Configuring externally accessible hostnames

[marky421]

I have a registered domain, myDomain.com which I obtained from dyndns.com.

I want to create host names to use with the various services on my mac mini server (running Mavericks and Server 3.0). For example: vpn.myDomain.com for vpn, mail.myDomain.com for mail, and numerous others to be used for hosting websites (develop.myDomain.com, portfolio.myDomain.com, mySpouse.myDomain.com, etc).

I know I can create host names through my dyndns.com account and I have indeed done this in the past and was able to get the desired behavior by making all of my hostnames point to the same external ip address using the dyndns updater client. Using this approach, I was able to use any of my hostnames to configure vpn, and I could host a website for each one where each hostname had its own folder in /Library/Server/Web/Data/Sites. Those sites were accessible from the web by simply typing in the corresponding fully qualified domain name (ex: http://portfolio.myDomain.com would take me to one site, http://myDomain.com would go to another site, http://develop.myDomain.com would go to another site, and so on...).

I want to know if I can create/manage all of these custom host names using the DNS service on Mac OS X Server 3.0 rather than using dyndns.com. Why do you ask?? Because I want to be totally self contained on my own server and because I am curious if this is possible or not.

Anyone who knows the answer, can you please walk me through how to configure my system to achieve this?

-Thanks

 

[MacUser2525]

The /etc/hosts file is where you want to start once you have it resolving to your domain then the virtual hosts configuration in Apache will get you your sub domains.

http://www.leftcolumn.net/2009/07/04/adding-an-entry-to-etchosts-on-os-x/
https://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.2/vhosts/

 

[HenryAZ]

I have a registered domain, myDomain.com which I obtained from dyndns.com.


I want to know if I can create/manage all of these custom host names using the DNS service on Mac OS X Server 3.0 rather than using dyndns.com. Why do you ask?? Because I want to be totally self contained on my own server and because I am curious if this is possible or not.

Anyone who knows the answer, can you please walk me through how to configure my system to achieve this?

-Thanks

You are required to have two name servers for your domain (on separate IP's). You could use your server as one of them, and if you made it the primary then you would manage all of the configuration. You would then need to find someone to be a secondary and pull that zone info from you. I don't know if Dyn offers that level of service. I doubt it, at least at the lower price tiers.

 

[burne]

Because I want to be totally self contained on my own server and because I am curious if this is possible or not.

It is possible, if you are willing to content with complex configuration or two servers. Having a second server (which could be a cheap VM somewhere) makes life seriously more easy.

I've been my own 'ISP' since september ninth, nineteen nightie-eight.

OS-X can do the primary bit without any problem. However: to be 'self contained' you need a secondary DNS (at least one) outside your own network.

 

[marky421]

Ok, so I just purchased the secondary dns service from dyndns.com. How do I proceed using this information given to me from dyndns?

https://forums.macrumors.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=445599&stc=1&d=1383678240

 

[HenryAZ]

Ok, so I just purchased the secondary dns service from dyndns.com. How do I proceed using this information given to me from dyndns?

Dyn's information is very complete.

You need to set up your primary name server now, which on OS X I bet is BIND. I cannot walk you through the GUI part of that because I've never used a GUI to configure BIND, nor have I seen OS X's server app.

You will be making a "zone" for your domain name, and you will create the various records you have now at Dyn (such as ADDRESS records, MX records, and NS records). You need an ADDRESS record for your public IP corresponding to the name you give to your name server (ns1.mydomain.com, for example). You also need a NS record for that name. You also need four additional NS records for the four names Dyn gave you in step 2.

You will need to "allow transfers" to the secondary servers Dyn gave you in step 1, and you will need to "notify" those secondaries when changes to the zone are made.

You will also need configure your router to forward ports 53/TCP and 53/UDP to your name server internally (similar to how you forwarded port 80 to your web server internally).

Once you get your server set up, and before you make the changes at the registrar level (Dyn's step 3), you should use an external site on the Internet to query your name server and make sure it is responding with expected results. If you have access to another OS X or unix server somewhere, use dig (type "man dig" in your OS X terminal to learn about dig).

That should get you started