science

Registration Data Access Protocol

Registration Data Access Protocol is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Registration Data Access Protocol rather than just read about it. In short: The Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) is a computer network communications protocol standardized by a working group at the Internet Engineering Task Force in 2015, after experimental developments and thorough discussions. It is a successor to the WHOIS protocol, used to look up relevant registration data from such Internet resources as domain names, IP addresses, and autonomous system numbers.

Key takeaways

Registration Data Access Protocol belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Registration Data Access Protocol to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Registration Data Access Protocol from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) is a computer network communications protocol standardized by a working group at the Internet Engineering Task Force in 2015, after experimental developments and thorough discussions. It is a successor to the WHOIS protocol, used to look up relevant registration data from such Internet resources as domain names, IP addresses, and autonomous system numbers. While WHOIS essentially retrieves free text, RDAP delivers data in a standard, machine-readable JSON format. In order to accomplish this goal, the output of all operative WHOIS servers was analyzed, taking a census of the labels they used. RDAP designers, many of whom are members of number or name registries, strove to keep the protocol as simple as possible, since complexity was considered one of the reasons why previous attempts, such as CRISP, failed. RDAP is based on RESTful web services, so that error codes, user identification, authentication, and access control can be delivered through HTTP. The biggest delay in getting RDAP done turned out to be the bootstrap, figuring out where the server is for each top-level domain, IP range, or ASN range. IANA agreed to host the bootstrap information in suitable registries, and publish it at a well-known location URL in JSON format. Those registries started empty and will be gradually populated as registrants of domains and address spaces provide RDAP server information to IANA. For number registries, ARIN set up a public RDAP service which also features a bootstrap URL, similar to what they do for WHOIS. For name registries, ICANN requires RDAP compliance since 2013.

Number resources RDAP databases for assigned IP numbers are maintained by five regional Internet registries. ARIN maintains a bootstrap database. Thanks to the standard document format, tasks such as, for example, getting the abuse team address of a given IP number can be accomplished in a fully automated manner.

Name resources RDAP databases for registered names are maintained after ICANN agreement. Name resources are much slower, as the number of registries under ICANN is huge. In addition, as the GDPR became enforceable, in May 2018, the problem of personal data divulged via WHOIS or RDAP slowed adoption further. To solve the conflict between GDPR and ICANN policies ICANN published a temporary specification according to which all contact details need to be redacted for privacy reasons if they fall under the GDPR, unless the contact explicitly allows publication. This includes email addresses, however the registrar has to offer an anonymized email address or a web form to allow forwarding of information to contacts. The registry RDAP/WHOIS response has to contain a notice that these options to contact the contacts are only available in the registrar RDAP/WHOIS. To keep RDAP information accurate, registrars have to send a yearly Whois Data Reminder Policy (WDRP) notice to the registrant contact. This is commonly done via email containing all the RDAP information the registrar has and asking the registrant to update it immediately if it is incorrect, while at the same time reminding the registrant that incorrect RDAP information can lead to the deletion of the domain name. Additionally each registrar has to offer an abuse contact and after being informed about incorrect RDAP information has to make sure that it is corrected quickly or suspend the domain.

WHOIS replacement On January 19, 2023, ICANN opened voting on a global amendment to all its registry and registrar agreements. In it they defined a RDAP Ramp-Up Period of 180 days starting with the effectiveness of this amendment. 360 days after this period is defined as the WHOIS Services Sunset Date, after which it is not a requirement for registries and registrars to offer a WHOIS service and instead only a RDAP service is required. All voting thresholds were met within the 60-day voting period and the amendment will be submitted to the ICANN Board for approval and implementation.

Query example To query RDAP, there are several software and web clients including icann-rdap (reference implementation command-line client by ICANN), OpenRDAP (independent command-line client), and rdap.dev web client. In certain jurisdictions, RDAP redacted contact information as required by regulations such as General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Contact information for RDAP may be accessed with Registration Data Directory Services (RDDS) such as ICANN Lookup. Non-public contact information can be requested with Registration Data Request Service (RDRS).

Below is an example of RDAP data returned for an individual resource holder. This is the result of a RDAP query in raw format (using OpenRDAP client) for the website of Final Fantasy XIV, with Markmonitor as registrar:

Extensions The RDAP protocol allows for extensions and IANA is maintaining a list of known RDAP extensions. Some of these extensions are defined by RFCs, such as for sorting and paging, others are just for specific TLDs.

Related standards STD 95 RFC 7480, HTTP Usage in the Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) RFC 7481, Security Services for the Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) RFC 8056, Extensible Provisioning Protocol (EPP) and Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) Status Mapping RFC 9082, Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) Query Format RFC 9083, JSON Responses for the Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) RFC 9224, Finding the Authoritative Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) Service Additionally ICANN has created 2 standards that need to be implemented by gTLD registries and registrars to have common output formats and require the implementation of some extensions.

Extensions RFC 8977, Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) Query Parameters for Result Sorting and Paging RFC 8521, Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) Object Tagging RFC 8982, Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) Partial Response RFC 9537, Redacted Fields in the Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) Response

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Registration Data Access Protocol

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Registration Data Access Protocol claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Registration Data Access Protocol before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Registration Data Access Protocol ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Registration Data Access Protocol

In research: Registration Data Access Protocol appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Registration Data Access Protocol in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Registration Data Access Protocol is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Internet Standards, Internet protocols, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Registration Data Access Protocol outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Registration Data Access Protocol in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Registration Data Access Protocol means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Registration Data Access Protocol out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Registration Data Access Protocol in simple terms?

Why does Registration Data Access Protocol matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Registration Data Access Protocol?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Registration Data Access Protocol.