gov.mu domain name migration

14 November 2014 by S. Moonesamy

www.govmu.org

On 14 November 2014, the Government of Mauritius announced that it will be migrating the Government Portal to www.govmu.org as from 1 December 2014.

There was a report on 4 November about the Governmental Portal being inaccessible. The problem was caused by an issue in the domain name system (DNS).

On 6 November, I asked for help to debug an issue affecting gov.mu domain names. The feedback I received was that: "There are clearly two versions of the zone being served by gov.mu servers".

A person who is affiliated with an organization which provides free hosting for one of the name servers for the .mu country code top level domain (ccTLD) added the person responsible for the .mu country code top level domain (ccTLD) and a person in Mauritius to the email exchange as it was assumed that " one of them knows who works the gov delegation". The person responsible for the .mu ccTLD did not reply to the email.

It is common practice for DNS operators to respond to technical issues as it helps to ensure that domain names work on the Internet. In 2012, I sent an email about an issue with one of the DNS Root Servers instances used for the domain name system. I received public feedback from a person affiliated with verisign.com and a person from nic.mil sent me a public message to enquire about the problem. The problem was solved in less than a day.

DNS queries

I performed some DNS queries for the www.gov.mu domain name and the results were as follows:

;; - HEADER - opcode: QUERY, status: NXDOMAIN, id: 15794
;; flags: qr aa; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 0, AUTHORITY: 1, ADDITIONAL: 0

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;www.gov.mu. IN A

;; AUTHORITY SECTION: gov.mu. 43200 IN SOA ns1.gov.mu. gov.mu. 2014111503 10800 3600 43200 300

;; Query time: 274 msec
;; SERVER: 195.253.64.5#53(195.253.64.5)
;; WHEN: Fri Nov 14 16:08:33 2014
;; MSG SIZE rcvd: 68

;; - HEADER - opcode: QUERY, status: NXDOMAIN, id: 21319
;; flags: qr aa; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 0, AUTHORITY: 1, ADDITIONAL: 0

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;www.gov.mu. IN A

;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
gov.mu. 300 IN SOA ns1.gov.mu. gov.mu. 2014111503 10800 3600 43200 300

;; Query time: 307 msec
;; SERVER: 204.61.216.10#53(204.61.216.10)
;; WHEN: Fri Nov 14 16:10:08 2014
;; MSG SIZE rcvd: 68

;; - HEADER - opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 7896
;; flags: qr; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 0, AUTHORITY: 4, ADDITIONAL: 8

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;www.gov.mu. IN A

;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
gov.mu. 43200 IN NS ns0.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 43200 IN NS ns1.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 43200 IN NS ns2.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 43200 IN NS ns3.gov.mu.

;; ADDITIONAL SECTION:
ns0.gov.mu. 43200 IN A 208.94.148.2
ns0.gov.mu. 43200 IN AAAA 2600:1800::1
ns1.gov.mu. 43200 IN A 208.80.124.2
ns1.gov.mu. 43200 IN AAAA 2600:1801:1::1
ns2.gov.mu. 43200 IN A 208.80.126.2
ns2.gov.mu. 43200 IN AAAA 2600:1802:2::1
ns3.gov.mu. 43200 IN A 208.80.125.2
ns3.gov.mu. 43200 IN AAAA 2600:1801:3::1

;; Query time: 225 msec
;; SERVER: 193.0.9.98#53(193.0.9.98)
;; WHEN: Fri Nov 14 16:12:35 2014
;; MSG SIZE rcvd: 276

;; - HEADER - opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 13434
;; flags: qr; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 0, AUTHORITY: 4, ADDITIONAL: 8

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;www.gov.mu. IN A

;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
gov.mu. 43200 IN NS ns3.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 43200 IN NS ns0.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 43200 IN NS ns2.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 43200 IN NS ns1.gov.mu.

;; ADDITIONAL SECTION: ns0.gov.mu. 43200 IN A 208.94.148.2
ns0.gov.mu. 43200 IN AAAA 2600:1800::1
ns1.gov.mu. 43200 IN A 208.80.124.2
ns1.gov.mu. 43200 IN AAAA 2600:1801:1::1
ns2.gov.mu. 43200 IN A 208.80.126.2
ns2.gov.mu. 43200 IN AAAA 2600:1802:2::1
ns3.gov.mu. 43200 IN A 208.80.125.2
ns3.gov.mu. 43200 IN AAAA 2600:1801:3::1

;; Query time: 236 msec
;; SERVER: 77.72.229.254#53(77.72.229.254)
;; WHEN: Fri Nov 14 16:14:20 2014
;; MSG SIZE rcvd: 276

;; - HEADER - opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 43898
;; flags: qr aa; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 1, AUTHORITY: 4, ADDITIONAL: 4

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;gov.mu. IN SOA

;; ANSWER SECTION:
gov.mu. 43200 IN SOA ns1.gov.mu. hostmaster.mail.gov.mu. 2014110714 43200 3600 2419200 180

;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
gov.mu. 86400 IN NS ns3.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 86400 IN NS ns1.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 86400 IN NS ns0.gov.mu.
gov.mu. 86400 IN NS ns2.gov.mu.

;; ADDITIONAL SECTION:
ns0.gov.mu. 2592000 IN A 208.94.148.2
ns1.gov.mu. 2592000 IN A 208.80.124.2
ns2.gov.mu. 2592000 IN A 208.80.126.2
ns3.gov.mu. 2592000 IN A 208.80.125.2

;; Query time: 215 msec
;; SERVER: 208.80.124.2#53(208.80.124.2)
;; WHEN: Fri Nov 14 16:21:10 2014
;; MSG SIZE rcvd: 212

Name servers for gov.mu

The name servers for gov.mu are associated with dnsmadeeasy.com (see output below).

;; - HEADER - opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 55691
;; flags: qr rd ra; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 1, AUTHORITY: 0, ADDITIONAL: 0

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;2.124.80.208.in-addr.arpa. IN PTR

;; ANSWER SECTION:
2.124.80.208.in-addr.arpa. 11489 IN PTR ns1.dnsmadeeasy.com.

;; Query time: 187 msec
;; SERVER: 8.8.8.8#53(8.8.8.8)
;; WHEN: Fri Nov 14 16:59:16 2014
;; MSG SIZE rcvd: 76

There were other domain names using that name server:

;; - HEADER - opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 41487
;; flags: qr; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 0, AUTHORITY: 5, ADDITIONAL: 0
;; QUESTION SECTION:
;omnio.club. IN NS

;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
OMNIO.club. 7200 IN NS NS3.DNSMADEEASY.COM.
OMNIO.club. 7200 IN NS NS1.DNSMADEEASY.COM.
OMNIO.club. 7200 IN NS NS0.DNSMADEEASY.COM.
OMNIO.club. 7200 IN NS NS4.DNSMADEEASY.COM.
OMNIO.club. 7200 IN NS NS2.DNSMADEEASY.COM.

;; Query time: 334 msec
;; SERVER: 156.154.144.215#53(156.154.144.215)
;; WHEN: Fri Nov 14 17:04:38 2014
;; MSG SIZE rcvd: 139

Name servers for govmu.org

The govmu.org domain name was registered on 10 October, 2014 by the Government of Mauritius. The name servers for the govmu.org domain name are pdns05.domaincontrol.com and pdns06.domaincontrol.com.

Domain Name:GOVMU.ORG
Domain ID: D174179716-LROR
Creation Date: 2014-10-10T11:33:28Z
Updated Date: 2014-10-10T11:50:18Z
Registry Expiry Date: 2024-10-10T11:33:28Z
Sponsoring Registrar:GoDaddy.com, LLC (R91-LROR)
Sponsoring Registrar IANA ID: 146
WHOIS Server:
Referral URL:
Domain Status: clientDeleteProhibited
Domain Status: clientRenewProhibited
Domain Status: clientTransferProhibited
Domain Status: clientUpdateProhibited
Domain Status: serverTransferProhibited
Registrant ID:CR178598494
Registrant Name:Ministry of ICT
Registrant Organization:Government of Mauritius
Registrant Street: Level 9, Air Mauritius Building
Registrant Street: President J. Kennedy St.,
Registrant City:Port Louis
Registrant State/Province:
Registrant Postal Code:11302
Registrant Country:MU
Registrant Phone:+230.2116185
Registrant Phone Ext:
Registrant Fax:
Registrant Fax Ext:
Registrant Email:domain@ncb.mu
Admin ID:CR178598496
Admin Name:Executive Director
Admin Organization:National Computer Board
Admin Street: 7th Floor, Stratton Court
Admin Street: La Poudriere Street
Admin City:Port Louis
Admin State/Province:
Admin Postal Code:742CU001
Admin Country:MU
Admin Phone:+230.2105520
Admin Phone Ext:
Admin Fax:
Admin Fax Ext:
Admin Email:Domain@ncb.mu
Tech ID:CR178598495
Tech Name:GOvernment Online Centre
Tech Organization:National Computer Board
Tech Street: 7th floor, Stratton Court
Tech Street: La Poudriere Street
Tech City:Port Louis
Tech State/Province:
Tech Postal Code:742CU001
Tech Country:MU
Tech Phone:+230.2105520
Tech Phone Ext:
Tech Fax:
Tech Fax Ext:
Tech Email:Domain@ncb.mu
Name Server:PDNS05.DOMAINCONTROL.COM
Name Server:PDNS06.DOMAINCONTROL.COM
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
Name Server:
DNSSEC:signedDelegation
DS Created 1:2014-10-10T11:50:17Z
DS Key Tag 1:32554
Algorithm 1:8
Digest Type 1:1
Digest 1:a33680dcdb786a149d2ee3f2f84d462ca19e433f
DS Maximum Signature Life 1:1814400 seconds
DS Created 2:2014-10-10T11:50:17Z
DS Key Tag 2:13360
Algorithm 2:8
Digest Type 2:1
Digest 2:9a76e8e9751a504c2edd2303a3637f9cb626f7ab
DS Maximum Signature Life 2:1814400 seconds

;; - HEADER - opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 27054
;; flags: qr; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 0, AUTHORITY: 2, ADDITIONAL: 0

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;govmu.org. IN NS

;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
govmu.org. 86400 IN NS pdns05.domaincontrol.com.
govmu.org. 86400 IN NS pdns06.domaincontrol.com.

;; Query time: 318 msec
;; SERVER: 199.19.54.1#53(199.19.54.1)
;; WHEN: Fri Nov 14 17:13:28 2014
;; MSG SIZE rcvd: 86

According to the Whois records those two name servers are located in the United States.

NetRange: 216.69.128.0 - 216.69.191.255
CIDR: 216.69.128.0/18
NetName: GO-DADDY-COM-LLC
NetHandle: NET-216-69-128-0-1
Parent: NET216 (NET-216-0-0-0-0)
NetType: Direct Allocation
OriginAS: AS26496
Organization: GoDaddy.com, LLC (GODAD)
RegDate: 2004-05-24
Updated: 2014-02-25
Comment: Please send abuse complaints to abuse@godaddy.com
Ref: http://whois.arin.net/rest/net/NET-216-69-128-0-1

OrgName: GoDaddy.com, LLC
OrgId: GODAD
Address: 14455 N Hayden Road
Address: Suite 226
City: Scottsdale
StateProv: AZ
PostalCode: 85260
Country: US
RegDate: 2007-06-01
Updated: 2014-09-10
Comment: Please send abuse complaints to abuse@godaddy.com
Ref: http://whois.arin.net/rest/org/GODAD

NetRange: 208.109.0.0 - 208.109.255.255
CIDR: 208.109.0.0/16
NetName: GO-DADDY-COM-LLC
NetHandle: NET-208-109-0-0-1
Parent: NET208 (NET-208-0-0-0-0)
NetType: Direct Allocation
OriginAS: AS26496
Organization: GoDaddy.com, LLC (GODAD)
RegDate: 2006-04-12
Updated: 2014-02-25
Comment: Please send abuse complaints to abuse@godaddy.com
Ref: http://whois.arin.net/rest/net/NET-208-109-0-0-1


OrgName: GoDaddy.com, LLC
OrgId: GODAD
Address: 14455 N Hayden Road
Address: Suite 226
City: Scottsdale
StateProv: AZ
PostalCode: 85260
Country: US
RegDate: 2007-06-01
Updated: 2014-09-10
Comment: Please send abuse complaints to abuse@godaddy.com
Ref: http://whois.arin.net/rest/org/GODAD

Conclusion

It is unlikely that the name servers for gov.mu are dedicated solely for gov.mu domain names. Based on the output of the DNS queries there is a technical issue resolving the www.gov.mu domain name reliably even though the technical issue has been identified since over a week. One explanation for the migration to www.govmu.org might be that it is to avoid the problem occuring at the .mu ccTLD name servers.

It is odd to use name servers in the United States only for the www.govmu.org domain name given that the DNS query time from Mauritius to those name servers is over 300 milliseconds. It seems that the Goverment Online Centre does not have the DNS infrastructure to operate the name servers for the govmu.org domain name.