Question : How to test DNS?

How to quickly test if your DNS (Windows 2000/2003) is set up right? Ideas and sugestions?

This is Intranet DNS only at the moment.

Answer : How to test DNS?

"right" depends on what you are trying to test with the DNS server. Most involve using nslookup for verification or you can download a windows version of Dig.

At the command prompt of any Win2k/xp/2003 machine, type nslookup
if you have named your local DNS server as the preferred DNS server, the nslookup will respond with the name and IP of that server. If it shows up as your ISPs server, then type the following"
server xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx  (where xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the IP of your internal DNS server that you are testing)

and it should come back with the IP and host name of your DNS server. If it doesn't provide the host name, then there is a problem in the basic DNS server setup.

Now, to see if it answers correctly for another host you have set up as an A record in your domain's zone file, type the name of the host and hit return and nslookup should reply with the name and IP of that host. If you get a host not found error, then you have some additional setting up/fixing to do in the zone files.

If you aren't manually setting up your hosts, but are having them add via dynamic DNS, you do the same as above. If you don't get an answer, then something is not working with your dynamic updates.

If you want to see if you are able to send mail while resolving off your local DNS, then type:
query=mx
yourdomain.com

This should cause nslookup to return the information on what host handles email for the domain.

Finally, if you are having your local client computers resolve off your internal domain server, and they do need to access the Internet, you need to make sure your internal server can request and hand out external information as well. To test this, type
www.msn.com

and see if you get an answer. If not, then anyone who is resolving off your DNS server may not be able to access anything outside your local network:)