DNS server A record

[outer_edge]

Ok, my sys admin is away and I seem to be stuck. We are a school and have a domain called 'domain.nsw.edu.au' (I don't want to get spammed, so not the real domain). We have a functioning DNS server on SLES9, which directs most addresses with this domain to an internal server in our networl. All sweet.

However, we have an externally hosted website, which is www.domain.nsw.edu.au. There is an A record in the domain.nsw.edu.au zone in the DNS server which is called 'www' and directs this URL to the external server. So far so good and works fine.

We have recently gone to google hosted email for our students. The URL for the login page is 'mail.students.domain.nsw.edu.au'. I have put in an A record just like the www one, but I cannot get this resolve, neither in a ping nor in a browser.

The A records I have tried were students, mail.students, mail.students.domain.nsw.edu.au, all with the external servers IP address, but no luck. I have stopped and started the DNS server after adding each record. What am I doing wrong?

[ohgary]

Did you update the serial number as well? Depnding on how you update the A record, there is also a serial number for the current record set. It must be incremeneted or DNS will never publish your new info.

[outer_edge]

Nah, the problem was far simpler than that. I had to create another zone for the subdomain 'students.domain.nsw.edu.au', then enter an A record into this zone called 'mail'. So simple, but sometime you just don't see the obvious.

All well now.