Reverse lookup zones support the resolution of IP addresses to host names. Although they are optional in most networks, reverse lookup zones might be necessary for certain secure applications that require the validation of IP addresses. For more information, see Understanding Zone Types.

Membership in the Administrators group, or equivalent, is the minimum required to complete this procedure. Review details about using the appropriate accounts and group memberships at https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=83477.

Adding a reverse lookup zone

To add a reverse lookup zone using the Windows interface

  1. Open DNS Manager.

  2. In the console tree, right-click a Domain Name System (DNS) server, and then click New Zone to open the New Zone Wizard.

  3. Follow the instructions to create a new reverse lookup zone.

Additional considerations

  • To open DNS Manager, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click DNS.

To add a reverse lookup zone using a command line

  1. Open a command prompt.

  2. Type the following command, and then press ENTER: 

dnscmd <ServerName> /ZoneAdd <ZoneName> {/Primary|/DsPrimary} [/file <FileName>] [/load] [/a <AdminEmail>] [/DP <FQDN>]

Parameter Description

dnscmd

The command-line tool for managing DNS servers.

<ServerName>

Required. Specifies the DNS host name of the DNS server. You can also type the IP address of the DNS server. To specify the DNS server on the local computer, you can also type a period (.)

/ZoneAdd

Required. Adds a zone.

<ZoneName>

Required. Specifies the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of the in-addr.arpa domain for the zone, for example, 20.1.168.192.in-addr.arpa.

/Primary|/DsPrimary

Required. Specifies the type of zone. To specify an Active Directory–integrated zone, type /DsPrimary.

/file

Required for /Primary. Specifies a file for the new zone. This parameter is not valid for the /DsPrimary zone type.

<FileName>

Required for /Primary. Specifies the name of the zone file. This parameter is not valid for the /DsPrimary zone type.

/load

Loads an existing file for the zone. If this parameter is not specified, default zone records are created automatically. This parameter does not apply to /DsPrimary.

/a

Adds an administrator e-mail address for the zone.

<AdminEmail>

Specifies the administrator e-mail name for the zone.

/DP

Adds the zone to an application directory partition. You may also use one of the following:

  • /DP /domain—For a domain directory partition (replicates to all DNS servers in the domain).

  • /DP /forest—For a forest directory partition (replicates to all DNS server in the forest).

  • /DP /legacy—For a legacy directory partition (replicates to all domain controllers in the domain). This setting supports domains that have legacy Windows 2000 Server domain controllers.

<FQDN>

Specifies the FQDN of the directory partition.

To view the complete syntax for this command, at a command prompt, type the following command, and then press ENTER:

dnscmd /ZoneAdd /help

Additional considerations

  • To open an elevated Command Prompt window, click Start, point to All Programs, click Accessories, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as administrator.

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