Leaping in to rwhois

[John Newman]

At 07:35 PM 9/8/99 , Peter Lalor wrote:
>Hi all,
>
>In the quest for an ASN, I've been thrust into the murk of rwhois. 
>Joy. It looks like one of the more arcane things I've run across, so 
>I'm looking for answers about everything.
>
>As the list archives at http://www.rwhois.net/lists/rwhois/ only go 
>to Q3 '98, my first questions are:
>
>Is there a more current archive (or am I talking to a listbot and no-one
else)?
>Is there a FAQ?

We went through all that about a year ago. At the time, I was able to gather
enough info from the list archives to get the job done. There was the start of
an FAQ and then several other messages that contained more detailed stuff. I
put all that stuff into a single document I could use. I hope it's helpful.

John Newman
Telepath Internet


1.  What min release of Linux should we be using?

    a)  Shouldn't matter.


2.  What's the best way to compile the source? (Using the
    RWhois makefile.in or something else.

    a)  ./configure; make; make install

     We don't have anything like an RPM. Read the INSTALL file that comes
     with the package for some more insight on how to customize the build.
     Report any build errors to rwhois-bugs@rwhois.net


3.  Once installed what is the best way to begin setting up
    the directory service.?

    For each allocated block, set up a network authority area. Then
    create records for each assignment within that block. So, briefly,
    you get assigned 192.168.0.0/22:

    a)  Create a 192.168.0.0/22 by editing the rwhoisd.auth_area file.

    b)  Create a net-192.168.0.0-22 directory by copying the supplied
     net-10.0.0.0-8 directory.

    c)  Edit the soa and schema files to suit (like changing the directory
     names to match reality).

    d)  Replace the *.txt files with your own data (use the supplied data
     as an example. Note that lines beginning with '#' are commented
     out. Your data should not be commeted out.

    e)  Index: bin/rwhois_indexer -i -v -s .txt

    f)  See if searches work.

    g)  Send a referral template to rwhoisreg@rwhois.net. An old but still
     usable template can be found at:

         <ftp://ftp.rwhois.net/pub/rwhois-template.txt>


4.  How do I add data for all my subnetworks?

    Basically, you can add subnetwork information in one of two ways: 

     1)  Add an rwhois record for the subnet block, and 

     2)  Add a referral for the subnet block. 

    Typically, I would think that you would always do 1, and only
    occasionally do 2.

    There is an example of network data in the
    sample.data/net-.../network/network.txt file. Basically, adding a
    record can be accomplished in two basic ways:

     1)  Edit the network.txt file and re-index using the command line
         indexer, or

     2)  Use the built-in -register directive.

    The problem with #2 is that -register will end up putting each record
    its own file (not really a problem) and have a separate set of index files
    for each (this is a problem). However, the -register directive does
    give you an ability to automate the addition, deletion and
    modification of records. -register pretty much works in 1.5.x.

    For simplicity's sake, I would recommend just editing the network.txt
    file (or adding you own, additional network.txt files) and re-indexing
    using rwhois_indexer.

    Where to put the subnetwork record? Well, it belongs under the
    authority area for the network that you are assigning *from*. An
    example:

     * I have a ARIN assigned network of 192.168.56.0/24. So, 
     I have an authority area for this with the same name, but 
     using the directory net-192.168.56.0-24/.

     * I have a subnet, 192.168.56.224/27, that I am allocating 
     to "Bob's ISP".

     1)  First I create an Organization record somewhere for Bob's ISP.
         Let's say we only want to have network authority areas. So I
         create it under the same authority area as the network. Since the
         sample.data stuff doesn't have "org" as a class under the supplied
         10.0.0.0/8 authority area, we have to add the "org" class. This is
         pretty easy, since we can copy the stuff from the supplied "a.com"
         authority area.

         a)  Edit net-192.168.56.0-24/schema to have this record:

              name:organization
              attributedef:net-192.168.56.0-24/attribute_defs/org.tmpl
              dbdir:net-192.168.56.0-24/data/org
              description:Organization object
              Schema-Version:19961101000000000

          Be sure to separate these class records from each other with a
          "---" line.

         b)  Create a net-192.168.56.0-24/data/org directory.

         c)  Copy a.com/attribute_defs/org.tmpl to 
          net-192.168.56.0-24/attribute_defs.

         d)  Add a record for Bob's ISP. In net-192.168.56.0-24/data/org, 
          create a new file bobs-isp.txt with something like:

              ID: ORG-1.192.168.56.0/24
              Auth-Area: 192.168.56.0/24
              Org-Name: Bob's ISP
              Street-Address: #123 Local Street
              City: Rachets
              State: NM
              Postal-Code: 67801
              Country-Code: US
              #Phone: (401) 555-6721
              Created: 19961022
              Updated: 19961023

         e)  Since we changed the schema, make the server take notice by
          sending it a SIGHUP.

     2.  In net-192.168.56.0-24/data/network/, create a new file
         bobs-isp.txt. Put something like this in the network record:

          ID: 224.192.168.56.0/24
          Auth-Area: 192.168.56.0/24
          Network-Name: BOBS-ISP-1
          IP-Network: 192.168.56.224/27
          Organization:12.192.168.56.0/24
          Tech-Contact:222.a.com
          Admin-Contact:222.a.com
          Created: 19961022
          Updated: 19961023
          Updated-By: hostmaster@a.com

     3.  Index the new file:

          rwhois_indexer -A 192.168.56.0/24 -C network -s .txt

     That is basically it. Now you have a recorded subnetwork.