PowerDNS Installation Guide Installation Guide

PowerDNS is a free and open-source DNS Server. A modern authoritative DNS server with various backends

Hardware Requirements:

CPU: 2 cores minimum (4+ cores recommended)

RAM: 2GB minimum (4GB+ recommended)

Storage: 1GB for installation

Network: 53 ports

Operating System:

Linux: Any modern distribution (RHEL, Debian, Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora, Arch, Alpine, openSUSE)

macOS: 10.14+ (Mojave or newer)

Windows: Windows Server 2016+ or Windows 10

FreeBSD: 11.0+

Network Requirements:

Port 53 (default powerdns port)

Dependencies:

pdns-backend-mysql, pdns-recursor

System Access: root or sudo privileges required

This guide supports installation on:

RHEL 8/9 and derivatives (CentOS Stream, Rocky Linux, AlmaLinux)

Debian 11/12

Ubuntu 20.04/22.04/24.04 LTS

Arch Linux (rolling release)

Alpine Linux 3.18+

openSUSE Leap 15.5+ / Tumbleweed

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 15+

macOS 12+ (Monterey and later)

FreeBSD 13+

Windows 10/11/Server 2019+ (where applicable)

bash

# Install EPEL repository if needed
sudo dnf install -y epel-release

# Install powerdns
sudo dnf install -y powerdns pdns-backend-mysql, pdns-recursor

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl enable --now pdns

# Configure firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=powerdns
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

# Verify installation
powerdns --version || systemctl status pdns

bash

# Update package index
sudo apt update

# Install powerdns
sudo apt install -y powerdns pdns-backend-mysql, pdns-recursor

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl enable --now pdns

# Configure firewall
sudo ufw allow 53

# Verify installation
powerdns --version || systemctl status pdns

bash

# Install powerdns
sudo pacman -S powerdns

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl enable --now pdns

# Verify installation
powerdns --version || systemctl status pdns

bash

# Install powerdns
apk add --no-cache powerdns

# Enable and start service
rc-update add pdns default
rc-service pdns start

# Verify installation
powerdns --version || rc-service pdns status

bash

# Install powerdns
sudo zypper install -y powerdns pdns-backend-mysql, pdns-recursor

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl enable --now pdns

# Configure firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=powerdns
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

# Verify installation
powerdns --version || systemctl status pdns

bash

# Using Homebrew
brew install powerdns

# Start service
brew services start powerdns

# Verify installation
powerdns --version

bash

# Using pkg
pkg install powerdns

# Enable in rc.conf
echo 'pdns_enable="YES"' >> /etc/rc.conf

# Start service
service pdns start

# Verify installation
powerdns --version || service pdns status

powershell

# Using Chocolatey
choco install powerdns

# Or using Scoop
scoop install powerdns

# Verify installation
powerdns --version

bash

# Create configuration directory if needed
sudo mkdir -p /etc/powerdns

# Set up basic configuration
sudo tee /etc/powerdns/powerdns.conf << 'EOF'
# PowerDNS Configuration
receiver-threads=4, distributor-threads=4
EOF

# Test configuration
sudo powerdns -t || sudo pdns configtest

# Reload service
sudo systemctl reload pdns

bash

# Set appropriate permissions
sudo chown -R powerdns:powerdns /etc/powerdns
sudo chmod 750 /etc/powerdns

# Enable security features
# See security section for detailed hardening steps

bash

# Enable service
sudo systemctl enable pdns

# Start service
sudo systemctl start pdns

# Stop service
sudo systemctl stop pdns

# Restart service
sudo systemctl restart pdns

# Reload configuration
sudo systemctl reload pdns

# Check status
sudo systemctl status pdns

# View logs
sudo journalctl -u pdns -f

bash

# Enable service
rc-update add pdns default

# Start service
rc-service pdns start

# Stop service
rc-service pdns stop

# Restart service
rc-service pdns restart

# Check status
rc-service pdns status

bash

# Enable in /etc/rc.conf
echo 'pdns_enable="YES"' >> /etc/rc.conf

# Start service
service pdns start

# Stop service
service pdns stop

# Restart service
service pdns restart

# Check status
service pdns status

bash

# Using Homebrew services
brew services start powerdns
brew services stop powerdns
brew services restart powerdns

# Check status
brew services list | grep powerdns

powershell

# Start service
net start pdns

# Stop service
net stop pdns

# Using PowerShell
Start-Service pdns
Stop-Service pdns
Restart-Service pdns

# Check status
Get-Service pdns

bash

# Configure performance settings
cat >> /etc/powerdns/powerdns.conf << 'EOF'
receiver-threads=4, distributor-threads=4
EOF

# Apply system tuning
sudo sysctl -w net.core.somaxconn=65535
sudo sysctl -w net.ipv4.tcp_max_syn_backlog=65535

# Restart service
sudo systemctl restart pdns

bash

# Configure clustering (if supported)
# See official documentation for cluster setup

# Basic load balancing setup example
# Configure multiple instances on different ports

nginx

upstream powerdns_backend {
    server 127.0.0.1:53;
    server 127.0.0.1:{default_port}1 backup;
}

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name powerdns.example.com;
    return 301 https://$server_name$request_uri;
}

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    server_name powerdns.example.com;

    ssl_certificate /etc/ssl/certs/powerdns.example.com.crt;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/ssl/private/powerdns.example.com.key;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://powerdns_backend;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        
        # WebSocket support (if needed)
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
    }
}

apache

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName powerdns.example.com
    Redirect permanent / https://powerdns.example.com/
</VirtualHost>

<VirtualHost *:443>
    ServerName powerdns.example.com
    
    SSLEngine on
    SSLCertificateFile /etc/ssl/certs/powerdns.example.com.crt
    SSLCertificateKeyFile /etc/ssl/private/powerdns.example.com.key
    
    ProxyRequests Off
    ProxyPreserveHost On
    
    ProxyPass / http://127.0.0.1:53/
    ProxyPassReverse / http://127.0.0.1:53/
    
    # WebSocket support (if needed)
    RewriteEngine on
    RewriteCond %{HTTP:Upgrade} websocket [NC]
    RewriteCond %{HTTP:Connection} upgrade [NC]
    RewriteRule ^/?(.*) "ws://127.0.0.1:53/$1" [P,L]
</VirtualHost>

haproxy

frontend powerdns_frontend
    bind *:80
    bind *:443 ssl crt /etc/ssl/certs/powerdns.pem
    redirect scheme https if !{ ssl_fc }
    default_backend powerdns_backend

backend powerdns_backend
    balance roundrobin
    option httpchk GET /health
    server powerdns1 127.0.0.1:53 check
    server powerdns2 127.0.0.1:{default_port}1 check backup

bash

# Set appropriate permissions
sudo chown -R powerdns:powerdns /etc/powerdns
sudo chmod 750 /etc/powerdns

# Configure firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=powerdns
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

# Enable SELinux policies (if applicable)
sudo setsebool -P httpd_can_network_connect on

# Configure fail2ban
sudo tee /etc/fail2ban/jail.d/powerdns.conf << 'EOF'
[powerdns]
enabled = true
port = 53
filter = powerdns
logpath = /var/log/pdns/*.log
maxretry = 5
bantime = 3600
EOF

bash

# Generate SSL certificates
sudo openssl req -x509 -nodes -days 365 -newkey rsa:2048 \
    -keyout /etc/ssl/private/powerdns.key \
    -out /etc/ssl/certs/powerdns.crt

# Configure SSL in powerdns
# See official documentation for SSL configuration

PostgreSQL Backend (if applicable)

bash

# Create database and user
sudo -u postgres psql << EOF
CREATE DATABASE powerdns_db;
CREATE USER powerdns_user WITH ENCRYPTED PASSWORD 'secure_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE powerdns_db TO powerdns_user;
EOF

# Configure powerdns to use PostgreSQL
# See official documentation for database configuration

bash

# Create database and user
sudo mysql << EOF
CREATE DATABASE powerdns_db;
CREATE USER 'powerdns_user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'secure_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON powerdns_db.* TO 'powerdns_user'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EOF

bash

# Kernel parameters
sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf << EOF
net.core.somaxconn = 65535
net.ipv4.tcp_max_syn_backlog = 65535
net.ipv4.ip_local_port_range = 1024 65535
net.core.netdev_max_backlog = 5000
vm.swappiness = 10
EOF

sudo sysctl -p

# PowerDNS specific tuning
receiver-threads=4, distributor-threads=4

bash

# Configure system limits
sudo tee -a /etc/security/limits.conf << EOF
powerdns soft nofile 65535
powerdns hard nofile 65535
powerdns soft nproc 32768
powerdns hard nproc 32768
EOF

yaml

# prometheus.yml configuration
scrape_configs:
  - job_name: 'powerdns'
    static_configs:
      - targets: ['localhost:53']
    metrics_path: '/metrics'

bash

# Basic health check script
#!/bin/bash
if systemctl is-active --quiet pdns; then
    echo "PowerDNS is running"
    exit 0
else
    echo "PowerDNS is not running"
    exit 1
fi

bash

# Configure log rotation
sudo tee /etc/logrotate.d/powerdns << 'EOF'
/var/log/pdns/*.log {
    daily
    rotate 14
    compress
    delaycompress
    missingok
    notifempty
    create 0640 powerdns powerdns
    postrotate
        systemctl reload pdns > /dev/null 2>&1 || true
    endscript
}
EOF

bash

#!/bin/bash
# PowerDNS backup script
BACKUP_DIR="/backup/powerdns"
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)

mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"

# Stop service (if required)
systemctl stop pdns

# Backup configuration
tar -czf "$BACKUP_DIR/powerdns-config-$DATE.tar.gz" /etc/powerdns

# Backup data (adjust paths as needed)
tar -czf "$BACKUP_DIR/powerdns-data-$DATE.tar.gz" /var/lib/powerdns

# Start service
systemctl start pdns

# Clean old backups (keep 30 days)
find "$BACKUP_DIR" -name "*.tar.gz" -mtime +30 -delete

echo "Backup completed: $BACKUP_DIR"

bash

# Stop service
sudo systemctl stop pdns

# Restore configuration
sudo tar -xzf /backup/powerdns/powerdns-config-*.tar.gz -C /

# Restore data
sudo tar -xzf /backup/powerdns/powerdns-data-*.tar.gz -C /

# Set permissions
sudo chown -R powerdns:powerdns /etc/powerdns
sudo chown -R powerdns:powerdns /var/lib/powerdns

# Start service
sudo systemctl start pdns

1. Service won't start:

bash

# Check logs
sudo journalctl -u pdns -n 100
sudo tail -f /var/log/pdns/*.log

# Check configuration
sudo powerdns -t || sudo pdns configtest

# Check permissions
ls -la /etc/powerdns
ls -la /var/lib/powerdns

2. Connection refused:

bash

# Check if service is listening
sudo ss -tlnp | grep 53
sudo netstat -tlnp | grep 53

# Check firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --list-all
sudo iptables -L -n

# Test connection
telnet localhost 53
nc -zv localhost 53

3. Performance issues:

bash

# Check resource usage
top -p $(pgrep pdns_server)
htop -p $(pgrep pdns_server)

# Check connections
ss -ant | grep :53 | wc -l

# Monitor I/O
iotop -p $(pgrep pdns_server)

bash

# Run in debug mode
sudo powerdns -d
# or
sudo pdns debug

# Increase log verbosity
# Edit configuration to enable debug logging

yaml

version: '3.8'
services:
  powerdns:
    image: powerdns:latest
    container_name: powerdns
    ports:
      - "53:53"
    volumes:
      - ./config:/etc/powerdns
      - ./data:/var/lib/powerdns
    environment:
      - powerdns_CONFIG=/etc/powerdns/powerdns.conf
    restart: unless-stopped
    networks:
      - powerdns_net

networks:
  powerdns_net:
    driver: bridge

yaml

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: powerdns
spec:
  replicas: 3
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: powerdns
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: powerdns
    spec:
      containers:
      - name: powerdns
        image: powerdns:latest
        ports:
        - containerPort: 53
        volumeMounts:
        - name: config
          mountPath: /etc/powerdns
      volumes:
      - name: config
        configMap:
          name: powerdns-config
---
apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: powerdns
spec:
  selector:
    app: powerdns
  ports:
  - port: 53
    targetPort: 53
  type: LoadBalancer

yaml

---
- name: Install and configure PowerDNS
  hosts: all
  become: yes
  tasks:
    - name: Install powerdns
      package:
        name: powerdns
        state: present
    
    - name: Configure powerdns
      template:
        src: powerdns.conf.j2
        dest: /etc/powerdns/powerdns.conf
        owner: powerdns
        group: powerdns
        mode: '0640'
      notify: restart powerdns
    
    - name: Start and enable powerdns
      systemd:
        name: pdns
        state: started
        enabled: yes
  
  handlers:
    - name: restart powerdns
      systemd:
        name: pdns
        state: restarted

Maintenance

bash

# RHEL/CentOS/Rocky/AlmaLinux
sudo dnf update powerdns

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade powerdns

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -Syu powerdns

# Alpine Linux
apk update && apk upgrade powerdns

# openSUSE
sudo zypper update powerdns

# FreeBSD
pkg update && pkg upgrade powerdns

# Always backup before updates
tar -czf /backup/powerdns-pre-update-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz /etc/powerdns

# Restart after updates
sudo systemctl restart pdns

Regular Maintenance Tasks

bash

# Clean logs
find /var/log/pdns -name "*.log" -mtime +30 -delete

# Verify integrity
sudo powerdns --verify || sudo pdns check

# Update databases (if applicable)
sudo powerdns-update-db

# Optimize performance
sudo powerdns-optimize

# Check for security updates
sudo powerdns --security-check

Official Documentation: https://docs.powerdns.org/

GitHub Repository: https://github.com/powerdns/powerdns

Community Forum: https://forum.powerdns.org/

Wiki: https://wiki.powerdns.org/

Comparison vs BIND, Knot DNS, NSD, CoreDNS: https://docs.powerdns.org/comparison

---

Note: This guide is part of the HowToMgr collection. Always refer to official documentation for the most up-to-date information.

1. Prerequisites

2. Supported Operating Systems

3. Installation

RHEL/CentOS/Rocky Linux/AlmaLinux

Debian/Ubuntu

Arch Linux

Alpine Linux

openSUSE/SLES

macOS

FreeBSD

Windows

Initial Configuration

Basic Configuration

Security Hardening

5. Service Management

systemd (RHEL, Debian, Ubuntu, Arch, openSUSE)

OpenRC (Alpine Linux)

rc.d (FreeBSD)

launchd (macOS)

Windows Service Manager

Advanced Configuration

Performance Optimization

Clustering and High Availability

Reverse Proxy Setup

nginx Configuration

Apache Configuration

HAProxy Configuration

Security Configuration

Basic Security Setup

SSL/TLS Configuration

Database Setup

PostgreSQL Backend (if applicable)

MySQL/MariaDB Backend (if applicable)

Performance Optimization

System Tuning

Resource Limits

Monitoring

Prometheus Integration

Health Checks

Log Monitoring

9. Backup and Restore

Backup Script

Restore Procedure

6. Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Debug Mode

Integration Examples

Docker Compose

Kubernetes Deployment

Ansible Playbook

Maintenance

Update Procedures

Regular Maintenance Tasks

Additional Resources

Related Dns servers Guides

BIND Installation Guide

CoreDNS Installation Guide

dnsmasq Installation Guide