Anyone familar with Bind9 on RH7.1? I need to create a cache & forwarding server for my dns zones. Can anyone help?

Hi,

You need to load the following rpms: (version numbers may differ)

bind-utils.9.1.0-10
bind-9.1.0-10
bindconf-1.4.1
caching-nameserver-7.1-3

Another file called ypbind-1.7.6 should be automatically loaded when you load these packages. You can check to see if they are all there with "rpm -qa | grep -i bind" and then replace the word bind with cach.

You need to create two files...a forward zone and a reverse zone. Let's call your zone kid.com and the computer you are putting it on is called "billy". And you have another computer named "brian" and a webserver named "mike". And your network ip is 192.168.0.0. The forward zone file will be called kid.com.zone and it should be in the /var/named/ directory. This file could look like this:

$TTL 86400
@ IN SOA @ root.kid.com (
3 ; serial
28800 ; refresh
7200 ; retry
604800 ; expire
86400 ; ttl
)

@ IN NS billy. (don't add this note...notice
period after billy)

brian IN A 192.168.0.10
mike IN A 192.168.0.25



Save that file....Then you need a reverse file called
"0.168.192.in-addr.arpa.zone" located in the /var/named/ directory. That file will look like this:

$TTL 86400
@ IN SOA @ root.localhost (
3 ; serial
28800 ; refresh
7200 ; retry
604800 ; expire
86400 ; ttl
)

@ IN NS billy. (again notice the period after
@ IN PTR brian. all the names)
@ IN PTR mike.


Save this file.


Next there should be a file called "named.conf" in the /etc directory. If not just create it.

It should look like this:

##named.conf - configuration for bind
#
# Generated automatically by bindconf, alchemist et al.

options {
directory "/var/named/";
};



zone "." {
type hint;
file "named.ca";
};


zone "0.168.192.in-addr-arpa" {
type master;
file "0.168.192.in-addr.arpa.zone";
};

zone "kid.com" {
type master;
file "kid.com.zone";
};



Save that file. Make sure you got all the semi-colons and squiggly parens.

Then at a command prompt type "service named start". To test that it is running ok immediately type "service named stop". They both should come out with an "OK". If they do then start the named service again.

From another machine...make sure your nic configuration is pointed to you dns machine. Then you should be able to ping "billy", "mike", or "brian" by name. If not check that you can ping them by ip to make sure you have a good connection.


Good luck.

Great infomation. I have bind v9 running right now sorta like how you stated in your email. Part of my "lack of understanding" and fact I can't find good dcoumentation on how to set up cache & forwarding server. Let me detail this a bit, I have three primary dns servers:
server-A in California,server-B in Ohio & server-C in Florida

the new server is ns05 (forwarder & cache dns)

What I seem to have is issues which we think can be solved by setting up a chaching server based on dns domains. We would put a "forward entry" in all the primary servers to point to ns05 server. So when an entry comes in for server-A it can look at the cache or get forwarded to server-A for look up.

Does that make sense. I think it does but just cant seem to figure out how to do it :-( Everyone who is knows dns say's sure "you can do that" but no where can I figure out hwo the confiration would be...

Works great except I am not able to ping xyz.com. Though I can ping www.xyz.com... weird

Benjamin