GLOSSARY: DNS

Domain Name Server (DNS)

The Domain Name System is a hierarchical and distributed naming system for computers, services, and other resources in the Internet or other Internet Protocol (IP) networks.

It associates various information with domain names assigned to each of the associated entities.

It translates readily memorized domain names to the numerical IP addresses needed for locating and identifying computer services and devices with the underlying network protocols.

You can think of DNS as a phone book that turns a text-based URL like "cybercomputing.co.uk" into an IP address computers can understand.

The Domain Name System has been an essential component of the functionality of the Internet since 1985.

Up until 2019, the DNS information requested was sent as plain text and could be intercepted even when the data being sent or requested was encrypted.

From 2019, it has become possible for DNS requests to be encrypted.

DNS Checker provides a free DNS lookup service to check Domain Name System records against a selected list of DNS servers located in multiple regions worldwide. Perform a quick DNS propagation lookup for any hostname, and check DNS data collected from all available DNS Servers to confirm that the DNS records are fully propagated.