RDAP Configuration

Overview

RDAP (Registration Data Access Protocol) is the modern replacement for WHOIS. Poweradmin supports RDAP lookups for domain registration information with structured JSON responses and better internationalization support.

Configuration Options

RDAP settings can be configured in the config/settings.php file under the rdap section.

Setting	Default	Description
enabled	false	Enable RDAP lookup functionality
default_server	''	Optional default RDAP server URL (empty to use server from RDAP database)
request_timeout	10	HTTP request timeout in seconds for RDAP queries
restrict_to_admin	true	Only allow administrators (user_is_ueberuser) to use RDAP functionality

Configuration Example

return [
    'rdap' => [
        'enabled' => true,
        'default_server' => 'https://rdap.verisign.com/com/v1/',
        'request_timeout' => 15,
        'restrict_to_admin' => true,
    ],
];

RDAP vs WHOIS

Feature	WHOIS	RDAP
Protocol	Plain text	JSON over HTTPS
Security	No encryption	HTTPS encryption
Internationalization	Limited	Full Unicode support
Machine readable	No	Yes
Rate limiting	Basic	Standardized
Authentication	None	OAuth2 support

Usage

When enabled, RDAP lookups provide:

1. Structured data - JSON responses with consistent formatting
2. Enhanced security - HTTPS-based queries
3. Better performance - HTTP-based protocol with caching support
4. Internationalization - Full Unicode domain support

How to Use RDAP Lookup

1. Navigate to any zone in Poweradmin
2. Click the RDAP button or icon next to the domain name
3. View the structured registration data

RDAP Response Data

RDAP returns structured information including:

• Handle: Registry-assigned identifier
• Status: Domain status (active, inactive, etc.)
• Events: Registration, expiration, last update dates
• Entities: Registrant, admin, tech contacts with roles
• Nameservers: Configured DNS servers with their details
• Links: References to related resources
• Remarks: Additional notes from the registry

Choosing Between WHOIS and RDAP

Use RDAP when you need: - Machine-readable data for automation - International domain names (IDN) - Structured contact information - OAuth2-protected queries

Use WHOIS when you need: - Quick manual lookups - Legacy system compatibility - Simple text output

Supported TLDs

RDAP supports lookups for:

• All major gTLDs (.com, .net, .org, .info, etc.)
• Many ccTLDs with RDAP servers
• New gTLDs with RDAP implementation

Security Features

• HTTPS encryption - All queries use encrypted connections
• Admin restriction - Access limited to administrators by default
• Rate limiting compliance - Respects RDAP server rate limits
• Input validation - Domain names are validated before queries

Configuration Best Practices

Production Environment

'rdap' => [
    'enabled' => true,
    'default_server' => '', // Use automatic server detection
    'request_timeout' => 30, // Longer timeout for reliability
    'restrict_to_admin' => true,
],

Development Environment

'rdap' => [
    'enabled' => true,
    'default_server' => 'https://rdap.verisign.com/com/v1/',
    'request_timeout' => 10,
    'restrict_to_admin' => false, // Allow all users for testing
],

RDAP Server Bootstrap

RDAP uses a bootstrap mechanism to determine the correct server for each TLD:

1. Automatic detection - Queries IANA bootstrap registry
2. Cached mappings - Server mappings are cached for performance
3. Fallback servers - Default server used if bootstrap fails

Performance Optimization

• Caching: RDAP responses can be cached
• Connection pooling: Reuse HTTP connections
• Timeout tuning: Balance between reliability and performance
• Error handling: Graceful fallback to WHOIS if RDAP fails