Number-related Documents
Key documentation relating to the administration of number resources, including the procedures we operate under, the framework for the Regional Internet Registry system, and the technical specifications that define the addressing systems.
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| Procedures and Policies | |
| Internet Number Resource Request Procedure | How the RIRs request number resources from IANA. |
| Global Addressing Policies | The global policies governing IANA allocations to the RIRs. |
| RIR Comparative Policy Overview | The Number Resource Organization's comparison of regional policies. |
| Regional Internet Registry System | |
| ICP-2: Criteria for Establishment of New Regional Internet Registries | The criteria applied when recognizing a new RIR (4 June 2001). |
| Recognition of LACNIC | IANA report on the recognition of LACNIC as an RIR (7 November 2002). |
| Recognition of AfriNIC | IANA report on the recognition of AfriNIC as an RIR (8 April 2005). |
| Technical Specifications | |
| The Internet Numbers Registry System (RFC 7020) | Describes the hierarchical system through which IP addresses and AS numbers are distributed, from IANA through the RIRs to network operators, and its goals of uniqueness, aggregation and registration. |
| Internet Numbers Registries (RFC 7249) | Catalogues the IANA registries for AS numbers, IPv4 and IPv6 address space, and how assignments in each are made under IETF standards. |
| Classless Inter-domain Routing (CIDR) (RFC 4632) | Explains the classless addressing and route-aggregation plan that replaced the historical class-based system, underpinning how address blocks are allocated and routed today. |
| Address Allocation for Private Internets (RFC 1918) | Reserves three IPv4 address blocks for use within private networks that are never routed on the public Internet. |
| IPv4 Address Blocks Reserved for Documentation (RFC 5737) | Reserves three IPv4 address blocks for use in examples and documentation, so sample configurations never collide with real networks. |
| IP Version 6 Addressing Architecture (RFC 4291) | Defines the IPv6 addressing model: the types of addresses, their formats, and how they are represented in text. |
| IPv6 Global Unicast Address Format (RFC 3587) | Specifies the structure of globally routable IPv6 addresses, dividing them into a routing prefix, subnet, and interface identifier. |
| IPv6 Address Assignment to End Sites (RFC 6177) | Gives guidance on how much IPv6 address space should be assigned to end sites, moving away from a fixed /48 for every site. |
| Special-Purpose IP Address Registries (RFC 6890) | Establishes the registries documenting IPv4 and IPv6 address blocks reserved for special purposes, and the properties recorded for each block. |
| Historical | |
| Announcement of Worldwide Deployment of IPv6 | The joint announcement of initial IPv6 delegations (14 July 1999). |