Procedure for Becoming a Member of the RIPE NCC Olivia Ruimwijk Ingrid Wijte Agata Peszkowska Emma Bretherick Leo Vegoda Dominic Spratley Document ID: ripe-257 Date: 6 September 2002 Obsoletes: ripe-212, ripe-230 ____________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT This document aims to provide the necessary information for those who wish to become a member of the RIPE NCC by setting up a Local Internet Registry (LIR). In this document initial guidelines are given to organisations that are planning to set up an LIR. Further, the necessary steps to set up an LIR are described. ____________________________________________________________________ Table of Contents * 1.0 Introduction + 1.1 Terminology * 2.0 Who Can Set Up a Local Internet Registry? + 2.1 Responsibilities of an LIR + 2.2 Business Considerations + 2.3 Other Considerations * 3.0 Setting Up an LIR + Step 1: Completing the RIPE NCC Membership Application Form (Creation of the LIR) + Step 2: Agreement on the Provision and Use of the RIPE NCC Services + Step 3: Payment of Fees * 4.0 Requesting Address Space for the First Time * 5.0 Training Courses ____________________________________________________________________ 1.0 Introduction The RIPE NCC is the Regional Internet Registry (RIR) responsible for the distribution of Internet resources in the RIPE NCC service region. Most organisations request these resources, i.e. IP addresses and Autonomous System Number (ASN), directly from their upstream service provider. However there are circumstances when this is not appropriate, such as when a company needs large quantities of IP addresses to distribute to its downstream customers. When these situations occur, an organisation will request to set up an LIR and therefore become a member of the RIPE NCC as an LIR. They can then request resources and services directly from the RIPE NCC. This document outlines the process that an organisation must follow to become a member of RIPE NCC. 1.1 Terminology Clarification of the terms used by the RIPE community: To allocate means to distribute address space to Internet Registries (IRs) for the purpose of subsequent distribution by them. To assign means to delegate address space to an ISP or End User, for specific use within the Internet infrastructure they operate. Assignments must only be made for specific purposes documented by specific organisations and are not to be sub-assigned to other parties. Regional Internet Registries are established and authorised by respective regional communities, and recognised by the IANA to serve and represent large geographical regions. The primary role of RIRs is to manage and distribute public Internet address space within their respective regions. A Local Internet Registry is an IR that primarily assigns address space to the users of the network services that it provides. LIRs are generally ISPs, whose customers are primarily End Users and possibly other ISPs. 2.0 Who Can Set Up a Local Internet Registry? Any organisation that requires services from the RIPE NCC is entitled to become a member of the RIPE NCC. The RIPE NCC can only accept membership applications from organisations that have a registered legal entity located in the RIPE NCC service region. To determine which RIR you should contact for services, please refer to the list of countries and their corresponding RIR, which can be found at: http://www.ripe.net/ripencc/mem-services/general/rir-areas.html Although there are no qualifying criteria to become an LIR, membership of the RIPE NCC does not necessarily lead to receiving an allocation of IP addresses. Certain qualifying criteria must be met to receive an allocation of IP addresses. These criteria are described in the RIPE Documents "IPv4 Address Allocation and Assignment Policies in the RIPE NCC Service Region" found at: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/ipv4-policies.html and the "IPv6 Address Allocation and Assignment Policy" found at: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/ipv6policy.html 2.1. Responsibilities of a Local Internet Registry The LIR holds certain responsibilities for the assignment of IP addresses that it makes from its allocated blocks. These responsibilities include: * Considering the advantages to having an independent block and whether they are ready for the extra cost, administrative overhead and responsibility of running an LIR. * Making the right assignment decisions following assignment policies as described in the RIPE Document "IPv4 Address Allocation and Assignment Policies in the RIPE NCC Service Region" found at: http://www.ripe.net/docs/ipv4-policies.html * Keeping records of the information gathered in the assignment process. * Storing assignment information in the RIPE Database and keeping this information up-to-date. These responsibilities are described in the RIPE Document "RIPE Database Reference Manual" found at: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/databaseref-manual.html The RIPE NCC has a consistency checking and auditing activity set up to train LIRs and help them follow the procedures and applying the policies. This process is intended to ensure that LIRs follow their responsibilities correctly. The process is outlined in the RIPE Document "RIPE NCC Consistency and Auditing Activity" found at: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/audit.html 2. 2. Business Considerations When changing upstream providers an organisation that does not operate an LIR will probably have to renumber their networks and return the formerly used address space to the LIR that assigned the address space. Organisations operating an LIR do not depend on others for assigning address space to their own or their customers' networks. On the other hand, operating an LIR takes up a considerable amount of time and financial resources that should not be underestimated. 2.3. Other Considerations As of November 2001, all organisations that currently make efficient use of 1024 IPv4 addresses (a /22) or fewer must agree to renumber all address space. Additionally, they must return the ranges to the upstream provider upon receipt of their first allocation from the RIPE NCC. This is described in the RIPE Document "IPv4 Address Allocation and Assignment Policies in the RIPE NCC Service Region" found at: http://www.ripe.net/docs/ipv4-policies.html Organisations currently operating an LIR that wish to establish another one must provide the RIPE NCC with a valid reason for the need of an additional LIR. In this case the RIPE NCC may require extra information to help us understand and process this request. 3.0 Setting Up an LIR An organisation is required to complete the Membership application procedure in order to set up an LIR at the RIPE NCC. Please note that much communication is needed between the LIR and the RIPE NCC. All communication is conducted via e-mail and in the English language. The process of setting up an LIR can be divided into 3 steps: 1. Completing the RIPE NCC Membership Application Form 2. Agreement on the Provision and Use of the RIPE NCC Services 3. Payment of Fees The steps need to be performed in the order specified above. Step 1: Completing the RIPE NCC Membership Application Form (Creation of the LIR) The RIPE NCC will need to collect administrative information about the new LIR such as address and telephone numbers, names of contact persons and billing information (including your VAT number if your billing address is in the European Union). Upon receipt of your request, a ticket number will automatically be assigned. This ticket number can be found in the subject line of the e-mail acknowledgement sent to your initial request. Please use this ticket number in all your correspondence during the set-up of your LIR. This ticket number will be in the form: NCC#YYYYmm#### Currently, there are only three ticket status categories: 1. OPEN-REG (the RIPE NCC is waiting for an answer from the applicant), 2. OPEN-NCC (the RIPE NCC will attend to your e-mail as soon as possible) and 3. CLOSED (process completed). It is possible to check the current status of your request at: http://www.ripe.net/cgi-bin/rttquery Once the RIPE NCC has received all requested information internal records will be created for the LIR. A registry identifier ("RegID") will be assigned to you by the RIPE NCC. The registry identifier is used to identify you as an LIR and distinguish you from other organisations. The format for the RegID is: For Example: nl.bluelight It is the responsibility of the LIR to keep the information supplied in the application form up-to-date. The information you provide in the application form is not stored in the RIPE whois Database. If you want to change any information about your LIR or check the current contents, please send an e-mail to , and include your RegID in the body of the mail. Please note that the RIPE NCC may ask for more information according to your situation. Please complete the online "Membership application form" located at: http://www.ripe.net/ripencc/new-mem/application-form.html Step 2: Agreement on the Provision and Use of the RIPE NCC Services In order to have an official contract between the LIR and the RIPE NCC, you must provide two signed copies of the "The Standard RIPE NCC Service Agreement" found at: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/service-agreement.html Signing a contract with the RIPE NCC means that all persons registered as an LIR contact are obliged to abide by the LIR policies and procedures outlined by the RIPE NCC and the RIPE community. Please note, LIR contacts are the only people from the LIR who can request services from the RIPE NCC. A list of LIR policies and procedures as they pertain to the RIPE NCC service region can be found at: http://www.ripe.int/ripe/docs/internet-registries.html The service agreement must be signed by a representative of the LIR who holds the power to sign contracts (usually a director). Please include the title of the person signing the contract as well as the name of the organisation, the location where the agreement was signed and the date it was signed. Please do not alter the layout or content of the service agreement. Please send the two signed service agreements to the RIPE NCC by postal mail. Upon receipt the RIPE NCC will sign them and return one copy of the agreement to your organisation for your records. Registered and courier mail can be sent to: RIPE NCC Singel 258 1016 AB Amsterdam The Netherlands Regular postal mail can be sent to: RIPE NCC P.O. Box 10096 1001EB Amsterdam The Netherlands The RIPE NCC can only supply services to organisations that operate as a legal entity in the RIPE NCC service region. Therefore, together with the "The Standard RIPE NCC Service Agreement", the RIPE NCC requires you to send a copy of your organisation's registration with the local Chamber of Commerce, or the equivalent. The RIPE NCC will only sign "The Standard RIPE NCC Service Agreement" in the English language. Step 3: Payment of Fees After Step 1 is completed ("Completing the RIPE NCC Membership Application Form") the RIPE NCC will send an invoice to the billing address as specified by the prospective member. The amount on the invoice must be paid before the LIR receives services from the RIPE NCC, such as requesting address space or attending an LIR Training Course. Upon receipt of the signed service agreement and registration documents (e.g. the Chamber of Commerce form) the RIPE NCC will verify that the invoice has been paid. The RIPE NCC will then raise the service level of the LIR, that will enable it to start using the services of the RIPE NCC. The new member will receive an invoice from the RIPE NCC that includes the one time start-up fee and yearly membership fee. The start-up fee is used partially to pay for the LIR Training Courses that all new registered contacts are encouraged to attend. These fees are agreed by the membership at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the RIPE NCC and therefore are subject to change from year to year. Please read the current version of the RIPE Document "RIPE NCC Billing Procedure and Fee Schedule" for the list of current fees at: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/billing.html Each LIR is assigned a category (i.e. SMALL, MEDIUM or LARGE) on which the yearly fees are based. The categories are determined by the number of allocations the LIRs have received from the RIPE NCC and on the age of the allocations. A special billing category called "Enterprise" applies to LIRs that only assign addresses to their own organisations' networks and not to customers. Please note that the LIR billing process begins right after the completion of Step 1 (and NOT upon LIR first address space request). If an organisation takes up membership but does not request address space until months later, they are still required to pay for the months prior to their address request. In such cases it is better for the organisation to wait until they actually need IP address space before setting up the LIR. Be aware that most LIRs are not set up overnight and that it is best to apply well in advance of the operation date. Please consider one month to be a guideline for the completion of the application as an LIR. Questions regarding billing and payments should be sent to: . 4.0 Requesting Address Space for the First Time After an organisation has officially set up an LIR the RIPE NCC will send a message to notify the LIR that the set-up has been completed. At this time the LIR should use the mailbox for requesting address space or AS Numbers. Policy or registry-related questions can be sent to . Please do not send address space requests to nor use the ticket number that was assigned to you in the membership application. As soon as your LIR is established this ticket will be closed. All policy issues are described in more detail in the relevant RIPE documents found at: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/index.html To request IPv4 address space you need to submit a "First Allocation Request Form" found at: http://www.ripe.net/ripe/docs/first-allocation.html 5.0 Training Courses The RIPE NCC offers LIR Training Courses given by the RIPE NCC staff. Courses are paid for through the membership contribution. The course covers the following areas; the RIPE whois Database, IP address policies, reverse delegation, the routing registry, Provider Independent (PI) address space and AS numbers. The training course is open only to members of the RIPE NCC. We strongly recommend that new members send one or two of their staff members to this training course. For information on LIR Training Courses, location and dates of future LIR Training Courses, course material, policies and objectives, please see: http://www.ripe.net/training/index.html