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ImBoredAllTheTime
Asked: 2021-03-17 08:27:43 +0800 CST

Two way handshake for WHOIS protocol? RFC 3912

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From RFC 3912:

3. Protocol Example

If one places a request of the WHOIS server located at whois.nic.mil for information about "Smith", the packets on the wire will look like:

  client                           server at whois.nic.mil

  open TCP   ---- (SYN) ------------------------------>
             <---- (SYN+ACK) -------------------------
  send query ---- "Smith<CR><LF>" -------------------->
  get answer <---- "Info about Smith<CR><LF>" ---------
             <---- "More info about Smith<CR><LF>" ----
  close      <---- (FIN) ------------------------------
             ----- (FIN) ----------------------------->

This:

  client                           server at whois.nic.mil

  open TCP   ---- (SYN) ------------------------------>
             <---- (SYN+ACK) -------------------------

Seems like a two way TCP handshake? Which, does that exist?

I think this is what that should be mentioned:

  client                           server at whois.nic.mil

  open TCP   ---- (SYN) ------------------------------>
             <---- (SYN+ACK) -------------------------
             ---- (ACK) ------------------------------>

I think it is basically a shorthand to the three way handshake...

tcp rfc whois

1 Answers

  1. Best Answer

    Whois is nothing specific, it does normal TCP/IP operations.

    It is probably just an oversight (as there is no need in fact to give those details for the protocol, once it is said it uses TCP as transport then TCP rules apply), based on when it is written and the fact the first RFC on whois was on March 1982.

    And for completeness, while unrelated to your question, it does not (should not) matter so much anymore as its successor is RDAP and all efforts should be on that and not on whois anymore that should die for many obvious reasons.

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