While computers and other devices identify each other on networks or the
Internet by using unique addresses made up of numbers, humans rely on
the Domain Name System (DNS), the distributed database that allows us to
identify machines by name. DNS does the work of translating domain names
into numerical IP addresses, routing mail to its proper destination, and
many other services, so that users require little or no knowledge of the
system. If you're a network or system administrator, however,
configuring, implementing, and maintaining DNS zones can be a formidable
challenge. And now, with Windows Server 2003, an understanding of the
workings of DNS is even more critical.
DNS on Windows Server 20003 is a special Windows-oriented edition of
the classic DNS and BIND, updated to document the many changes to DNS,
large and small, found in Windows Server 2003. Veteran O'Reilly authors,
Cricket Liu, Matt Larson, and Robbie Allen explain the whole system in
terms of the new Windows Server 2003, from starting and stopping a DNS
service to establishing an organization's namespace in the global
hierarchy.
Besides covering general issues like installing, setting up, and
maintaining the server, DNS on Windows Server 2003 tackles the many
issues specific to the new Windows environment, including the use of the
dnscmd program to manage the Microsoft DNS Server from the command line
and development using the WMI DNS provider to manage the name server
programmatically. The book also documents new features of the Microsoft
DNS Server in Windows Server 2003, including conditional forwarding and
zone storage in Active Directory (AD) application partitions.
DNS on Windows Server 2003 provides grounding in:
- Security issues
- System tuning
- Caching
- Zone change notification
- Troubleshooting
- Planning for growth
If you're a Windows administrator, DNS on Windows Server 2003 is the
operations manual you need for working with DNS every day. If you're a
Windows user who simply wants to take the mystery out of the Internet,
this book is a readable introduction to the Internet's architecture and
inner workings.
