Microsoft KB Archive/255200

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How the Domain Name System Server Obtains Information for a Domain Name That Cannot Be Resolved by the Local DNS Server

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The information in this article applies to:


 * Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0

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SUMMARY
This article explains how the Domain Name System (DNS) server obtains information for an external domain name that cannot be resolved by the local DNS server.

MORE INFORMATION
If the local DNS server is the Start of Authority (SOA) for your domain, and it cannot resolve the name that the client is looking for, then it contacts the root servers listed in the Cache.dns file. The root server that your DNS server contacts depends on the domain name the client is looking for (COM, NET, MIL, GOV). The local DNS server obtains the name from the root server, and then forwards the information to the client.

The next time the client wants to resolve that name, the DNS server has cached the information and does not have to query the root server for it unless the DNS server has been stopped and restarted, which clears the cache.

Additional query words:

Keywords :

Version : winnt:4.0

Platform : winnt

Issue type : kbinfo

Technology :