Xref: utzoo comp.mail.sendmail:93 comp.dcom.lans:1837
Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!cwjcc!hal!ane
From: ane@hal.UUCP (Aydin "Bif" Edguer)
Newsgroups: comp.mail.sendmail,comp.dcom.lans
Subject: Re: sendmail, the resolver and /etc/hosts
Summary: You are okay, it is the other site that has problems
Message-ID: <285@hal.UUCP>
Date: 20 Sep 88 23:25:52 GMT
References: <713@ncar.ucar.edu> <1469@valhalla.ee.rochester.edu> <1473@valhalla.ee.rochester.edu>
Reply-To: ane@hal.cwru.edu (Aydin "Bif" Edguer)
Organization: Biometry Computing Facility
Lines: 47
In<1473@valhalla.ee.rochester.edu>deke@ee.rochester.edu(Dikran Kassabian)writes:
>Inhedrick(Charles Hedrick) writes:
>>The suggestion was made to look at /etc/hosts if a domain query fails,
>>so that you can add info for a host that isn't yet registered. It
>>seems to me that if you want to add local hacks like that you can
>>just have your name servers load an extra startup file. In
>>/etc/named.boot, just include an extra file that defines local
>>additions.
>Well sure, that works, but it only addresses the case where there are
>a few hosts that I know I want to reach...
Pardon my ignorance but why do you say it only works in the case of
"a few hosts?" And why would you EVER want more than "a few hosts?"
How many unregistered internet sites are there?
>Many times a user on one of my systems begins a correspondance with someone
>at a site we previously never mailed to. The user at the remote site
>gives our local user an address that he "knows" is good, 'cause its in the
>hosts table. Our user sends mail to that address and it bounces... there
>isn't a nameserver to answer for that host in that domain.
In that case contact the Zone Contact for this domain - It is their
responsibility to maintain their files, not yours.
>our address ee.rochester.edu, can be found both in /etc/hosts
>and by asking our nameserver, which I believe is the only way
>currently to be absolutely correct)
If you are running the nameserver then the /etc/hosts file is necessary
only during those times the nameserver is down, such as in standalone
mode or during testing.
>What is the "right thing" to do here?
The "right thing" would be to contact the other site.
Any site in the NIC's host file is available to the nameserver.
Any information in local /etc/hosts is local to that machine only.
>This is some of the motivation behind my suggestion to change the way
>gethostbyname() works.... and as I said in my original posting, I freely
>open myself up to the flames.
Gethostbyname() works fine. When the nameserver is DOWN it does look in
the local /etc/hosts file. Otherwise IT SHOULD NOT. /etc/hosts is supposed
to be a minimal list of sites. It is not supposed to be considered
authoritative for all the sites listed.
My suggestion AS A TEMPORARY FIX would be just to use the internet number
for the site rather than the site name. Try mailing to ane@[129.22.144.1]
rather than ane@hal.cwru.edu. It should work either way.
Aydin Edguer ane@hal.cwru.edu
"The opinions expressed here are probably wrong but if you really BELIEVE..."