<s>
Prefix	B-Protocol
WhoIs	I-Protocol
is	O
an	O
open	B-License
source	I-License
project	O
that	O
develops	O
and	O
operates	O
a	O
free	O
whois-compatible	O
framework	O
for	O
stockpiling	O
and	O
querying	O
various	O
routing	O
and	O
registry	O
information	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prefix	B-Protocol
WhoIs	I-Protocol
uses	O
global	O
BGP	O
routing	O
data	O
learned	O
from	O
many	O
ISP	O
backbone	O
routers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
information	O
sources	O
are	O
also	O
supported	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
imported	O
data	O
from	O
every	O
regional	O
Internet	O
registry	O
(	O
AFRINIC	O
,	O
APNIC	O
,	O
ARIN	O
,	O
LACNIC	O
,	O
and	O
RIPE	O
)	O
and	O
geocoding	B-Application
information	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
public	O
servers	O
around	O
the	O
world	O
operate	O
mirrors	O
of	O
Prefix	B-Protocol
WhoIs	I-Protocol
,	O
making	O
the	O
information	O
generally	O
available	O
worldwide	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
service	O
may	O
be	O
used	O
with	O
any	O
client	O
using	O
the	O
standard	O
whois	B-Protocol
protocol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
DNS	O
address	O
whois.pwhois.org	O
resolves	O
to	O
the	O
Prefix	B-Protocol
WhoIs	I-Protocol
server	O
nearest	O
to	O
the	O
client	O
based	O
on	O
anycast	B-Protocol
DNS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
client	O
software	O
packages	O
are	O
available	O
from	O
both	O
Prefix	B-Protocol
WhoIs	I-Protocol
itself	O
and	O
from	O
commercial	O
vendors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
include	O
free	O
,	O
open	B-License
source	I-License
utilities	O
such	O
as	O
WhoB	O
and	O
Layer	B-Protocol
Four	I-Protocol
Traceroute	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
software	O
responds	O
to	O
standard	O
whois	B-Protocol
queries	O
and	O
supports	O
a	O
variety	O
of	O
output	O
formats	O
(	O
including	O
Prefix	B-Protocol
WhoIs	I-Protocol
native	O
,	O
Cymru	O
,	O
and	O
RPSL	B-Protocol
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Prefix	B-Protocol
WhoIs	I-Protocol
project	O
distributes	O
C	O
and	O
PHP	O
libraries	O
for	O
direct	O
access	O
to	O
Prefix	B-Protocol
WhoIs	I-Protocol
servers	O
.	O
</s>
