How to replace the current primary DNS server with a new primary DNS server in Windows Server 2003

The step-by-step article describes how to set up a Windows Server 2003-based Domain Name System (DNS) server as the primary DNS server in an existing DNS domain. When there is an existing DNS domain structure, you may have to replace the current primary DNS server with a new Windows Server 2003-based DNS server.

The following list includes items that are used as examples in this article:

• The domain name is "microsoft.edu."
• The IP address range is 192.168.0.0 through 192.168.0.255.
• The IP address of the new Windows Server 2003-based DNS server is 192.168.0.7, and the IP address of the old primary DNS server is 192.168.0.2.
• "WNET-DNS" is the name of the Windows Server 2003-based computer.

How to Install DNS and Transfer Records from the Current DNS Server

To Install DNS

1. Log on as Administrator or as a member of the Administrators group.
2. Click Start, point to Control Panel, and then click Add or Remove Programs.
3. Click Add or Remove Windows Components.
4. In the Components list, click Networking Services (but do not select or clear the check box), and then click Details.
5. Click to select the Domain Name System (DNS) check box, and then click OK.
6. Click Next.
7. When you are prompted, insert the Windows Server 2003 CD-ROM into the computer's CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.
8. When Setup is complete, click Finish on the Completing the Windows Components Wizard page.
9. Click Close to close the Add or Remove Programs dialog box.

To Transfer Records from the Current DNS Server

1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click DNS.
2. Expand ServerName, where ServerName is the name of the server.
3. Right-click Forward Lookup Zones, and then click New Zone.
4. Click Next.
5. Click Secondary zone, and then click Next.
6. Type the name of the zone in the Zone name box, and then click Next. In this example, type microsoft.edu.
7. Type the IP address of the current primary DNS server in the IP address box (in this example, type 192.168.0.2), click Add, and then click Next.
8. Click Finish.
9. Right-click Reverse Lookup Zones, and then click New Zone.
10. Click Next.
11. Click Secondary zone, and then click Next.
12. In the Network ID box, type 192.168.0, and then click Next.
13. Type the IP address of the current primary DNS server (in this example, 192.168.0.2), click Add , and then click Next.
14. Click Finish.

How to Change the Role of a DNS Server

After you transfer all of the records, you must remove the old DNS server from the network, and then set the DNS server as the primary DNS server. To set the DNS server as the primary DNS server, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click DNS.
2. Expand ServerName, where ServerName is the name of the server.
3. Expand Forward Lookup Zones.
4. Right-click the Microsoft.edu zone, and then click Properties.
5. Click the General tab.
6. Click Change, and then click Primary zone. If the DNS server is a domain controller, click to select the Store the zone in Active Directory (available only if DNS server is a domain controller check box.
7. Click OK.
8. If you want to permit dynamic updates, click Nonsecure and secure in the dynamic updates box.
9. Click OK.
   
   Note The server is now configured as a primary DNS server for the DNS domain space.

Troubleshooting

You Cannot Transfer the Zone File

If you cannot transfer the zone file, follow these steps to troubleshoot this issue:

1. Verify that the existing DNS server permits zone transfers.
2. Verify that the new DNS server IP address is permitted for zone transfers.
3. If the zone file is locked, the transfer generally occurs after a maximum of 10 minutes.

You Have to Change the IP Address to Match the Old DNS Server

You may have to change the IP address of the new server to match the IP address that the old DNS server used. You may have to do this to avoid changing all clients or secondary servers to point to a new IP address for the primary DNS server. When you use the same IP address for a live domain on the Internet, you can prevent downtime that may occur while waiting for your Internet domain name registration authority to propagate the change of the IP address. To change the IP addresses, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Control Panel, point to Network Connections, and then click Local Area Connection.
2. Click Properties.
3. Click Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), and then click Properties.
4. In the IP address box, type the IP address of the old DNS server (in this example, type 192.168.0.2).
5. In the Preferred DNS server box, type the IP address of your server. Leave the Alternate DNS Server box blank, or clear any entries that are there.
6. Click OK.