which servers get a notify request?

[Mark.Andrews at nominum.com]

> I'm reading the DNS & Bind 3rd edition, and don't quite understand this bit
> about how the notify request works:
> 
> 'It determines which servers are the slaves ... by looking at the list of NS
> records ... and taking out the one that points to the name server listed in
> the first record specific field in the zone's SOA record ...'
> 
> That really confuses me.  What does the 'name server listed in the first
> record specific ...' refer to?
> 
> My setup is this:
> 
> I have our 'main' server firewalled, and 4 slave servers that are the actual
> nameservers in use, all slaved to the 'main' server which only transfers to
> them.  If the NS records show:
> 
> ns.example.com
> ns2.example.com
> ns3.example.com
> ns4.example.com
> 
> will ns.example.com get a notify request when the zone is updated?  I
> believe that 2-4 will, but it looks like if the SOA is:
> 
> @    IN    SOA    ns.example.com. hostmaster.example.com.
> 
> then ns.example.com will not get the update.
> 
> Is this correct?  Will I have to specify 'also-notify' to force the notify
> to go to ns.example.com?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Josh Higham

	If you have a hidden primary then the SOA MNAME field should
	be the name of the hidden primary.  The soa record is not looked
	at to determine who to query for information about the zone.

	e.g.
	@	SOA	hidden-primary.example.com. hostmaster.example.com. (
			... )
		NS	ns1.example.com
		NS	ns2.example.com
		NS	ns3.example.com
		NS	ns4.example.com

	Ignore the fact that you had to label one of your slave servers
	as "primary" to get the zone registered.  The forms for
	registration should just ask for "nameservers" and not "primary
	nameserver" and "secondary nameservers".

	Mark
--
Mark Andrews, Nominum Inc. / Internet Software Consortium
1 Seymour St., Dundas Valley, NSW 2117, Australia
PHONE: +61 2 9871 4742                 INTERNET: Mark.Andrews at nominum.com