Local DNS and unresolvable virtual web host

[Jim Reid]

>>>>> "Chris" == Chris P Gatcombe <chris at gatcombe.com> writes:

    Chris> Hi all, I run a home Windows network with a Linux
    Chris> firewall/gateway/router on which I run a nameserver. I also
    Chris> own a domain name "mydomain.com", with a virtual web host
    Chris> hosted by a third party provider. My internal windows PCs
    Chris> can't resolve the "www.mydomain.com" address of my virtual
    Chris> web host.  I know it exists - I can access it from my work
    Chris> network, but nslookup fails to find it, even when I specify

Well www.mydomain.com exists on the Internet:

	% dig www.mydomain.com any
	;; ANSWERS:
	www.mydomain.com.       3600    MX      10 mail.worldway.net.
	www.mydomain.com.       3600    A       209.153.199.62

    Chris> /etc/named.boot contains:

You should be running BIND8. BIND4 is dead.

    Chris> directory /var/named
    Chris> cache .  named.ca primary
    Chris> primary 0.0.127.in-addr.arpa named.local
    Chris> primary mydomain.com named.mydomain.com
    Chris> forwarders 24.128.64.6 24.128.2.6 24.128.1.81
    Chris> options forward-only

    Chris> I've read the DNS and Bind book cover to cover, and am
    Chris> under the impression that specifying my ISP's nameservers
    Chris> as forwarders should allow me to resolve anything.
    Chris> Is it that I'm telling my nameserver that I'm authoritative
    Chris> for mydomain.com and hence it will never look anywhere else
    Chris> for info?

Yup! Your named.boot file says that your name server should always
forward any queries it can't answer to one of the IP addresses listed
in the forwarders line. Since your name server is authoritative for
the 0.0.127.in-addr.arpa and mydomain.com zones, it won't need to
forward any queries it gets for names in those domains. It can answer
for them directly. So it looks as if www.mydomain.com isn't in your
zone file for mydomain.com if your local resolvers query your local
name server.

BTW, is this your own private mydomain.com zone, or are you the owner
of the real, registered one? Or have you chosen not to tell us your
real domain name and used "mydomain.com" as a place-holder?