eDirectory Considerations

Consider the following eDirectory issues to maintain optimal performance when providing DNS and DHCP services on your NetWare^® network:

• Where to locate the DNS/DHCP Group and Locator objects
• Where to locate DNS and DHCP servers
• What replication strategy to employ
• How to provide fault tolerance

We recommend the following:

• Place the DNS/DHCP Group, the DNS/DHCP Locator, and the RootServerInfo Zone objects in a separate partition that is accessible from and replicated to all points of the network where NetWare 6 DNS/DHCP servers are located. This is because all NetWare 6 DNS/DHCP servers and the DNS/DHCP Management Utility require access to these objects.
• Plan to create an Organizational Unit (OU) container object near the top of your eDirectory tree. The location of this container object should be easily and widely accessible. Locate the DNS/DHCP Group and Locator objects and the RootServerInfo Zone object under the container object
• Plan to create an Administrator Group object under this container also. An administrator group should have Read and Write rights to all DNS/DHCP Locator object attributes except the global data and options fields. Members of this group can use the DNS/DHCP Management Utility to create and modify DNS and DHCP objects.

  IMPORTANT:  A network administrator can access only his or her administrative domain, which might not include the DNS/DHCP Locator object. By creating an administrative group, you enable administrators who are group members to use the DNS/DHCP Management Utility.

• Plan to locate your DNS and DHCP servers at locations where they are geographically close to the hosts that require their services. Plan to have one DHCP server in each partition of your network to minimize any WAN communications problems caused by normal load, configuration changes, or replication.
• Replicate the partition containing the DNS/DHCP Group and Locator objects to all parts of the network that use DNS/DHCP services to ensure access in the event of system unavailability or hardware problems.

  When planning your DNS replication strategy, consider that replication is employed for load balancing when you provide multiple name servers within the DNS zone

  Well-planned replication is the best way to provide fault tolerance for DNS/DHCP services.