Configure the primary DNS suffix for a client computer

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

To configure the primary DNS suffix for a client computer

Open System in Control Panel.
Click the Computer Name tab.

This tab displays the computer name, the workgroup or domain to which it belongs, and a brief description of the computer.
Click Change, and then click More.
In DNS Suffix and NetBIOS Computer Name, do the following:

For Primary DNS suffix of this computer, specify the DNS suffix to be appended to the name of this computer when completing its fully qualified domain name (FQDN).
After applying these changes, restart the computer to initialize it with its new DNS domain name.
If the computer has been previously installed and configured as a DNS server, verify that zone authority records are updated.

These include the start of authority (SOA) and name server (NS) resource records, substituting the new FQDN to replace the single label name previously in use. For more information, see Related Topics.

Notes

Performing this task does not require you to have administrative credentials. Therefore, as a security best practice, consider performing this task as a user without administrative credentials.
To open System, click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel. In Control Panel, double-click System.
For more information about how to configure the primary DNS suffix for other clients and servers, see the applicable TCP/IP or DNS documentation provided by the appropriate vendor for your other clients.
By default, the primary DNS suffix portion of a computer's FQDN is the same as the name of the Active Directory domain to which the computer is joined. To allow different primary DNS suffixes, a domain administrator can create a restricted list of allowed suffixes by modifying the msDS-AllowedDNSSuffixes attribute in the domain object container. This attribute is managed by the domain administrator using Active Directory Service Interfaces (ADSI) or the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP).

Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.