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Text File | 1988-12-04 | 18.6 KB | 533 lines

FSC-0027

                    The Distribution Nodelist

                      by Ben Baker, 1:100/76
                 updated by Rick Moore, 1:115/333
                        December 4,  1988


Copyright 1986, 1987, 1988 International FidoNet Association. All
rights reserved.  Duplication and or distribution permitted for
non-commercial purposes only.

This document is a proposed update for the document known under
the names of FSC002-4,  FSC-0002,  and FTS-0002.

This document defines the format and content of the nodelist for
the Public FidoNet Network (PFN) as published each Friday.

The PFN is an international network of independently owned
electronic mail systems, most with interlocking electronic
bulletin board systems.  The distribution nodelist, or simply
"nodelist," is the glue which holds the network together.  It is
the PFN's "phone book" and it defines the top-level network
structure.

The nodelist is published as an ASCII text file named
NODELIST.nnn,  where nnn is the day-of-year of the Friday
publication date.  This file is packed into an archive file (by
System Enhancement Associates' ARC utility) named NODELIST.Ann,
where nn are the last two digits of day-of-year.

A companion file,  COORD.nnn, lists the coordinators of the
various regions and local networks which constitute the PFN. This
file may be created from NODELIST.nnn by the program COORD.EXE,
distributed by many PFN bulletin boards.

As stated above, NODELIST.nnn is an ASCII text file.  It contains
two kinds of lines, comment lines and data lines.  Each line is
terminated with an ASCII carriage return and line feed character
sequence,  and contains no trailing white-space (spaces, tabs,
etc.).  The file is terminated with an end-of-file character (EOF
= decimal character value 26).

Comments lines contain a semicolon (;) in the first character
position followed by zero or more alphabetic characters called
"interest flags."  A program which processes the nodelist may use
comment interest flags to determine the disposition of a comment
line.  The remainder of a comment line (with one exception,
treated below) is free-form ASCII text.  There are five interest
flags defined as follows:

     ;S This comment is of particular interest to Sysops.

     ;U This comment is of particular interest to BBS users.



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     ;F This comment should appear in any formatted "Fido List."

     ;A This comment is of general interest (shorthand for ;SUF).

     ;E This comment is an error message inserted by the nodelist
          generating program MakeNL.

     ; This comment may be ignored by a nodelist processor.

The first line of a nodelist is a special comment line containing
identification data for the particular edition of the nodelist.
The following is an example of the first line of a nodelist:

;A FidoNet Nodelist for Friday, July 3, 1987 --
     Day number 184 : 15943

This line contains the general interest flag,  the day,  date,
and day-of-year number of publication,  and ends with a 5-digit
decimal number with leading zeros,  if necessary.  This number is
the decimal representation of a check value derived as follows:

     Beginning with the first character of the second line,  a
     16-bit cyclic redundancy check (CRC) is calculated for the
     entire file, including carriage return and line feed
     characters,  but not including the terminating EOF
     character.  The check polynomial used is the same one used
     for many file transfer protocols:

          2**16 + 2**12 + 2**5 + 2**0

The CRC may be used to verify that the file has not been edited.
The importance of this will become evident in the discussion of
NODEDIFF,  below.  CRC calculation techniques are well documented
in the literature,  and will not be treated further here.

The content of the remaining comments in the nodelist are
intended to be informative.  Beyond the use of interest flags for
distribution,  a processing program need not have any interest in
them.

A nodelist data line contains eight variable length "fields"
separated by commas (,).  No space characters are allowed in a
data line,  and underscore characters are used in lieu of spaces.
The following discussion defines the contents of each field in a
data line.


Field 1: Keyword

The keyword field may be empty,  or may contain one of the
following:

     Zone --
          Begins the definition of a geographic zone and define
          its coordinator.  All the data lines following a line
          with the "Zone" keyword down to,  but not including the



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          next occurrence of a "Zone" keyword,  are regions,
          nets and nodes within the defined zone.

     Region --
          Begins the definition of a geographic region and
          defines its coordinator.  All the data lines following
          a line with the "Region" keyword down to,  but not
          including the next occurrence of a "Region" or "Host"
          keyword, are independent nodes within the defined
          region.

     Host --
          Begins the definition of a local network and defines
          its host.  All the data lines following a line with the
          "Host" keyword down to,  but not including the next
          occurrence of a "Region" or "Host" keyword,  are local
          nodes,  members of the defined local network.  The
          difference between a region and a local network is in
          the routing of messages.  A message addressed to a
          member of a region is sent  direct to the addressee,
          while a message to a member of a local network is sent
          to the network host.

     Hub --
          Begins the definition of a routing subunit within a
          multilevel local  network.  The hub is the routing
          focal point for nodes listed below it until the next
          occurrence of a "Hub",  "Region",  "Host",  or "Zone"
          keyword.  The hub entry MUST be a redundant entry,
          with a unique number,  for one of the nodes listed
          below it.  This is necessary because some nodelist
          processors eliminate these entries in all but the local
          network.

     Pvt --
          Defines a private node with unlisted number.  Private
          nodes are only allowed as members of local networks.

     Hold --
          Defines a  node which  is temporarily down.  Mail may
          be sent to it and is held by its host or coordinator.

     Down --
          Defines a node which is not operational.  Mail may NOT
          be sent  to it.  This keyword  may not be used for
          longer than two weeks on any single node,  at which
          point the "down" node is to be removed from the
          nodelist.

     <empty> --
          Defines a normal node entry.

Field 2 - Net/Node number





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     This field contains only numeric digits and is a number in
     the range of 0 to 32767.  If the line had the "Zone",
     "Region",  or "Host" keyword,  the number is the zone,
     net,  or region number,  and the node has an implied node
     number of 0.  Otherwise,  the number is the node number.
     The zone number,  region or net number,  and the node
     number,  taken together,  constitutes a node's FidoNet
     address.

     Zone numbers must be unique.  Region or net numbers must be
     unique within their zone.  Other numbers must be unique
     within their respective units.

Field 3 - Node name

     This field may contain any characters except commas and
     spaces.  Underscores are used to represent spaces.  This is
     the name by which the node is known.

Field 4 - Location

     This field may contain any characters except commas and
     spaces. Underscores are used to represent spaces.  This
     field contains the location of the  node.  In the USA it is
     typically "City_ST where ST is the standard two-letter
     abbreviation for the state.

Field 5 - Sysop name

     This field may contain any characters except commas and
     spaces.  Underscores are used to represent spaces.  This is
     the name of the system operator.

Field 6 - Phone number

     This field contains at least three and usually four numeric
     subfields separated by dashes (-).  The fields are country
     code (1 for USA and Canada),  city or area code,  exchange
     code,  and number.  The various parts of the phone number
     are frequently used to derive cost and routing information,
     as well as what number is to be dialed.  A typical example
     of the data in a phone number field is 1-800-555-1212,
     corresponding to country 1  (USA),  area 800 (inward WATS),
     exchange 555,  and number 1212.

     Alternatively,  this field may contain the notation
     "-Unpublished-" in the case of a private node.  In this
     case,  the keyword "Pvt" must appear on the line.

Field 7 - Baud rate

     This field contains one of the values:  300,  1200,  2400,
     or 9600,  and defines the maximum baud rate supported by the
     node.

Field 8 - Flags


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     This optional field contains data about the specific
     operation of the node,  such as file requests,  modem
     protocol supported,  etc.  Any text following the sixth
     comma on a data line is taken collectively to be the flags
     field.  The required format is zero or more subfields,
     separated by commas,  consisting of a flag,  possibly
     followed by a value.


     The following flags define special operating conditions:

          Flag      Meaning

          CM        Node accepts mail 24 hours a day
          MO        Node does not accept human callers


     The following flags define modem protocols supported:

          Flag      Meaning

          CT1       CCITT V21 300 bps
          CT2       CCITT V23 1200/75 split bps rate
          CT3       CCITT V22 1200 bps full duplex
          HAY       Hayes V9600
          HST       USR Courier HST
          MAX       Microcom AX/96xx series
          PEP       Telebit TrailBlazer
          V32       CCITT V32
          V33       CCITT V33
          V34       CCITT V34

               NOTE:  Many V22 modems also support Bell 212A.

          If no modem flag is given,  Bell 212A is assumed for
          1200 bps systems,  CCITT V22bis is assumed for 2400 bps
          systems.


     The following flags define type of error correction
     available.  A separate error correction flag should not be
     used when the error correction type can be determined by the
     modem flag.  For instance,  a modem flag of HST implies MNP.

          Flag      Meaning

          MNP       Microcom Networking Protocol error correction
          V42       LAP-M error correction w/fallback to MNP


     The following flags define the type(s) of compression of
     mail packets supported.

          Flag      Meaning



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          MN        No compression supported

                    NOTE:  The only compression method supported
                    by FidoNet at this time is SEA's ARC,  as
                    defined by the specs for ARCMail 0.6.  When
                    other types of mail compression are adopted,
                    indicators for them will be added.  For now,
                    the absence of a compression flag indicates
                    that ARCMail 0.6 compression is supported.


     The following  flags  indicate  the types of file/update
     requests supported.

          Flag      Meaning

          XA        Bark and WaZOO file/update requests
          XB        Bark file/update requests,  WaZOO file
                    requests
          XP        Bark file/update requests
          XR        Bark and WaZOO file requests
          XW        WaZOO file requests


     The following flag defines gateways to other domains
     (networks).

          Flag      Meaning

          Gx        Gateway to domain 'x' where 'x` is  a value
                    from 'A' to 'Z` or `1' to '9'.

                    NOTE:  Valid values of 'x' are assigned by
                    the FidoNet International Coordinator.
                    Current valid values of 'x' may be found in
                    the notes at the end of the current FidoNet
                    nodelist.


     The following  flags define the dedicated mail periods
     supported. They have the form "#nn" or !nn where nn is the
     UTC hour the mail period begins, # indicates Bell 212A
     compatibility and ! indicates incompatibility with Bell
     212A.

          Flag      Meaning

          #02       Zone 2 mail hour (02:30 - 03:30 UTC)
          #09       Zone 1 mail hour (09:00 - 10:00 UTC)
          #18       Zone 3 mail hour (18:00 - 19:00 UTC)

                    NOTE:  When applicable,  the mail period
                    flags may be strung together with no
                    intervening commas,  eg.  "#02#09".  Only
                    mail hours other than that standard within a
                    node's zone should be given.  Since


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                    observance of mail hour within one's zone is
                    mandatory,  it should not be indicated.


     The following flag defines user-specific values. If
     present,  this flag MUST be the last flag present in a
     nodelist entry.

          Flag      Meaning

          Ux..x     A user-specified string,  which  may  contain
                    any character except blanks.  This string may
                    contain one to thirty-two characters of
                    information that may be used to add
                    user-defined data to a specific nodelist
                    entry.  This string may not contain any flags
                    already defined in this document.  FTSC makes
                    no guarantee that it will not assign an
                    unused letter/number to new flags.  Certain
                    unused flags are already reserved - see the
                    list below.


     The following flags are reserved for future planned
     expansion of existing flags:  Mx and Px (where 'x' is any
     valid character).  This is not meant to imply that FTSC will
     not use any to use any other character sequences,  and FTSC
     reserves the right to assign any flag deemed necessary.


     The FTSC recognizes that the FidoNet International
     Coordinator is the ultimate authority over what appears in
     the FidoNet nodelist. Also,  the FTSC is by definition a
     deliberative body,  and adding or changing a flag may take a
     considerable amount of time.  Therefore,  the FidoNet
     International Coordinator may temporarily make changes or
     additions to the flags as defined in this document.  The
     FidoNet International Coordinator will then consult with
     the FTSC over the changes needed to this document to reflect
     these temporary changes.



     The following are examples of nodelist data lines:

Host,102,SOCALNET,Los_Angeles_CA,John_Doe,1-213-874-9484,2400,XP
,101,Rainbow_Data,Culver_City_CA,Don_Brauns,1-213-204-2996,2400,



With more than a thousand nodes,  the nodelist,  even in archive
form,  is a substantial document (or file).  Since distribution
is via electronic file transfer,  this file is NOT routinely
distributed.  Instead,  when a new nodelist is prepared,  it is
compared with the previous week's nodelist,  and a file
containing only the differences is created and distributed.


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The distribution file,  called NODEDIFF.nnn,  where nnn is the
day-of-year of publication,  is actually an editing script which
will transform the previous week's nodelist into the current
nodelist.  A definition of its format follows:

The first line of NODEDIFF.nnn is an exact copy of the first line
of LAST WEEK'S nodelist.  This is used as a first-level
confidence check to insure that the right file is being edited.
The second and subsequent lines are editing commands and editing
data.

There are three editing commands and all have the same format:

          <command><number>

     <command> is a 1-letter command;  A,  C,  or D.  <number> is
     a decimal number greater than zero,  and defines the number
     of lines to be operated on by the command.  Each command
     appears on a line by itself.  The commands have the
     following meanings:

     Ann - Add the following nn lines to the output file.

     Cnn - Copy nn unchanged lines from the input to the output
     file.

     Dnn - Delete (or skip) nn lines from the input file.

The following  illustrate how the first few lines of NODEDIFF.213
might look:

     ;A Friday, July 25, 1986 -- Day number 206 : 27712
     D2
     A2
     ;A Friday, August 1, 1986 -- Day number 213 : 05060
     ;A
     C5

This fragment illustrates all three editing commands.  The first
line is the first line from NODELIST.206.  The next line says
"delete the first two lines" from NODELIST.206.  These are the
identification line and the line following it.  The next command
says "add the next two lines" to NODELIST.213.  The two data
lines are followed by a command which says "copy five unchanged
lines" from NODELIST.206 to NODELIST.213.  Notice that the first
line added will ALWAYS contain the new nodelist's CRC.

Since only the differences will be distributed,  it is important
to insure the accuracy of the newly created nodelist.  This is
the function of the CRC mentioned above.  It is sufficient for a
program designed to  perform the above edits to pick the CRC
value from the first line added to the output file,  then compute
the CRC of the rest of the output file.  If the two CRCs do not
agree,  one of the input files has been corrupted.  If they do
agree,  the probability is very high (but not 100%) that the
output file is accurate.


                              Page 8
For actual  distribution,  NODEDIFF.nnn is packed into an archive
file named NODEDIFF.Ann, where nn are the last two digits of
day-of-year.






















































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