Alexander’s Blog

It is much more convenient to access servers in a Windows network by simply using single-label names, which are far easier to remember than the traditional fully qualified domain names (FQDNs) that are part of the default naming convention for Domain Name System (DNS). Before Windows Server 2008, network administrators used Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) technology to utilize single-label names. WINS is an alternative to DNS for name resolution. Because WINS depends on NetBIOS over TCP/IP (NetBT), and WINS and NetBT do not support IPv6 protocols, administrators can now use GlobalNames zones in Windows Server 2008 to take advantage of single-label names. WINS has been pretty much on its way out for the past few years and the new GlobalNames zone capability in Windows Server 2008 pushes it further out the door.

The GlobalNames zones in Windows Server 2008 are new zones that allow network administrators to completely migrate to DNS for all their name resolution needs. Keep in mind that GlobalNames zones are not meant to be a complete replacement for WINS because, unlike WINS, they do not support dynamically registered records. GlobalNames zones are ideal for static, global records with single-label names where you do not need to rely on WINS.

One of the more common usages of GlobalNames zone could be to put all the Windows Server 2008 servers on your network that are using static IP addresses in GlobalNames zone. In a pure IPv6 environment, which is not supported by WINS, you can use GlobalNames zones to provide all the DNS resolution. Your goal should be to get rid of WINS, migrate to WS08 environment, deploy GlobalNames zone and run IPv6 on your network. As a best practice, make sure that the GlobalNames zones are integrated with Active Directory Domain Services. The integration offers several benefits, such as security, better management, and future scalability.

When to Deploy GlobalNames Zone

Here are a few good reasons for deploying a GlobalNames zone on your network.
1. You want to use single-label name resolution for your statically registered servers, or Web sites. You cannot register host names that are registered dynamically in a GlobalNames zone.
2. You are planning to get rid of WINS, or you are switching to a pure IPv6 environment that won’t use IPv4. With GlobalNames zone you will be able to completely depend on DNS for all your DNS name resolution needs.
3. You have a pure Windows Server 2008 environment where all the DNS servers are authoritative for the zones and serve client query requests. In such a pure environment (with no pre-Windows Server 2008 servers) all DNS servers must either be configured with a local copy of the GlobalNames zone, or they must be able to connect to other DNS servers that are configured for GlobalNames zone.
4. Your domains are not centrally managed and therefore there is no guarantee that the host names will be unique. Although you can use the suffix search lists on your client computers for single-label name resolution, if you have too many target domains then using suffix search lists may not be feasible.

Configuring GlobalNames Zone

A GlobalNames zone is essentially just another forward lookup zone that is called GlobalNames. However, when you create a new GlobalNames zone, you need to ensure that you explicitly enable support for this zone on every authoritative DNS server in your forest. Until you enable this support, your GlobalNames zone will not  be able to function properly. Frankly, it just won’t provide any name resolution to the DNS clients.

Use the following command on each and every authoritative DNS server in your forest to enable support for GlobalNames zones.

dnscmd <ServerName> /config /enableglobalnamessupport 1

where ServerName is the DNS name or IP address of the DNS server that hosts the GlobalNames zone. If you want to enable support on a local computer, simply replace the ServerName parameter with a period.

dnscmd . /config /enableglobalnamessupport 1

Once you have enabled the support, the next step is to replicate the GlobalNames zone to all the Domain Controllers in the forest. Finally, for each server that will be providing single-label name resolution, add a CNAME (alias) resource record to the GlobalNames zone.

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Copyright ©2009 Zubair Alexander. All rights reserved.

According to a poll conducted by ChannelInsider, Microsoft is ranked #1 on the list of Top 10 Most Profitable Certifications. Well, I am not surprised. Are you? Having written exam questions for Microsoft, I personally know the incredible amount of effort that goes into developing Microsoft certification exam questions and the length that Microsoft goes into ensuring the high standards and quality of the certification.

I wonder if there’s a poll conducted somewhere out there that ranks courseware. If you know of one, please let me know. If Microsoft is in the top 10 ranking of that poll, now that will be a shocker. Yes, I am an MCT and that should tell you something. Here’s the top 10 list.

1. Microsoft – End Users 70%, VARs 47%

2. Cisco – End Users 43%, VARs 24%

3. Oracle – End Users 25%, VARs 13%

4. IBM – End Users 26%, VARs 13%

5. HP – End Users 22%, VARs 11%

6. Vmware – End Users 18%, VARs 7%

7. Dell – End Users 21%, VARs 6%

8. Sun – End Users 9%, VARs 4%

9. Salesforce.com – End Users 4%, VARs 3%

10. Citrix – End Users 1%, VARs 3%

Nine months ago Google launched the Google Chrome browser. Today Google announced that it intends to offer a new Operating System called Google Chrome Operating System. According to official Google blog “It’s our attempt to re-think what operating systems should be. Google Chrome OS is an open source, lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks. Later this year we will open-source its code, and netbooks running Google Chrome OS will be available for consumers in the second half of 2010.”

Microsoft recently alarmed some vendors with its announcement of upcoming FREE Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) software. The product was formerly called Windows Live One Care 2.0. It will offer an anti-malware solution for Windows XP/Vista/7 computers. Google had decided to give Microsoft a run for their money and offer a FREE open source Operating System. I don’t think Microsoft is losing sleep over this announcement because other such attempts (e.g. Linux) have fail to offer any serious threat to Microsoft. And let’s face it…..Google has not put any major dent in Internet Explorer market with its Google Chrome browser. In fact, security issues have tarnished Google’s Chrome browser. It’s market share has been hanging around 1.3-1.5% at best (compare to about 70% for Internet Explorer).

I recently posted links to some career-related Webcasts that are available on Microsoft Thrive’s Web site. For those of you who are freelancers, here’s a nice article by Toni Bowers on Tech Republic’s Web site that lists 32 online tools that can help your tech career.

Freelancing is big these days and a lot of IT professionals are finding it beneficial in these hard economic times. The tools that Toni has posted on her blog are all related to the technical freelancers. Click here to read her blog post.

If you are looking for some good career resources, here are some Webcasts that you may find useful.

Thrive Live! (Part 1 of 3) Create a Personal Marketing Plan for Career Success

Thrive Live! (Part 2 of 3) Be Lucky! How to Discover Your Next Job

Thrive Live! (Part 3 of 3) From Dressing to Dollars: Gain Interview and Negotiating Power

Presenter: Perri Capell, Career Consultant

Perri Capell is a recognized authority on career issues. As a journalist and editor, she provided job-search and career advice to millions of readers of The Wall Street Journal and wsj.com, answering their questions directly in her weekly column, Careers Q&A. Perri is a certified resume-writing professional (CPRW) and has worked as an outplacement firm counselor, helping executives and high-tech pros during career transitions.  She is the author of job-search training manuals used by thousands of clients of outplacement firms who are experiencing job transitions and co-author of the book “Diary of a Job Search.”  Perri graduated cum laude with a B.A. in Journalism from Penn State University. She has received numerous journalism awards and fellowships.