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Netnews Administration System
**NAS (Netnews Administration System)** is a protocol designed to manage and facilitate the administration of Usenet newsgroups, allowing for efficient control of news server configurations, moderation settings, and distribution policies. Operating over both TCP and UDP, it assists administrators in maintaining the integrity and smooth operation of news distribution networks..
Overview:
The Netnews Administration System (NAS) operates primarily as a control and management protocol for Usenet news servers and distribution systems. Running typically on port 991 over both TCP and UDP, it facilitates administrative tasks such as managing feed configurations, enforcing moderation controls, and synchronizing operational policies among distributed news servers.
Functionality:
NAS streamlines complex moderation workflows by allowing configuration commands and status updates to be transmitted between network nodes. It supports administrative commands, status queries, and automated control messages, ensuring that newsgroups operate according to established guidelines. The protocol may interoperate with NNTP (Network News Transfer Protocol) to assist in overall newsgroup data management albeit focusing more on the administrative aspects.
Architecture:
Designed with flexibility, NAS can perform both synchronous and asynchronous communications. The use of TCP ensures reliable command delivery, while UDP supports faster, low-overhead status broadcasts when reliability can be sacrificed for performance. Although it is an official port assignment, NAS adoption is somewhat limited today due to the decline of Usenet usage and preference for web-based forums.