The DNS Server role on Windows Server is almost always deployed alongside Active Directory, since AD relies fundamentally on DNS for locating domain controllers and services.
Install-WindowsFeature DNS -IncludeManagementTools # Create a primary forward lookup zone Add-DnsServerPrimaryZone -Name "corp.local" -ZoneFile "corp.local.dns" # Add an A record Add-DnsServerResourceRecordA -ZoneName "corp.local" -Name "fileserver" -IPv4Address "192.168.1.20" # Create a reverse lookup zone (IP-to-name resolution) Add-DnsServerPrimaryZone -NetworkID "192.168.1.0/24" -ZoneFile "1.168.192.in-addr.arpa.dns" # Configure forwarders for external domain resolution Set-DnsServerForwarder -IPAddress 1.1.1.1, 1.0.0.1
Active Directory-Integrated Zones
Rather than storing zone data in a plain file, AD-integrated zones store DNS records directly in Active Directory itself, replicating automatically to every domain controller — the standard, recommended configuration for a domain’s internal DNS, since it inherits AD’s own multi-master replication and fault tolerance for free.