Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Army DNS ROOT Server Down For 18+ Hours

Posted by Soulskill on from the inter-arma-enim-silent-tubulis dept.

An anonymous reader writes "The H-Root server, operated by the US Army Research Lab, spent 18 hours out of the last 48 being a void. Both the RIPE's DNSMON and the h.root-servers.org site show this. How, in this day and age of network engineering, can we even entertain one of the thirteen root servers being unavailable for so long? I mean, the US army doesn't even seem to make the effort to deploy more sites. Look at the other root operators who don't have the backing of the US government money machine. Many of them seem to be able to deploy redundant instances. Even the much-maligned ICANN seems to have managed deploying 11 sites. All these root operators that have only one site need a good swift kick, or maybe they should pass the responsibility to others who are more committed to ensuring the Internet's stability."

2 of 154 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Lowest bidder by Isao · · Score: 4, Interesting

    There are two main approaches to government contracting: Lowest Cost and Best Value. Contrary to popular belief, Lowest Cost is not always the one chosen, by a long shot. I also previously misunderstood "Close enough for government work." Turns out most "government work" has very specific requirements and specifications, or you don't get paid. If you see something different, please call Waste, Fraud & Abuse.

  2. Re:Not the biggest problem out there.,,, by gnieboer · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Agreed.

    From the offending server's website: "BRL volunteered to host one of the original root servers ... to provide a root server for the MILNET in the event that MILNET had to be disconnected from the Internet."

    The purpose of the G/H servers is not to support the greater good (that's a side benefit), but to ensure that the MILNET can function if the DoD cuts itself off from the rest of the internet.

    And besides, If my math is correct, there are a total of 205 redundant root sites (http://www.root-servers.org/), so imagine going up asking for funding...
    [IT Guy] "General, we need money to add another redundant root server site, if all the sites go down the internet collapses!"
    [General] "That sounds bad! How many redundant sites are there now?"
    [IT Guy] "Only 205"
    [General]