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How DNS works. The internet's phone book explained

DNS is the internet's phone book. When you type amazon.com, your computer asks a DNS server for the actual address (the numbers), and it replies in less than a second so your computer can connect.

Every website has two addresses: a name you can read (amazon.com) and a technical address made of numbers (like 205.244.161.43). DNS servers keep a massive list matching names to addresses. When you visit a website, your computer checks a DNS server to translate the name into numbers, then uses those numbers to connect.

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