Need help setting up BIND9 on network without Internet 1

[ScottPage]

I have a closed network (no Internet connection) with 20 computers. Two computers are running Linux; the other 18 are running Windows XP, and approximately 1000 data acquisition devices and PLC racks, all with static IP addresses.

The 20 computers are currently using host files to facilitate communication to the various devices, but I would like to transition to a DNS server, to simplify management, and have selected BIND9.

One of the Linux computers is running Red Hat Enterprise 4, and is used as a multi-homed Real-Time data acquisition server for two subnets, which would be a great place to install BIND, but I don't know what kind of loading that could place on the server. I also have a Windows XP computer used as a documentation workstation that would work as well, and is where I would like to install the BIND9 server.

My primary question is how to configure BIND as a replacement for host files, on a network that does not use the Internet. In other words, does not require root hints, but serves as a master DNS server replacement for host files.

My criteria are as follows:
No Internet connection (and never will be)
Replace host files
Support multiple subnets
Provide simple name resolution

After typing the last part of this post, I realized that the DNS server will probably never need to contact any root hints, because all of the computers are programmed to contact a specific device name.

If anyone has any insight into how I should go about getting this to work, or if my concerns are bloated due to a lack of knowledge, I would appreciate it. All I really know is I need to get rid of host files to simplify management of a network that will never use the Internet.

Thanks in advance,
Scott Page

 

[ScottPage]

I figured it out after some trial and error, and checking my own ignorance.

I disabled recursion and everything works great.

This site pointed me in the right direction,

http://www.knowplace.org/pages/howtos/split_view_with_bind_9_howto.php.

"Basically, a recursive query is a query where the nameserver has to ask another nameserver in order to fulfill the lookup request (i.e. any query in which the nameserver isn't authoritative). Disabling recursive queries by default prevents any host on the Internet" [any host period] "from excuting queries on the nameserver unless the query is for a published record (e.g. lookups to google.com will fail but lookups to myfancydomain.com will succeed)."

Place 'recursion no;' in named.conf options section to disable recursion. This will prevent the server from trying to contact the root hints and taking up resources to find namespaces that do no exist.

Hope this helps someone else.