Create DNS zones and configure DNS settings

The Domain Name System (DNS) is the phonebook of the Internet. Humans access information online through domain names, like nytimes.com or espn.com. Web browsers interact through Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. DNS translates domain names to IP addresses so browsers can load Internet resources.

Each device connected to the Internet has a unique IP address which other machines use to find the device. DNS servers eliminate the need for humans to memorize IP addresses such as 192.168.1.1 (in IPv4), or more complex newer alphanumeric IP addresses such as 2400:cb00:2048:1::c629:d7a2 (in IPv6).

How does DNS work?

The process of DNS resolution involves converting a hostname (such as www.example.com) into a computer-friendly IP address (such as 192.168.1.1). An IP address is given to each device on the Internet, and that address is necessary to find the appropriate Internet device - like a street address is used to find a particular home. When a user wants to load a webpage, a translation must occur between what a user types into their web browser (example.com) and the machine-friendly address necessary to locate the example.com webpage.

In order to understand the process behind the DNS resolution, it’s important to learn about the different hardware components a DNS query must pass between. For the web browser, the DNS lookup occurs "behind the scenes" and requires no interaction from the user’s computer apart from the initial request.

A DNS zone is a specific portion of the Domain Name System (DNS) that is managed by a single authority. It is like a section of a big map, where each section is controlled separately to make management easier. This division allows different organizations or administrators to handle and update their own part of the DNS without affecting the entire system

DNS zones follows a hierarchical concept. Therefore, namespace is subdivided into areas (zones) for this purpose. The purpose of DNS zones is to permit easier control over multiple levels of website.
As the number of resource records increases for single domain, it becomes complex to manage all of them. Network administrations moderate this issue by breaking down their configurations into multiple zones.
Root name servers are responsible for root zone. Each top-level domains
(TLD) name server is responsible for zone covering its specific TLD, and authoritative name servers are responsible for some even smaller zones below that.
The root and TLD name servers are actually just authoritative name servers, but, zones that they're authoritative for are special cases.
DNS zones aren't necessarily physically separated from each other; zones are strictly used for delegating control.

How to Create DNS zones and configure DNS settings

In a scenario where an organization requires workloads to use domain names instead of IP addresses for internal communications. The organization doesn’t want to add a custom DNS solution. You are to identify these requirements.

A private DNS zone is required for contoso.com.
The DNS will use a virtual network link to app-vnet.
A new DNS record is required for the backend subnet.

To identify the above requirements, we need to do the following tasks:

Create and configure a private DNS zone.
Create and configure DNS records.
Configure DNS settings on a virtual network

Create a private DNS zone

Azure Private DNS provides a reliable, secure DNS service to manage and resolve domain names in a virtual network without the need to add a custom DNS solution. By using private DNS zones, you can use your own custom domain names rather than the Azure-provided names.

1.On the Azure portal, search for and select Private dns zones

2.Select + Create

3.Configure the DNS zone

Subscription Select your subscription
Resource group RG1
Name private.contoso.com
Region East US

4.Select Review + create

5.Select Create when the validation is passed.

6.Wait for the DNS zone to deploy, and then select Go to resource

Create a virtual network link to your private DNS zone

To resolve DNS records in a private DNS zone, resources must be linked to the private zone. A virtual network link associates the virtual network to the private zone.

1.In the portal, continue working on the private.contoso.com DNS zone