resolving local host names

Jim Reid jim at rfc1035.com
Sun Aug 20 19:24:55 UTC 2000


>>>>> "mark" == mark  <idk at teleport.com> writes:

    mark> I've got a caching only name server running on a box
    mark> with RH 6.2.  It correctly resolves external names.  I'd
    mark> like it to resolve internal names by checking the /etc/hosts
    mark> file.  My /etc/nsswitch.conf file has hosts: files dns, yet
    mark> when I run "nslookup pctech" is doesn't not resolve "pctech"
    mark> although it is listed in the host file.  What am I missing?

DNS lookup tools tend not to know or care about other lookup
mechanisms. If they did, how could someone tell if the answer came
from a name server or some NIS/YP server or /etc/hosts? Tools like dig
and nslookup are meant to just interrogate a DNS name server. So if
the names you lookup aren't in the DNS, you lose. Why don't you just
put the local names into your local DNS zone(s) instead of /etc/hosts?

BTW, nslookup is just awful: use dig.



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