Ensuring DNS resolves in NRPC -- Alternative practices

These procedures provide alternative name-resolution practices for an HCL Domino® server using the default NRPC configuration on a TCP/IP network (one Notes® network port for TCP/IP).

Domino® server names that differ from their DNS names

About this task

When your name scheme for Domino® servers is different than that for DNS, use one of the following methods to translate the Domino® server's name to the host name:

  • Create a local Connection document on each HCL Notes® client and Domino® server that needs to connect to the Domino® server, and enter the FQDN for the system that hosts the Domino® server in the Net Address field. For example, for the Domino® server named App01/Sales/Renovations on the system registered with DNS as redflier, enter redflier.renovations.com in the Net Address fields of the Connection documents.
  • Use an alias (CNAME) record in DNS to link the Domino® server common name to the simple IP host name. For example, for the Domino® server App01/Sales/Renovations on the system registered with DNS as redflier, use a CNAME record to link the name App01 to the name redflier. When a Notes® workstation first accesses this server, it obtains the host name from the Net Address field of the Server document and caches it, thereby making future connections faster.

IP addresses in Connection documents

In situations in which you don't want to use any name-resolver service -- such as bringing up a new server system that you don't want known yet, or having a server on the Internet that you want accessible but for which you can't use DNS -- create Connection documents that directly tell Notes® workstations or Domino® servers how to access this Domino® server by using the server's IP address in the documents' Net Address fields.

Network Address Translation (NAT)

About this task

NAT is a method of translating an IP address between two address spaces: a public space and a private space.

Public addresses are assigned to companies by the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) or leased from the company's ISP/NSP. Public addresses are accessible through the Internet (routable) unless firewalls and isolated networks make them inaccessible.

Private addresses are IP address spaces that have been reserved for internal use. These addresses are not accessible over the Internet (non-routable) because network routers within the Internet will not allow access to them.

The following address spaces have been reserved for internal use. It is best to use these IP addresses and not make up your own.

  • Class A: 10.0.0.0 to 10.255.255.255
  • Class B: 127.16.0.0 to 172.31.255.255
  • Class C: 192.168.0.0 to 192.168.255.255

For example, users inside a company access the Domino® server based on its assigned IP address, which is a private address (192.168.1.1). Internet users must access the Domino® server through a NAT router, which converts the private address to one of its static public addresses (130.20.2.2). Therefore, a Notes® client accessing the server from the Internet uses the public address.