How to get information about domain .NET C++

I am trying to create an application (Language C++ using .NET 2.0) which allows users to get information about a domain, for example if the domain is free or it is used, update date, creation date, expiration date etc.

I know about some services which do that like whois.dom开发者_如何学运维aintools, whois etc. Now I want to know how they work and how I can write an application which will collect the same information without using any service. Can anybody help me?

WHOIS is the protocol for querying domain information. So you probably want to implement this protocol.

As a starting point, you can use the Wikipedia article about it.

Check these urls:

1. http://www.mentalis.org/soft/class.qpx?id=10
2. http://www.aspheute.com/english/20000825.asp.
3. http://www.codeproject.com/KB/cs/whoisclient.aspx