Authoritative DNS server: Beginners guide

In the vast networking and internet infrastructure landscape, Domain Name System (DNS) plays a crucial role in translating human-readable domain names into machine-readable IP addresses. Authoritative DNS servers hold a significant position among the various components of the DNS ecosystem. In this beginner’s guide, we will delve into the fundamentals and explain how they contribute to the seamless functioning of the Internet.

Understanding DNS Basics

Before diving into authoritative DNS servers, it’s essential to have a basic understanding of how DNS works. When you type a web address into your browser, such as www.example.com, your computer needs to obtain the corresponding IP address to establish a connection with the website. DNS servers facilitate this process by translating domain names into IP addresses.

DNS operates in a hierarchical structure, consisting of various types of servers, including recursive DNS servers and authoritative DNS servers. While recursive servers assist in fetching information from authoritative servers, authoritative servers are responsible for holding and providing the official information for a particular domain.

Authoritative DNS server vs. Recursive DNS server

What is an Authoritative DNS Server?

An authoritative DNS server is a DNS server that holds the official records for a specific domain. These records include information such as IP addresses, mail servers, and other essential data associated with the domain. When a DNS query is made for a particular domain, these DNS servers are responsible for providing the accurate and up-to-date information needed to establish a connection.

Types of Authoritative DNS Servers

There are two main types of authoritative DNS servers: primary and secondary.

  • Primary DNS Server: It is the primary source for the DNS records of a domain. It is where the original and definitive DNS records are stored. Changes and updates to DNS records are made on the primary server.
  • Secondary Authoritative DNS Server: It obtains a copy of DNS records from the primary server. It serves as a backup and helps distribute the DNS query load, improving reliability and performance. If the primary server is unavailable, the secondary server can still respond to DNS queries.

How Authoritative DNS Servers Work?

When a DNS query is initiated, it follows a sequence of steps involving both recursive and authoritative DNS servers. Here’s a simplified overview:

  1. A user initiates a DNS query by entering a domain name (e.g., www.example.com) into a web browser.
  2. The recursive DNS server, provided by the Internet Service Provider (ISP) or a third-party DNS service, processes the query.
  3. If the recursive server does not have the required information in its cache, it contacts the authoritative DNS server for the specific domain.
  4. The authoritative DNS server responds with the accurate IP address or other requested information.
  5. The recursive DNS server caches the information for future use and returns the result to the user’s device.
  6. Subsequent queries for the same domain can be resolved from the cached information on the recursive server.

Conclusion

Authoritative DNS servers are fundamental components of the DNS infrastructure, ensuring the accurate and efficient resolution of domain names to IP addresses. Understanding their role is crucial for anyone involved in networking, web development, or IT administration. As you delve deeper into the world of DNS, knowing these servers will empower you to manage and optimize the domain resolution process for a smoother internet experience.

Ways to protect against DDoS attack

In the current digital landscape, a DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack is akin to an incessant barrage against your online fortress’s gates. It’s a common yet potentially devastating method used by cyber attackers to disrupt the flow of traffic to your website. This blog post aims to demystify DDoS attacks and offer concrete steps you can take to protect your digital domain.

What is a DDoS Attack?

A Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt normal traffic to a targeted server, service, or network by overwhelming the target or its surrounding infrastructure with a flood of Internet traffic. DDoS attacks are carried out using multiple compromised computer systems as sources of attack traffic. They can target a wide variety of important resources, from banks to news websites, and present a major challenge to ensuring information remains accessible.

Suggested article: What SYN flood attack is?

How DDoS Attacks Work

DDoS attacks function by utilizing an army of compromised computers, also known as a botnet, to send a high volume of requests to a target’s IP address. With enough requests, the target is no longer able to process legitimate requests and thus becomes unavailable. The attacker can also exploit the complexity of DNS services by manipulating DNS records, or by attacking the DNS itself, which is a critical part of the web’s infrastructure responsible for translating domain names into IP addresses.

Ways to Mitigate DDoS Attacks

Protecting against DDoS attacks involves several strategies and solutions:

  • Utilize DNS Services: Implement robust DNS services that can handle high volumes of traffic and are resistant to DDoS attacks. Secondary DNS services can serve as a backup to the primary DNS service, providing redundancy.
  • Anycast DNS: Anycast DNS can distribute DNS requests among a network of servers in various locations, rather than just one. This disperses traffic across multiple points, making it harder for a DDoS attack to succeed.
  • Improve Network Security: This includes upgrading firewalls, switches, and routers that can help filter out malicious traffic before it reaches critical areas of the infrastructure.
  • DDoS Mitigation Tools: These are specialized solutions that can scrub traffic, singling out and blocking malicious packets, while allowing legitimate traffic to continue.

DDoS Attack vs. DoS Attack

While both DDoS and DoS (Denial of Service) attacks aim to disrupt service availability, the key difference lies in scale and origin. A DoS attack originates from a single Internet connection, while a DDoS attack comes from multiple sources and is often global, making it far more dangerous and challenging to mitigate.

Conclusion

In the digital age, DDoS attacks are a formidable threat to organizations of all sizes. By understanding what a DDoS attack is, how it operates, and the ways to mitigate such attacks, including leveraging DNS services and infrastructure, businesses can better prepare themselves against these digital onslaughts. It is not just about having the right tools, but also about understanding the intricacies of network traffic, DNS operations, and the difference between DDoS and simpler DoS scenarios.

Anycast DNS: Pros & Cons

Anycast DNS is a fascinating technology that has gained popularity in recent years due to its ability to enhance DNS performance and reliability. In this article, we’ll delve into what it is, explore its advantages, and consider its limitations. So, without any further ado, let’s start!

Understanding Anycast DNS

Anycast DNS is a network addressing and routing method that uses multiple geographically distributed servers to respond to DNS queries. When a user enters a domain name into their web browser, the DNS resolver queries a DNS server to find the corresponding IP address for that domain. Anycast DNS operates by routing these queries to the nearest available DNS server in a cluster. Unlike traditional Unicast DNS, which uses a single server to respond to queries, Anycast employs several servers across various locations, allowing for improved performance and redundancy.

Pros of Anycast DNS

Some of the main advantages of this DNS solution include the following:

  • Enhanced Reliability: Anycast DNS provides a high level of redundancy. If one server in the cluster experiences downtime, the system automatically reroutes DNS queries to the next nearest server. This redundancy minimizes the risk of DNS failures and ensures uninterrupted web services.
  • Improved Load Balancing: It distributes DNS queries across multiple servers, which helps balance the load efficiently. This ensures that no single server is overwhelmed with traffic, leading to better performance for end-users.
  • Faster Response Times: By directing users to the closest server, it reduces the latency of DNS queries. This results in faster website loading times and a more responsive browsing experience.
  • DDoS Mitigation: It can also serve as a defence against Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. By spreading traffic across multiple servers and locations, it becomes more challenging for attackers to overwhelm a single server with malicious traffic.

Cons of Anycast DNS

Here are several things you should consider before getting started with this network routing solution:

  • Complexity of Setup: Setting up and managing an Anycast DNS network can be complex and requires expertise in network administration and DNS management. Smaller organizations may find it challenging to implement.
  • Cost: Maintaining multiple geographically distributed servers can be costly in terms of infrastructure and operational expenses. This cost may be a barrier for some organizations, especially smaller ones.
  • Limited Control: With it, you may have less control over which server responds to a particular query. This can be a limitation if you require precise control over DNS routing for specific purposes.

Is it Worth Trying?

Despite the challenges, the benefits of Anycast DNS often outweigh the drawbacks. Its impact on performance, reliability, and global accessibility can significantly enhance the user experience. For organizations with a global user base or those seeking robust DNS solutions, Anycast is certainly worth exploring.

The key lies in understanding the specific needs and priorities of your organization. While the initial setup may demand effort, the long-term gains in terms of improved performance and reliability can contribute significantly to overall business success.

Conclusion

Anycast DNS is a powerful technology with a range of benefits that can significantly improve your organization’s online presence. While it may not be the right fit for every situation, it is undoubtedly worth considering for businesses seeking to enhance their DNS infrastructure and provide a better user experience. To make an informed decision, carefully evaluate your organization’s needs, resources, and budget to determine if this is the right choice for you.

What is Load balancing & How it works?

Balancing your website’s load is essential for providing a smooth and reliable user experience. Load balancing ensures that each resource is working at its best and capable of handling every request without issue. With the right load balancing strategy, you can reduce costs and maximize the performance of your system. It is also beneficial to pair this strategy with GeoDNS in order to route user requests to the most geographically relevant server. Learn more about this distribution method and how it works to improve performance and reliability.

Definition and overview of Load balancing

Load Balancing is distributing workloads evenly across multiple computing resources to maximize system performance and minimize downtime. It is commonly used with websites, web applications, and network services to ensure that the user experience remains smooth and consistent despite the system experiencing heavy traffic. In addition, it helps ensure that the system remains available, reliable, and highly performant irrespective of the number of clients connected at once. 

This distribution method works by maintaining direct communication between two separate nodes. By sending data from one node to another, the load balancer can divide the workload amongst the various resources more evenly than a single node would be able to. To do this, the load balancer evaluates system performance and distributes incoming requests to the node capable of best managing them. This process allows for the optimal use of computing resources and the best possible user experience. Additionally, Load Balancers can be used to set up failover servers if a single server fails, ensuring that there is no interruption in service.

Benefits of Load balancing

Load balancing has many benefits, the most important of which is improved performance. By spreading workloads evenly across different resources, system performance is increased as it reduces the strain on a single node. In addition, this makes systems more reliable, as they can handle more requests without negatively impacting performance, and more available resources can still be allocated in case of a system failure.

Load Balancing can also help reduce costs associated with computing resources. By spreading workloads across different resources, organizations can save on extra hardware and software costs. It also reduces operational costs associated with monitoring and maintenance, as the process is automated.

Load Balancing can also help in providing protection against Denial of Service (DoS) and Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. By spreading out workloads evenly, it can prevent single resources from being overwhelmed by malicious requests, ensuring that your system remains secure and reliable even in the face of malicious attack attempts.

Finally, it has the benefit of scalability. The ability to quickly spin up additional resources allows organizations to easily accommodate sudden increases in demand without investing in other infrastructure. This provides increased flexibility in meeting the user base’s needs while keeping costs low.

What is GeoDNS?

GeoDNS is a DNS service designed to route user requests to the closest server to their location. This allows quicker and more reliable responses from web applications, websites, and other services as the most local server handles user requests.

Load balancing and GeoDNS provide helpful solutions for ensuring optimal performance for web applications, websites, and network services. Load Balancing distributes workloads across multiple resources so that user requests are always handled efficiently and quickly. When used in conjunction with GeoDNS, workloads are spread out evenly and routed to geographically relevant servers so that users are connected to the closest possible resource. This combination of Load Balancing and GeoDNS maximizes system performance and availability, reduces costs, and provides the best possible user experience (UX).

Conclusion

Load balancing is a powerful tool for managing the performance and reliability of web applications, networks, and websites. By distributing workloads across different resources, organizations can ensure consistent performance and availability, reduce costs, and increase scalability. When used with GeoDNS, organizations can also route user requests to the most geographically relevant server for the best possible user experience. With the right load balancing strategy, organizations can maximize the performance of their systems and ensure consistent availability.

Top 3 Secondary DNS providers

Are you looking for a reliable Secondary DNS provider to ensure optimal performance and extra redundancy for your online services? They are a must for businesses that rely on Internet-based services, and there are several top-notch providers with excellent performance, customer service, and features. In this blog post, we’ll look at three of the most reliable Secondary DNS providers and offer tips for choosing the right one for your needs. So read on to learn more!

What is Secondary DNS?

Secondary DNS, or Secondary Domain Name System, is a type of DNS service that offers an extra layer of protection for the primary DNS server and helps to ensure the system is up and running in the event of a primary DNS failure. Secondary DNS servers provide an efficient way of replicating DNS records from the primary server, allowing users to access websites and other information on the Internet more quickly. Additionally, using a secondary DNS provides redundancy, meaning that in the event of a primary DNS outage, the secondary DNS server can take over the records and temporarily serve as the primary server. This redundancy helps to ensure that your website, application, or other related services are always available and accessible to users, even in the event of a primary DNS failure.

Which are the most reliable Secondary DNS providers?

Developing reliable secondary DNS providers is necessary for any business relying on Internet-based services. When looking for a secondary DNS provider, it’s essential to consider factors such as performance, reliability, customer service, and affordability. Several excellent providers offer top-notch services, allowing businesses to access a high level of redundancy and uninterrupted performance. 

DNS Made Easy is a reliable Secondary DNS provider that provides users with fast propagation speeds of up to 3 ms, robust security measures, comprehensive management tools, and 24/7 customer service – all at a competitive price. It suits those requiring reliable performance, full features, robust security measures, and comprehensive management tools.

ClouDNS is a top-rated Secondary DNS provider that offers a robust and reliable service with low latency and high uptime. It is highly scalable and can handle large traffic volumes, making it suitable for high-traffic websites. ClouDNS also provides customers with a wide array of features and functions that allow them to configure, manage and monitor their DNS records quickly and easily. Its Premium DNS plan also includes DNSSEC, DDoS protected DNS, Anycast DNS, and DNS Failover. Furthermore, their excellent customer support team provides assistance 24/7 to ensure users can take advantage of their services uninterrupted.

UltraDNS is another well-known secondary DNS provider renowned for its reliability and performance. In addition, it provides customers with outstanding customer service, offering support round the clock, as well as free tutorials, webinars, and site monitoring. UltraDNS also has very competitive pricing, charging a flat rate for their services and providing discounts for larger orders.

Benefits of implementing Secondary DNS

Implementing Secondary DNS is highly beneficial for businesses as it enhances the stability and reliability of their DNS service. By using a Secondary DNS provider, companies can enjoy reliable redundancy and a higher level of performance. The Secondary DNS provider can take over the records from the primary server in the event of an outage, allowing the website to stay online and keeping customers connected without disruption to the service. Additionally, it increases the speed with which DNS records are offered to users, as the Secondary DNS server can quickly replicate the data from the primary server and make it available. Furthermore, Secondary DNS also enhances security by providing additional layers of protection and preventing malicious attacks (DDoS, DoS, DNS hijaking, DNS cache poisoning, etc.) on the DNS server. Ultimately, deploying Secondary DNS is essential for businesses that want reliable and seamless performance.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Secondary DNS is vital for every online business security. Secondary DNS providers offer extra stability, reliability, and enhanced speed and security. With the right one, businesses can enjoy optimal performance and additional redundancy, allowing them to stay connected without disrupting their service.

Zone transfer – All you need to know about it

From keeping your website secure to improving speed and functionality, zone transfers are an important part of the Domain Name System (DNS). But what exactly is a zone transfer, and how does it work? In this blog post, we’ll explain more about it, how it works, and the many benefits it provides. So keep reading to learn everything you need to know about zone transfers and how they can help keep your website running smoothly.

Explanation of DNS Zone

A DNS Zone denotes a segment of the Domain Name System (DNS) hierarchy, managed by a specific entity or organization. It encompasses a set of DNS records delineating the associations between domain names and corresponding IP addresses or resources. Through DNS zones, administrators exert control over DNS configurations for their domains, encompassing settings such as name servers, mail servers, and other pertinent details.

What is a zone transfer? 

A zone transfer is a process used to duplicate DNS information from one DNS server to another. It is used to keep multiple DNS servers in sync with each other, ensuring that all DNS servers have the same information. This is important for ensuring users can access the correct website when they type in a domain name. Zone transfers are also used to back up DNS information so that the other servers can still provide the right data if one DNS server goes down. Zone transfers are an essential part of the Domain Name System (DNS) and are used to keep the internet running smoothly.

How does a zone transfer work? 

A zone transfer is duplicating a DNS database from one server to another and ensuring that all DNS servers have the same information about a domain. The process is initiated when a DNS server sends a request to another DNS server for a copy of the zone file. The receiving server then responds with a copy of the zone file containing all the DNS records associated with the domain. Once the zone file is received, the receiving server can then use it to update its own DNS database. This ensures that all DNS servers have the same information about a domain, which is essential for providing accurate and reliable DNS services.

Benefits

Zone transfers are a great way to keep your DNS information up-to-date and secure. Transferring your domain name server (DNS) information between two or more DNS servers guarantees that your website is always available and your visitors can access it quickly. Zone transfers also provide many other benefits, including improved security, faster resolution times, and easier domain name management. With enhanced security, zone transfers can help protect your website from malicious attacks and ensure that your data is safe and secure. Additionally, zone transfers can help reduce the amount of time it takes for visitors to access your website, as the DNS information is quickly updated across all servers. Finally, zone transfers make it easier to manage your domain name, as you can quickly and easily make changes to your DNS records without having to manually update each server.

Bonus: What Zone shares is?

DNS Zone Sharing involves multiple domain names or entities utilizing a shared DNS zone for their DNS resolutions. Rather than managing distinct DNS zones for each domain, they leverage a unified zone, streamlining administrative tasks and reducing complexity in DNS management. This approach is commonly adopted by hosting providers, domain registrars, or organizations overseeing multiple domains, facilitating centralized control and efficient maintenance of DNS configurations. Through Zone Sharing, entities can consolidate their DNS resources, optimize resource utilization, and ensure consistent management practices across their domain portfolio.

Conclusion 

In conclusion, zone transfers are an essential part of the Domain Name System (DNS) and are used to keep the internet running smoothly. By duplicating DNS information from one server to another, this process ensures that all DNS servers have the same information about a domain and provide many other benefits, including improved security, faster resolution times, and easier domain name management. Therefore, zone transfers are a valuable tool for any website owner or webmaster who wants to ensure their website is always available and secure.

GeoDNS: How to get started?

Introduction to GeoDNS: What it is, why it matters?

GeoDNS is a powerful tool for website owners and internet service providers that enables better web performance through geographical targeting. It works by redirecting user traffic to an appropriate server based on their location, which can improve website speed and reduce latency. In addition, by directing traffic to the nearest available server, GeoDNS can provide greater redundancy and reliability and the ability to move traffic to offload the load of busy regions quickly. All of these factors make GeoDNS an invaluable tool for managing user experience and controlling costs, making it an essential component for any website.

Typical DNS vs. Anycast vs. GeoDNS

Benefits of using it

• Improved Website Performance: Redirects users to the nearest available server, which can improve website speed and reduce latency. 

• Cost Savings: The ability to control user traffic and choose the best server for the task can result in significant cost savings.

• Increased Redundancy & Reliability: By directing traffic to different servers based on geographical location, GeoDNS can create redundancies that help the website remain available and running.

• Load Balancing: By distributing user traffic to different servers, Geographical Domain Name System helps to reduce the load on busy regions and prevents any server from becoming overwhelmed. 

• Improved User Experience: GeoDNS can lead to a better overall user experience by maximizing website performance and reliability.

Which DNS records does GeoDNS use? 

GeoDNS uses a variety of DNS records to direct user traffic to the best server based on their geographical location. The most common records used are A, CNAME, and ALIAS, though other records such as TXT and SRV may be used depending on the application. A records are used to specify which IP address to assign to a particular domain. CNAME records are used to create aliases for a domain. Finally, ALIAS records can be used to create a link between different domain names. 

When using GeoDNS, it is essential to consider other DNS records such as NS, MX, and SPF. NS records are used to specify name servers for a domain. MX records are used for email routing, and SPF records are used to determine which IP addresses or domain names are allowed to send emails from that domain. Properly configuring these records is essential for running a secure and reliable website. Geographical Domain Name System can help to ensure that users are directed to the best server based on their geographical location while also helping to maintain website security and reliability.

Tips for choosing a GeoDNS provider

When choosing a GeoDNS provider, it is crucial to consider several factors. The first and most important is the availability of support. Geographical Domain Name System can be a complex system to configure and maintain, so choose a provider that can provide technical assistance when needed. Secondly, consider the pricing model of the provider. Different types of DNS can have extra costs, and picking the most cost-effective for your website is vital. Finally, consider the features of the provider. Does the provider have features such as automatic failover or GeoIP targeting? Finding a provider that offers the features you need to ensure the best performance for your website is crucial. 

GeoDNS can be a powerful tool for website owners, but choosing the right GeoDNS provider is essential. Consider the availability of support, the pricing model, and the features offered to find the best provider for your website. A good provider can make a difference in ensuring your GeoDNS setup is secure, reliable, and cost-effective.

Conclusion

GeoDNS is a powerful tool that can help website owners and internet service providers manage user traffic and improve the performance and reliability of their websites. By redirecting users to the closest server and balancing load across regions, GeoDNS can reduce latency and create redundancy. It can also help save on costs and improve the overall user experience. If you’re looking to improve the performance of your website, GeoDNS is worth considering. With the right provider and careful setup, you can take advantage of the many benefits GeoDNS offers.

Most popular DNS records – a brief introduction

Getting familiar with the Domain Name System (DNS) is not easy. But it is a must if you plan to have an online business. This brief introduction to the most popular DNS records can be one of your first steps into the DNS realm. Take it easy! Here we go.

What are DNS records?

Shortly, DNS records are text files with different information and instructions for DNS servers (name servers). Based on the DNS record, the information it will hold. It can be the IP address of a domain, аn instruction to manage DNS requests for that domain in a certain way, etc.

SRV record explained

Most popular DNS records

  1. Address or A /AAAA records

The two are address records. The difference between them is that A records work with IPv4 (32-bit address) and AAAA records with IPv6 (128-bit address). IPv6 is the latest version, and it is superior compared to IPv4, but still, both work. They have the same objective, to link a domain name with its corresponding IP address. They have a key role in the DNS resolution process that makes it possible for users to reach your website.

  1. Canonical name or CNAME record

The CNAME record points out that a hostname is the alias of another. It helps a lot to manage subdomains because by adding it, you don’t need individual records for every subdomain. A DNS request to a subdomain using a CNAME record will redirect the request to the canonical domain to obtain the proper answer.

  1. Nameserver or NS record

The NS record points out the DNS authoritative server for a specific domain. The authoritative server is the one that holds the original DNS records of the domain. You will need it, for instance, to inform other servers where they can request the associated IP address of your domain. It is not rare that a domain uses many NS records. This can be a sign that it has primary and secondary nameservers. NS record is, without a doubt, one of the most popular DNS records.

Suggested article: Why is it crucial to invest in Secondary DNS?

Configuring is a delicate task. A single typo in the configuration of the NS record will cause users can’t load your domain.

  1. Pointer or PTR record

The PTR record points an IP address to a domain name. It is an essential record for communication between machines. Humans work much better remembering domain names, but machines’ communication language is numbers. Again, a small mistake configuring PTR records can cause e-mails you send to go directly to spam.

  1. Mail Exchange or MX record

The MX record holds the information to know the mail server that must receive the e-mails sent to a specific domain name, yours, for instance. An error in its configuration and you will not receive the e-mails people (potential clients) send to your domain.

Conclusion

These are the most popular DNS records but not the only ones. As you see, they are essential for different processes to happen. Small files with a big job!

Why is it crucial to invest in Secondary DNS?

The clue for you to answer this question about Secondary DNS is redundancy! If you run or own an online business, you understand very well how important it is to rely on additional resources, not a single one, to keep operating.

Let’s go deeper to answer this question properly.

What is Secondary DNS?

Secondary DNS is a service you can get to back up your Primary DNS. It is an alternative network of name servers used to save copies of the zone file and your domain’s DNS records. A Secondary DNS added to your Primary DNS will give different points of presence (PoPs) to your domain. And this represents many benefits for your online business.

When you get the Backup DNS, all its network servers will only save copies. This means it’s safe because it does not allow any addition, removal, or modification to your domain’s DNS records. Doing such actions is possible only on the Primary DNS.

If you look for Secondary DNS information or services, you will find it as Slave DNS or Backup DNS too.

Why is it crucial to invest in Secondary DNS?

It’s crucial to invest in it because it provides redundancy, improves DNS resolution, and offers extra benefits to your online business.

Easy configuration.

Adding the service of Secondary DNS will be easy for you. Its configuration takes only a little time. A Secondary zone must be created, and a zone transfer executed to copy the Primary DNS zone file on it. The frequency for the Secondary servers to get an updated copy of the DNS data can be set up from the beginning on the Primary DNS. Later on, they will do this task automatically.

Redundancy for your online business.

When you get Secondary DNS, you are getting not another server but many more servers globally distributed to your network. This is a huge benefit because no matter where on the planet your clients request your domain, they will receive an answer. Visits to your website won’t be interrupted due to failures, attacks, or downtime on a server. This is the level of redundancy you need to solve downtime issues. If a server is down, another will for sure work!

Reliable DNS backup.

To have a reliable copy of the DNS records of your business and the zone file itself on the Backup servers is not bad at all. If something goes wrong with your Primary DNS, you will have copies of these important DNS data.

Improvement of the overall performance.

Having such an extra network working together with your Primary DNS will produce a positive domino effect. The speed to resolve DNS requests will be quicker. Latency won’t be a problem. Clients will load your domain faster. This effectiveness in handling the traffic will prevent stress on your Primary DNS.

Conclusion.

Having a Secondary DNS is a crucial investment! You should not miss all the benefits it can provide to your daily online operation. If you still don’t have it, consider the investment seriously!

DNS services explained in detail

DNS services are responsible for name resolution, routing emails, communication between IoT devices, CDN routing, and much more.

But what are they exactly? Let’s go into detail and explain the DNS services.

DNS (Domain Name System)

The DNS (Domain Name System) is a globally-distributed system for resolving domain names to IP addresses. It basically matches the hosts to their addresses and routes all the DNS queries.

Without it, it would be extremely hard to use the Internet. You would need to know all the IP addresses (IPv4 or IPv6) of the hosts you need to connect to.

DNS services explained

The DNS services are software that runs on DNS servers and allows you to manage your domain. You can purchase a plan for DNS services or use a Free DNS plan and manage your domain through it. Usually, the companies that offer such services will provide you with an easy-to-use interface for interacting with their service.

You can also rent servers and install DNS services on them, but it is more complicated.

DNS services allow you to fully manage your domain by adding and removing DNS records, adding and removing servers and zones, and more. Each DNS record type has its purpose: to point to a target, to announce a service, to route the traffic, etc.

You can have access to Primary and Secondary DNS servers. The Primary servers host the original DNS data, which you can modify on them. The Secondary just copy the data and serve to provide better and faster name resolution.

Not all DNS services are the same. Some DNS providers have a broad network of servers all around the world. That allows better DNS resolution, regardless of where the DNS queries are coming from.

Others focus on a particular region. For example, a DNS provider can concentrate on Asia, having more than 50% of their DNS servers there while almost neglecting the rest of the world. It could still be a good service if you are almost exclusively on the Asian market.

The DNS services strongly improve your uptime. Using a paid service, you will get access to multiple DNS servers. Even if one or two are down due to maintenance or cyber attack, you will still have more to answer the incoming queries.

When you check different providers, you will see many additional services. Let’s explain a few of them:

DDoS protection – Intelligent firewall that will protect you from DDoS attacks.

DNSSEC – additional features to encrypt the DNS queries and make them safer for your clients.

DDNS – Dynamic DNS for pointing your Dynamic IP address to a fixed name.

Load balancer – a method for managing the queries that improve network performance.

GeoDNS – load balancing based on the IP addresses of the visitors.

Reverse DNS – connects the IP address to a domain name and serves for verification.

Conclusion

DNS services help you host your DNS records and can provide better DNS resolution. You can also enjoy the benefit of multiple servers, additional and very useful features, and improved uptime.