Lookup DNS Entry

[Kevin Darcy]

Jeff Grossman wrote:

> What command would I use in Linux to see what the DNS entry is for a
> particular domain?

Depends on what exactly you mean by "DNS entry".

If you want to see what's in the DNS database for a particular domain,
including the definitive list of nameservers, mail exchangers, etc. you
could issue a DNS query of type "ANY" to one of that zone's nameservers
using a command-line tool like "dig" or (if you must) "nslookup".

But if you want to see the entry for the domain in the registry
database, which has less "functional" information, but has contact,
billing, account information, etc., then go look up "WHOIS". This is
available via the web at various registries, including Network
Solutions. There are command-line versions of WHOIS clients as well. The
really hard-core way is to connect to port 43 on a WHOIS server like
whois.networksolutions.com and issue a "domain <domain-name>" query.

Hopefully, you're not one of those miscreants who is trying to mine the
WHOIS database for purposes of sending SPAM or engaging in domain name
speculation. You could get in trouble that way.


- Kevin