DNS (Domain Name System) is essentially the phonebook of the internet. It allows users to connect to websites using domain names like example.com instead of IP addresses like 192.168.1.1¹. DNS translates these domain names into IP addresses so that browsers can load the internet resources.

How DNS Works

When a user types a domain name into their browser, the DNS resolution process begins. This process involves converting the domain name into an IP address that computers can understand. Here are the key steps involved:

1. DNS Recursor: Acts like a librarian who is asked to find a particular book in a library. It receives queries from client machines through applications like web browsers and makes additional requests to satisfy the DNS query¹.

2. Root Name Server: The first step in translating human-readable hostnames into IP addresses. It can be compared to an index in a library that points to different shelves of books¹.

3. TLD Name Server: The next step in the search for a specific IP address. It hosts the last part of a hostname (e.g., .com in example.com)¹.

4. Authoritative Name Server: The final stop in the DNS query. It provides the IP address for the requested hostname back to the DNS recursor¹.