How Does DNS Update Work with DHCP in My Network?

From a security standpoint, the client should always be the one updating DNS directly, rather than relying on DHCP or any other method. Anything else tends to introduce vulnerabilities.

When you have Windows Server DHCP set up correctly, it usually registers client records in DNS automatically for you. This setting is enabled by default for most configurations. The updates won't go through the Umbrella DNS appliances, though, so if you're having issues, it's likely unrelated to Umbrella.

You might also want to look into enabling DNS scavenging for your zones if you haven’t done so already. It helps clear out old records and improves accuracy, even though you'll still experience some propagation delays. Remember, scavenging needs to be configured for each zone, including reverse lookup zones.

Generally speaking, DHCP is responsible for notifying DNS if it’s set to do so—you just have to check that it's configured correctly.

Also, ensure that your setup with Umbrella is right, as I’ve seen it cause random hiccups if the internal requests aren't properly routed to your internal DNS servers.

Honestly, for machines with dynamic IP addresses, it might be easier to accept that forward and reverse DNS lookups aren’t essential. If you need reliable DNS, consider DHCP reservations to ensure machines consistently have the same IP address. With IPv6, you might need client configurations for dynamic addresses.

In my experience, for end-user devices like laptops and desktops, the clients usually handle Dynamic DNS (DDNS) registration on their own. However, in areas with printers or other devices, the InfoBlox appliances take care of it for those.

So, it sounds like the setup can differ based on the type of device and its network role.