[NTLUG:Discuss] DNS server order

[brian at pongonova.net]

On Tue, Dec 04, 2007 at 08:44:30PM +0000, m m wrote:
> All:
>  
> Does DNS server order matter?
> My question is the request packets go to the Primary DNS server first
> and if failed, go to the 2nd DNS server and so on?
>  
> Can we control the packets go to the DNS server we preferred order?

Normally, what is done is that you maintain one master server, and one
or more slaves.  They are always kept up to date with one another, so if
one does go down, "failover" is automatic.  There is no way to
"prioritize" servers as is done with MX records.

It makes no sense to have a backup that's never used...reliability is
of impotance here.  If you have a marginal server (one that may or may
not be up at any given time), it shouldn't be serving names.

  --Brian