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4. NAME SERVERS

4.1. Introduction​

Name servers are the repositories of information that make up the domain database. The database is divided up into sections called zones, which are distributed among the name servers. While name servers can have several optional functions and sources of data, the essential task of a name server is to answer queries using data in its zones. By design, name servers can answer queries in a simple manner; the response can always be generated using only local data, and either contains the answer to the question or a referral to other name servers "closer" to the desired information.

A given zone will be available from several name servers to insure its availability in spite of host or communication link failure. By administrative fiat, we require every zone to be available on at least two servers, and many zones have more redundancy than that.

A given name server will typically support one or more zones, but this gives it authoritative information about only a small section of the domain tree. It may also have some cached non-authoritative data about other parts of the tree. The name server marks its responses to queries so that the requester can tell whether the response comes from authoritative data or not.

4.2. How the database is divided into zones​

The domain database is partitioned in two ways: by class, and by "cuts" made in the name space between nodes.

Class partitioning​

The class partition is simple. The database for any class is organized, delegated, and maintained separately from all other classes. Since, by convention, the name spaces are the same for all classes, the separate classes can be thought of as an array of parallel namespace trees. Note that the data attached to nodes will be different for these different parallel classes. The most common reasons for creating a new class are the necessity for a new data format for existing types or a desire for a separately managed version of the existing name space.

Zone cuts​

Within a class, "cuts" in the name space can be made between any two adjacent nodes. After all cuts are made, each group of connected name space is a separate zone. The zone is said to be authoritative for all names in the connected region. Note that the "cuts" in the name space may be in different places for different classes, the name servers may be different, etc.

These rules mean that every zone has at least one node, and hence domain name, for which it is authoritative, and all of the nodes in a particular zone are connected. Given, the tree structure, every zone has a highest node which is closer to the root than any other node in the zone. The name of this node is often used to identify the zone.

It would be possible, though not particularly useful, to partition the name space so that each domain name was in a separate zone or so that all nodes were in a single zone. Instead, the database is partitioned at points where a particular organization wants to take over control of a subtree. Once an organization controls its own zone it can unilaterally change the data in the zone, grow new tree sections connected to the zone, delete existing nodes, or delegate new subzones under its zone.

If the organization has substructure, it may want to make further internal partitions to achieve nested delegations of name space control. In some cases, such divisions are made purely to make database maintenance more convenient.

4.2.1. Technical considerations​

The data that describes a zone has four major parts:

  • Authoritative data for all nodes within the zone.
  • Data that defines the top node of the zone (can be thought of as part of the authoritative data).
  • Data that describes delegated subzones, i.e., cuts around the bottom of the zone.
  • Data that allows access to name servers for subzones (sometimes called "glue" data).

All of this data is expressed in the form of RRs, so a zone can be completely described in terms of a set of RRs. Whole zones can be transferred between name servers by transferring the RRs, either carried in a series of messages or by FTPing a master file which is a textual representation.

Authoritative data​

The authoritative data for a zone is simply all of the RRs attached to all of the nodes from the top node of the zone down to leaf nodes or nodes above cuts around the bottom edge of the zone.

Though logically part of the authoritative data, the RRs that describe the top node of the zone are especially important to the zone's management. These RRs are of two types: name server RRs that list, one per RR, all of the servers for the zone, and a single SOA RR that describes zone management parameters.

Delegation data​

The RRs that describe cuts around the bottom of the zone are NS RRs that name the servers for the subzones. Since the cuts are between nodes, these RRs are NOT part of the authoritative data of the zone, and should be exactly the same as the corresponding RRs in the top node of the subzone. Since name servers are always associated with zone boundaries, NS RRs are only found at nodes which are the top node of some zone. In the data that makes up a zone, NS RRs are found at the top node of the zone (and are authoritative) and at cuts around the bottom of the zone (where they are not authoritative), but never in between.

Glue data​

One of the goals of the zone structure is that any zone have all the data required to set up communications with the name servers for any subzones. That is, parent zones have all the information needed to access servers for their children zones. The NS RRs that name the servers for subzones are often not enough for this task since they name the servers, but do not give their addresses. In particular, if the name of the name server is itself in the subzone, we could be faced with the situation where the NS RRs tell us that in order to learn a name server's address, we should contact the server using the address we wish to learn. To fix this problem, a zone contains "glue" RRs which are not part of the authoritative data, and are address RRs for the servers. These RRs are only necessary if the name server's name is "below" the cut, and are only used as part of a referral response.

4.2.2. Administrative considerations​

When some organization wants to control its own domain, the first step is to identify the proper parent zone, and get the parent zone's owners to agree to the delegation of control. While there are no particular technical constraints dealing with where in the tree this can be done, there are some administrative groupings discussed in [RFC-1032] which deal with top level organization, and middle level zones are free to create their own rules. For example, one university might choose to use a single zone, while another might choose to organize by subzones dedicated to individual departments or schools. [RFC-1033] catalogs available DNS software an discusses administration procedures.

Once the proper name for the new subzone is selected, the new owners should be required to demonstrate redundant name server support. Note that there is no requirement that the servers for a zone reside in a host which has a name in that domain. In many cases, a zone will be more accessible to the internet at large if its servers are widely distributed rather than being within the physical facilities controlled by the same organization that manages the zone. For example, in the current DNS, one of the name servers for the United Kingdom, or UK domain, is found in the US. This allows US hosts to get UK data without using limited transatlantic bandwidth.

As the last installation step, the delegation NS RRs and glue RRs necessary to make the delegation effective should be added to the parent zone. The administrators of both zones should insure that the NS and glue RRs which mark both sides of the cut are consistent and remain so.

4.3. Name server internals​

4.3.1. Queries and responses​

The principal activity of name servers is to answer standard queries. Both the query and its response are carried in a standard message format which is described in [RFC-1035]. The query contains a QTYPE, QCLASS, and QNAME, which describe the types and classes of desired information and the name of interest.

The way that the name server answers the query depends upon whether it is operating in recursive mode or not:

  • Non-recursive mode: The simplest mode for the server is non-recursive, since it can answer queries using only local information: the response contains an error, the answer, or a referral to some other server "closer" to the answer. All name servers must implement non-recursive queries.

  • Recursive mode: The simplest mode for the client is recursive, since in this mode the name server acts in the role of a resolver and returns either an error or the answer, but never referrals. This service is optional in a name server, and the name server may also choose to restrict the clients which can use recursive mode.

When to use recursive service​

Recursive service is helpful in several situations:

  • A relatively simple requester that lacks the ability to use anything other than a direct answer to the question.
  • A request that needs to cross protocol or other boundaries and can be sent to a server which can act as intermediary.
  • A network where we want to concentrate the cache rather than having a separate cache for each client.

Non-recursive service is appropriate if the requester is capable of pursuing referrals and interested in information which will aid future requests.

Recursion negotiation​

The use of recursive mode is limited to cases where both the client and the name server agree to its use. The agreement is negotiated through the use of two bits in query and response messages:

  • The recursion available (RA) bit is set or cleared by a name server in all responses. The bit is true if the name server is willing to provide recursive service for the client, regardless of whether the client requested recursive service. That is, RA signals availability rather than use.

  • Queries contain a recursion desired (RD) bit. This bit specifies whether the requester wants recursive service for this query. Clients may request recursive service from any name server, though they should depend upon receiving it only from servers which have previously sent an RA, or servers which have agreed to provide service through private agreement or some other means outside of the DNS protocol.

The recursive mode occurs when a query with RD set arrives at a server which is willing to provide recursive service; the client can verify that recursive mode was used by checking that both RA and RD are set in the reply. Note that the name server should never perform recursive service unless asked via RD, since this interferes with trouble shooting of name servers and their databases.

Response types​

If recursive service is requested and available, the recursive response to a query will be one of the following:

  • The answer to the query, possibly preface by one or more CNAME RRs that specify aliases encountered on the way to an answer.
  • A name error indicating that the name does not exist. This may include CNAME RRs that indicate that the original query name was an alias for a name which does not exist.
  • A temporary error indication.

If recursive service is not requested or is not available, the non-recursive response will be one of the following:

  • An authoritative name error indicating that the name does not exist.
  • A temporary error indication.
  • Some combination of:
    • RRs that answer the question, together with an indication whether the data comes from a zone or is cached.
    • A referral to name servers which have zones which are closer ancestors to the name than the server sending the reply.
    • RRs that the name server thinks will prove useful to the requester.

4.3.2. Algorithm​

The actual algorithm used by the name server will depend on the local OS and data structures used to store RRs. The following algorithm assumes that the RRs are organized in several tree structures, one for each zone, and another for the cache:

  1. Set or clear the value of recursion available in the response depending on whether the name server is willing to provide recursive service. If recursive service is available and requested via the RD bit in the query, go to step 5, otherwise step 2.

  2. Search the available zones for the zone which is the nearest ancestor to QNAME. If such a zone is found, go to step 3, otherwise step 4.

  3. Start matching down, label by label, in the zone. The matching process can terminate several ways:

    a. If the whole of QNAME is matched, we have found the node.

    If the data at the node is a CNAME, and QTYPE doesn't match CNAME, copy the CNAME RR into the answer section of the response, change QNAME to the canonical name in the CNAME RR, and go back to step 1.

    Otherwise, copy all RRs which match QTYPE into the answer section and go to step 6.

    b. If a match would take us out of the authoritative data, we have a referral. This happens when we encounter a node with NS RRs marking cuts along the bottom of a zone.

    Copy the NS RRs for the subzone into the authority section of the reply. Put whatever addresses are available into the additional section, using glue RRs if the addresses are not available from authoritative data or the cache. Go to step 4.

    c. If at some label, a match is impossible (i.e., the corresponding label does not exist), look to see if the "*" label exists.

    If the "*" label does not exist, check whether the name we are looking for is the original QNAME in the query or a name we have followed due to a CNAME. If the name is original, set an authoritative name error in the response and exit. Otherwise just exit.

    If the "" label does exist, match RRs at that node against QTYPE. If any match, copy them into the answer section, but set the owner of the RR to be QNAME, and not the node with the "" label. Go to step 6.

  4. Start matching down in the cache. If QNAME is found in the cache, copy all RRs attached to it that match QTYPE into the answer section. If there was no delegation from authoritative data, look for the best one from the cache, and put it in the authority section. Go to step 6.

  5. Using the local resolver or a copy of its algorithm (see resolver section of this memo) to answer the query. Store the results, including any intermediate CNAMEs, in the answer section of the response.

  6. Using local data only, attempt to add other RRs which may be useful to the additional section of the query. Exit.

4.3.3. Wildcards​

In the previous algorithm, special treatment was given to RRs with owner names starting with the label "*". Such RRs are called wildcards. Wildcard RRs can be thought of as instructions for synthesizing RRs. When the appropriate conditions are met, the name server creates RRs with an owner name equal to the query name and contents taken from the wildcard RRs.

This facility is most often used to create a zone which will be used to forward mail from the Internet to some other mail system. The general idea is that any name in that zone which is presented to server in a query will be assumed to exist, with certain properties, unless explicit evidence exists to the contrary. Note that the use of the term zone here, instead of domain, is intentional; such defaults do not propagate across zone boundaries, although a subzone may choose to achieve that appearance by setting up similar defaults.

Wildcard syntax and semantics​

The contents of the wildcard RRs follows the usual rules and formats for RRs. The wildcards in the zone have an owner name that controls the query names they will match. The owner name of the wildcard RRs is of the form *.<anydomain>, where <anydomain> is any domain name. <anydomain> should not contain other * labels, and should be in the authoritative data of the zone. The wildcards potentially apply to descendants of <anydomain>, but not to <anydomain> itself. Another way to look at this is that the "*" label always matches at least one whole label and sometimes more, but always whole labels.

When wildcards do not apply​

Wildcard RRs do not apply:

  • When the query is in another zone. That is, delegation cancels the wildcard defaults.

  • When the query name or a name between the wildcard domain and the query name is known to exist. For example, if a wildcard RR has an owner name of "*.X", and the zone also contains RRs attached to B.X, the wildcards would apply to queries for name Z.X (presuming there is no explicit information for Z.X), but not to B.X, A.B.X, or X.

A * label appearing in a query name has no special effect, but can be used to test for wildcards in an authoritative zone; such a query is the only way to get a response containing RRs with an owner name with * in it. The result of such a query should not be cached.

Note that the contents of the wildcard RRs are not modified when used to synthesize RRs.

Wildcard example​

To illustrate the use of wildcard RRs, suppose a large company with a large, non-IP/TCP, network wanted to create a mail gateway. If the company was called X.COM, and IP/TCP capable gateway machine was called A.X.COM, the following RRs might be entered into the COM zone:

X.COM           MX      10      A.X.COM

*.X.COM         MX      10      A.X.COM

A.X.COM         A       1.2.3.4
A.X.COM         MX      10      A.X.COM

*.A.X.COM       MX      10      A.X.COM

This would cause any MX query for any domain name ending in X.COM to return an MX RR pointing at A.X.COM. Two wildcard RRs are required since the effect of the wildcard at *.X.COM is inhibited in the A.X.COM subtree by the explicit data for A.X.COM. Note also that the explicit MX data at X.COM and A.X.COM is required, and that none of the RRs above would match a query name of XX.COM.

4.3.4. Negative response caching (Optional)​

The DNS provides an optional service which allows name servers to distribute, and resolvers to cache, negative results with TTLs. For example, a name server can distribute a TTL along with a name error indication, and a resolver receiving such information is allowed to assume that the name does not exist during the TTL period without consulting authoritative data. Similarly, a resolver can make a query with a QTYPE which matches multiple types, and cache the fact that some of the types are not present.

This feature can be particularly important in a system which implements naming shorthands that use search lists because a popular shorthand, which happens to require a suffix toward the end of the search list, will generate multiple name errors whenever it is used.

Implementation method​

The method is that a name server may add an SOA RR to the additional section of a response when that response is authoritative. The SOA must be that of the zone which was the source of the authoritative data in the answer section, or name error if applicable. The MINIMUM field of the SOA controls the length of time that the negative result may be cached.

Note that in some circumstances, the answer section may contain multiple owner names. In this case, the SOA mechanism should only be used for the data which matches QNAME, which is the only authoritative data in this section.

Name servers and resolvers should never attempt to add SOAs to the additional section of a non-authoritative response, or attempt to infer results which are not directly stated in an authoritative response. There are several reasons for this, including: cached information isn't usually enough to match up RRs and their zone names, SOA RRs may be cached due to direct SOA queries, and name servers are not required to output the SOAs in the authority section.

This feature is optional, although a refined version is expected to become part of the standard protocol in the future. Name servers are not required to add the SOA RRs in all authoritative responses, nor are resolvers required to cache negative results. Both are recommended. All resolvers and recursive name servers are required to at least be able to ignore the SOA RR when it is present in a response.

Some experiments have also been proposed which will use this feature. The idea is that if cached data is known to come from a particular zone, and if an authoritative copy of the zone's SOA is obtained, and if the zone's SERIAL has not changed since the data was cached, then the TTL of the cached data can be reset to the zone MINIMUM value if it is smaller. This usage is mentioned for planning purposes only, and is not recommended as yet.

4.3.5. Zone maintenance and transfers​

Part of the job of a zone administrator is to maintain the zones at all of the name servers which are authoritative for the zone. When the inevitable changes are made, they must be distributed to all of the name servers. While this distribution can be accomplished using FTP or some other ad hoc procedure, the preferred method is the zone transfer part of the DNS protocol.

Zone transfer model​

The general model of automatic zone transfer or refreshing is that one of the name servers is the master or primary for the zone. Changes are coordinated at the primary, typically by editing a master file for the zone. After editing, the administrator signals the master server to load the new zone. The other non-master or secondary servers for the zone periodically check for changes (at a selectable interval) and obtain new zone copies when changes have been made.

Change detection via SERIAL​

To detect changes, secondaries just check the SERIAL field of the SOA for the zone. In addition to whatever other changes are made, the SERIAL field in the SOA of the zone is always advanced whenever any change is made to the zone. The advancing can be a simple increment, or could be based on the write date and time of the master file, etc. The purpose is to make it possible to determine which of two copies of a zone is more recent by comparing serial numbers. Serial number advances and comparisons use sequence space arithmetic, so there is a theoretic limit on how fast a zone can be updated, basically that old copies must die out before the serial number covers half of its 32 bit range. In practice, the only concern is that the compare operation deals properly with comparisons around the boundary between the most positive and most negative 32 bit numbers.

SOA parameters for zone transfer​

The periodic polling of the secondary servers is controlled by parameters in the SOA RR for the zone, which set the minimum acceptable polling intervals. The parameters are called REFRESH, RETRY, and EXPIRE. Whenever a new zone is loaded in a secondary, the secondary waits REFRESH seconds before checking with the primary for a new serial. If this check cannot be completed, new checks are started every RETRY seconds. The check is a simple query to the primary for the SOA RR of the zone. If the serial field in the secondary's zone copy is equal to the serial returned by the primary, then no changes have occurred, and the REFRESH interval wait is restarted. If the secondary finds it impossible to perform a serial check for the EXPIRE interval, it must assume that its copy of the zone is obsolete an discard it.

AXFR zone transfer​

When the poll shows that the zone has changed, then the secondary server must request a zone transfer via an AXFR request for the zone. The AXFR may cause an error, such as refused, but normally is answered by a sequence of response messages. The first and last messages must contain the data for the top authoritative node of the zone. Intermediate messages carry all of the other RRs from the zone, including both authoritative and non-authoritative RRs. The stream of messages allows the secondary to construct a copy of the zone. Because accuracy is essential, TCP or some other reliable protocol must be used for AXFR requests.

Each secondary server is required to perform the following operations against the master, but may also optionally perform these operations against other secondary servers. This strategy can improve the transfer process when the primary is unavailable due to host downtime or network problems, or when a secondary server has better network access to an "intermediate" secondary than to the primary.

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