Network 5

APPLICATIONS &
SECURITY
UNIT -5
APPLICATIONS
 A network application is any
application running on one host providing
communication to another
application running on a different host.
Network applications allow network operators
to easily manage and monitor network traffic
as well as analyze data that can be used to
improve network systems.
DNS (DOMAIN NAME SERVER)
 The Domain Name System (DNS) is the phonebook of the
Internet. Humans access information online
through domain names, like nytimes.com or espn.com.
Web browsers interact through Internet Protocol
(IP) addresses. DNS translates domain names to IP
addresses so browsers can load Internet resources.
 Each device connected to the Internet has a unique IP

address which other machines use to find the device. DNS
servers eliminate the need for humans to memorize IP
addresses such as 192.168.1.1 (in IPv4), or more
complex newer alphanumeric IP addresses such as
2400:cb00:2048:1::c629:d7a2 (in IPv6).
DNS PROPERTIES
IPV4
How does DNS work?
 The process of DNS resolution involves converting a hostname

(such as www.example.com) into a computer-friendly IP address
(such as 192.168.1.1). An IP address is given to each device on the
Internet, and that address is necessary to find the appropriate
Internet device - like a street address is used to find a particular
home. When a user wants to load a webpage, a translation must
occur between what a user types into their web browser
(example.com) and the machine-friendly address necessary to
locate the example.com webpage.
 In order to understand the process behind the DNS resolution, it’s

important to learn about the different hardware components a DNS
query must pass between. For the web browser, the DNS lookup
occurs "behind the scenes" and requires no interaction from the
user’s computer apart from the initial request.
There are 4 DNS servers involved in loading a webpage:
 DNS recursor
 Root nameserver
 TLD nameserver
 Authoritative nameserver
DNS recursor
 The recursor can be thought of as a librarian

who is asked to go find a particular book
somewhere in a library. The DNS recursor is a
server designed to receive queries from client
machines through applications such as web
browsers. Typically the recursor is then
responsible for making additional requests in
order to satisfy the client’s DNS query.
Root Name server
 The root server is the first step in translating
(resolving) human readable host names into
IP addresses. It can be thought of like an
index in a library that points to different
racks of books - typically it serves as a
reference to other more specific locations.
TLD NAMESERVER
 The top level domain server (TLD) can be
thought of as a specific rack of books in a
library. This nameserver is the next step in
the search for a specific IP address, and it
hosts the last portion of a hostname (In
example.com, the TLD server is “com”).
Authoritative nameserver
 This final nameserver can be thought of as a
dictionary on a rack of books, in which a
specific name can be translated into its
definition. The authoritative nameserver is
the last stop in the nameserver query. If the
authoritative name server has access to the
requested record, it will return the IP address
for the requested hostname back to the DNS
Recursor (the librarian) that made the initial
request.
DNS
DNS caching
 The goal of DNS caching is to reduce the time

it takes to get an answer to a DNS query.
Caching enables DNS to store previous
answers to queries closer to clients and get
that same information to them faster the next
time it is queried.
DNS data can be cached in a number
of places.
 Browser. Most browsers, like Apple Safari, Google Chrome and Mozilla
Firefox, cache DNS data by default for a set amount of time. The browser
is the first cache that gets checked when a DNS request gets made, before
the request leaves the machine for a local DNS resolver server.
 Operating system (OS). Many OSes have built-in DNS resolvers called stub

resolvers that cache DNS data and handle queries before they are sent to
an external server. The OS is usually queried after the browser or other
querying application.
 Recursive resolver. The answer to a DNS query can also be cached on the

DNS recursive resolver. Resolvers may have some of the records necessary
to return a response and be able to skip some steps in the DNS resolution
process. For example, if the resolver has A records but not NS records,
the resolver can skip the root server and query the TLD server directly.
DNS Caching Flow
DNS security
 The term DNS security refers to the protection

measures that involve the DNS protocol. As you may
already know, the DNS (Domain Name System) has
not been created using a security-by-design
approach.
 Back when this infrastructure was invented, security
threats were not prevailing, as is now the case.
During those times, we were dealing with a much
smaller and much more secure environment, but as
its magnitude and availability increased, the more
promising it started to look in the eyes of malicious
actors.
HISTORY OF DNS
SMTP
 SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) is
a TCP/IP protocol used in sending and receiving
e-mail.
 SMTP is part of the application layer of the

TCP/IP protocol. Using a process called “store
and forward,” SMTP moves your email on and
across networks. It works closely with
something called the Mail Transfer Agent (MTA)
to send your communication to the right
computer and email inbox.

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APPLICATIONS &

 Each device connected to the Internet has a unique IP

 The process of DNS resolution involves converting a hostname

 In order to understand the process behind the DNS resolution, it’s

 The recursor can be thought of as a librarian

 The goal of DNS caching is to reduce the time

 Operating system (OS). Many OSes have built-in DNS resolvers called stub

 Recursive resolver. The answer to a DNS query can also be cached on the

 The term DNS security refers to the protection

 SMTP is part of the application layer of the

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