hostname limitation

[Mark.Andrews at nominum.com]

> 
> 
> Does anyone know what the limitation on hostnames are in DNS?

	Yes.

>  I need to know how many characters I can use for a hostname...

	This is an ambigious question.

	The DNS supports hostnames lengths up to 253 characters.
	This is less than the maximum of 255 specified by RFC 1123.

	The allowed characters are 'a' - 'z', 'A' - 'Z', '0' - '9',
	'-' and '.'.  See also RFC 952 and RFC 1123, which restrict
	how these can be used.  So the alternate answer to your
	question is 64.

	Note also the allowed characters for hostnames may be extended
	soon.  Depending upon your intended use the answers above may
	or may not change.

	Mark

> 
> Thanks!
> 
> Sam Yangsao
> Open Systems Consultant - SUN, EMC, DNS, sendmail
> Email:   samyangsao at fairisaac.com
> Phone:  651-486-1836
> 
> 
--
Mark Andrews, Nominum Inc.
1 Seymour St., Dundas Valley, NSW 2117, Australia
PHONE: +61 2 9871 4742                 INTERNET: Mark.Andrews at nominum.com