Basic DNS configuration

Host name resolution

The appliance uses DNS to resolve host names. The following information must be provided to ensure support of DNS:

Host name
Domain name
DNS nameservers to which the appliance can send requests for name resolution

The first time the appliance boots, it broadcasts a request to the network to determine whether a DHCP server is available to provide specific information about the network. If a DHCP server replies, the appliance accepts the following information from the DHCP server, if the DHCP server has been configured to provide it:

IP address
Default gateway
Domain name
DNS nameservers

The appliance provides this information as default settings during the setup program.

If a DHCP server is not available, you are prompted for this DNS information during the setup program. You can change any of these settings later, if necessary, on the DNS - General page in the Appliance Manager. To access this page, select Setup tab > DNS > General.

Failover of nameservers

Entering multiple nameservers in the DNS configuration provides failover capability if a nameserver is unavailable. For example, if the first nameserver in the list goes down, the appliance tries the second nameserver, and so on. The appliance does not try the second nameserver if the first nameserver reports a DNS lookup failure. This behavior follows DNS standards.