Dear colleagues, I have received an informal query from IANA about RIPE's opinion about the placement of a second root name server in Europe at the LINX operated by VBCnet. This should be discussed at the next meeting. Personally I think that placement at the LINX makes good sense because of current network topology. Daniel ----- Begin Included Message -----

From jdd@avon-gw.uk1.vbc.net Thu Jan 9 11:03:28 1997 Date: Thu, 9 Jan 1997 19:04:48 +0000 (GMT) From: Jim Dixon <jdd@vbc.net> To: iana@iana.org, postel@isi.edu Cc: paul@vix.com Subject: Re: UK root nameserver

Two months ago I wrote to you regarding the possibility of our setting up a root name server in the UK. To date I have received no reply at all, other than something from a robot promising a reply from a human being within ten days; this of course never came. I have been just now been asked to report back to the board of the UK Internet Service Providers Association regarding this request. Would it be possible for someone at IANA to give us some indication of what your response is likely to be? On Mon, 11 Nov 1996, Jim Dixon wrote:

Several days ago one of our engineers talked to Paul Vixie in California regarding our setting up a root name server in the United Kingdom. As I am sure you are aware, there is only one root server in Europe and for many UK networks that server is netwise further from the UK than most of the US servers.

We will have a server built to Paul Vixie's recommendations some time this week. As he suggests, it will be placed in its own class C on a private LAN segment. This will be on a 100 Mbps port on a router with a 100 Mbps connection to the LINX, the London Internet Exchange, which is the major UK peering point (http://www.linx.net). The LINX is actually attracting a significant number of networks from the continent: we now have one Dutch and two German members, with EBONE talking about joining in December.

This proposal has the endorsement of the UK Internet Service Providers Association (http://www.ispa.org.uk), of which I am one of the directors. ISPA is more or less equivalent to the CIX in the US. The machine will be operated by VBCnet, which is an owner/ member of the LINX, and will be, as I said, one hop from the LINX on a 100 Mbps port. The LINX and our London PoP are located in Telehouse Europe, which is the UK's premier telecommunications centre. Engineering staff are on duty 24x7. Telehouse has exceptionally high security, multiply redundant high speed telecommunications links, and multiply redundant power supplies.

Should you need any further information or additional material in support of this proposal, we will of course be happy to supply it. I can be contacted at either of the numbers below, by email, or at 011 44 973 737 881 anytime.

- -- Jim Dixon VBCnet GB Ltd http://www.vbc.net tel +44 117 929 1316 fax +44 117 927 2015 ----- End Included Message -----