Tag: DNS monitoring

DNS Monitoring Improves Web Site Speed and Reliability – Part 2

Dotcom-Monitor uses a non-cache DNS monitoring solution with high frequency monitoring that propagates DNS queries to the root name servers. That means a DNS issue will be identified quickly, as opposed to being masked for days as it might be with a cached monitoring approach. When monitored properly, using a non-cache method, an error is quickly identified so the designated workaround, like a DNS failover, can be implemented.

Dotcom-Monitor non-cached DNS monitoring (unlike some other cache-based DNS monitoring solutions) also provides diagnostics with an automated trace-route as soon as a DNS problem is detected. This means less time investigating the problem and much faster mean-time-to-repair (MTTR). The Dotcom-Monitor DNS monitoring solution also allows website owners to spot trends so that small DNS issues can be addressed before they become big DNS problems.

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DNS Monitoring Improves Web Site Speed and Reliability – Part 1

The only way to know how well or how reliably DNS servers perform is to make consistent, regular objective tests and measurements over time. While DNS servers can be verified manually, that is not a practical solution. Manually checking the DNS servers a few times a week, or even a few times a day, simply does not provide enough data to accurately judge performance, nor does it quickly alert website owners to problems. Automatic DNS monitoring gives website owners the information needed.

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The GoDaddy DNS outage and Paternity Test: Who’s your GoDaddy?

The GoDaddy DNS outage and Paternity Test: Who’s your GoDaddy? Its another episode of the Maury Povich Paternity Test on DNS Outage TV yesterday. Having just written about a major AT&T DNS outage on Aug. 15, here we are again on Sept 10, 2012 witnessing the GoDaddy DNS outage. Millions of website and email users DNS look-up process is playing out like a Maury Povich TV episode of paternity testing gone wrong. First time visitors to a GoDaddy website type the GoDaddy URL into their browser and the answer from the DNS comes back “This aint your GoDaddy.” Or something like that.

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Caffeinated DNS Monitoring and the AT&T DNS Outage

To Cache or Not-to-Cache – that is the DNS Monitoring Question

Firstly, it is not generally well-known that external-based HTTP request-type website monitoring, like coffee at your local java joint, comes in different “grades” – cache-based and non-cache based. Dotcom-Monitor employs non-cached monitoring, which propagates through the full DNS process with each monitoring instance. Cache-based monitoring (used by many basic monitoring services) does not propagate through the DNS process and misses DNS issues.
How to Effectively Monitor for the next DNS Outage Situation

In the case of the AT&T DNS outage issue there are several key factors that help to speed up Time-to-Repair (TTR), or avoiding downtime.

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Doing DNS Monitoring Right: The AT&T DNS Outage

Doing DNS Monitoring Right: The AT&T DNS Outage: The AT&T domain name server (DNS) outage of Aug. 15, 2012 exemplifies why a “non-cache based” method for monitoring of websites is important for mission-critical websites. Firstly, a bit of a review. The most common, basic form of website monitoring is conducted using a synthetic browser (not an actual browser), which connects to the target server via an HTTP request process. A number of server-focused processes, such as the availability of the target server, the time it takes to load the HTML file for the website from the server, and the capability to detect keywords within the HTML file are checked via the use of a synthetic browser using an HTTP request process.

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Interactive Agencies: CDN Monitoring to enhance “Client Experience”

CDN Monitoring to enhance “Client Experience”: The use of Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) allows interactive agencies to position online media, such that client website and web applications load faster for a better user experience, and improved website “results”, such as – impressions, conversions, and online sales. However, use of CDNs is not without risk for both interactive agencies and their clients. By using a CDN, the interactive agency is also losing some insight into the performance of/and direct control over the online content. In fact, several issues can develop within a CDN that adversely affects online content and the websites that interactive agency’s produce for clients. As a result of these issues, the interactive agency’s relationship with its clients can suffer. However, when external CDN monitoring is in place the interactive agency maintains insights into performance issues that occur to online content positioned on a CDN network and therefore can better serve its clients.

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