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If you have a question about DNS for Mr. DNS, he’d love to hear it. Drop him a line at mrdns@ask-mrdns.com.
Latest posts.
Episode 13
For the first time ever, Matt and Cricket have a guest host, Duane Wessels, recently of DNS-OARC and now at VeriSign. Matt, Duane and Cricket answer Christoph Kluenter’s question about IPv6-only name servers, Rick Andrews’s question about how software distinguishes IP addresses from domain names, and Rainer Duffner’s question about whether Google is omniscient or just sneaky. In addition, Matt demonstrates his formidable command of Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey,” and both Matt and Cricket gush about author Neal Stephenson and his latest novel, “Anathem.”
Episode 12
In this episode, Matt and Cricket answer listener Paul Petersen’s question about how to register subdomains in country-code top-level domains around the world, and Ismael’s question about whether an RRSIG record’s signature validity can extend how long the signed RRset is cached. (And if you understood that last part, you probably don’t need this podcast.)
In addition, Matt and Cricket talk about the latest news in DNS, including the signing of the root zone, which Matt knows all about, and the introduction of (and uproar over) Google’s Public DNS service.
Though Matt contributes most of the technical answers, Cricket does score a small coup by remembering that the late Frank Gorshin played the half-blackfaced/half-whitefaced Bele in the original Star Trek episode “Let This Be Your Last Battlefield.”
Episode 11
In Episode 11, Matt and Cricket manage to answer four (count ‘em, four!) questions – except that they don’t really know the answer to Paul Roberts’s question about forwarding and delegation. However, in their own, inimitable style, they answer Yong Tak Ming’s question about forwarding, Samar’s question about how to configure his resolver so that he isn’t forced to type fully qualified domain names all the time, and Dirck Copeland’s questions about the Kaminsky vulnerability. And if you stay till the bitter end, you’ll learn where Matt and Cricket got their starts in DNS and why Cricket’s never seen a World Series game.
Episode 10
In this episode, their triumphant Labor Day return to podcasting, Matt and Cricket answer Alfredo Colón’s question on hypothetical restrictions on the IP address that a domain name may map to, and then slap Austin Ekwebelam’s wrist for asking how to disable a useful extension like EDNS0. In the process, Cricket reveals how the host hp.com got its name and why he never made it further in HP’s IT organization.
Episode 9
In our ninth episode, Matt and Cricket answer listener Scott McClanahan’s excellent question about the “zone apex” and tell Duncan Hart what gear they use to produce the podcast and why it’s better than their old gear. Except that Matt fails to mention the name of the mic he uses. (It’s a Shure BG 4.1.)
As per usual, the discussion deteriorates into a windy exposition of how DNSSEC works, but you’ve come to expect that by now.
Episode 8
In this episode, Matt and Cricket congratulate an administrator at a community-spirited ISP for wanting to lock down recursion on his name servers and offer their opinions on when you should sign your zones using DNSSEC. Cricket also invites all podcast listeners to an upcoming webinar on DNSSEC with Dan Kaminsky and Scott Rose, which is – gasp! – on Wednesday of this week.
You’ll especially want to stay tuned until the end, when you’ll hear Cricket sing (poorly) part of the revised version of the “Itchy and Scratchy” theme song. Plus Matt thinks he sounds funny throughout.
Please Stay Tuned!
Thank you for your questions, dear listeners, and please stay tuned! Mr. DNS will be back soon with another podcast. But Matt’s busy and Cricket’s leaving on a trip, so it’ll probably be at least a couple of weeks before they get it together enough to produce another. That’s what you get for working with volunteers.
Episode 7
Matt and Cricket cite two data points as evidence of their burgeoning popularity and answer questions from listeners interested in cutting corners: One in configuring in-addr.arpa delegation for a /20 network, and another in responding to queries outside of the zones a name server is authoritative for. Fair warning: Mr. DNS does not sanction shortcuts!
Episode 6
In yet another episode recorded with Matt and Cricket in the same room, they offer their opinions on two security-related topics: TSIG, including when to use it and whether it’s still worthwhile with DNSSEC-signed zones; and the benefits and drawbacks of using split namespaces. Along the way, they attempt to determine – using nothing but their wits, logical extrapolation and haphazard guessing – how a new feature of BIND 9.6 must work.
Episode 5
In this episode, Matt and Cricket discuss and debate DNS terminology, explaining resolvers (stub resolvers, iterative resolvers), name servers (recursive name servers, authoritative name servers); they ruminate on how much of name server design is undocumented lore; and make many, many insider references. Oh, and then they remember the name and purpose of the podcast and answer a listener’s questions about lame delegations, revealing a rift between Matt’s and Cricket’s philosophies about them.