Re: Services and top-level DNS names (was: Re: Update of RFC 2606

John Levine <johnl@iecc.com> Sat, 05 July 2008 02:43 UTC

Return-Path: <ietf-bounces@ietf.org>
X-Original-To: ietf-archive@megatron.ietf.org
Delivered-To: ietfarch-ietf-archive@core3.amsl.com
Received: from [127.0.0.1] (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by core3.amsl.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id 634AF3A69E6; Fri, 4 Jul 2008 19:43:48 -0700 (PDT)
X-Original-To: ietf@core3.amsl.com
Delivered-To: ietf@core3.amsl.com
Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by core3.amsl.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4EAD43A69E8 for <ietf@core3.amsl.com>; Fri, 4 Jul 2008 19:43:46 -0700 (PDT)
X-Virus-Scanned: amavisd-new at amsl.com
X-Spam-Flag: NO
X-Spam-Score: -10.711
X-Spam-Level:
X-Spam-Status: No, score=-10.711 tagged_above=-999 required=5 tests=[AWL=0.188, BAYES_00=-2.599, RCVD_IN_BSP_TRUSTED=-4.3, RCVD_IN_DNSWL_MED=-4]
Received: from mail.ietf.org ([64.170.98.32]) by localhost (core3.amsl.com [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10024) with ESMTP id SEAL8OONkYpk for <ietf@core3.amsl.com>; Fri, 4 Jul 2008 19:43:44 -0700 (PDT)
Received: from gal.iecc.com (gal.iecc.com [208.31.42.53]) by core3.amsl.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id F04333A686B for <ietf@ietf.org>; Fri, 4 Jul 2008 19:43:43 -0700 (PDT)
Received: (qmail 25967 invoked from network); 5 Jul 2008 02:43:49 -0000
Received: from simone.iecc.com (208.31.42.47) by mail1.iecc.com with QMQP; 5 Jul 2008 02:43:49 -0000
Received: from localhost (sendmail-bs@127.0.0.1) by localhost with SMTP; 5 Jul 2008 02:43:49 -0000
Date: Fri, 04 Jul 2008 22:43:49 -0400
From: John Levine <johnl@iecc.com>
To: Mark Andrews <Mark_Andrews@isc.org>
Subject: Re: Services and top-level DNS names (was: Re: Update of RFC 2606
In-Reply-To: <200807042242.m64MgbrY061336@drugs.dv.isc.org>
Message-ID: <alpine.BSF.1.10.0807042226040.7643@simone.iecc.com>
References: <200807042242.m64MgbrY061336@drugs.dv.isc.org>
User-Agent: Alpine 1.10 (BSF 962 2008-03-14)
Cleverness: None detected
MIME-Version: 1.0
Cc: ietf@ietf.org
X-BeenThere: ietf@ietf.org
X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.9
Precedence: list
List-Id: IETF-Discussion <ietf.ietf.org>
List-Unsubscribe: <https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf>, <mailto:ietf-request@ietf.org?subject=unsubscribe>
List-Post: <mailto:ietf@ietf.org>
List-Help: <mailto:ietf-request@ietf.org?subject=help>
List-Subscribe: <https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf>, <mailto:ietf-request@ietf.org?subject=subscribe>
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; Format="flowed"
Sender: ietf-bounces@ietf.org
Errors-To: ietf-bounces@ietf.org

>> No. 4 says "Strings must not cause any technical instability." which 
>> sounds exactly within IETF scope covers the gist of the technical 
>> aspects of the ietf list discussion.

> 	We need "cannot be used in a manner that causes technical
> 	instablitity.  Known causes include, but are not limited
> 	to, adding A, AAAA and MX records at the zone apex."

As someone else pointed out, there are currently about two dozen TLDs with 
A or MX records at the apex.  Some of them have been like that for many 
years, and as best I can tell, the Internet has not thereby collapsed.

I think we all understand that the use of addresses like http://tld/ and 
foo@tld may be flaky due to bugs in client software, but if someone wants 
to spend $100 grand on a TLD and install a flaky A or MX, why is that an 
urgent problem the IETF needs to solve rather than a private issue between 
the TLD and its registrants?

Also keep in mind that most of those apex records are in ccTLDs over which 
ICANN and the IETF have no authority, so no matter what the we were to 
say, they're not going away.

Regards,
John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for Dummies",
Information Superhighwayman wanna-be, http://www.johnlevine.com, ex-Mayor
"More Wiener schnitzel, please", said Tom, revealingly.
_______________________________________________
Ietf mailing list
Ietf@ietf.org
https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf