This is a question that has had Network Designers in numerous meetings for months. We are trying to rollout Frame-Relay connected sites all over the US. Due to the nature of the product for which the network is being planned, each "site" will only consist of a router, small hub/switch, and no more than 5 WinNT/2K machines. Eventually there will be 20,000 or more of these sites located nationally. In seeing the number of sites, one begins to realize what a DNS nightmare this will be. What weplan on doing to start with is having separate zones and secondary DNS Servers per state. From there we plan to give a few characters to the city name, a few to the description of equipment, (Cr7513 for Cisco Router 7513), and a unique site number which is obtained when a site acquisition has taken place. My main question is for Designers with huge networks that use DNS. What hints, or what is the naming convention being used?
Of course, thank you to anyone that can shed light on this dilemma.
Nathan
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I think you should follow a hierarchial DNS design (Which is the current, modern method of Active Directories and other directory services. If u ever decide to go to Win2K AD, you'll thank yourself for implementing a hierarchial, logical design.
Your answer will depend on your administration. Who are your DNS administrators and what do they have authority over? If you have fifty DNS administrators, and each one has authority over a state, then one per state would make sense. You would delegate DNS authority to whatever level you needed, state, region within a state, or site.
You should make a standard for naming now and enforce it throughout all 20000 sites. Ideally in your standard name it will tell you location and type of equipment. You can include any information you might need, though, such as date acquired, or date warranty expires, whatever you need. For instance:
somewhere.com - Root fl.somewhere.com - State abcd.fl.somewhere.com - Site or Region R050301.abcd.fl.somewhere.com - Router, code 05=7513 Cisco model, 0301 = Acquired March, 2001 S021200 - Server, code 02=Compaq 8000, 1200=Acquired December, 2000.
I do not recommend using CR7513. Rather, use a code that means Cisco Router model 7513. You need info that is meaningful to your company, but not the rest of the world. If the DNS name is available on the Internet, you don't want to blatantly advertise the type of equipment.
If you're asking for technical help, please be sure to include all your system info, including operating system, model number, and any other specifics related to the problem. Also please exercise your best judgment when posting in the forums--revealing personal information such as your e-mail address, telephone number, and address is not recommended.
Nationwide DNS Naming Conventions
Of course, thank you to anyone that can shed light on this dilemma.
Nathan