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Handle Value Types
A handle has a set of values assigned to it and may be thought of as a record that consists of a group of fields. Each handle value must have a data type specified in its <type> field, that defines the syntax and semantics of its data, and a unique <index> value that distinguishes it from the other values of the set.
<type> can be any UTF8-string. Handle System users acknowledge, however, that there are potential conflicts for handle clients if users assign types that are not registered and recognized across the user community. How types should be defined and how they should be registered and used is currently under discussion.
There is a pre-defined set of handle data types for administrative use, shown in Table 1, that have been entered in a registry as handles. There are also three registered handle data types for non-administrative use: URL, EMAIL, and DESC, shown in Table 2 below.
Table 1: Administrative Types |
Type Handle |
Description |
0.TYPE/HS_ADMIN |
Values of type HS_ADMIN are encoded representations of the admin record for a handle. This admin record defines the administrator as well as the permissions that the administrator has over the handle. |
0.TYPE/HS_PUBKEY |
Values of type HS_PUBKEY contain encoded information describing a public key that can be used to authenticate entities in the Handle System. |
0.TYPE/HS_SECKEY |
Values of type HS_SECKEY are used to store UTF8-encoded text that is used as a password to access some service. Values of type HS_SECKEY should usually not be publicly readable. |
0.TYPE/HS_VLIST |
Values of type HS_VLIST contain a list of handle value references. Each handle value reference consists of a handle and an index of the value being referenced. |
0.TYPE/HS_SERV |
Values of type HS_SERV contain UTF8-encoded handles that identify a handle service (i.e., a set of HS_SITE values). When HS_SERV values are contained in a prefix handle, resolvers retrieve the service information from the handle referenced in the HS_SERV value. |
0.TYPE/HS_ALIAS |
Values of type HS_ALIAS contain a UTF8-encoded handle. The handle identified by the HS_ALIAS value should be resolved, and its data should be used in place of the data in the handle containing the HS_ALIAS value. This redirection should be handled at the application level. |
Table 2: Non-administrative Types |
Type Handle |
Description |
0.TYPE/URL |
Values of type URL are UTF8-encoded URIs that specify the location of
the object identified by a handle. |
0.TYPE/EMAIL |
Values of type EMAIL are UTF8-encoded email addresses. |
0.TYPE/DESC |
Values of type DESC are UTF8-encoded text descriptions of the object identified by the handle. |
More information on handle value types can be found in the Technical Manual and the Handle System RFCs referenced in the Interface Specification.
Updated 25 June 2007
Send inquiries to hdladmin@cnri.reston.va.us
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