As part of our DNS server guides, this article covers how to change the DNS zone settings in Windows Server 2022 after creating and configuring DNS zones. It is a vitally important and often required skill to know how to modify DNS zone configuration. Among other configurations, the three most often required settings that we need to change are the DNS zone type, ADI zone replication scope, and DNS zone dynamic updates. Hence, with a step-by-step approach, we will cover these three topics throughout this article, each in a separate section.

Related articles:

1. How to Install DNS In Server 2022 Using Server Manager And Powershell?
2. Configure DNS Forwarder And DNS Conditional Forwarder In Server 2022.
3. Detailed step-by-step DNS zone configuration.

How to Change a DNS Zone Type?

The DNS zone type definition is the very key setting when we create and configure a DNS zone. It specifies the zone’s function and further configurations options accordingly. It is also possible to change the zone type of a specific zone after it is created and configured. As part of changing DNS zone settings, we can change it anytime we need to in Windows Server 2022 using the below simple steps.

1. Press the Windows Key + R Keys on your keyboard to open the Run dialogue box.

2. Type indnsmgmt.mscand press Enter, consequently.

3. On the DNS Manager console, right-click on the zone you want to change the setting and click on the Properties option from the list.

4. Select the General tab in the zone Properties and click on the Change button associated with the Zone Type, as shown in the below picture.

5. On the Change Zone Type window, choose the new zone type from the available zone types. When it is all set, click on the OK button. Then, click on the Yes button on the warning window.

That is all about how to change a DNS zone type. Straightforward! Now, let’s go with how we can change the replication scope for an Active Directory Integrated (ADI) DNS zone.

How to Change an ADI Zone Replication Scope?

If you already know the difference between the DNS zone types, you know that the replication scope setting is associated only with an Active Directory DNS zone. Similar to the above section, we can change the replication scope of an ADI zone from the Properties window of the zone. Let’s go with the steps.

1. Open DNS Manager console (steps 1 and 2 of the above section)

2. Right-click on the zone you want to change its replication scope and click on the Properties option. (step 3 of the above section)

3. Select the General tab and click on the Change button next to the Replication, as shown in the below picture. This option is available only in the ADI zone and not in other zone types.

4. Now, on the Change Zone Replication Scope window, choose the replication scope for your ADI zone. Once set, click on OK.

With four simple steps, we changed the ADI DNS zone’s replication scope in Windows Server 2022.

How to Change a DNS Zone Dynamic Update?

Before straightly going to the steps to change the dynamic update of the DNS zone, it is necessary to know that this setting is available only with the primary and ADI zones and not with the Secondary and Stub zones. Similar to the above two sections, we can modify this setting in the Properties window of the zone. Let’s walk through all the steps.

1. Open up the DNS Manager console as described in the above sections.

2. On the DNS Manager console, right-click on the zone you want to change its dynamic updates settings and click on the Properties option. ( step 3 of the first section)

3. On the General tab of the zone properties, expand the options associated with the Dynamic updates and select the appropriate option (see the picture below). Once selected, click on OK to save the setting and exit the window.

That is all we need to do to change the Dynamic Update settings of a DNS zone.

Conclusion

So far, in this step-by-step article, we have covered the three most required settings of a DNS zone in Windows Server 2022. We discussed the steps to change a DNS zone type first. Then, we went through the guide to change the replication scope setting of an ADI zone. Finally, we covered the instructions to modify the dynamic update for the Primary and ADI DNS zones.

In the end, I hope this article could provide you with helpful instructions and insights. Please feel free to share your thoughts and further questions in the comment section below.

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As part of a DNS server configuration, it is also possible to create and configure an internal root DNS zone for an environment. When we create it manually, the DNS forwarders and DNS Root Hints that resolve external DNS queries automatically get disabled. That is how we can stop external name resolutions by using an internal root zone. Once we have created a root zone, it acts as a parent zone for all the root zones. Having said this overview, this article covers how to create and configure a Root DNS Zone in a step-by-step approach. We use Windows Server 2022 for this configuration. However, the instruction also applies to other versions of Windows Server OSes.

Other DNS articles:

1. How to Install DNS Service Using PowerShell and Server Manager?
2. Configure DNS Forwarder and DNS Conditional Forwarder.
3. Detailed Instruction to Create and Configure DNS Zones.

Steps to Create and Configure a Root DNS Zone

With the above brief overview in mind, let’s get our hands dirty and go through the steps to create and configure a root DNS zone in Windows Server 2022.

1. Press down the Windows key + R keys on your keyboard to open the Run dialogue box.

2. Type indnsmgmt.msc command and press enter.

3. Expand the server name on the DNS Manager console. Then, right-click on the Forward Lookup Zone and select the New Zone option. Click Next on the Welcome Wizard afterward.

4. On the Zone Type section, select the zone type for your new zone and click Next. In our example, we chose the Primary zone for which we check the first option and uncheck the last option.

5. Put only a dot (.) in the Zone name box and click Next to continue.

6. On the Zone File section, specify a name for the zone file or leave it as its default. Then, click on the Next button.

7. Select the appropriate Dynamic Update option for your root DNS zone and click on Next. On the next page, click on the Finish button.

That is it! Following the above seven steps, we can create a root DNS zone in Windows Server 2022. Now, you can see the new zone with “.(root)” name is added to the zone list.

As we have added the root zone, the root hints and forwarders are all gone if you check them. So, this way, the root DNS zone stops all external name resolutions.

Summary

To summarize what we discussed in this article, we first covered a brief overview of the Root DNS zone. We discussed its function and use. Then, we went through step-by-step instructions and practically created and configured a Root DNS zone in Windows Server 2022.

In the end, I hope this article can provide you with the exact answer to your question. Make sure to share your thoughts and further queries in the comment section.

The post Create and Configure a Root DNS Zone and Stop External Name Resolution appeared first on TECHNIG.

As a core component of a DNS Server, a DNS Zone creates and stores DNS resource records. That means the DNS zones store all the resource records of a DNS namespace in themselves, and according to those records, the DNS Server resolves names to IP addresses upon the DNS queries by clients. The DNS Servers manage the DNS zones. It is the very fundamental configuration we must accomplish right after installing the DNS Service. Hence, this article covers how to create and configure a DNS Zone in Windows Server 2022 step-by-step. Before that, we need a comprehensive understanding of the DNS Zone types and their functions. That’s why we will first cover a brief overview of the DNS zone types and their functions. Then, we will create and configure DNS zones of all types in a separate section.

You may also like to read: Install DNS In Server 2022 Using Server Manager And Powershell.

Forward Lookup Zone and Reverse Lookup Zone

Broadly classifying, there are two types of zones available in a DNS Server. The first one is the Forward Lookup Zone which resolves names and, sometimes, services to IP addresses. The second one is the Reverse Lookup Zone which resolves IP addresses to names. While we always use the first type in every networking environment, we rarely use the second type for some security reasons. Furthermore, we have four types of zones that we can create and configure in each one of these two zone classes. In fact, when we talk about zone configuration, we configure one of these four types, whether in the Forward Lookup Zone or the Reverse Lookup Zone. Wherever we create them, they function accordingly. Now, let’s see each of these four zone types we can create and configure.

1. Primary DNS Zone

As the name refers, the Primary DNS Zone is the main DNS zone that a primary DNS server hosts. It stores the read/write copy of the zone data (resource records). Let’s say we have a DNS Server for our main office with a thousand clients. Now, that DNS Server hosts a primary zone and stores the DNS records of all those thousand clients with both read and write privileges.

2. Secondary DNS Zone

The Secondary DNS Zone stores a read-only copy of the Primary DNS zone. It goes hand-in-hand with the primary zone. If a change occurs in the primary zone, that change replicates in the secondary zone. We can not delete or add a new resource record in a secondary DNS zone. We use it mainly to reduce the workload on the primary DNS server, prevent a single point of failure, and reduce other resource usages like network bandwidth in a scenario where the company’s branches are connected over a WAN link.

3. Stub DNS Zone

A Stub DNS Zone is very similar to a secondary DNS zone. But, it stores a copy of resource records of only the name servers (NS) of a primary zone and not all resource records of a primary zone. Like the primary-secondary zones, we use it to reduce loads on the primary DNS Server, prevent a single point of failure, and reduce other resource usage.

4. Active Directory Integrated (ADI) DNS Zone

An active directory Integrated zone, or ADI zone for short, can be hosted only on a DNS server which is also the Domain Controller. Using the ADI zone, all the resource records automatically replicate between the two DNS servers. It is entirely bidirectional and multi-master. That means any changes on one side replicate to the other side. This type is the most secure as the replications are encrypted.

Now that we have a conceptual understanding of each DNS zone type, we will go forward and practically configure each one in a separate section.

Create and Configure a Primary DNS Zone

From the above descriptions, we understand what a Primary DNS Zone is and where we use it. We will walk through the below steps to create and configure a primary DNS zone in Windows Server 2022.

1. Open the DNS Manager console. To do so, open the Run dialogue box by pressing the Windows Key + R keys combination on your keyboard. Typednsmgmt.msccommand and press enter to open it. You can also open it by navigating through Server Manager >> Tools >> DNS.

2. Under the Server name on the DNS Manager console, you can create a new zone of both Forward Lookup Zones and Reverse Lookup Zones. Whichever you intend to create, right-click on it and choose the New Zone option. Consequently, click on the Next button on the first screen.

3. To create a Primary Zone, check out the first option and uncheck the last checkbox. Then, click on Next.

4. On the Zone Name console, type your zone name and click on Next to continue.

5. Now, configure the zone file. Choose the first option to create a new zone file, and click on the Next. The DNS zone creates a file to save the associated resource records. This file will be saved in the C:\Windows\System32\dns directory.

6. In this step, configure the Dynamic Updates. For the Primary DNS Zone, we have two options, and almost always, we choose the first active option, as shown in the picture. If we select the Do not allow dynamic updates option, we must manually update the resource records each time there is a new record, which is impossible in most cases. When it is set, click on the Next button. Finally, click on Finish on the last page.

That is all with the Primary DNS zone configuration. However, we still need to configure zone transfer.

Configure Primary DNS Zone Transfer

We learned how to create and configure a new Primary DNS zone in Server 2022. But, we still need to configure the zone transfer for our newly created primary DNS zone. The zone transfer configuration specifies the server(s) with which our primary zone must replicate its information. Follow the steps below to configure Zone Transfer.

1. Right-click on your DNS Zone and select the Properties option from the list.

2. On the zone properties page, select the Name Servers tab and click on Add button.

3. On the New Name Server Record screen, type the name or IP address of the secondary server with which you want to replicate this zone’s resource records. Use the Resolve button to resolve it. Once you have added the secondary server(s), click on the OK button. Do not care about the warning sign with the resolved server(s). Finally, close the zone’s Properties window.

We are all done with the primary zone. We have created and configured it, and then we configured the zone transfer. It is all set and ready to resolve names and replicate its records with the secondary DNS zone on the Server(s) we have just added.

Create and Configure a Secondary DNS Zone

A secondary DNS zone, as we described earlier, is a read-only copy of the primary DNS zone that updates itself with a replication of the Primary DNS zone records associated with it. It is also very similar in terms of configuration steps. Anyway, let’s move on and go with those steps to create and configure a Secondary DNS zone in Server 2022.

1. Open the DNS Manager console on the secondary server (Same as the Primary DNS zone described above)

2. Create a new DNS zone (Same as the step 2 of the primary DNS zone described above)

3. Choose the Secondary Zone option as shown in the below picture to create a secondary DNS zone. Then, click on the Next button.

4. Name the Secondary DNS zone. Remember that it is mandatory that the Secondary DNS zone name must be the same as the Primary DNS zone with which you want to associate. That is what makes them correlate with each other. So our secondary DNS name becomes Zone1 as of the primary DNS zone. Click on Next when it is set.

5. Specify the Master DNS Server(s) using their IP addresses or names. Once specified correctly, click on the Next button. Finally, click on the Finish button on the next page.

At this point, we have successfully created and configured the secondary DNS zone. Now, let’s verify if they work correctly.

Verify Primary-Secondary DNS Zones

We already know the purpose of the primary and secondary DNS zones. So, it is clear that all the resource records from the primary DNS zone should automatically get stored in the secondary DNS zone. Besides learning how to create and configure a DNS Zone in Server 2022, we verify this replication of resources and check if it works.

To verify this configuration, first, we manually create a new record in the primary DNS zone on the DNS server that hosts it (DC1 in our scenario). Then, we check if it is replicated in the secondary DNS zone on the DNS server that hosts our secondary zone (SRV1 in our scenario). Let’s move on step by step.

1. On the primary DNS server (DC1 in our example), right-click on the primary zone you have created and choose New Host (A or AAAA) option from the list.

2. Put the name of the new record in the Name box, and put the IP address associated with that name in the IP address box. Then, click on the Add Host button. Next, click on the OK button on the message window. Finally, click on the Done button.

3. On the secondary DNS server (SRV1 in our example), click on the secondary zone and see if the record you have created in the primary zone is added there. Remember that it might take a few seconds to replicate. So, refresh the DNS manager window on the secondary server.

This way, we can manually add a DNS record in our primary zone and check if it replicates to the secondary zone.

Create and Configure a Stub DNS Zone

Earlier in this article, we discussed the Stub DNS zone. We know where we use it and what resource records it stores. Now in this section, we dive into the steps on how we can create and configure a Stub zone in Windows Server 2022. Most of the steps are similar to the secondary zone configuration we covered above. So, to keep it short, we will refer to the secondary zone configuration steps for similar ones.

1. Open DNS Manager console (same as the Step 1 of secondary zone configuration)

2. Create a new DNS zone (Same as the step 2 of the secondary zone configuration)

3. Choose the Stub zone option on the Zone Type window.

4. Enter the name of the Stub zone. (Same as step 4 of the secondary zone configuration)

5. Configure zone file. (Same as the step 5 of the Primary zone configuration discussed above)

6. Add the master server (primary server which hosts the primary zone) as we did for the secondary DNS zone.

We configured a Stub Zone following these six steps. It is straightforward and requires almost the same steps as the secondary zone configuration except for steps three and five, where we specify the zone type and configure the zone file.

Create and Configure an Active Directory Integrated (ADI) DNS Zone

We are familiar with the concept of Active Directory Integrated (ADI) DNS Zones, as we discussed earlier in this article. To remind you, the ADI zones can be hosted only on the DNS servers, which are also the domain controller. With that in mind, this section covers the steps on how to create and configure an ADI DNS zone in Windows Server 2022. Let’s walk through the steps. To keep it short, we will refer to some of the above section’s steps if there are similar steps to the above sections.

1. Pull up the DNS Manager console as we did in previous sections.

2. Create a new DNS zone. (step 2 of the above sections)

3. Select the Primary zone option and check out the last checkbox option for the ADI DNS zone. Click on Next afterward.

4. Select the replication scope for the ADI zone in which it must replicate its resource records. We always use one of the two first options. The first one is to replicate the zone to all servers in the forest, and the second option is to replicate it to all servers in the domain. It depends on your environment and the plan accordingly. When done, click on Next.

5. Type a name for your ADI DNS zone and click on Next to continue.

6. Configure the Secure Dynamic Update in this step. For the ADI DNS zone, the first option is also available. Almost always, we use the first option for an ADI zone. It also depends on your plan. Click on the Next button when it is set. Then, click on Finish in the next window.

That is all the steps we walk through to create and configure an ADI DNS zone in Windows Server 2022.

Summary

To revise what we covered in this article, we started with an overview of the DNZ zones. First of all, we discussed the Forward Lookup Zone and Reverse Lookup Zone. We covered a brief overview of the four zones we can create and configure in each Forward and Reverse Lookup Zones. Next, in a step-by-step approach, we covered the primary zone creation and configuration. Likewise, we stepped into secondary zone configuration steps. Another small topic we covered was verifying primary-secondary zones. A stub zone configuration was the next section we covered. Finally, we explained the ADI DNS Zone configuration in six steps.

In the end, I would like to share my happiness in having you read our articles. Please feel free and let us know your thoughts and queries regarding our content.

The post Create and Configure a DNS Zone in Windows Server 2022 appeared first on TECHNIG.

As essential parts of a DNS Server, the DNS Forwarders and the DNS Conditional Forwarders are the two topics that we will configure after installing the DNS role and configuring the DNS zones. A DNS Forwarder is responsible for serving external DNS requests. We manually configure the DNS Forwarder on our DNS Server and specify the DNS server(s) it should refer to for any external DNS requests. A DNS Conditional Forwarder resolves the external DNS requests only for a specific domain that we specify. Mainly, we configure it between partners and trusted organisations. With this brief introduction in mind, we will cover how to configure a DNS Forwarder and a DNS Conditional Forwarder in Windows Server 2022. We will cover each one in a separate section following a straightforward step-by-step approach.

Also, read Install DNS In Server 2022 Using Server Manager And Powershell.

Configure a DNS Forwarder in Server 2022

We discussed a brief overview of the DNS Forwarder. In this section, we will go step-by-step to see how we can configure it in a Windows Server 2022.

1. Pull up the DNS Manager console. To do so, press down the Windows Key + R keys on your keyboard. Then, typednsmgmt.mscin the Run dialogue box and hit enter. An alternative way is to navigate through Server Manager >>Tools >> DNS.

2. On the DNS Manager console, select the server name on the left pane and double-click on Forwarders at the right pane.

3. Select the Forwarders tab on the DNS server’s properties, and click on the Edit button, afterwards.

4. Now, add the IP address of the DNS server(s) to which you want to forward the DNS external requests. You can add many DNS servers. As of our example, we have added two Google public DNS servers (8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4). Click on a DNS server you have added, and you can set the order or delete it using the buttons on the right pane. Once everything is set, click on the OK button.

5. As you can see in the below picture, our two DNS servers are added to DNS Forwarders. Now our DNS server forwards any external DNS requests to one of these two DNS servers. Finally, Click on OK to close the window.

All right. In five simple steps with picture illustration, we have explained how to configure a DNS forwarder in Windows Server 2022.

Configure a DNS Conditional Forwarder in Server 2022

A Conditional Forwarder, as we discussed earlier, resolves the external DNS requests only for a specific domain. We define that external domain in our DNS server. Our DNS server then resolves the external DNS request only for that domain. It forwards any external DNS requests other than for that domain to the DNS server(s) defined in forwarders or to the DNS servers in the root hint. Having said this stuff, let’s move on and see the steps to configure a DNS Conditional Forwarder in Windows Server 2022.

1. Open up the DNS Manager console (step 1 of the previous section)

2. Expand the DNS server and right-click on Conditional Forwarders. Select the New Conditional Forwarder option from the list.

3. On the New Conditional Forwarder window, first, enter the domain’s name that your DNS server should resolve the request for it. Then, enter the IP address of that domain. Next, if you want to store this conditional forwarder in the active directory, check out the relevant checkbox (labelled 3 in the below picture) and choose the appropriate replication option. Otherwise, leave this option unchecked. Finally, click on the OK button.

These are all the steps required to configure a conditional forwarder on a DNS server with Windows Server 2022. Pretty easy!

Conclusion

Throughout this article, first, we discussed a brief overview of the DNS Forwarder and DNS Conditional Forwarder. Then, in two separate sections, we covered a step-by-step guide on how to configure a DNS Forwarder and DNS Conditional Forwarder in Windows Server 2022.

I hope you find this article helpful in any way. Make sure to share your thoughts and queries in the comment section below.

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