SMC Networks SMC7204BRA Configuring DNS Server Addresses, About DNS, Assigning DNS Addresses

CONFIGURING DNS

SERVER ADDRESSES

About DNS

Domain Name System (DNS) servers map the user-friendly domain names that users type into their Web browsers (e.g. yahoo.com) to the equivalent numerical IP addresses that are used for Internet routing.

When a PC user types a domain name into a browser, the PC must first send a request to a DNS server to obtain the equivalent IP addresses. The DNS server will attempt to look up the domain name in its own database, and will communicate with higher-level DNS servers when the name cannot be found locally. When the address is found, it is sent back to the requesting PC and is referenced in IP packets for the remainder of the communication.

Assigning DNS Addresses

Multiple DNS addresses are useful to provide alternatives

when one of the servers is down or is encountering heavy traffic. ISPs typically provide primary and secondary DNS addresses, and may provide additional addresses. Your LAN PCs learn these DNS addresses in one of the following ways:

•Statically:

If your ISP provides you with their DNS server addresses, you can assign them to each PC by modifying the PCs' IP properties.

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