Mission
NLnet Labs was founded to develop, implement, evaluate, and promote new
protocols and applications for the Internet. Its activities are focused on
topics directly relating to the Internet's infrastructure, such as DNS, DNSSEC,
IPv6, and routing.
Goals and method
NLnet Labs strives to be a technical expertise center that promotes
the core values of an open, innovative, and collaborative set of
networks: the Internet. To that end NLnet Labs will continue to find
pragmatic approaches to bridge between theory and practical deployment
of Internet protocols. The specialism and expertise of the team
determine which avenues are pursued. Exploration of new emerging areas
relevant to the future of the Internet that fuel potential
collaborations with other parties, are inherent to the role NLnet Labs
plays in the field. One of the main selection criteria for projects is
whether our contribution makes a difference, whether our participation
serves public interest and relates to an open and innovative Internet
environment available to all.
One of the ways to realize the above is to contribute materially to
the expansion and maintenance of the pool of open source software for
the Internet. The term open source is being used here as a catch-all
for a large variety of models for the unrestricted development and
distribution of software in source form (GNU Public License, BSD
license, Artistic license etc.).
The second way we contribute to the realization of the long
term vision is participation in the creation of Open Standards and
Best Current Practices.
Finally, NLnet Labs will take responsibility in promotion of
the the technical principles that allow the permissionless innovative
environment that constituted the Internet in those fora where
technology meets policy.
Current Projects
Among our current projects are:
- DNSSEC: research, development and
implementation of a SECure extension to the Domain Name System.
- NSD: development of an authoritative
only, high performance, simple, and open source name server.
- Unbound: development of a recursive
validating caching resolver.
- IPv6: solving issues related to
the migration from IPv4 to IPv6.
