Traceroute bad.horse | Hacker News Reader

Traceroute bad.horse

bad.horse

66 pointsempressplay37 comments

nice trick!

   traceroute to bad.horse (162.252.205.157), 64 hops max, 52 byte packets
    1  hitronhub.home (192.168.0.1)  1.297 ms  4.735 ms  1.239 ms
    ...
   15  sandwichnet.dmarc.lga1.atlanticmetro.net (208.68.168.214)  135.798 ms  140.562 ms  143.798 ms
   16  bad.horse (162.252.205.130)  146.156 ms  142.317 ms  144.713 ms
   17  bad.horse (162.252.205.131)  151.452 ms  141.565 ms  147.824 ms
   18  bad.horse (162.252.205.132)  150.282 ms  151.902 ms  147.301 ms
   19  bad.horse (162.252.205.133)  156.142 ms  159.470 ms  154.836 ms
   20  he.rides.across.the.nation (162.252.205.134)  160.041 ms  161.434 ms  159.902 ms
   21  the.thoroughbred.of.sin (162.252.205.135)  164.983 ms  167.041 ms  165.494 ms
   22  he.got.the.application (162.252.205.136)  171.734 ms  177.575 ms  174.984 ms
   23  that.you.just.sent.in (162.252.205.137)  171.570 ms  175.279 ms *
   24  it.needs.evaluation (162.252.205.138)  174.902 ms  179.621 ms  184.773 ms
   25  so.let.the.games.begin (162.252.205.139)  187.524 ms  194.978 ms  194.625 ms
   26  a.heinous.crime (162.252.205.140)  190.320 ms  193.910 ms  189.847 ms
   27  a.show.of.force (162.252.205.141)  200.079 ms  200.243 ms  200.161 ms
   28  a.murder.would.be.nice.of.course (162.252.205.142)  209.217 ms  200.395 ms  198.943 ms
   29  bad.horse (162.252.205.143)  204.872 ms  200.588 ms  199.948 ms
   30  bad.horse (162.252.205.144)  208.942 ms  210.275 ms  213.851 ms
   31  bad.horse (162.252.205.145)  214.864 ms  215.249 ms  218.883 ms
   32  he-s.bad (162.252.205.146)  225.302 ms  231.934 ms  219.798 ms
   33  the.evil.league.of.evil (162.252.205.147)  224.996 ms  230.585 ms  233.917 ms
   34  is.watching.so.beware (162.252.205.148)  229.773 ms  239.485 ms  229.975 ms
   35  the.grade.that.you.receive (162.252.205.149)  235.012 ms  236.729 ms *
   36  will.be.your.last.we.swear (162.252.205.150)  256.679 ms  239.715 ms  244.775 ms
   37  so.make.the.bad.horse.gleeful (162.252.205.151)  245.136 ms  245.206 ms  244.009 ms
   38  or.he-ll.make.you.his.mare (162.252.205.152)  249.784 ms  250.375 ms  254.393 ms
   39  o_o (162.252.205.153)  258.573 ms  254.211 ms  255.209 ms
   40  you-re.saddled.up (162.252.205.154)  260.841 ms  268.941 ms  265.509 ms
   41  there-s.no.recourse (162.252.205.155)  264.965 ms  264.412 ms  259.975 ms
   42  it-s.hi-ho.silver (162.252.205.156)  269.809 ms  264.429 ms  272.851 ms
   43  signed.bad.horse (162.252.205.157)  273.429 ms  269.227 ms  270.123 ms

Good thing IP v4 aren't a sparse resource...

Ah, yes, we've found what's been eating up so many IP4s. Guess we don't need IPv6 anymore. :)

The best bit is https://signed.bad.horse/ . Take a look at the certificate hierarchy...

Several browsers I tried do not allow connecting due to "sec_error_path_len_constraint_invalid"

What does "ð%C2%9F%C2%98%C2%9F" mean?

Heh, Chromium has some double-escaping going on in the CN: It's \"Hi-ho, Silver!\"

From `openssl s_client -connect signed.bad.horse:443 -servername signed.bad.horse` (scroll the box to the right, and read from bottom to top):

  Certificate chain
   0 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=signed.bad.horse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=It's "Hi-ho, Silver!"
   1 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=It's "Hi-ho, Silver!"
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=There's no recourse
   2 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=There's no recourse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=You're saddled up
   3 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=You're saddled up
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=\xC3\xB0\xC2\x9F\xC2\x98\xC2\x9F
   4 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=\xC3\xB0\xC2\x9F\xC2\x98\xC2\x9F
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Or he'll make you his mare
   5 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Or he'll make you his mare
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=So make the Bad Horse gleeful
   6 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=So make the Bad Horse gleeful
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Will be your last, we swear
   7 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Will be your last, we swear
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=The grade that you receive
   8 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=The grade that you receive
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Is watching, so beware
   9 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Is watching, so beware
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=The Evil League of Evil
  10 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=The Evil League of Evil
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=He's bad
  11 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=He's bad
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
  12 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
  13 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
  14 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=A murder would be nice, of course
  15 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=A murder would be nice, of course
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=A show of force
  16 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=A show of force
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=A heinous crime
  17 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=A heinous crime
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=So let the games begin
  18 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=So let the games begin
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=It needs evaluation
  19 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=It needs evaluation
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=That you just sent in
  20 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=That you just sent in
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=He got the application
  21 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=He got the application
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=The thoroughbred of sin
  22 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=The thoroughbred of sin
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=He rides across the nation
  23 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=He rides across the nation
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
  24 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
  25 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
  26 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
  27 s:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse
     i:/C=US/ST=Minnesota/L=Minneapolis/O=Sandwich.Net, LLC/OU=Bad Horse/CN=Bad Horse

Wonderful use of IPv4 you've got there...

  traceroute to bad.horse (162.252.205.157), 64 hops max, 52 byte packets
  [...]
  15  bad.horse (162.252.205.130)  103.311 ms  103.628 ms  102.827 ms
  16  bad.horse (162.252.205.131)  107.488 ms  104.828 ms  104.703 ms
  17  bad.horse (162.252.205.132)  112.190 ms  111.216 ms  111.989 ms
  18  bad.horse (162.252.205.133)  117.264 ms  118.055 ms  117.544 ms
  19  he.rides.across.the.nation (162.252.205.134)  119.456 ms  121.042 ms  122.334 ms
  20  the.thoroughbred.of.sin (162.252.205.135)  126.045 ms  127.904 ms  127.317 ms
  21  he.got.the.application (162.252.205.136)  129.997 ms  130.968 ms  131.858 ms
  22  that.you.just.sent.in (162.252.205.137)  139.854 ms  137.724 ms  137.116 ms
  23  it.needs.evaluation (162.252.205.138)  142.303 ms  143.272 ms  143.851 ms
  24  so.let.the.games.begin (162.252.205.139)  148.624 ms  146.938 ms  147.149 ms
  25  a.heinous.crime (162.252.205.140)  151.508 ms  152.716 ms  152.711 ms
  26  a.show.of.force (162.252.205.141)  157.842 ms  159.179 ms  157.245 ms
  27  a.murder.would.be.nice.of.course (162.252.205.142)  159.767 ms  162.660 ms  162.843 ms
  28  bad.horse (162.252.205.143)  167.594 ms  166.622 ms  166.355 ms
  29  bad.horse (162.252.205.144)  171.282 ms  170.400 ms  172.535 ms
  30  bad.horse (162.252.205.145)  174.793 ms  178.159 ms  175.421 ms
  31  he-s.bad (162.252.205.146)  180.099 ms  180.643 ms  183.375 ms
  32  the.evil.league.of.evil (162.252.205.147)  186.147 ms  187.997 ms  187.459 ms
  33  is.watching.so.beware (162.252.205.148)  194.779 ms  193.215 ms  192.146 ms
  34  the.grade.that.you.receive (162.252.205.149)  197.412 ms  195.618 ms  197.549 ms
  35  will.be.your.last.we.swear (162.252.205.150)  199.100 ms  200.027 ms  199.496 ms
  36  so.make.the.bad.horse.gleeful (162.252.205.151)  2192.878 ms  225.596 ms  206.608 ms
  37  or.he-ll.make.you.his.mare (162.252.205.152)  1525.507 ms  812.661 ms  211.153 ms
  38  o_o (162.252.205.153)  932.350 ms  492.911 ms  1455.687 ms
  39  you-re.saddled.up (162.252.205.154)  1946.147 ms  1964.092 ms  1945.679 ms
  40  there-s.no.recourse (162.252.205.155)  992.185 ms  1830.382 ms  2197.681 ms
  41  it-s.hi-ho.silver (162.252.205.156)  1945.557 ms  1846.352 ms  1253.045 ms
  42  signed.bad.horse (162.252.205.157)  501.400 ms  1432.041 ms  1747.911 ms

And we wonder why IANA has no more IPv4 addresses.

Yeah, wasting a /27 like this obviously accelerated the depletion by years.

And in other news, for some reason, .horse is a top-level domain.

See also https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5192656 for an older, star wars based, traceroute.

Used to be that traceroute 216.81.59.173 gave you a recreation of the Star Wars opening crawl in host names... I guess these configurations don't last forever, though.

`telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl`

Well, that too, but no, this was a traceroute hack, not a telnet service.

Reminds me of 'traceroute xmas.futile.net'

.horse? wow icann really just wants the $$$

http://icannwiki.com/.horse

Remember when someone tried to make a new namespace in the 90s when icann resisted all new tlds for years?

was it opennic?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_DNS_root#OpenNIC

I wish they had taken off and modern browsers supported them by default so icann would lose all monopoly.

DNS that only works for "modern" clients is not very useful. I certainly wouldn't want an address like that.

Something similar: tracert -h 255 xmas.futile.net

   21  ooooxooooooxooo.V.ooooooxooooxoooo [82.133.91.37]
   22  ooxoooooxooooo.MMM.ooooooooxxoooxo [82.133.91.18]
   23  oooxoooooxooo.EEEEE.oooxoooooxoooo [82.133.91.63]
   24  ooooxooxooox.RRRRRRR.ooooooxooooox [82.133.91.56]
   25  oxooooooxoo.RRRRRRRRR.oooxooooooxo [82.133.91.55]
   26  xoooxooooo.YYYYYYYYYYY.oooxooooxoo [82.133.91.58]
   27  ooxoooooxooooo.CCC.ooooooooxoooxoo [82.133.91.96]
   28  oooooxooo.HHHHHHHHHHHHH.oxoooxoooo [82.133.91.23]
   29  ooxooxoo.RRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.ooxoooxoo [82.133.91.49]
   30  oxoooxo.IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII.oooxooxo [82.133.91.60]
   31  oooxoo.SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.ooxoooo [82.133.91.42]
   32  oooxoooxoooooo.TTT.ooooooooooooxoo [82.133.91.61]
   33  ooxoo.MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM.oooxo [82.133.91.34]
   34  xxoo.AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.oxoo [82.133.91.80]
   35  oxo.SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.ooo [82.133.91.40]
   36  ooxooooooooooo.XXX.oooooooooooooxo [82.133.91.35]
   37  oxoooooooooooo.XXX.ooooooooooooxxo [82.133.91.10]
   38  Oh.the.weather.outside.is.frightful [82.133.91.41]
   39  But.the.fire.is.so.delightful [82.133.91.19]
   40  And.since.weve.no.place.to.go [82.133.91.77]
   41  Let.It.Snow.Let.It.Snow.Let.It.Snow [82.133.91.43]
   42  xXx [82.133.91.24]
   43  It.doesnt.show.signs.of.stopping [82.133.91.36]
   44  And.Ive.bought.some.corn.for.popping [82.133.91.73]
   45  The.lights.are.turned.way.down.low [82.133.91.76]
   46  Let.It.Snow.Let.It.Snow.Let.It.Snow [82.133.91.67]
   47  xXx [82.133.91.38]
   48  When.we.finally.kiss.good.night [82.133.91.62]
   49  How.Ill.hate.going.out.in.the.storm [82.133.91.45]
   50  But.if.youll.really.hold.me.tight [82.133.91.78]
   51  All.the.way.home.Ill.be.warm [82.133.91.17]
   52  xXx [82.133.91.70]
   53  The.fire.is.slowly.dying [82.133.91.95]
   54  And.my.dear.were.still.goodbying [82.133.91.57]
   55  But.as.long.as.you.love.me.so [82.133.91.31]
   56  Let.It.Snow.Let.It.Snow.Let.It.Snow [82.133.91.53]
   57  oOo [82.133.91.94]
   58  Ho.Ho.Ho.Are.We.Having.Fun.Yet [82.133.91.64]
   59  M.E.R.R.Y.C.H.R.I.S.T.M.A.S [82.133.91.86]
   60  oOo [82.133.91.15]
   61  Dashing.through.the.snow [82.133.91.14]
   62  In.a.one-horse.open.sleigh [82.133.91.83]
   63  Over.the.fields.we.go [82.133.91.27]
   64  Laughing.all.the.way [82.133.91.71]
   65  Bells.on.bobtail.ring [82.133.91.79]
   66  Making.spirits.bright [82.133.91.75]
   67  What.fun.it.is.to.ride.and.sing [82.133.91.82]
   68  A.sleighing.song.tonight [82.133.91.98]
   69  oOo [82.133.91.29]
   70  Jingle.bells.jingle.bells [82.133.91.91]
   71  Jingle.all.the.way [82.133.91.81]
   72  Oh.what.fun.it.is.to.ride [82.133.91.21]
   73  In.a.one-horse.open.sleigh [82.133.91.30]
   74  Jingle.bells.jingle.bells [82.133.91.59]
   75  Jingle.all.the.way [82.133.91.32]
   76  Oh.what.fun.it.is.to.ride [82.133.91.74]
   77  In.a.one-horse.open.sleigh [82.133.91.87]
   78  M-E-R-R-Y--C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S [82.133.91.72]
   79  Have.yourself.a.merry.little.Christmas [82.133.91.90]
   80  Let.your.heart.be.light [82.133.91.47]
   81  From.now.on [82.133.91.12]
   82  our.troubles.will.be.out.of.sight [82.133.91.99]
   83  oOo [82.133.91.22]
   84  Have.yourself.a.merry.little.Christmas [82.133.91.68]
   85  Make.the.Yule-tide.gay [82.133.91.52]
   86  From.now.on [82.133.91.66]
   87  our.troubles.will.be.miles.away [82.133.91.54]
   88  oOo [82.133.91.93]
   89  Here.we.are.as.in.olden.days [82.133.91.25]
   90  Happy.golden.days.of.yore [82.133.91.89]
   91  Faithful.friends.who.are.dear.to.us [82.133.91.46]
   92  Gather.near.to.us.once.more [82.133.91.69]
   93  oOo [82.133.91.85]
   94  Through.the.years [82.133.91.39]
   95  We.all.will.be.together [82.133.91.33]
   96  If.the.Fates.allow [82.133.91.44]
   97  Hang.a.shining.star.upon.the.highest.bough [82.133.91.97]
   98  And.have.yourself.A.merry.little.Christmas.now [82.133.91.88]
   99  o.O [82.133.91.11]
   100  48.61.70.70.79.20.48.6f.6c.69.64.61.79.73.20.46.72.65.65.6e.6f.64.65.20.23.63.69.73.63.6f [82.133.91.51]
   101  oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo.MyssT.oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo [77.75.106.106]

Well, it's not working anymore.

It does work it depends on your ISP's peering tho.

  7     6 ms     6 ms    16 ms  40ge1-3.core1.lon2.he.net [195.66.224.21]
  8    92 ms    73 ms    74 ms  100ge1-1.core1.nyc4.he.net [72.52.92.166]
  9    87 ms   103 ms    89 ms  100ge7-2.core1.chi1.he.net [184.105.223.161]
 10    95 ms    95 ms    95 ms  100ge10-1.core1.msp1.he.net [184.105.223.178]
 11    95 ms    95 ms    95 ms  ip-house.gigabitethernet3-6.core1.msp1.he.net [216.66.78.110]
 12    97 ms    96 ms    96 ms  c4500-1.mpls.iphouse.net [216.250.189.170]
 13    96 ms    96 ms    96 ms  egw-iphouse.mplsc1.mn.us.sn11.net [209.240.64.149]
 14   100 ms   100 ms   100 ms  sandwichnet.dmarc.lga1.atlanticmetro.net [208.68.168.214]
 15   100 ms   100 ms   101 ms  bad.horse [162.252.205.130]
 16   105 ms   105 ms   105 ms  bad.horse [162.252.205.131]
 17   110 ms   110 ms   110 ms  bad.horse [162.252.205.132]
 18   115 ms   115 ms   115 ms  bad.horse [162.252.205.133]
 19   120 ms   120 ms   119 ms  he.rides.across.the.nation [162.252.205.134]
 20   125 ms   125 ms   124 ms  the.thoroughbred.of.sin [162.252.205.135]
 21   130 ms   129 ms   129 ms  he.got.the.application [162.252.205.136]
 22   136 ms   135 ms   135 ms  that.you.just.sent.in [162.252.205.137]
 23   140 ms   140 ms   140 ms  it.needs.evaluation [162.252.205.138]
 24   146 ms   144 ms   144 ms  so.let.the.games.begin [162.252.205.139]
 25   150 ms   150 ms   150 ms  a.heinous.crime [162.252.205.140]
 26   155 ms   155 ms   155 ms  a.show.of.force [162.252.205.141]
 27   161 ms   161 ms   160 ms  a.murder.would.be.nice.of.course [162.252.205.142]
 28   165 ms   165 ms   165 ms  bad.horse [162.252.205.143]
 29   169 ms   170 ms   170 ms  bad.horse [162.252.205.144]
 30   172 ms   175 ms   175 ms  bad.horse [162.252.205.145]

I guess we collectively blew it up =( This is why we can't have nice things...

I think they forgot rate limits. One of implementations were done using two actual routers and routing between those back and forth. Which means that it's really easy target to overload. I would have personally written light python script to fake it, instead of using hardware routers.

It seems that pinging under 100 Kbit/s rate is enough to take it out of service, which is very little traffic. I would have liked to load test them up to double digit Gbit/s rate, but. This is disappointing. No challenge at all, single IP, no rate limits and poor capacity.

If this is using a pair of low-end Cisco routers (as previous implementations did), it really doesn't take too many people doing this at once to "overload" them. Generating the responses is handled by the CPU (not the ASICs) and the processor in these devices is extremely underpowered, relative to, well, pretty much anything else with a processor in it. The processor in a Cisco 1841, for example, is an m68k at 250 MHz, if memory serves.

Besides, I'm sure this was probably just something thrown together quickly for a good laugh and the responsible party likely didn't feel it was necessary to make this a highly available, fault-tolerant, geographically replicated service.

Would love to see it, how can I encourage you to?

I'm busy with other projects, so I won't do it. But that's trivial. It would be a good practical learning opportunity if you're trying to learn about IP protocol and packet handling. Just use raw sockets on Linux, get data, and send responses.

Alternatively you could use multiple IP addresses on same host, then you don't need to fake packets and can traditionally listen on ping on every IP. But that takes it to bit higher level and it isn't so fun anymore.

Or you can set your computer to listen in on routed traffic, if you got router which will route subnet to your 'software' router. There are multiple ways to do it.

Of course using two hardware routers is also ok, if you want to learn about configuring those. Different goal, different means.

All of these means still require you to be able to control that subnet and set required reverse DNS information or run your own AS and rDNS.

Also the latency between first hop of the story and last hop of the story tells about the system having very limited capacity. In case of the faking Script, delay difference between hops would be 0 ms. Now the numbers directly tell that there's plenty of latency and packet handling is taking a long time. -> Guaranteed to have a poor throughput & load characteristics.

I've seen this on Twitter, then on the Reddit homepage, now it's in HN's #1 spot. What's going on, how is this new? I've seen an article on how to do this years ago on HN. It's a funny thing to do, just like the Google homepage doodles or telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl (if I remember correctly, that streams ASCII Star Wars to you)... what's special about bad.horse (besides the relatively new GTLD)?

It's a fun trick, let people enjoy it. Not everything needs to be groundbreaking.

Agreed, I like to see simple fun stuff on here as well. It's just that this is not interesting anymore (to me at least) because others already did it. I'd rather like to see a repost of the old, informative article instead of a new implementation of the same thing. Worse, the new thing doesn't even explain how it was done or contain any information I might be interested in.

> What's going on, how is this new?

What does "having to be new" have to do with anything? It's a cool trick.

If I may play devil's advocate, one can argue that this is called "hacker news" and therefore, you would expect things to be new :)

That's one reason, but it doesn't need to be new. Articles from 1998 are fine by me if they're interesting. It's more that someone did something, someone else copies it years later (I guess after everyone has forgotten it) and then it's a hype as big as if Windows 11 was announced to become web-based. The old implementer at least explained how to technically do it, this bad.horse thing doesn't give me anything interesting.

What if the headline read: "we rewrote bad.horse to be webscale using Go"

Not a Go fan, but yeah in that case there is actually something interesting about the whole thing. Now it just does something that we already saw before.

That post would get to spot -1 on HN for sure :)

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