Is it always necessary to Enabled the feature “Set up DNS zone”? I use the nameservers from my ISP where I set the ‘MX’ and ‘A’ records? When I set up a virtual server I use the standard configuration proposed by Virtualmin. When a domain doesn’t need an SQL-server I disable it for that domain. That’s easy for me to understand. But what about de checkbox “set up DNS zone”? When can I disable that feature?
Hi Alain.
Think of DNS in two distinctly different ways, both of which are required.
- It is required that your system use some DNS to resolve local queries. This is a resolving or cacheing DNS and it can be provided by your ISP or other service provider; it can be provided by public DNS offered by Google and others; or you could run it locally. The only interaction you have with your resolver is to point to it in /etc/resolv.conf
This cannot be disabled. It has to be something. In Virtualmin, this is configured at
Webminn -> Networking -> Network Configuration -> Hostname and DNS Client -> “DNS servers”
- Domain names need to have DNS on one or more authoritative servers which are queried by resolvers (resolving DNS [above]). This is where you enter A and MX records, and can be hosted either on your Virtualmin host or externally, such as at your domain registrar.
It is this second one which Virtualmin allows disabling; and you should disable it if you are maintaining your domain zone externally.
These two functions are independent, but can be, and often are, both provided by the BIND DNS Server running locally on your VIrtualmin host. Locally running BIND is not required only if you 1)point to external resolvers; AND 2)host your DNS zones externally.