DNS Zone Template Editor

[asterisk]

Hi,

I noticed that WHM's Zone Template Editor under DNS Functions seem to have a few variables such as %nameserver%, %rpemail%, %serial, %ttl% and %domain%

Is there any way to find out what the other variables are? I have looked up the WHM docs for more info but there is nothing written.

Anyone have any clues?

A suggestion - perhaps more could be written on this please, as it's a shame to have such a nifty function go to waste due to lack of proper docs.

Thanks.

[forlinuxsupport]

hmm... I would also like to know where cpanel stores all those values.

Maybe try grepping for them in the cpanel directory ?

[sneader]

For the location of the templates, see:

http://forums.cpanel.net/showthread.php?t=35661

[asterisk]

That was a very nifty piece of info. Thanks! I'm assuming that there are no more other variables to play with other than those listed in the default Zone Template Editor files at /var/cpanel/zonetemplates

Is it just my config or does everybody's WHM default Zone Template for the standard config, have the following line?

www IN CNAME %domain%.

Shouldn't this be:

www IN A %ip%

What is the advantage behind using CNAME instead of A in this case, since I understand this causes a slight delay when accessing a website due to the extra DNS lookup?

[sneader]

There is no additional lookup delay, if the CNAME is the same TLD.

For example, cnn.com uses a CNAME for www.cnn.com to point to cnn.com.

> www.cnn.com
Server: xxx
Address: xxx

Name: cnn.com
Addresses: 64.236.16.52, 64.236.16.84, 64.236.16.116, 64.236.24.12
64.236.24.20, 64.236.24.28, 64.236.29.120, 64.236.16.20
Aliases: www.cnn.com

Notice how I queried www.cnn.com and on the SAME lookup it not only told me that www.cnn.com is an alias (CNAME) for cnn.com, it went ahead and told me the IP addresses for cnn.com.

All in one lookup.

I can't say whether your way is right or wrong... but if CNN does it this way, it's OK by me so I'm leaving it the way it is.

- Scott

[asterisk]

Thank you for that piece of info.

After some finding out, I've discovered that CNN's dns servers may be intelligently figuring out that a CNAME request from a user will usually be followed by an A request hence it decides to send both information in one go, saving an extra lookup otherwise.

However not all DNS servers do as such.

Having said that, the drawback apparently for assigning A records instead of CNAMES to subdomains such as www would be consistency. That if an IP address change, one would have to change every other IP address leading to a higher likelihood of error, I'm told.

Well, I guess you're right, an extra lookup wouldn't really matter then generally.

[sneader]

I checked and my DNS server (default cPanel installation) responds in the EXACT same way as the CNN server. So, I think the comment is very valid.. there is no extra DNS lookup and no negative reason for the way cPanel has set up the template.

- Scott