2.4 The Domain Name System (DNS)

JimKurose2 minutes read

DNS is a distributed system that translates host names to IP addresses, functioning at a massive scale and operating at the application layer using TCP and UDP services. It involves a decentralized approach to avoid single points of failure, resolves queries through hierarchical servers, and emphasizes security measures like firewalls and authentication services.

Insights

  • DNS is a vital system that translates host names to IP addresses, functioning at a massive scale with high performance, operating at the application layer using TCP and UDP services, and serving various purposes like aliasing, service resolution, and load balancing.
  • DNS's decentralized and distributed nature, with a hierarchical structure involving root servers, TLD servers, authoritative name servers, and local DNS servers, ensures resilience against failures, handles trillions of daily requests, employs iterative and recursive queries for resolution, caches data for faster responses, and utilizes resource records like A, NS, CNAME, and MX records in specific formats for query and reply messages, emphasizing the importance of securing DNS through firewalls and authentication services.

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Recent questions

  • What does DNS stand for?

    Domain Name System

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Summary

00:00

"DNS: Distributed, Hierarchical, and Efficient Name Resolution"

  • DNS translates host names to IP addresses like gaia.cs.umass.edu to 128.119.40.186
  • DNS is a distributed application functioning at a massive scale with high performance
  • DNS operates at the application layer, utilizing TCP and UDP services
  • DNS structure involves queries resolution, DNS records, and message format
  • DNS serves to translate names to IP addresses and provides aliasing, service resolution, and load balancing
  • DNS decentralized approach avoids single points of failure and traffic concentration
  • DNS is a distributed hierarchical database handling trillions of requests daily
  • DNS hierarchy includes root servers, TLD servers, authoritative name servers, and local DNS servers
  • DNS name resolution involves iterative and recursive queries, caching for faster responses
  • DNS resource records include A, NS, CNAME, and MX records, with specific formats for query and reply messages

17:17

"Secure DNS Database with Authoritative Name Server"

  • Record the necessary information into the global DNS database with the registrar, ensuring the addresses of all other servers in your network are provided by your authoritative name server to queries. Bring up your authoritative name server, populate it with resource records for your network's servers, and prioritize DNS security by protecting against denial of service attacks primarily with firewalls and ensuring records are from authorized sources through authentication services.
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