- At LACNIC 42 LACNOG 2024, Carlos Martínez emphasised how Anycast routing, combined with BGP and DNS, enhances DNS resilience and reduces latency by directing traffic to the most optimal server.
- Anycast improves DNS scalability and reliability by distributing multiple servers globally, enabling faster response times, load balancing, and automatic rerouting in case of failures or attacks.
What happened
At LACNIC 42 LACNOG 2024, Carlos Martínez highlighted the importance of Anycast in enhancing DNS resilience. The technique works by combining Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) routing with Domain Name System (DNS) capabilities. DNS, often called “the phone book of the Internet,” maps domain names to IP addresses using a distributed structure. BGP serves as the glue connecting autonomous networks, ensuring the best possible connectivity by selecting the optimal path for traffic.
Anycast routing, a key networking technique, allows multiple physical locations to share the same IP address. This enables traffic to be directed to the server closest or most optimal for the user, improving speed and reliability. It is particularly effective for services like DNS and content distribution networks, where high availability and low latency are essential.
However, DNS scaling presents challenges, such as potential bottlenecks and increased latency when servers are far from users. Anycast addresses these issues by distributing multiple servers across the globe, all sharing the same IP address. This improves response times, balances load, and adds redundancy.
In case of server failures or attacks, Anycast automatically reroutes traffic to available servers, ensuring service continuity. By optimising network infrastructure, Anycast enhances DNS scalability and strengthens resilience against incidents.
Also read: IETF 121: IPv6 adoption, DNS improvements, routing security
Also read: What is LACNIC? Cybersecurity, IP address registration and demand in Latin America and the Caribbean
Why it is important
Anycast routing improves DNS resilience and performance by directing traffic to the most suitable server based on location and network conditions. This technique is especially useful for services like DNS, where low latency and availability are key.
DNS faces scaling challenges, particularly when servers are distant from users or under heavy load. Anycast addresses this by distributing servers globally, all sharing the same IP address. This approach reduces latency, improves load balancing, and offers redundancy.
In case of server failures or attacks, Anycast automatically reroutes traffic to other available servers, ensuring uninterrupted service. Overall, Anycast helps optimise network performance, contributing to more reliable and scalable DNS infrastructure.
