Domain Name System

Domain Name System (DNS) is a distributed database system for managing host names and their associated Internet Protocol (IP) addresses.

Using DNS means that people can use simple names, such as www.jkltoys.com to locate a host, rather than using the IP address (xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx). A single server might only be responsible for knowing the host names and IP addresses for a small subset of a zone, but DNS servers can work together to map all domain names to their IP addresses. DNS servers working together is what allows computers to communicate across the Internet.

For IBM^® OS/400^® Version 5 Release 1 (V5R1), DNS services are based on the industry-standard DNS implementation, known as Berkeley Internet Name Domain (BIND) version 8. Previous IBM OS/400 DNS services were based on BIND version 4.9.3. i5/OS™ option 33, Portable Application Solutions Environment (PASE), must be installed on your IBM eServer™ iSeries™ server in order to use the new BIND version 8-based DNS server. If you do not have PASE installed, you can still run the same DNS server based on BIND version 4.9.3 that was available in previous releases. However, the migration to BIND 8 provides improved function and incorporates better security for your DNS server.

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• Domain Name System concepts
  This topic explains what Domain Name System (DNS) is and how it works. It also shows the different types of zones that can be defined on a DNS server.
• Domain Name System examples
  You can use these examples to understand how to use Domain Name System (DNS) in your network.
• Plan for Domain Name System
  Domain Name System (DNS) offers a variety of solutions. Before you configure DNS, it is important to plan how it works within your network. Subjects, such as network structure, performance, and security, should be assessed before you implement DNS.
• Domain Name System requirements
  This topic describes the software requirements to run Domain Name System (DNS) on your iSeries server.
• Configure Domain Name System
  This topic explains how to use iSeries Navigator to configure name servers and to resolve queries outside of your domain.
• Manage Domain Name System
  This topic discusses how to verify Domain Name System (DNS) function, monitor performance, and maintain DNS data and files.
• Troubleshoot Domain Name System
  This topic explains Domain Name System (DNS) logging and debugging settings that can help you resolve problems with your DNS server.
• Related information for Domain Name System
  Listed here are the IBM Redbooks™ (in PDF format) and Web sites that relate to the Domain Name System (DNS) topic. You can view or print any of the PDFs.