BIND – Berkeley Internet Name Domain DNS Server

BIND (Berkeley Internet Name Domain) is the most widely used DNS server software on the Internet. It implements the DNS protocols and provides an authoritative name server, a recursive resolver, and DNS tools. BIND powers a significant portion of the Internet’s DNS infrastructure and is the reference implementation for DNS standards.

Organizations use BIND for authoritative DNS hosting, internal DNS resolution, and split-horizon DNS configurations. Its flexibility and comprehensive feature set make it suitable for everything from small office networks to large-scale internet infrastructure.

Key Features

• Authoritative Server – Host your own DNS zones
• Recursive Resolver – Resolve queries for clients
• DNSSEC – Full DNS security extension support
• Views – Different responses based on client
• Dynamic Updates – Programmatic zone modifications
• Zone Transfers – Primary/secondary replication

Installation

sudo apt install bind9 bind9utils    # Debian/Ubuntu
sudo dnf install bind bind-utils      # Fedora/RHEL

Basic Configuration

# /etc/bind/named.conf.options
options {
    directory "/var/cache/bind";
    forwarders { 8.8.8.8; 8.8.4.4; };
    listen-on { any; };
    allow-query { any; };
    recursion yes;
};

# Start service
sudo systemctl enable --now named

Use Cases

• DNS Hosting – Host authoritative DNS zones
• Internal DNS – Resolve internal hostnames
• Caching Resolver – Speed up DNS queries
• Split DNS – Different views for internal/external

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