Creating a Forward Lookup Zone Using DNSCMD

If your DNS server is running Windows Server Core, you can create forward lookup zones from the command-line by using the DNSCMD command. Here are five examples:

1. Use this command to create a forward lookup standard primary zone named research.fabrikam.com on a DNS server named SEA-SC4 and store the database for this zone on the server in a file named research.dns. The command stores the database for this zone on the server in a file named research.dns:

dnscmd SEA-SC4 /zoneadd research.fabrikam.com /primary /file research.dns

2. Use this command to create a forward lookup AD DS–integrated primary zone named marketing.fabrikam.com on a DNS server named SEA-SC1 that is also a domain controller and store the zone information in the domain DNS partition within AD DS:

dnscmd SEA-SC1 /zoneadd marketing.fabrikam.com /dsprimary

3. Use this command to create a forward lookup standard secondary zone named research.fabrikam.com on a DNS server named SEA-SC1 that is also a domain controller, store the database for this zone in the domain DNS partition within AD DS, and assign the zone the address 172.16.11.33 as the master DNS server for replication purposes:

dnscmd SEA-SC1 /zoneadd research.fabrikam.com /secondary 172.16.11.33 /file research.dns

4. Use this command to create a forward lookup standard stub zone named marketing.fabrikam.com on a DNS server named SEA-SC4, store the database for the zone on the server in a file named marketing.dns, and assign the zone the address 172.16.11.30 as the master DNS server for replication purposes:

dnscmd SEA-SC4 /zoneadd marketing.fabrikam.com /stub 172.16.11.30 /file marketing.dns

5. Use this command to create a forward lookup AD DS–integrated stub zone named finance.fabrikam.com on a DNS server named SEA-SC1 that is also a domain controller, store the database for this zone in the domain DNS partition within AD DS, and assign the zone the address 172.16.11.33 as the master DNS server for replication purposes:

dnscmd SEA-SC1 /zoneadd finance.fabrikam.com /stub 172.16.11.33

For more information on managing DNS servers running on Windows Server Core, see my book Windows Server 2008 Server Core Administrator's Pocket Consultant from Microsoft Press.

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