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Table Of Contents  The TCP/IP Guide
 9  TCP/IP Application Layer Protocols, Services and Applications (OSI Layers 5, 6 and 7)
      9  Name Systems and TCP/IP Name Registration and Name Resolution
           9  TCP/IP Name Systems: Host Tables and Domain Name System (DNS)
                9  TCP/IP Domain Name System (DNS)
                     9  DNS Overview, Functions and Characteristics

Previous Topic/Section
DNS Design Goals, Objectives and Assumptions
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Pages in Current Topic/Section
1
2
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DNS Name Space, Architecture and Terminology
Next Topic/Section

DNS Components and General Functions
(Page 2 of 2)

Name Resolution

DNS uses a powerful, distributed, client/server name resolution mechanism. This is probably the area where the most attention had to be put into the design of DNS, to ensure that it could scale to handle millions and eventually billions of name resolution requests each day.

The name resolution process is implemented using two basic software elements that play the role of client and server: name servers and name resolvers.

Name Servers

DNS name servers are special programs running on hardware servers that are the heart of DNS. Servers are maintained by organizations that have administrative control over part of the DNS name space, and contain resource records that describe names, addresses and other characteristics of those portions of the name space. As such, the servers themselves are arranged into a hierarchy analogous to that of the name space, though not identical in structure.

The main job of name servers is to receive requests for name resolution and either respond with the data requested from the database, or with the name of another name server that will lead to the requested information. Name servers are also responsible for data caching and other administrative tasks to ensure efficient operation of the system as a whole.

Name Resolvers

Name resolvers are the usual clients in the name resolution process. When a user makes reference to a name in a networking application, the name is passed to the resolver, which issues a request to a name server. Depending on the configuration, more than one request may be needed, and several different resolution processes may be combined to find the needed information. Resolvers too may employ caching or implement other features.

Note: The division between resolvers and servers is based on role. As we'll see when we look at name resolution, name servers may also function as clients in certain exchanges of data. See the topic on DNS messaging for an explanation of this apparent paradox.


If this seems a lot like the “classic” description of a name system that I gave in the name system concepts section, that's not a coincidence; DNS is considered the name system against which most others are usually compared. If you understand these high-level descriptions, then you already know the basics of how DNS works. The next three sections delve into each of these three functional areas in more detail, and will help you really learn how DNS does its thing.

Key Concept: As a complete name system, DNS provides numerous capabilities that implement each of the three basic name system functions. The DNS name space is hierarchical and is organization using a multi-level structure with particular naming rules. The DNS name registration system is based on the idea of a hierarchy of domains and registration authorities responsible for them. DNS name resolution is similarly hierarchical, and designed around interaction between name resolver and name server software components that consult databases of DNS resource records and communicate using a special messaging protocol to answer client queries.


 


Previous Topic/Section
DNS Design Goals, Objectives and Assumptions
Previous Page
Pages in Current Topic/Section
1
2
Next Page
DNS Name Space, Architecture and Terminology
Next Topic/Section

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