Abstract

The domain name system (DNS) resolution service often migrates from the one set of authoritative servers to another. The basic requirements for such transition are to ensure zero down time and minimize the transition delay. The optimum transition schemes are proposed favoring seamless and fast DNS resolution service migration. The transition of DNS authoritative servers may take place horizontally or vertically. For the horizontal case, the delegated authority is handovered from the old set of authoritative servers to the new one. For the vertical case, a zone cut is initiated from the parent zone to a newly delegated set of authoritative servers. For the DNSSEC signed zones, the DNSSEC-aware transition schemes are proposed to ensure the continuity of the trust chain. The transition delays as well as how to optimize them are discussed.

Key words: Domain name system (DNS), authoritative server, service migration.