Server 2008 R2 Domain & Website Setup

**ktheed** · April 4th, 2012, 01:05 PM

Hi All,

I have Server 2008 R2 and am sat here at the installation where its asking me to enter a domain name now I understand that this is in relation to the internal domain.

I am about to register a .co.uk domain aswell got the tab open and about to pay for it.

Now my question is:

I have read about not using .com and to use something like .local but on many internet forums there is mixed information I am finding where people are saying if you have a registered domain name then to type in something like internal.externaldomain.com rather than externaldomain.com because it can cause issues with DNS.

I wanted to have an internal website for my small business and then to have an external website serving the public website advertising the services of my business.

I'm also trying to learn more about Server 2008 Setup myself so want to make this a learning curve also. I have tested out installations of domains before and am quite familiar with it but not 100% confident on a production basis.

So what do I choose as the AD Domain ? internal.externaldomain.co.uk or internal.local or externaldomain.co.uk

I read this and it confuses me . . Choosing a Future-Proof Internal DNS Domain Name: Mission Impossible? | sepago

Thanks in advance

**ktheed** · April 4th, 2012, 01:50 PM

I found this post on HARDFORUM.COM

"I leave the .com/.net/.org for the services on the DNS public side of things...such as handling MX records (e-mail), and dub dub dub (websites...at the website hosts).

Since I do SMB for a living, my clients networks are generally smaller...under 150 nodes. So naturally, along with my preference, they never run their own website locally...I like to keep those separated at proper website hosts.

Anyways, say you name your directory "ravin.com". Your server will assume it owns everything about ravin.com. Say you have your website (www.ravin.com) hosted at your favorite website host, and say you had your e-mail hosted at your favorite e-mail host, ravin@ravin.com.

If you connect a workstation to this server..thus using the servers DNS, and you fired up Internet Exploader and type in www.ravin.com, it would query your servers DNS..and your server would say "Hey, I own ravin.com"..and it would reply with 192.168.1.10 (or whatever your servers LAN IP is)..and Internet Exploader would "Cannot display page". Instead of giving you the public IP address of your actual website host. So you'd have to go into your servers DNS and fire up a www record in DNS to correct it. Same story would happen for your e-mail client...."

So I think I will choose externaldomain.LOCAL

**GroundZero3** · April 4th, 2012, 04:05 PM

Active Directory Tip: Access External Website With The Same Domain Name As Your Internal Domain | Odd Jobs In Tech

Normally if you are gonna host an external website (espically on your own network) you need to consider some things:

1) Your ISP allows you to host your website (call them to verify this)
2) You have a static external IP address for your website on your network (this is based on your ISP and internet connection)
3) You place the box running your website in a DMZ (this will protect the internal network if it the server hosting the website is broken into, which is common to this day. I highly recommend this to protect your internal network)

You will need to find out about 1 and 2, 3 is just a consideration you should look into.

As for the external naming and internal naming its not really necessary to keep the names the same on external and internal. Its personal preference, some see it as a potential security issue.

**Nude_Lewd_Man** · April 5th, 2012, 03:22 AM

Originally Posted by GroundZero3

Active Directory Tip: Access External Website With The Same Domain Name As Your Internal Domain | Odd Jobs In Tech

Normally if you are gonna host an external website (espically on your own network) you need to consider some things:

1) Your ISP allows you to host your website (call them to verify this)
2) You have a static external IP address for your website on your network (this is based on your ISP and internet connection)
3) You place the box running your website in a DMZ (this will protect the internal network if it the server hosting the website is broken into, which is common to this day. I highly recommend this to protect your internal network)

You will need to find out about 1 and 2, 3 is just a consideration you should look into.

As for the external naming and internal naming its not really necessary to keep the names the same on external and internal. Its personal preference, some see it as a potential security issue.

Regarding 2) above, you don't actually *have* to have a static IP for your network, as you can use something like DynDNS to give your network a steady DNS name resolution - which you can then point your domain name's records to...this is what I do for accessing my home network...

Also, for the record, my domain network at home doesn't use the same name as (any of) my website domain name(s) do...

**GroundZero3** · April 5th, 2012, 06:30 AM

Originally Posted by Nude_Lewd_Man

Regarding 2) above, you don't actually *have* to have a static IP for your network, as you can use something like DynDNS to give your network a steady DNS name resolution - which you can then point your domain name's records to...this is what I do for accessing my home network...

Also, for the record, my domain network at home doesn't use the same name as (any of) my website domain name(s) do...

You are right about a service like dyndns, static addresses just make life easier

It all depends on his ISp if they even let him host web pages

**Nude_Lewd_Man** · April 5th, 2012, 06:40 AM

Guess it depends, as I used to have (with a previous ISP) a static IP for my home, but then it got changed when I got my connection level upgraded - went from 'residential' to 'business' grade link.

I still had a static IP, just that it was a different static IP to the one I'd had prior to that...which meant that my DNS got messed up............which wasn't good as I was remote at the time..

Luckily, I'd got LogMeIn installed on one of the computers which was still on, so I was able to get what I needed anyway...

**GroundZero3** · April 5th, 2012, 09:45 AM

Residential uses DHCP but your address might never change ever, im on FIOS and its never changed since I got it. However that could happen if I reboot my modem or something, when you moved over to the business line usually it gives you a static address and more freedom on what you can do (of course you are paying for that freedom)

Of course this all depends on where you live!

**ktheed** · April 5th, 2012, 08:35 PM

I have contacted crazydomain.co.uk and they advised just putting XXXXX.dyndns.info domain name as a forwarder.

Then I read on other sites to add the DynDNS name as a CNAME which has puzzled me.

I want to be able to have subdomain.realdomain.co.uk as well as realdomain.com for test websites and familys ones so I can then point their own website url to say for my nans dog breeding website DOMAINSHEBOUGHT.com to dogs.realdomain.co.uk as i will be building her website and will be happy to host it.

but then have my main small business website running from realdomain.co.uk

So to keep my IP upto date it would have to go:

Real domain > DynDNS domain > Webserver @ home

It appears from the AUP of my ISP that they do allow servers under the heading Servers . .

Acceptable use policy

**GroundZero3** · April 6th, 2012, 08:13 AM

I noticed this in your AUP

If you wish to use our services for trade or business use, you must sign up to one of our business services. Go to Virgin Media Business | UK Business Internet Services | Business Telecommunications for more information

You might want to call up your ISP to get clarification. I know they do things a little bit different over on the other side of the pond.

**Nude_Lewd_Man** · April 13th, 2012, 04:39 AM

Typed all this out, but forgot to finish it or post it...

In my case, the reason they gave for my IP changing was that it had to be moved off of the residential DHCP reservations and onto the business DHCP leases for the new static IP address. That was using PlusNet on ADSL...

There wasn't any change (or, if there was, it was minimal) between the residential grade and the business one, the main difference was purely in regards to the contention ratio...residential is around 30-50:1 whereas business was 12-15:1 instead - the first part being the number of users and the latter being the physical link from the DSLAM to the backbone...

I'm using DSL now (VirginMedia) and my IP doesn't change unless I restart my router - which often seems to get the same IP re-leased to it anyway...

I think we're kind of veering away from the OP issue though.

By the comments about using a ".co.uk" domain/realm, it would suggest that (like me) you are somewhere in the UK,