Editing Root name server (section)

==Root zone file==
The root zone file is a small (about 2 [[Megabyte|MB]]) data set<ref name="root_dataset">{{Cite web|url=https://www.iana.org/domains/root/files|title=IANA – Root Files|website=www.iana.org|access-date=10 July 2019}}</ref> whose publication is the primary purpose of root name servers. This is not to be confused with the ''root.hints'' file used to bootstrap a resolver.

The root zone file is at the apex of a hierarchical distributed database called the [[Domain Name System]] (DNS). This database is used by almost all Internet applications to translate worldwide unique names such as ''www.wikipedia.org'' into other identifiers such as [[IP address]]es.

The contents of the root zone file is a list of names and numeric IP addresses of the root domain [[name server|authoritative DNS servers]] for all [[top-level domains]] (TLDs) such as com, org, edu, and the [[country code top-level domain]]s (it also includes that info for root domain, the dot). On 12 December 2004, 773 different authoritative servers for the TLDs were listed. Later the number of TLDs increased greatly. {{As of|2020|07}}, the root zone consisted of 1511 useful TLDs (excluded are: 55 domains that are not assigned, 8 that are retired, and 11 test domains). Other name servers forward queries for which they do not have any information about authoritative servers to a root name server. The root name server, using its root zone file, answers with a referral to the authoritative servers for the appropriate TLD or with an indication that no such TLD exists.<ref>ISOC, ''DNS Root Name Servers explained for the non-expert'', ([https://www.internetsociety.org/resources/doc/2004/the-internet-domain-name-system-explained-for-non-experts-by-daniel-karrenberg/ Available online], accessed 19 March 2010.)</ref>