News
Consultation
24 January 2024
Proposed Top-Level Domain String for Private Use 
IANA has made a provisional determination that “.INTERNAL” should be reserved for
private-use and internal network applications. Prior to review and approval of this
reservation by the ICANN Board, we are seeking feedback on whether the selection
complies with the specified procedure from SAC113, and any other observations that
this string would be an inappropriate selection for this purpose.
Consultation
19 October 2023
Draft Report of the Root Zone DNSSEC Algorithm Rollover Study
A draft study on how to select a new cryptographic algorithm for the root zone, and how
a rollover to that algorith, has been produced and we are now seeking comment. This
study is the product of a community design team.
Blog
15 August 2023
A New Data Protection Mechanism for the Root Zone
By the end of this year, the Domain Name System (DNS) root zone will introduce the ZONEMD record that will provide a new mechanism for network operators to validate its contents.
Update
18 July 2023
Update on Hardware Security Modules and Rollover Plans for the Root Zone KSK
Efforts to rollover to the recently generated new KSK will be paused while replacement hardware options continue to be evaluated.
Update
10 June 2023
News service now available
This section on the website is now available to aggregate operational updates and other updates of interest that we have historically published in different locations.
Update
25 May 2023
Future update to IPv4 address for DNS root server
The b.root-servers.net address is planned for an update in November 2023.
Consultation
16 May 2023
Feedback sought on proposed bylaws amendments
Proposals to update the PTI Bylaws, that govern the IANA functions, are open for public comment. These proposals seek to simplify PTI's planning cycles to better align with ICANN.
Oversight
2 May 2023
System controls validated by 2022 IANA Functions audit
The findings from our annual SOC2 and SOC3 audits, independently administered by RSM US LLP, have been published.
Publication
28 April 2023
Deprecating infrastructure .INT domains
RFC 9121 has been published which formalizes the removal of a number of legacy .INT domains by IANA. These domains are no longer in use but were documented for historical, often experimental purposes. This document clarifies earlier documents and should have no practical effect.
Update
13 April 2023
Root Zone KSK HSM Update
Production of the hardware security modules (HSMs) used to store the Root Zone KSK is ceasing. IANA is commencing an initiative to study and identify alternatives, in the meantime the existing hardware is expected to continue to be used for in the coming years.
Publication
30 March 2023
Registration procedures for private enterprise numbers (PENs)
RFC 9371 has been published which updates the registration procedures for private enterprise numbers (PENs).
Blog
13 March 2023
How time zones are coordinated
The basics of how the IANA functions manage the Time Zone Database, an essential collection of rules that govern time relied upon around the world.
Update
2 March 2023
Schedule announced for next KSK key generation
The next Root Zone KSK is planned to be generated at the next key signing ceremony on 27 April 2023.
Consultation
21 February 2023
Design team convened for KSK algorithm rollover study
A Root Zone Algorithm Rollover Study Design Team has been established to develop recommendations on how the cryptographic algorithm used for the root zone may be changed during future rollovers.
Oversight
18 January 2023
ICANN’s annual IANA customer survey shows shift in engagement preferences
The 2022 IANA Customer Engagement Survey has been published. A big shift was in customers' desires for remote engagement, down to 9% from 50% a year prior.
Update
13 December 2022
Updated Root Zone Management System available
An updated Root Zone Management System is now available. TLD managers have new features available to them in this release, including abilities to customize access and authorization policies.
Update
2 December 2022
Root Zone Management System update
A significant upgrade to the Root Zone Management System will be performed on 13 December 2022 and customers are encouraged to submit root zone changes in advance of that date.
Update
2 December 2022
Holiday services
IANA will operate on a modified schedule at the end-of-year, however all services continue to operate including emergency response.
Update
1 December 2022
New private enterprise number system available
A significant update has been made to the system that supports private enterprise number (PEN) registrations. A more interactive application and modification process has been implemented, along with a modern interface for browsing registrations.
Consultation
1 December 2022
Webinar on updating the Root Zone Management System
On 6 December 2022 at 16:00 to 17:00 UTC, you are invited to join a webinar covering the new features in the RZMS upgrade.
Oversight
16 November 2022
Call for volunteers to plan for changing the Root Zone DNSSEC algorithm
ICANN recently announced on open call for volunteers to join a design team that will develop a plan for changing the cryptographic algorithm used for the Domain Name System (DNS) root key signing key and zone signing key. Those who feel they are qualified are welcome to apply.
Consultation
15 September 2022
Draft operating plans and budget for Fiscal Year 2024
Comment is invited on the draft operating plan and budget for the IANA functions for Fiscal Year 2024.
Consultation
7 September 2022
IANA Community Day in Brussels, Belgium
In conjunction with the 2022 ICANN DNS Symposium, IANA will be holding a half-day workshop focused on key technical evolution projects within IANA relating to the DNS. Topics will include a discussion of how to perform a DNSSEC algorithm rollover for the DNS root zone, and reviewing and updating the TLD technical requirements for root zone changes. TLD managers, DNS experts, and other interested parties are encouraged to attend.
Consultation
25 July 2022
Webinar on IANA functions and PTI planning for Fiscal Year 2024
A webinar, open to all, will explain the annual planning process for the IANA functions and invite contributions on priorities for the coming year.
Oversight
8 July 2022
Final report of the Root Zone Update Process study
The final report conducted by independent researchers on the Root Zone Update Process has been published.
Blog
19 May 2022
Ushering in the next generation of Root Zone management
IANA is preparing to launch a significant update to its Root Zone Management platform later this year.
Update
21 March 2022
Revised guidance for RFC authors
The help material for RFC authors, that augments RFC 8126, has been significantly updated.
Consultation
14 March 2022
Initial Report on Root Zone Update Process Study open for comment
Comment is invited on the initial report by independent researchers on the Root Zone Update Process. Feedback will be integrated into a subsequent final report.
Oversight
22 February 2022
ICANN’s Annual IANA Customer Survey Demonstrates Consistent High Performance
The findings of our annual customer survey are now available online.
Update
10 November 2021
Licensing terms for Protocol Registries
IANA and IETF have collaboratively issued a joint statement concerning copyright in the IANA protocol parameter registries, confirming that they intend that the registries may be freely used by any party for any purpose.
Blog
21 October 2021
Reflecting on IANA’s Post-Transition Operations
On the 5th anniversary of the transition to multistakeholder oversight of IANA, a review of what has happened since.
Oversight
18 October 2021
IANA performance overview available
The performance reporting section of the IANA website has been significantly updated. Notably there is now a high-level dashboard view of the key metrics used to assess IANA performance, on a rolling 3 month basis.
Consultation
15 September 2021
Draft operating plan and budget for Fiscal Year 2023
The draft operating plan and budgets for the IANA functions, covering July 2022 to June 2023, is available for public comment.
Update
12 August 2021
Root Anchor signature update
The signature file that is used to validate the Root Zone Trust Anchor XML distribution is being updated. The updated file is available for preview.
Consultation
15 July 2021
Webinar on IANA Functions and PTI planning for Fiscal Year 2023
A webinar, open to all, will explain the annual planning process for the IANA functions and invite contributions on priorities for the coming year.
Oversight
30 March 2021
Study on Root Zone Management
A study is commencing to review operations associated with root zone updates, and identify if improvements are needed to the robustness of the process. This work is being commissioned as part of the follow-up work from the IANA stewardship transition.
Consultation
10 February 2021
IANA Naming Function Review: Recommendation for an IANA Naming Function contract amendment
Feedback is sought in making a contractual amendment to remove a specific reporting requirement. A community review concluded this requirement is no longer suitable.
Oversight
27 January 2021
2020 customer engagement survey shows increased satisfaction in performance
The findings of our annual customer survey have been published.
Oversight
21 January 2021
Root Zone KSK supporting documentation update
A significant update to the documentation for the Root Zone KSK has been published. In addition to customary updates to the DPS, many supporting procedures and documents are now being published for the first time.
Publication
30 October 2020
Nameservers for the Address and Routing Parameter Area ("arpa") domain
RFC 9120 has been published, describing revisions to operational practices to separate the function of the "arpa" top-level domain in the DNS from its historical operation alongside the DNS root zone.
Blog
30 October 2020
The Creation and Administration of Unique Identifiers, 1967-2017
A report has been published, commissioned by ICANN and Google, that documents the design, evolution and management of the Internet's unique identifiers.
Consultation
8 October 2020
Public comment on the draft Fiscal Year 2022 operating plan and budgets
Comment is invited on the draft operating plan and budget for the IANA functions for Fiscal Year 2022.
Consultation
19 August 2020
Webinar on developing the Fiscal Year 2022 operating plan and budgets
A webinar, open to all, will explain the annual planning process for the IANA functions and invite contributions on priorities for the coming year.
Blog
21 April 2020
Conducting a key signing ceremony in the face of COVID-19
A discussion of adjustments made to IANA operating procedures for key signing ceremonies, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Update
26 March 2020
Contingency plans for the next Root KSK ceremony
Due to the emergence of the Coronavirus pandemic, significant changes are being planned to enable us to conduct forthcoming key signing ceremonies.
Update
12 February 2020
Root Key Signing Key ceremony postponed
The scheduled KSK ceremony has been postponed due to a mechanical failure in the key management facility
Oversight
11 December 2019
IANA customer engagement survey results available
The results of the annual customer survey on the IANA functions are now available.
Update
6 November 2019
Allocation of /12 IPv6 address space to ARIN
The unicast address block 2630::/12 has been allocated to ARIN based on their eligibility according to the IANA Policy for Allocation of IPv6 Blocks to Regional Internet Registries.
Consultation
6 November 2019
Proposal for future Root Zone KSK rollovers
Following the completion of the first Root Zone KSK rollover, we are seeking input on establishing a three-year cadence for future rollovers.
Update
16 October 2019
RIR allocation data dashboard available
We now offer a new dashboard to reports RIR number resource allocation data. This data, including associated projections, are used to implement the global policies that govern IPv4, IPv6 and autonomous system allocations by IANA.
Consultation
14 October 2019
Proposed changes to the IANA SLAs for ccTLD creation and transfers
Comment is invited on a proposal to update the service level agreements associated with ccTLD delegation and transfer requests.
Consultation
10 June 2019
Proposed IANA SLAs for publishing LGRs/IDN tables
The Customer Standing Committee, ICANN and PTI have agreed a new set of metrics to govern label generation ruleset (LGR) processing, which are now available for public comment.
Update
5 June 2019
Allocation of /12 IPv6 address space to RIPE NCC
The unicast address block 2a10::/12 has been allocated to RIPE NCC based on their eligibility according to the IANA Policy for Allocation of IPv6 Blocks to Regional Internet Registries.
Update
8 May 2019
Reorganization of autonomous system (AS) number registry
The AS Number registry has been simplified to only indicate block allocations made by IANA to the RIRs. It no longer reflects inter-RIR transfers of AS numbers. This change was made at the request of the regional Internet registries.
Update
12 March 2019
Allocation of /19 IPv6 address space to RIPE NCC
The unicast address block 2001:2000::/19 has been allocated to RIPE NCC based on their eligibility according to the IANA Policy for Allocation of IPv6 Blocks to Regional Internet Registries. This allocation incorporates earlier smaller allocations of 2001:2000::/20, 2001:3000::/21, and 2001:3800::/22 made on 2004-05-04.
Update
1 March 2019
Final IPv4 allocations made from recovered pool
IANA has allocated 2×/24 address space to each to the five regional Internet registries from its recovered pool. This effectively exhausts the address space IANA has to allocate according to the Global Policy for Post Exhaustion IPv4 Allocation Mechanisms by the IANA.
Update
1 October 2018
Root Zone service during the upcoming KSK rollover
We encourage TLD managers to avoid discretionary root zone changes on 11 October 2018 in light of our intention to change the Root Zone KSK on that date.
Update
24 May 2018
Privacy policy and terms of service
We have updated our privacy policies and certain website terms of service to provide greater transparency, promote simplification, and align with recent changes in privacy laws applicable to us.
Blog
8 February 2018
Progressing the IANA functions into 2018
A summary of the adjustments and changes to the IANA functions in the first year after the IANA stewardship transition.
Oversight
18 January 2018
IANA functions customer survey results available
The findings of the annual IANA customer survey are now available.
Update
26 October 2017
New DNSSEC algorithm support for TLDs
TLD managers may now sign their zones with GOST or ECDSA and list their respective delegation signer records in the DNS root zone. Support for the GOST and SHA384 digest types have also been added.
Oversight
17 October 2017
Prepare for the 2017 IANA annual customer survey
Commencing the week of 2017-10-23, our partner Ebiquity will invite our customers over the past year to participate in our annual survey. This anonymous survey helps us plan for the future by identifying our performance and ways we can improve. It will automatically be sent to those who have transacted requests with us in the past year, along with other key contacts within our community.
Update
27 September 2017
Root Zone key rollover postponed
The plan to sign the root zone with a new KSK starting in October 2017 has been postponed, in response to freshly analyzed data the suggests more resolvers than expected are signaling they do not yet recognize the new KSK.
Update
26 September 2017
.INT zone is now DNSSEC signed
As of 2017-09-26, the .INT zone is signed with a secure delegation from the DNS root zone. Support for DS records in the .INT zone will be added at a later date.
Oversight
26 September 2017
Root Zone Maintainer monthly reports now available
We are now publishing the monthly reports ICANN receives from the Root Zone Maintainer. These reports document adherence to the service level agreements between ICANN and Verisign for the performance of this function, which is a component of the Root Zone Management process.
Publication
30 June 2017
Guidelines for writing an IANA Considerations section in RFCs
RFC 8126 has been published, providing best current practice for RFC authors on how to develop IANA Considerations in their documents.
Update
22 June 2017
Forthcoming Root Zone KSK rollover
For the first time the Root Zone KSK will be changed, and DNS operators should learn about the potential impacts. Operators may need to take specific steps to ensure ongoing DNS functionality.
Oversight
18 May 2017
Call for volunteers as Trusted Community Representatives
We are seeking interested individuals who wish to act as Trusted Community Representatives. These individuals are an important component of how we manage the Root Zone Key Signing Key, the trust anchor for the global Domain Name System. By inviting recognized members of the DNS technical community to be part of the Root Zone KSK operations, we seek to improve confidence and acceptance in the DNSSEC security mechanism among the wider Internet community.
Update
19 April 2017
Updates to the Trusted Community Representative selection process
Adjustments have been made to implement an evergreen process for TCR appointments and rotation. Travel support will now also be provided.
Oversight
14 April 2017
First monthly report to the Internet numbering community
We have published our first report to the Internet numbering community. This report is the first of a regularly monthly reporting on our performance of allocations to Regional Internet Registries, and is one deliverable from the IANA stewardship transition process.
Oversight
2 March 2017
Completion of annual audits
The annual audits of both our Root Zone Key Signing Key (DNSSEC) operations, and our Registry Assignment and Maintenance Systems, have been completed.
Update
3 February 2017
New Root Zone trust anchor being distributed
Following successful key ceremonies in October 2016 and February 2017, a new key signing key for the DNS root zone has been generated that is expected to be used later in 2017. Software implementing DNSSEC validation should obtain the revised root anchors <https://www.iana.org/dnssec/files> in our repository. This is an important step in the KSK Rollover project <https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/ksk-rollover>.
Oversight
11 January 2017
2016 annual customer survey available
In September 2016, we invited our customers to participate in our fifth annual customer satisfaction survey. We have now published the compiled results, showing continued very positive satisfaction from our communities. The report describes the methodology and responses received.
Oversight
21 December 2016
First monthly reports to the Customer Standing Committee available
We have published our first reports to the newly formed Customer Standing Committee. These reports are the first of regularly monthly reporting to this new committee, which was created as part of the IANA stewardship transition process.
Oversight
1 October 2016
IANA Stewardship Transition completed
As of 2016-10-01, the IANA functions are being provided by Public Technical Identifiers, a new affiliate of ICANN.
Oversight
1 October 2016
Revised DNSSEC Practice Statement for the Root Zone KSK
A revised edition of the Root Zone KSK DNSSEC Practice Statement (DPS) has been published, and is effective immediately. The changes primarily relate to operational impacts caused by the IANA stewardship transition.
Update
1 October 2016
Increased size of the Root Zone zone signing key
Following pre-publication since 2016-09-20, the zone signing key used to sign the DNS root zone has been increased in size from 1024 bits to 2048 bits. The key signing key remains at 2048 bits. This work has been coordinated with our root zone management partner, Verisign.
Oversight
14 September 2016
2016 Annual Customer Survey
ICANN has engaged Ebiquity to administer its 2016 Annual Customer Survey. If you have made use of IANA request services in the last year you can expect to receive an invitation from Judy Bromley to participate in a survey hosted at https://www.ebiquityinsights.com/.
Update
6 September 2016
Increased Root Zone and .ARPA signature validity periods
The validity period of DNSSEC signatures in the Root and ARPA zones has been increased from 10 days to 13 days. This implements part of the recommendations of RSSAC's Report on Root Zone TTLs (aka RSSAC003). This work has been coordinated with our root zone management partner, Verisign.
Publication
30 August 2016
Representing Label Generation Rulesets Using XML
RFC 7940 has been published, enabled label generation rulesets (formerly known as IDN tables) to be precisely expressed in a machine readable format. This work originated in work by the IANA team on formalizing these rulesets, and is expected to support a number of community activities to enhance IDN deployment.
Oversight
26 May 2016
Revised DNSSEC Practice Statement for the Root Zone KSK
A revised edition of the Root Zone KSK DNSSEC Practice Statement (DPS) has been published, and is effective immediately.
Oversight
22 April 2016
Annual audit process completed
The annual audits of both our Root Zone DNSSEC operations, and our IANA Registry Management Systems, have been completed.
Update
1 March 2016
RDAP server support for TLD managers
TLD managers are now able to list their RDAP servers through their root zone management interface. These RDAP servers will be integrated into the RDAP bootstrap registries IANA publishes.
Oversight
16 December 2015
2015 annual customer survey results available
We recently conducted our fourth annual customer satisfaction survey. We have now analyzed the results and can share them with the community. This report summarizes the survey methodology and the responses received.
Oversight
29 September 2015
2015 annual customer survey underway
ICANN is currently conducting the 2015 Annual IANA Customer Satisfaction Survey. If you have made use of the IANA services in the last year you should have received an invitation from Jennifer Clark at Ebiquity to participate in a survey hosted at https://www.ebiquityinsights.com/. Reminder emails will be sent next week asking for your participation before the survey closes on October 13th.
Update
28 February 2015
.TP (Portuguese Timor) has been retired
The .TP domain has been removed from the root zone, following a transition to its successor domain .TL (Timor-Leste). The underlying alpha-2 code "TP" was removed from the ISO 3166-1 standard in 2002.
Oversight
17 December 2014
2014 annual customer survey results available
In September 2014 ICANN invited customers of the IANA services to participate in its third annual customer satisfaction survey. We have now analyzed the results and are happy to report that the feedback was very positive. The report summarizes the survey methodology and the responses received and compares them to last year's results.
Oversight
11 September 2014
2014 annual customer survey underway
ICANN has engaged Ebiquity to administer its 2014 Annual Customer Survey. If you have made use of IANA request services in the last year you can expect to receive an invitation from Jennifer Clark to participate in a survey hosted at https://www.ebiquityinsights.com/.
Update
20 May 2014
IPv4 recovery allocations
The global recovery pool has been activated under the conditions of the governing policy. Code has been developed and published by IANA on how it will allocate IPv4 address blocks from the recovery pool.
Oversight
14 January 2014
IANA customer survey now available
In November 2013, ICANN invited customers of the IANA services to participate in its second annual customer satisfaction survey. We have now analyzed the results and are happy to report that the the feedback was very positive. The report summarizes the survey methodology and the responses received.
Oversight
10 October 2013
Committed to Excellence
We are committed to operations excellence and have had an ongoing Business Excellence activity for the IANA functions since 2009. We are pleased to have received EFQM Committed to Excellence <http://www.efqm.org/what-we-do/recognition/committed-to-excellence> recognition for these departments following an assessment conducted by a panel of three independent assessors in August 2013.
Update
2 October 2013
Removal of eleven test internationalized top-level domains from the Root Zone
The testing period for internationalized top-level domains (IDNs) in the DNS root zone has successfully concluded. The test IDN TLDs will be retired from the DNS root zone on 31 October 2013
Update
14 December 2012
D-root is changing its IPv4 address on 3 January 2013
We are sharing an advisory that one of the DNS root servers is updating its IP address. Operators should up-date their configurations as appropriate.
Oversight
4 December 2012
IANA review process
ICANN is conducting a number of reviews regarding how the IANA functions are performed. These reviews are being conducted between late 2012 and mid-2013, and we welcome feedback.
Oversight
5 July 2012
IANA customer survey
In April and May 2012 ICANN invited users of the root zone management; protocol parameters management; and Internet Number Resources management services to participate in a customer satisfaction survey. We have now analyzed the results and are happy to report that the response rate was very healthy 22% and the feedback was very positive.
Update
6 May 2012
Global policy for post-exhaustion IPv4 allocation mechanisms
A new global policy has been ratified that guides IANA on making IPv4 allocations to RIRs smaller than /8, following the exhaustion of IANA's inventory of unallocated /8 address space.
Oversight
23 April 2012
IANA customer survey
We are conducting a short, one page survey to gather our customers’ perspective on the way ICANN provides IANA services. The survey will provide us with baseline customer satisfaction data we can measure against in the future. Please take a moment to respond to the survey. The survey is open until 11 May 2012, and we will summarize the results and publish the summary by the end of June 2012.
Update
15 July 2011
Implementation of Root Zone Management System
Scheduled maintenance of the DNS Root Management Systems will be conducted for one day commencing 2011-07-21 at 0000 UTC. Operation and availability of the DNS root zone will be unaffected, however there may be minor delays in processing root zone change requests for TLD managers. For more information on the upgrades, please read our Questions and Answers document.
Update
4 November 2010
End of life notice for Interim Trust Anchor Repository
The Interim Trust Anchor Repository (ITAR) will be retired over the coming months. Its functions have been replaced by the signed DNS root zone, and all functionality is now integrated with root zone management.
Update
15 July 2010
Root Zone now signed
The DNS Root Zone is now signed with DNSSEC, with trust anchors and other information now available
Blog
14 January 2010
Situation in Haiti and the DNS
Updates on the .HT domain and Intranet infrastructure following a major earthquake impacting Haiti
Update
9 September 2009
Selection mechanism for the remaining IPv4 address space
A notification of the process associated with allocation of the last remaining IPv4 unicast address space from IANA to the regional Internet registries.
Update
12 December 2008
New IPv6 address for “L” DNS root service
The set of DNS root servers served under the hostname l.root-servers.net now have IPv6 capability, and have been added to the DNS root zone. We encourage operators of DNS infrastructure to update their DNS software to the most-updated IP addresses for the root servers. In particular, many DNS resolvers have a DNS root “hints” file. This should be updated with the revised set of IP addresss.
Update
14 July 2008
Migration to XML for protocol parameter registries
Significant updates are being made to migrate to XML as the baseline format for most protocol parameter registries maintained by IANA.
Update
18 June 2008
Autonomous system number registry format updates
The five Regional Internet Registries and the IANA have cooperated to provide an update to the IANA Autonomous System (AS) Numbers Registry. The updated registry keeps the same format but includes more detailed and accurate information about the whois servers providing registration information for individual AS Numbers. In addition to the current format, the AS Numbers registry will be made available in XML during July.
Update
5 May 2008
Sample XML registry for IPv4 address space
IANA is currently engaged in a project to convert the protocol registries IANA maintains to XML to provide the community with improved ways of viewing registry information. An example of the registry with XML as the source has been published as a demonstration to the community. The temporary URL will work until the production launch of IANA's XML registries, at which time it will no longer function. You should not encode this URL in any enduring location, such as in computer software.
Update
26 March 2008
Service degradation in IANA public WHOIS services for top-level domains
For several weeks updates to top-level domain data was not correctly propagated through our WHOIS service. There was no impact to the root zone itself or DNS function.
Update
21 February 2008
Update to the IPv4 registry format and content
The IPv4 global address space registry has been restructured. For legacy allocations (i.e. those made before the RIR system), each /8 will now be designated to an RIR who in turn tracks allocations within that block.
Update
29 January 2008
IPv6 addresses for the root servers
For the first time, the DNS root servers will be accessible over IPv6 transport.