[ netinfo/what-the-nic-does.txt ] THE DDN NETWORK INFORMATION CENTER (NIC) The DDN Network Information Center (NIC) is located at Government Systems, Inc., Chantilly, VA, and is funded by the Defense Information Systems Agency's Defense Network System Organization (DISA DNSO) to provide general user services to DDN users via telephone, electronic mail, and U.S. postal mail. The NIC works closely with the network Host Administrators, Node Site Coordinators, domain administrators, network coordinators, network protocol groups, vendors, contractors, government agencies, and military sponsors to assist new users and potential subscribers in obtaining pertinent network information. Databases and information servers of interest to network users are provided, including the WHOIS registry of network users, the NIC/Query browsing system, TACNEWS, and the official DoD Host Name Service. The NIC is the source for official DDN protocol documents (other than the MIL-STDs), as well as other DDN documents, and maintains the RFC (Request for Comments) collection. Many of the online files are available through the NIC's automatic mail service, SERVICE@NIC.DDN.MIL. The NIC registers hosts and domains, assigns IP network numbers and Autonomous System Numbers, and provides host name translation tables and domain name system server files to the DDN/DARPA Internet. The NIC also registers network users and issues MILNET TAC access cards. I. USER ASSISTANCE SERVICE Toll-free telephone service is available Monday through Friday, 7 am to 7 pm, Eastern Standard time. Users who experience problems with using the network in general, and with terminal-to-TAC use in particular, are encouraged to make use of this service. Toll-free: 1-800-365-3642 International: 1-703-802-4535 II. NIC ONLINE MAILBOXES To contact the NIC via electronic mail 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, use these mailboxes: NIC@NIC.DDN.MIL General user assistance, document requests REGISTRAR@NIC.DDN.MIL User registration and WHOIS updates HOSTMASTER@NIC.DDN.MIL Host, domain, network changes and updates ACTION@NIC.DDN.MIL NIC computer operations SUGGESTIONS@NIC.DDN.MIL Comments on NIC services SERVICE@NIC.DDN.MIL Automatic mail service BILLING@NIC.DDN.MIL Question regarding bills for network usage SCC@NIC.DDN.MIL General security-related information and support III. NIC U.S. POSTAL ADDRESS Send U.S. postal mail correspondence to: DDN Network Information Center 14200 Park Meadow Dr., Suite 200 Chantilly, VA 22021 IV. NIC COMPUTER SERVICES The NIC host computer is a SUN 470, running the SUN operating system, and its hostname is NIC.DDN.MIL. Its network address is 192.112.36.5. The network address of the NIC root domain server is 192. The network address of the NIC's MILNET gateway is 26.25.0.201. NIC online services are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. V. DOCUMENTS DISTRIBUTED BY THE NIC The NIC distributes the following documents, all of which are available in hardcopy and some of which are available online. Many of these documents are deposited at the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC). An annotated list of NIC publications is found in the file netinfo/nic-pubs.txt on NIC.DDN.MIL. Title Online Filename DDN Brochure DDN New User Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . netinfo/nug.doc DDN Newsletters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ddn-news/ddn-news-NN.txt DDN Management Bulletins . . . . . . . .ddn-news/ddn-mgt-bulletin-NN.txt DDN Security Bulletins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .scc/ddn-security-YYNN Network Protocol Implementations and Vendors Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .netinfo/vendors-guide.doc DDN Protocol Handbook DDN Subscriber Interface Guide DDN Subscriber Security Guide DDN X.25 Host Interface Specification. . . . . . . . . . netinfo/x25.doc FYIs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .fyi/fyiNN.txt FYI Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . fyi/fyi-index.txt Logical and Geographic Maps of MILNET and ARPANET RFCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .rfc/rfcNNN.txt RFC Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . rfc/rfc-index.txt NOTE: In the filenames, the "nn" or the "nnn" should be replaced by the number of the newsletter, bulletin or RFC. For Security Bulletins, "YYNN" refers to the year the bulletin was issued followed by the number of the bulletin for that year, e.g. "9001". To retrieve a document whose filename is listed above, open an FTP connection to the NIC.DDN.MIL host, login as user ANONYMOUS and provide the password GUEST. Retrieve the desired file. VI. ONLINE INFORMATION SERVERS a. TACNEWS TACNEWS offers login help for DDN TAC users, includes the current list of TAC dial-up numbers, and provides a mechanism for reading the DDN Newsletters, Management Bulletins, and Security Bulletins. Users should read these Newsletters and Bulletins regularly to stay current on DDN policies, announcements, and network news items. Accessing TACNEWS From a TAC, type "@N" after being greeted with the TAC banner, press RETURN, and provide your User ID and Access Code when prompted. When greeted by the NIC host, type "TACNEWS" and press RETURN. From a DDN host, use the TELNET program to connect to host NIC.DDN.MIL. When greeted by the NIC host, type "TACNEWS" and press RETURN. b. WHOIS/NICNAME WHOIS/NICNAME is a NIC program that provides an electronic "white pages" of network users. It lists the name, network mailbox, postal address, and telephone number, for all registered users. Host, TAC, domain, and network information may be obtained from WHOIS as well. Accessing WHOIS/NICNAME From a TAC, type "@N" after being greeted with the TAC banner, press RETURN, and provide your User ID and Access Code when prompted. When greeted by the NIC host, type "WHOIS" and press RETURN. From a DDN host, use the TELNET program to connect to host NIC.DDN.MIL. When greeted by the NIC host, type "WHOIS" and press RETURN. WHOIS/NICNAME may also be run from a local host. WHOIS/NICNAME user programs for several operating systems are available from the NIC. Contact the NIC for sources. c. NIC/QUERY NIC/QUERY contains host information, protocol and other document information, and access to WHOIS/NICNAME. NIC/QUERY is geared toward novice or casual users. It also provides access to the services offered by TACNEWS. Accessing NIC/QUERY From a TAC, type "@N" after being greeted with the TAC banner, press RETURN, and provide your User ID and Access Code when prompted. Type "NIC" and press RETURN when greeted by the NIC host. From a DDN host, use the TELNET program to connect to host NIC.DDN.MIL. Type "NIC" and press RETURN when greeted by the NIC host. d. NAMSER NAMSER is an internet hostname server on NIC.DDN.MIL port 101 decimal. This server delivers machine-translatable hostname/address/attribute information for networks, gateways, and hosts within the DDN. The server can deliver a single response or the entire host table, depending upon the type of query sent. The server provides the information outlined in RFC 952, and is itself described in RFC 953. Accessing NAMSER The server is designed to be accessed via a client program following the protocol specified in RFC 953. e. ROOT DOMAIN NAME SERVER The NIC is responsible for generating and installing the DNS files into the NS.NIC.DDN.MIL root server and the six alternate root servers on a twice-weekly basis. VII. ONLINE FILES The NIC maintains a number of online files which are available to network subscribers via the file transfer program (FTP) or Kermit. These files contain information about protocols, site personnel, hosts, and other subjects relevant to network users. See the file NETINFO:00NETINFO-INDEX.TXT for an index to the files in the NETINFO directory. See also the DDN New User Guide, or contact the NIC User Assistance service for more information. Other publicly accessible directories include PROTOCOLS, RFC, IEN, SCC, and DDN-NEWS. Each of these additional directories has an index in the format 00DIRECTORY-INDEX.TXT or DIRECTORY-INDEX.TXTin order to allow users to quickly identify the files they need. a. How to Retrieve NIC files Using FTP To retrieve any of the NIC's public files via your local FTP program, connect to the NIC.DDN.MIL host, and log in as ANONYMOUS with password GUEST. FTP program use varies slightly from host to host, so please consult your Host Administrator for instructions, if needed. b. How to Retrieve NIC Files Using Kermit The NIC provides a Kermit server for file retrieval. Users should connect to the NIC.DDN.MIL host from a TAC. To run the NIC's Kermit server from a TAC, type "@N" after being greeted with the TAC banner, press RETURN, and provide your User ID and Access Code when prompted. Type "KERMIT" and press RETURN when greeted by the NIC host. The user should then enter the Kermit escape sequence to return control to his local Kermit client program and issue the local Kermit "GET" command to retrieve the desired file or files. c. How to Use the NIC's Automated Mail Service SERVICE@NIC.DDN.MIL is an automated service provided by the DDN Network Information Center. It allows access to NIC documents and information via ordinary electronic mail. This is especially useful for users who do not have access to the NIC via a direct Internet link, such as users of BITNET, CSNET and UUCP sites. To use the mail service, send a mail message to SERVICE@NIC.DDN.MIL. In the SUBJECT field, request the type of service you wish followed by any needed arguments. The message body is normally ignored. Large files will be broken into smaller separate messages. The information you request will be sent back to you as soon as possible. The following services are currently available: HELP This message; a list of current services. HOST xxx Returns information about host xxx. WHOIS xxx can also be used to get more details about a host. IEN nnn nnn is the IEN number or the word INDEX. IETF xxx xxx is a file name INDEX Returns the master list of available index files. INTERNET-DRAFTS xxx xxx is a file name NETINFO xxx xxx is a file name or the word INDEX. RFC nnn nnn is the RFC number or the word INDEX. RFC nnn.PS to retrieve an available Postscript RFC. Check RFC INDEX for form of RFC. FYI nnn nnn is the FYI number or the word INDEX. FYI nnn.PS to retrieve postscript versions of FYI files. SEND xxx xxx is a fully specified file name. WHOIS xxx Returns information about xxx from the WHOIS service. Use "WHOIS HELP" for information on how to use WHOIS. Example SUBJECT lines: HELP RFC 822 RFC INDEX RFC 1119.PS FYI 1 IETF 1DIRECTORIES.TXT INTERNET-DRAFTS 1ID-ABSTRACTS.TXT NETINFO DOMAIN-TEMPLATE.TXT SEND RFC:ASSIGNED-NUMBERS.TXT SEND IETF:1WG-SUMMARY SEND INTERNET-DRAFTS:DRAFT-IETF-IWG-BGP-OO.TXT HOST NIC.DDN.MIL WHOIS NEOU, VIVIAN Send comments or suggestions to SUGGESTIONS@NIC.DDN.MIL. Send questions and bug reports to BUG-SERVICE@NIC.DDN.MIL. VIII. USER REGISTRATION Host Administrators have overall responsibility for registering their users. When new users acquire accounts on MILNET hosts, their Host Administrator must complete a NIC-generated template to register them in the NIC database. Names and addresses of Host Administrators are found on the NIC.DDN.MIL host in the files NETINFO:MIL-HOST-ADMINISTRATORS-A-L.TXT, NETINFO:MIL-HOST-ADMINISTRATORS-M-Z.TXT and NETINFO:ARPA-HOST-ADMINISTRATORS.TXT. End users who require MILNET TAC dial-up access to reach their hosts must have TAC Access cards that are provided by the NIC. Approval for distributing the card is sent to the NIC from the user's Host Administrator. Until the user is permanently registered, there may be temporary "Guest" TAC cards available from the Host Administrator for immediate use. IX. HOST, DOMAIN, NETWORK NUMBER, IN-ADDR, AND ASN REGISTRATION The NIC is responsible for the registration of hosts, domains, IP networks, and autonomous systems numbers (ASNs) used by various organizations connected to the DDN Internet. To include a new host in the DDN Internet Host Table, the template found in NETINFO:IHOST-TEMPLATE.TXT needs to be completed and returned to HOSTMASTER@NIC.DDN.MIL. Hosts included in the Host Table are limited to those hosts acting as domain or IN-ADDR servers, gateways, and hosts integral for mail routing. Twice weekly, information is generated and installed into the DDN Internet Host Table as NETINFO:HOSTS.TXT, which is a listing of the hosts, gateways, and networks attached to the Internet and registered with the NIC. From this file, two additional files are generated: HOSTS.TXT-Z, a UNIX compressed version of the HOSTS.TXT file; and MIL-HOSTS.TXT, a complete listing of the MILNET hosts in HOSTS.TXT. Domains are registered via the domain template found in NETINFO:DOMAIN-TEMPLATE.TXT. New domain information is installed into the seven DNS root servers on a twice-weekly basis. Information regarding the root servers is kept in NETINFO:ROOT-SERVERS.TXT. Additionally, a listing of the domains registered with the NIC can be found in NETINFO:DOMAIN-INFO.TXT. A listing of the netaddresses of the domain servers for individual top-level domains can be found in NETINFO:DOMAINS.TXT. Network number assignments are made when a network POC completes the template in NETINFO:INTERNET-NUMBER-TEMPLATE.TXT and returns the template to Hostmaster. A complete listing of government sponsored networks is found in NETINFO:NETWORKS.TXT. To provide address to hostname reverse resolution, IN-ADDR domains are registered within the domain root servers via an IN-ADDR template sent to the HOSTMASTER mailbox. This template can be found in NETINFO:IN-ADDR-TEMPLATE.TXT. The NIC assigns autonomous system numbers (ASNs) when the template found in NETINFO:ASN-TEMPLATE.TXT is sent to HOSTMASTER@NIC.DDN.MIL. A complete listing of assigned ASNs is found in NETINFO:ASN.TXT. From the domain, network number, and ASN templates, POC information is extracted and individuals that are not already registered are given records in the WHOIS database. X. USAGE SENSITIVE BILLING DESK The NIC also answers queries about bills for use of the DDN via the Usage Sensitive Billing (USB) desk. If you have a bill for DDN usage and have any questions about it, you can contact the USB desk several ways: E-mail: BILLING@NIC.DDN.MIL Phone: 1-800-365-3642 1-703-802-4535 Postal mail: DDN Network Information Center 14200 Park Meadow Dr., Suite 200 Chantilly, VA 22021 Phone hours are from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. XI. SECURITY COORDINATION CENTER The NIC is the site of the DDN Security Coordination Center (SCC). The SCC acts in conjunction with the DDN Network Security Officer to coordinate actions regarding security incidents and network vulnerabilities. The SCC relays security-related information to the Network Security Officer and works with him in handling network security problems. In addition, the SCC issues DDN Security Bulletins to network users. The SCC can be contacted in these ways: E-mail: SCC@NIC.DDN.MIL Phone: 1-800-365-3642 1-703-802-4535 Postal mail: DDN Network Information Center 14200 Park Meadow Dr., Suite 200 Chantilly, VA 22021 Phone hours are from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.