Authoritative DNS servers are servers that are authoritative for a domain name. This means that they have the final say in whether or not a domain name resolves to an IP address.
In most cases, the authoritative DNS server for a domain name is the DNS server for the domain name’s parent domain.
Authoritative DNS servers are important for several reasons. First, they ensure that all domain name resolutions go through the correct DNS server. This protects against DNS hijacking and other attacks that can take advantage of incorrect domain name resolutions. Second, authoritative DNS servers can help to resolve domain name conflicts.
If two organizations own the same domain name, but their DNS servers disagree about which server should be considered the authoritative server for the domain, the authoritative DNS server for the domain name can resolve the conflict. Finally, authoritative DNS servers can help to optimize domain name resolution performance. By default, the DNS server on your computer resolves domain names in the order that they are listed in the DNS server’s configuration file. If the DNS server on your computer is authoritative for a domain name, the DNS server will use the domain name resolution configuration file to resolve the domain name rather than querying the DNS server for the domain name.
While authoritative DNS servers are important, it’s important to note that they are not infallible. If the authoritative DNS server is not operational, your computer will attempt to resolve domain names using the local DNS server. If the local DNS server is not operational, your computer will attempt to resolve domain names using the DNS servers that are available on the local network.
If the local DNS server is not operational, your computer will attempt to resolve domain names using the DNS servers that are available on the Internet. In all cases, your computer will try to resolve domain names using the DNS server that is authoritative for the domain name.
So, while authoritative DNS servers are important, it’s important to note that they are not always reliable. It’s also important to note that authoritative DNS servers are not the only DNS servers that your computer will use to resolve domain names.
Your computer will also use the DNS server that is configured as the default DNS server.
