Invented in 1983, the Domain Name System (DNS) serves as a naming system for services and resources pertaining to the internet. Basically, it serves at the “phone book” for translating human friendly host names, such as http://www.policeequipmentreviews.com/, into IP addresses such as 208.77.188.166. DNS allows you to connect to another networked computer with a user friendly domain name rather than a numerical IP address that is difficult to remember. In addition to allowing your computer to register and resolve domain names, DNS performs additional functions and is mandatory for the internet to operate.

If you spend any time on the internet browsing sites or sending email, you are using the domain name servers without ever realizing it. They are a hidden part of the internet, but critical for it to function smoothly. When accessing a site, you enter a user friendly domain name. However, the name means nothing to a machine without DNS turning it into a machine readable IP address.

In order to operate, DNS uses a hierarchal tree that organizes data and allows the machine retrieve it respectively. It is a complex system. However, DNS handles billions of domain name requests everyday, usually in less than a second.

In addition, DNS stores other data such as a list of mail servers that accept email for a given internet domain. This is how your computer knows where to deliver email for a certain address. Also, DNS is able to store version numbers of the latest software updates, making it possible for people to receive the updates without connecting to the update server every time.

If DNS fails to operate or runs slow, emails will stall and websites will not be located. Overall, DNS is the internet service directory for locating IP addresses and getting people to their desired site. Without its operations, our internet would fail to function.