DNS on Windows 2000, Second Edition

Must I Use DNS?

Despite the usefulness of the Domain Name System, there are some situations in which it doesn’t pay to use it. There are other name-resolution mechanisms besides DNS, some of which may be standard with your operating system. Sometimes the overhead involved in managing zones and their name servers outweighs the benefits. On the other hand, there are circumstances in which you have no other choice but to set up and manage name servers. Following are some guidelines to help you make that decision.

If You’re Connected to the Internet...

...DNS is a must. Think of DNS as the lingua franca of the Internet: nearly all of the Internet’s network services use DNS. That includes the World Wide Web, electronic mail, remote terminal access, and file transfer.

On the other hand, this doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to set up and run zones by yourself for yourself. If you’ve got only a handful of hosts, you may be able to join an existing zone (see Chapter 3) or find someone else to host your zones for you. If you pay an Internet service provider for your Internet connectivity, ask if they’ll host your zone for you, too. Even if you aren’t already a customer, there are companies who will help out, for a price.

If you have a little more than a handful of hosts, or a lot more, you’ll probably want your own zone. And if you want direct control over your zone and your name servers, you’ll want to manage it yourself. Read on!

If You Have Your Own TCP/IP-Based Internet...

...you ...