Name server (nameserver) is combination of software program and hardware device which implements a name-service protocol. It maps a human-recognizable domain names to a system-internal, numeric identification.

The most widely used types of name servers are those of the Domain Name System (DNS). The most important function of the DNS servers is to translate (resolve) of domain names and hostnames into Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, which are the second principal Internet name space, used to identify and locate network device, server or computer on the Internet.