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comparison doc/www.anonet2.org/public_pod/faq.pod @ 57:0579cf4cc59a draft

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minor fixes and updates
author Nick <nick@somerandomnick.ano>
date Wed, 16 Jun 2010 03:43:53 +0000
parents 412a2ce1326a
children a34c72e28c98
comparison
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56:d2e2d8432e91 57:0579cf4cc59a
6 6
7 =over 7 =over
8 8
9 =item Why do you use 1.0.0.0/8? It's been assigned to APNIC. You should use private (RFC1918) address space like 10.0.0.0/8. 9 =item Why do you use 1.0.0.0/8? It's been assigned to APNIC. You should use private (RFC1918) address space like 10.0.0.0/8.
10 10
11 AnoNet is a public network, and as such it should use public address space. ICANN (a private corporation) controls the public resources on the IcannNet (a.k.a. the "public" Internet), and has delegated 1.0.0.0/8 on the IcannNet to APNIC. AnoNet is a separate public network, that doesn't answer to ICANN (nor to anybody else, for that matter). Now, that said, when AnoNet started using 1.0.0.0/8 it was reserved (i.e., not to be allocated), but because of ICANN's mismanagement of the IPv4 address space (which is why nearly all 4 billion addresses have already been assigned, in a world with only 6 billion total people, including all the starving babies in Africa who don't even know yet what a computer is), ICANN had to take 1.0.0.0/8 out of its "reserved" pool and to put it into the "assignable" pool. AnoNet has no control over ICANN policy, so while AnoNet did attempt to avoid directly conflicting with IcannNet addresses, ICANN ultimately made sure that attempt would fail. (If you'd like to connect to an internet with address space that's still in the ICANN "reserved" pool, you may want to try VAnet.) Using private address space is inappropriate for a public network, per RFC1918. (If you'd like to connect to an internet that uses private address space anyway, you may want to try dn42 at L<http://www.dn42.net/>.) 11 AnoNet is a public network, and as such it should use public address
12 space. ICANN (a private corporation) controls the public resources on
13 the IcannNet (a.k.a. the "public" Internet), and has delegated 1.0.0.0/8
14 on the IcannNet to APNIC. AnoNet is a separate public network, that
15 doesn't answer to ICANN (nor to anybody else, for that matter). Now,
16 that said, when AnoNet started using 1.0.0.0/8 it was reserved (i.e.,
17 not to be allocated), but because of ICANN's mismanagement of the IPv4
18 address space (which is why nearly all 4 billion addresses have already
19 been assigned, in a world with only 6 billion total people, including all
20 the starving babies in Africa who don't even know yet what a computer is),
21 ICANN had to take 1.0.0.0/8 out of its "reserved" pool and to put it into
22 the "assignable" pool. AnoNet has no control over ICANN policy, so while
23 AnoNet did attempt to avoid directly conflicting with IcannNet addresses,
24 ICANN ultimately made sure that attempt would fail. (If you'd like to
25 connect to an internet with address space that's still in the ICANN
26 "reserved" pool, you may want to try VAnet.) Using private address
27 space is inappropriate for a public network, per RFC1918. (If you'd
28 like to connect to an internet that uses private address space anyway,
29 you may want to try dn42 at L<http://www.dn42.net/>.)
12 30
13 =item If you use 1.0.0.0/8, you're squatting on somebody else's resources. 31 =item If you use 1.0.0.0/8, you're squatting on somebody else's resources.
14 32
15 If you use 1.0.0.0/8 on the IcannNet, then your statement is correct, but AnoNet and IcannNet are two totally separate public networks, so it's ridiculous to accuse a participant in one to be squatting on resources on the other. ICANN has no divine right to 1.0.0.0/8 (nor to any other netblock, for that matter) outside the IcannNet. 33 If you use 1.0.0.0/8 on the IcannNet, then your statement is correct,
34 but AnoNet and IcannNet are two totally separate public networks,
35 so it's ridiculous to accuse a participant in one to be squatting
36 on resources on the other. ICANN has no divine right to 1.0.0.0/8
37 (nor to any other netblock, for that matter) outside the IcannNet.
38 Moreover, using 10.0.0.0/8 I<would> be squatting on private address
39 space (address space that's reserved for your own home network),
40 per RFC1918. (While AnoNet couldn't care less about ICANN, we do use
41 the IETF protocols (with s/IcannNet/AnoNet/), so if the IETF says that
42 10.0.0.0/8 is reserved for your own home network, far be it from us to
43 steal it for some "public" network.)
16 44
17 =item AnoNet runs on the IcannNet. Therefore, you _are_ squatting. 45 =item AnoNet runs on the IcannNet. Therefore, you _are_ squatting.
18 46
19 That last accusation has no logical basis. Just because most AnoNet links are tunneled over the IcannNet doesn't give ICANN a right to rule the content of those tunnels. 47 That last accusation has no logical basis. Just because most AnoNet
48 links are tunneled over the IcannNet doesn't give ICANN a right to rule
49 the content of those tunnels.
20 50
21 =item You should move to IPv6, then. 51 =item You should move to IPv6, then.
22 52
23 AnoNet has no rules, so you're more than welcome to move to IPv6, and/or to try to convince others to do the same. As long as you don't start out with unrealistic expectations, you probably won't be disappointed with the results of your preaching effort. 53 AnoNet has no rules, so you're more than welcome to move to IPv6, and/or
54 to try to convince others to do the same. As long as you don't start
55 out with unrealistic expectations, you probably won't be disappointed
56 with the results of your preaching effort.
24 57
25 =back 58 =back
26 59
27 =head2 Peering 60 =head2 Peering
28 61
29 =over 62 =over
30 63
31 =item What is peering all about? 64 =item What is peering all about?
32 65
33 AnoNet is an internet. An internet means an internetwork, or a network that connects between networks. An internetwork is normally constructed by making links between the different networks, and then carrying internetwork traffic along those links. (If network A has a link to network B, then traffic from A to B or from B to A should probably pass through that link.) Such a link is called a "peering," and the two sides of that link are called "peers." On the IcannNet, peerings are normally done over leased lines, but due to the nature of AnoNet, using leased lines isn't much of an option for most peerings. Therefore, most peerings are done over tunnels on the IcannNet. The most common software for AnoNet tunnels is OpenVPN, although tinc and quicktuns are also used. (tinc in particular deserves special attention: it can create a mesh between participants, sacrificing anonymity to achieve lower latency.) 66 AnoNet is an internet. An internet means an internetwork, or a network
67 that connects between networks. An internetwork is normally constructed
68 by making links between the different networks, and then carrying
69 internetwork traffic along those links. (If network A has a link to
70 network B, then traffic from A to B or from B to A should probably pass
71 through that link.) Such a link is called a "peering," and the two
72 sides of that link are called "peers." On the IcannNet, peerings are
73 normally done over leased lines, but due to the nature of AnoNet, using
74 leased lines isn't much of an option for most peerings. Therefore, most
75 peerings are done over tunnels on the IcannNet. The most common software
76 for AnoNet tunnels is OpenVPN, although tinc and quicktuns are also used.
77 (tinc in particular deserves special attention: it can create a mesh
78 between participants, sacrificing anonymity to achieve lower latency.)
34 79
35 =item Whom should I peer with? 80 =item Whom should I peer with?
36 81
37 If you want to protect your anonymity, you'll want to peer with only a few others. If you're more interested in getting good latency, you'll want a more promiscuous peering policy. Your peers are able to access certain information (like your IP) that isn't easy for others to access, so the harm in having too many peers is that the secrecy of that information is protected by the "weakest" link. (The greater the number of people who know a secret, the greater the number of people who are likely to hear about it within a given time interval.) 82 If you want to protect your anonymity, you'll want to peer with only
83 a few others. If you're more interested in getting good latency,
84 you'll want a more promiscuous peering policy. Your peers are able to
85 access certain information (like your IP) that isn't easy for others
86 to access, so the harm in having too many peers is that the secrecy of
87 that information is protected by the "weakest" link. (The greater the
88 number of people who know a secret, the greater the number of people
89 who are likely to hear about it within a given time interval.)
38 90
39 =item How can I talk to the rest of AnoNet, if I'm only peered with a few others? 91 =item How can I talk to the rest of AnoNet, if I'm only peered with a few others?
40 92
41 How can you talk to Google, if you're only hooked up to your local ISP? The answer is that your ISP offers you "transit" to its peers, which in turn offer your ISP transit to their peers, etc. (If network A is connected to network B, which itself is connected to network C, then with B's permission network A can talk to network C.) On AnoNet, most peerings have BGP sessions managing the routing tables on both sides, in order to provide mutual transit. (On AnoNet, providing transit is an advantage, since it improves your own anonymity.) 93 How can you talk to Google, if you're only hooked up to your local ISP?
94 The answer is that your ISP offers you "transit" to its peers, which
95 in turn offer your ISP transit to their peers, etc. (If network A is
96 connected to network B, which itself is connected to network C, then
97 with B's permission network A can talk to network C.) On AnoNet, most
98 peerings have BGP sessions managing the routing tables on both sides,
99 in order to provide mutual transit. (On AnoNet, providing transit is
100 an advantage, since it improves your own anonymity.)
42 101
43 =item Won't providing transit slow down my Internet connection? 102 =item Won't providing transit slow down my Internet connection?
44 103
45 If you're the preferred transit provider between two guys who feel like streaming a whole ton of real-time studio-quality video back and forth all day, that can certainly slow down (to put it mildly) your dial-up connection. In reality, most traffic on AnoNet is plain text, so you probably don't have too much to worry about, especially if you have some sort of broadband connection. That said, if it ever _does_ become an issue, all you have to do is stop providing transit (although the particular case above is unlikely to persist even if you do nothing at all, since the two streaming guys will quickly figure out that going through you won't get them anywhere, and they'll most likely seek another transit provider - or even just peer with each other directly), or use simple BGP tricks to make transit through you less attractive to some or all of the AnoNet. 104 If you're the preferred transit provider between two guys who feel
105 like streaming a whole ton of real-time studio-quality video back and
106 forth all day, that can certainly slow down (to put it mildly) your
107 dial-up connection. In reality, most traffic on AnoNet is plain text,
108 so you probably don't have too much to worry about, especially if you
109 have some sort of broadband connection. That said, if it ever _does_
110 become an issue, all you have to do is stop providing transit (although
111 the particular case above is unlikely to persist even if you do nothing
112 at all, since the two streaming guys will quickly figure out that going
113 through you won't get them anywhere, and they'll most likely seek another
114 transit provider - or even just peer with each other directly), or use
115 simple BGP tricks to make transit through you less attractive to some
116 or all of the AnoNet.
46 117
47 =back 118 =back
48 119
49 =head2 DNS 120 =head2 DNS
50 121
51 =over 122 =over
52 123
53 =item How is DNS handled on AnoNet? 124 =item How is DNS handled on AnoNet?
54 125
55 AnoNet has a number of TLDs (Top-Level Domains), the most interesting one being .ano. The entire zone is public (unlike, say, the .com zone on the IcannNet), so you can easily deploy your own TLD nameservers. In fact, the git resdb already includes scripts to generate both tinydns and BIND zonefiles automatically. That said, SRN has public root and TLD nameservers, if you don't feel like setting up your own. SRN also has a public recursive resolver (which also resolves IcannNet names), which you can use if you can't even be bothered to set up your own recursive resolver. Please note that you're telling SRN about all hostnames that you lookup if you do this. (Right now, you're probably telling your ISP the same information, BTW.) 126 AnoNet has a number of TLDs (Top-Level Domains), the most interesting
127 one being .ano. The entire zone is public (unlike, say, the .com zone
128 on the IcannNet), so you can easily deploy your own TLD nameservers.
129 In fact, the git resdb already includes scripts to generate both
130 tinydns and BIND zonefiles automatically. That said, SRN has public
131 root and TLD nameservers, if you don't feel like setting up your own.
132 SRN also has a public recursive resolver (which also resolves IcannNet
133 names), which you can use if you can't even be bothered to set up your
134 own recursive resolver. Please note that you're telling SRN about all
135 hostnames that you lookup if you do this. (Right now, you're probably
136 telling your ISP the same information, BTW.)
56 137
57 =item I want my own domain. How can I set it up? 138 =item I want my own domain. How can I set it up?
58 139
59 You have a number of options, depending on (a) your current infrastructure, and (b) your interest/ability to deploy additional infrastructure. The resource database is just a whole bunch of directories/files stored in a git repository, so adding a domain into "AnoNet" essentially boils down to adding the right files/directories into everybody's git repository. (Fortunately, most guys send and receive updates among themselves on a regular basis, so your new domain should "propagate" around rather quickly, once it's made its way into one repository.) If you have git, you can "git clone" the repository from someone, add your domain (there's a small script to make the job easy, if you don't want to do it by hand), and then send someone a diff. If you feel like setting up your own git server, then all you have to do is make the changes on your own repo, and then tell somebody the URL to your git server. You'll probably want to take advantage of the same opportunity to add your own git URL into the resource database, so others can pull from you on a regular basis. If you don't have git and don't feel like setting it up, all you have to do is find someone else who does have git (or feels like setting it up), and doesn't mind making the changes for you. SRN is always such a "someone." Next, you'll want to set up your nameservers to resolve names within your domain. If you have tinydns or BIND, just read the relevant documentation. If you don't have a nameserver and don't feel like setting one up, tell SRN what names you want (like "www.yourdomain.ano," "ftp.yourdomain.ano," etc.), and he'll add them into his own nameservers. 140 You have a number of options, depending on (a) your current
141 infrastructure, and (b) your interest/ability to deploy additional
142 infrastructure. The resource database is just a whole bunch of
143 directories/files stored in a git repository, so adding a domain into
144 "AnoNet" essentially boils down to adding the right files/directories into
145 everybody's git repository. (Fortunately, most guys send and receive
146 updates among themselves on a regular basis, so your new domain should
147 "propagate" around rather quickly, once it's made its way into one
148 repository.) If you have git, you can "git clone" the repository from
149 someone, add your domain (there's a small script to make the job easy,
150 if you don't want to do it by hand), and then send someone a diff.
151 If you feel like setting up your own git server, then all you have to
152 do is make the changes on your own repo, and then tell somebody the URL
153 to your git server. You'll probably want to take advantage of the same
154 opportunity to add your own git URL into the resource database, so others
155 can pull from you on a regular basis. If you don't have git and don't
156 feel like setting it up, all you have to do is find someone else who
157 does have git (or feels like setting it up), and doesn't mind making
158 the changes for you. SRN is always such a "someone." Next, you'll
159 want to set up your nameservers to resolve names within your domain.
160 If you have tinydns or BIND, just read the relevant documentation.
161 If you don't have a nameserver and don't feel like setting one up, tell
162 SRN what names you want (like "www.yourdomain.ano," "ftp.yourdomain.ano,"
163 etc.), and he'll add them into his own nameservers.
60 164
61 =item What can I do with my own domain? 165 =item What can I do with my own domain?
62 166
63 You can host Web pages, an FTP site, IRC, email, an online shop (but taking payments may not be simple), or anything else that strikes your fancy. 167 You can host Web pages, an FTP site, IRC, email, an online shop (but
168 taking payments may not be simple), or anything else that strikes
169 your fancy.
64 170
65 =back 171 =back
66 172
67 =head2 Censorship 173 =head2 Censorship
68 174
69 =over 175 =over
70 176
71 =item Is it safe to speak my mind on AnoNet? 177 =item Is it safe to speak my mind on AnoNet?
72 178
73 The short answer is "probably." The long answer is that nobody has ever been censored on AnoNet2, a fact that's not likely to change. (If that fact ever does change, it'll be noted here as soon as possible.) 179 The short answer is "probably." The long answer is that nobody has
180 ever been censored on AnoNet2, a fact that's not likely to change.
181 (If that fact ever does change, it'll be noted here as soon as possible.)
74 182
75 =item Will I be censored for child porn? 183 =item Will I be censored for child porn?
76 184
77 AnoNet1 has an official policy against CP, and it redefines "censorship" to not include censoring CP. AnoNet2 has no policies. That said, you're not likely to find any CP here, since that's simply not a common contribution to AnoNet2. (Whether or not it'd be a welcome contribution is something you'll want to take up with individual participants. SRN would like you to know that he believes the CP (and porn, in general) industry destroys the world for no useful purpose. Nobody else has voiced an opinion here.) 185 AnoNet1 has an official policy against CP, and it redefines "censorship"
186 to not include censoring CP. AnoNet2 has no policies. That said,
187 you're not likely to find any CP here, since that's simply not a common
188 contribution to AnoNet2. (Whether or not it'd be a welcome contribution
189 is something you'll want to take up with individual participants.
190 SRN would like you to know that he believes the CP (and porn, in general)
191 industry destroys the world for no useful purpose. Nobody else has
192 voiced an opinion here.)
78 193
79 =item Will I be censored for hateful speech? 194 =item Will I be censored for hateful speech?
80 195
81 It depends on the forum. If you do it on your own server, don't expect too many people to hang around there if you make a practice of making it unpleasant for them to be there. If you start cursing people out on somebody else's IRC server for no apparent reason, there's a non-trivial chance that the operator will /kill your connection. SRN encourages you to set up your own channel on irc.somerandomnick.ano, and to say whatever the heck you want there. 196 It depends on the forum. If you do it on your own server, don't expect
197 too many people to hang around there if you make a practice of making
198 it unpleasant for them to be there. If you start cursing people out on
199 somebody else's IRC server for no apparent reason, there's a non-trivial
200 chance that the operator will /kill your connection. SRN encourages
201 you to set up your own channel on irc.somerandomnick.ano, and to say
202 whatever the heck you want there.
82 203
83 =item Will I be censored for trolling? 204 =item Will I be censored for trolling?
84 205
85 Since "trolling" is an overly ambiguous term, it's highly unlikely that you'll ever get /kicked or /killed for doing it. In fact, SRN encourages you to out-troll him on irc.somerandomnick.ano. That said, you should certainly expect people to /ignore you if you make a practice of saying stuff that people really don't want to hear. (You may want to create a separate IRC nick for trolling, if you anticipate trolling a lot, but want people to still hear you when you have something interesting to say.) 206 Since "trolling" is an overly ambiguous term, it's highly unlikely that
207 you'll ever get /kicked or /killed for doing it. In fact, SRN encourages
208 you to see if you can out-troll him on irc.somerandomnick.ano. That said,
209 you should certainly expect people to /ignore you if you make a practice
210 of saying stuff that people really don't want to hear. (You may want to
211 create a separate IRC nick for trolling, if you anticipate trolling a lot,
212 but want people to still hear you when you have something interesting
213 to say: this way, everybody wins.)
86 214
87 =item Will I be censored for spreading lies? 215 =item Will I be censored for spreading lies?
88 216
89 not likely, but people may /ignore you if you make a practice of saying stuff that people don't want to hear 217 not likely, but people may /ignore you if you make a practice of saying
90 218 stuff that people don't consider worth hearing
91 =back 219
220 =back