Domain Name System

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Domain Name System



(DNS) A general-purpose distributed, replicated, data query service chiefly used on Internet for translating hostnames into Internet addresses. Also, the style of hostname used on the Internet, though such a name is properly called a fully qualified domain name. DNS can be configured to use a sequence of name servers, based on the domains in the name being looked for, until a match is found.

The name resolution client (e.g. Unix's gethostbyname() library function) can be configured to search for host information in the following order: first in the local /etc/hosts file, second in NIS and third in DNS. This sequencing of Naming Services is sometimes called "name service switching". Under Solaris is configured in the file /etc/nsswitch.conf.

DNS can be queried interactively using the command nslookup. It is defined in STD 13, RFC 1034, RFC 1035, RFC 1591.

BIND is a common DNS server.

Info from Virtual Office, Inc. (http://virtual.office.com/domains.html).

(2001-05-14)