Introduction
This Knowledge Base (KB) article provides detailed instructions on how to install DNS server, as well as creating and managing DNS zones and records. This guide offers a video walk through, as well as step by step instructions below.
This guide has a video tutorial available
Installing the DNS Server role
The ability to host and manage DNS zones on your server requires the DNS Server role to be installed on the Windows server. This is a quick and easy installation by following the steps below:
Method: PowerShell
1. Open PowerShell on your server in an elevated session (for example, running as Administrator).
2. Run the following command to install DNS. This installation does not require a reboot.
Install-WindowsFeature -Name DNS
Method: Server Manager GUI
1. Click on the Start menu, then select the Server Manager option.
2. Click Manage in the menu, then select the option Add Roles and Features.
3. On the Before you Begin page, click Next to begin.
3. Select Role-based or feature-based installation. Then click Next.
4. Click Next again.
5. Select the DNS Server checkbox under the Server Roles list, then click Next.
a. You will be prompted to add features that are required for DNS Server. Select Add Features to approve.
6. Click Next again to choose the default features.
7. On the DNS Server page, review the notes and click Next to continue.
8. Review the selected roles and features, then click on Install to begin the installation. This may take a moment and does not require any reboots.
Creating a DNS zone
The first step to managing your domain's DNS records is to create a zone that will be the home for the records. Follow the steps below to create a new DNS zone:
1. Click the Start menu in Windows, then choose Administrative Tools.
2. Double-click on the DNS option listed. If not present, make sure you have DNS installed by following the above section for installing the DNS role.
3. Right-click on Forward Lookup Zones, then select New Zone.
4. Click Next, then choose Primary Zone. Click Next again.
5. For the zone name, enter the full domain name that the zone is being created for.
6. Click Next three times until you get to the option to finish adding the zone. Click Finish to add the new zone.
7. If you do not plan to use Vivio NS1/NS2 name servers then you can move on to the next section for creating DNS records, otherwise continue through the steps.
8. Expand Forward Lookup Zone, then right click the new zone and choose Properties.
9. Click on the Name Servers tab.
10. Remove the default name server listed, which should be your server name.
11. Now click Add and type ns1.viviotech.net into the FQDN field, then click Resolve. Ignore the warning and click OK.
12. Click Add again and type ns2.viviotech.net into the FQDN field, then click Resolve. Ignore the warning and click OK.
13. Click on Apply and then OK.
14. Now that you have created your primary DNS zone, you can open a support ticket to request that our team create a DNS zone on our NS1/NS2 servers that slaves to your new primary DNS zone on your server. What does this mean? Essentially, our NS1/NS2 name servers will have a cached copy of your DNS zone which will be used to serve any request queried to our DNS servers. Any changes you make to your DNS zone on your server will automatically be picked up by our name servers.
Creating DNS records
The above section showed how to create your domain's DNS zone. Now, we will dive into creating resource records, which contain important information to translate DNS queries to hostnames and IP addresses.
1. Click the Start menu in Windows, then choose Administrative Tools.
2. Double-click on the DNS option listed. If not present, make sure you have DNS installed by following the above section for installing the DNS role.
3. Expand the Forward Lookup Zones folder, then select the domain you want to manage the records for.
4. You should see a list of existing resource records hosted by the domain's DNS zone, if any. Right click anywhere in this list and choose the option that best fits your needs.
- To point the domain/subdomain to an IPv4 or IPv6 address choose the option labeled, New Hosts (A or AAAA).
- To create an alias record, choose the option labeled, New Alias (CNAME).
- To create a new MX record for email, choose the option labeled, New Mail Exchange (MX).
- For all other records, choose the option labeled, New Other Records and then select the record type you desire, such as TXT, then click Create Record.
5. When creating the record, leave the hostname field blank if you want the record to be for the root of the domain, otherwise enter the prefix/subdomain for the record.
6. Click OK or Add Host to save the record, depending on the type of record you are creating.
Editing a DNS record
If you are needing to make a change to a resource record under your domain's DNS zone, you can follow the steps below:
1. Click the Start menu in Windows, then choose Administrative Tools.
2. Double-click on the DNS option listed. If not present, make sure you have DNS installed by following the above section for installing the DNS role.
3. Expand the Forward Lookup Zones folder, then select the domain you want to manage the records for.
4. Find the record you want to update. Right click the record, then choose Properties.
5. You can now change the value of the record. Make your changes, then click OK to save your changes.
6. Depending on the TTL for the resource record, you might have to wait awhile for the DNS queries to the domain to reflect the changes. This process is called propagation.
Need Further Assistance?
Our team is here to assist. Create a support ticket through your account portal if needed, or view more detailed information at Microsoft learning center: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/networking/dns/manage-dns-zones?tabs=gui