turn off BIND (DNS)

[David Shore]

I'm trying to modify my hosts file via SAM when the following message pops up on my system:
Your host is configured to use BIND (DNS). This area of SAM modifies the /etc/hosts file, which is probably not used by your host.

I'm new to working with the network settings and would like to turn off DNS. I do not want to use this machine as a DNS server.
I have looked around and tried some things but nothing yet has fixed this problem.
Can any give me some help?

[Geoff Wild · Accepted solution]

Yes, set NAMED=0 in /etc/rc.config.d/namesvrs

Do you want DNS off though?

For you can have this in /etc/nsswitch.conf:

hosts: files[NOTFOUND=CONTINUE] dns


Rgds...Geoff

[Jeff_Traigle]

Check /etc/rc.config.d/namesvrs to enable/disable named. However, I don't think the message is referring to your system being a DNS server. It's stating that it is configured to use DNS for name resolution via /etc/resolv.conf. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I think HP-UX since 10.20 has defaulted to resolving via DNS if /etc/resolv.conf exists and not looking at /etc/hosts, which is what the message indicates... this can be overridden by creating /etc/nsswitch.conf with entry "hosts: files dns".

[Jeff_Traigle]

Actually, now that I think about it... that was the default behavior since at least HP-UX 9.0... ability to override it with nsswitch.conf came along in a patch to 9.07 or somesuch and has been present ever since through 10.X and 11.X.

[KapilRaj]

Why not directly edit the /etc/hosts file ?. I think that is more safe [keep a copy :) ]

Kaps

[Steven E. Protter]

you can stop using dns by taking it out of host lookup in /etc/nsswitch.conf

You should not be using sam for this job, it occaisionally makes double entries and mistakes.

vi it.

Last, if you turn off DNS you will break certain versions of omniback/DP. If you are still using openspool, you will badly break that.

You will probably break other things as well.

You can ignore the warning and edit /etc/hosts safely in the following circumstances:

1) /etc/nsswitch.conf goes to files after dns
2) the /etc/host entry is not contradicted in your dns database

If this is the case, add an entry to /etc/hosts and it will start resolving.

Better yet, get the record you want added to your DNS database.

SEP