the purpose of public IP addresses?

GR: The IP addresses are used to uniquely identify every host which connects to the global internet. These hosts (computers, routers,Êservers, or other machines) require an IP address to be identified and for information to be routed to and from the host.

SH: In which places and for what services are the public IP addresses recommended to be used?

GR: In general, services which need to be routed on the global internet will require public IP addresses. Private address may be used for networks which are not connected to the Internet. Private addresses may also be used for addressing networks that are connected to the internet via a firewall, and where there are not technical requirements for the use of public address space; however, the APNIC policy does not require anyone to address their networks in this way.

SH: The operational policies of the APNIC include terms of 'Allocation Request' which says, the NIRs must provide all required information to create the applicable whois database object. What is the function of whois database and how do you operate it?

GR: The APNIC whois database is intended to ensure the uniqueness of the resources registered in it and to provide a way for the public to look up details relating to the custodianship of these public resources. For example, the contact details in the whois database may be used by other members of the internet community to contact networks where technical problems may be affecting others. The database is administered by the APNIC Secretariat, but holders of IP addresses are required to update the database to maintain their own registration details.

SH: What benefits do the members of the APNIC get from their membership? How do you charge for the membership?

GR: Joining the APNIC gives organisations access to all APNIC services, including requests for allocation and registration of internet address resources, and attendance at specialised training courses. The APNIC membership also gives organisations a voice in regional internet operations through participation in APNIC's policy development processes and voting rights at the APNIC member meetings.

The APNIC membership is open to all organisations. However, membership of the APNIC does not mean an organisation will automatically be eligible for address space. All requests for address space must be justified by a documented need for the resources. APNIC has seven membership categories, generally determined by the amount of address space held, though member organisations can elect to join a higher category.

SH: IP Version 6 is a 128 bit address. What are the distinguishing features of this version and how many octets does it have?

GR: The main difference between IPv4 and IPv6 is the size of the available address pool, with IPv6 providing vastly more addresses than IPv4. While there are several other technical differences in the protocols, the essential point of both is to uniquely identify hosts that connect to the internet.

SH: Would IP v4 exist with IP v6?

GR: IPv4 and IPv6 already do coexist. Many networks around the world now provide their services in both IPv4 and IPv6. Most major operating systems support both protocols and most users will never know which protocol is being used when they connect to the Internet, as the end user experience is designed to be the same.

SH: What is the next mission of the APNIC?

GR: APNIC's 17th Open Policy Meeting will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in February. At that meeting, the APNIC Secretariat will present its activity plan and budget for 2004. All those interested in APNIC's future are encouraged to come to the meeting and take part in the discussions.