+RAICES

PROJECT OBJECTIVES

The main objective of the +Raíces Project is the installation of anycast copies of the root Server in countries within LACNIC's region. With the installation of these servers in strategic sites such as IXPs (Internet Exchange Points) and NAPs (Network Access Points), it is expected that more direct access to the Internet will be provided for a greater number of users as well as local Internet Service Providers.

ABOUT THE PROJECT

This initiative is undertaken as part of the active role of LACNIC as promoter of Internet development within the region. +Raices project contributes to strengthen the global infrastructure of the Internet as well as its stability to enhance the reach, strength and response times of the DNS system (a key building block of the Internet's infrastructure) regionally as well as globally. For this, LACNIC has signed the following agreements:

FRAMEWORK

The Domain Name System (DNS) is based on a hierarchical structure shaped in the form of an inverted tree, where millions of servers throughout the world have part of the information necessary for the whole system. The root of the system is not made up of a single server, but there are 13 servers that perform this function. They are named using the letters A to M. There is no subordination among these servers, they are all equal. Ten of them are located within the U.S., two in Europe and one in Japan. The small numbers of total root servers as well as the high number of root servers within the United States are a weak point in terms of stability and security when considering the possibilities of DDOS attacks.

Anycast

The Anycast technique has been used for a long time as way of announcing the same prefix from several different locations. The routing system can identify the nearest location for each user. This technique has been in use for a few years for creating "clones" of a root server, providing a way to work around the technical limitations that do not permit the creation of new root servers.

Users will only see the nearest root server and will not see the original copy nor the rest of the copies. This makes the whole system more efficient while adding security and stability. If an anycast copy fails for any reason, users will automatically start seeing other copy or other root servers.

ACHIEVED RESULTS

To date, +Raíces has allowed installing eleven root servers copies in fourteen copies in eleven countries of Latin American and Caribbean: ten copies of F server and four copies of the L server.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN +RAICES?

If you want to host an anycast copy of the root servers and you need support for this, please contact LACNIC: proyectos@lacnic.net

Installed Copies:

Root Server Country City Organization Date
F Sint Maarten Sint Maarten OC-IX 09/07/09
Argentina Buenos Aires CABASE 30/08/06
Venezuela Caracas CNTI 20/10/06
Chile Santiago de Chile NIC.CL 29/12/05
Panamá Ciudad de Panamá UTP 17/07/07
Panamá Ciudad de Panamá NIC.PA 25/05/07
Haiti Port au Prince AHTIC  
Curaçao Willemstad CAR-IX  
Ecuador Quito AEPROVI 22/05/07
Ecuador Quito AEPROVI 14/08/07
L Uruguay Montevideo SECIU  
Ecuador Quito AEPROVI 09/05/2012
Colombia   CNTI/NAP.CO  
El Salvador San Salvador IX/SVNet 21/08/2012