6.2.5. Finding zones

To find a zone or a subnet, select the site in the configuration tree and click the Find button.

Finding zones and subnets

Figure 6.8. Finding zones and subnets

You can search for the name of the zone, or for the IP network it contains. When searching for IP networks, the only the most specific zone containing the searched IP is returned. If an IP address belongs to two different zones, the straitest match returns the most specific zone.

Example 6.3. Finding IP networks

Suppose there are three zones configured: Zone_A containing the 10.0.0.0/8 network, Zone_B containing the 10.0.0.0/16 network, and Zone_C containing the 10.0.0.25 IP address. Searching for the 10.0.44.0 network returns Zone_B, because that is the most specific zone matching the searched IP address. Similarly, searching for 10.0.0.25 returns only Zone_C.

This approach is used in the service definitions as well: when a client sends a connection request, PNS looks for the most specific zone containing the IP address of the client. Suppose that the clients in Zone_A are allowed to use HTTP. If a client with IP 10.0.0.50 (thus belonging to Zone_B) can only use HTTP if Zone_B is the child of Zone_A, or if a service definition explicitly permits Zone_B to use HTTP.

Tip

The Find tool is especially useful in large-scale deployments with complex zone and subnet structure.