Introduction to DNS

This document is meant to be an introduction to DNS for someone who has never administrated a DNS server or registered a domain before. Being a part of the MaraDNS package, this tutorial assumes that one is using the MaraDNS package.

What is DNS?

DNS is the method that the internet uses to convert difficult-to-remember numbers, such as '10.17.243.32', in to easy-to-remember names, such as 'www.yahoo.com'. The reason for this conversion is because the underlying protocol for the internet, TCP/IP, uses difficult-to-remember numbers to connect to other computers.

What is a DNS server

A DNS server is a program that performs the DNS conversion from names in to number. There are three kinds of DNS servers out there:

DNS servers which can convert most DNS nodes in to their corresponding number. These DNS servers are called recursive DNS servers. This kind of server can not change the names of any DNS nodes out there. Instead, they simply ask other DNS servers the IP for a given DNS node.
This kind of DNS server does not depend on one's ISP's DNS servers to resolve a given name, but directly contacts the relevant authoritative DNS servers anywhere on the internet to resolve a given DNS node.
DNS servers which can only convert DNS nodes which a DNS server administrator manages from DNS nodes in to IPs. The DNS server administrator can change the IPs that the DNS nodes have. These kinds of DNS servers are called authoritative DNS servers. Recursive DNS servers contact authoritative DNS servers in order to learn the IP for a given DNS node.
DNS servers which simply cache information obtained from other recursive DNS servers. The "Deadwood" program included with MaraDNS supports this type of configuration via the "upstream_servers" mararc variable; this program can also act as a full fledged recursive DNS server.

MaraDNS' "Deadwood" program is a recursive DNS server; the "maradns" program is an authoritative DNS server. Whether one needs a recursive or an authoritative DNS server depends on what one is trying to do with dns:

If one simply wishes to contact other sites on the internet, one only needs to set up a recursive DNS server. Tutorial for setting up MaraDNS as a recursive DNS server
If one wishes to register domains, and have their own computers serve the domain names in question, then one needs to set up an authoritative DNS server. Tutorial for setting up MaraDNS as an authoritative DNS server.
If one has a current DNS setup using another DNS server, this document details how to convert from another DNS server to MaraDNS.