Domain Name System (DNS) New

The Domain Name System, or DNS, is a group of servers that are used to translate domain names (such as www.winguides.com) into IP Addresses (such as 64.49.204.224).

Most computers (or devices) on a TCP/IP network, such as the Internet, are addressed using their domain name because it is easier to remember than a 12-digit number.

Each DNS server is interconnected with other DNS servers, therefore if one server does not know how to translate a domain name it is passed to the next server until the result is found. All DNS servers are ultimately connected to a set of root DNS servers that are able to direct any request to the correct DNS server.

The DNS server is a standard server running special DNS software. This software is written by many different companies but support the standard DNS protocol (RFC1035). One of the most common DNS implementations is Bind written by the Internet Software Consortium (ISC), another common version is written by Microsoft and included with their Windows NT/2000 product.