Protocol registries (IANA)

IANA is responsible for coordinating some of the key elements that keep the Internet running smoothly. The Internet is renowned for being a worldwide network free from central coordination. But there is a technical need for key parts of the Internet to be globally coordinated. IANA undertakes this coordination role.

IANA allocates and maintains unique codes and numbering systems (parameters) used in the IETF technical standards.

IANA activities can be broadly grouped into three categories:

• Domain Names
  Management of the DNS Root, the .int and .arpa domains, and an IDN practices resources
• Number Resources
  Coordination of the global pool of IP and AS numbers, primarily providing them to Regional Internet Registries.
• Protocol Assignments
  Internet protocols’ numbering systems are managed in conjunction with standards bodies.

IANA one of the Internet's oldest institutions, dating back to the 1970s. Today the services are provided by Public Technical Identifiers, a purpose-built organization for providing the IANA functions to the community. PTI is an affiliate of ICANN.

Accessing IANA-maintained information

IANA Protocol Parameter Assignments

• Status of IETF Internet-Drafts in IANA Queue
• IANA Statistics for IETF-related Requests

IANA Time Zone Database

In addition to the other information, IANA maintains the Time Zone Database (often called tz or zoneinfo) contains code and data that represent the history of local time for many representative locations around the globe. It is updated periodically to reflect changes made by political bodies to time zone boundaries, UTC offsets, and daylight-saving rules. Information it contains is used in various Internet standards developed in the IETF. Its management procedure is documented in BCP 175: Procedures for Maintaining the Time Zone Database.

IANA Time Zone Database
(Copy of IANA Time Zone Database maintained by the IETF Secretariat)