NAMED linux command manual

NAMED(8)                                                           NAMED(8)



NAME
       named - Internet domain name server

SYNOPSIS
       named  [  -c  config-file  ]  [ -d debug-level ]  [ -f ]  [ -g ]  [ -n
       #cpus ]  [ -p port ]  [ -s ]  [ -t directory ]  [ -u user ]  [ -v ]  [
       -x cache-file ]

DESCRIPTION
       named is a Domain Name System (DNS) server, part of the BIND 9 distri-
       bution from ISC. For more information on the DNS, see RFCs 1033, 1034,
       and 1035.

       When invoked without arguments, named will read the default configura-
       tion file /etc/named.conf, read  any  initial  data,  and  listen  for
       queries.

OPTIONS
       -c config-file
              Use  config-file  as  the  configuration  file  instead  of the
              default, /etc/named.conf. To ensure that reloading the configu-
              ration  file continues to work after the server has changed its
              working directory due to to a possible directory option in  the
              configuration file, config-file should be an absolute pathname.

       -d debug-level
              Set the daemon's debug level to debug-level.  Debugging  traces
              from named become more verbose as the debug level increases.

       -f     Run the server in the foreground (i.e. do not daemonize).

       -g     Run  the  server  in  the  foreground  and force all logging to
              stderr.

       -n #cpus
              Create #cpus worker threads to take advantage of multiple CPUs.
              If  not  specified,  named  will try to determine the number of
              CPUs present and create one thread per CPU.  If it is unable to
              determine  the  number  of CPUs, a single worker thread will be
              created.

       -p port
              Listen for queries on port port. If not specified, the  default
              is port 53.

       -s     Write memory usage statistics to stdout on exit.

              Note:  This  option  is mainly of interest to BIND 9 developers
              and may be removed or changed in a future release.


       -t directory
              chroot() to directory after processing the command  line  argu-
              ments, but before reading the configuration file.

              Warning:  This option should be used in conjunction with the -u
              option, as chrooting a process running as root doesn't  enhance
              security  on most systems; the way chroot() is defined allows a
              process with root privileges to escape a chroot jail.


       -u user
              setuid() to user after completing privileged  operations,  such
              as creating sockets that listen on privileged ports.

              Note: On Linux, named uses the kernel's capability mechanism to
              drop all root privileges except the  ability  to  bind()  to  a
              privileged  port  and  set  process  resource limits.  Unfortu-
              nately, this means that the -u option only works when named  is
              run  on kernel 2.2.18 or later, or kernel 2.3.99-pre3 or later,
              since previous kernels did not allow privileges to be  retained
              after setuid().


       -v     Report the version number and exit.

       -x cache-file
              Load data from cache-file into the cache of the default view.

              Warning:  This  option must not be used. It is only of interest
              to BIND 9 developers and may be removed or changed in a  future
              release.


SIGNALS
       In  routine operation, signals should not be used to control the name-
       server; rndc should be used instead.

       SIGHUP Force a reload of the server.

       SIGINT, SIGTERM
              Shut down the server.

       The result of sending any other signals to the server is undefined.


CONFIGURATION
       The named configuration file is too  complex  to  describe  in  detail
       here.  A  complete description is provided in the BIND 9 Administrator
       Reference Manual.

FILES
       /etc/named.conf
              The default configuration file.

       /var/run/named.pid
              The default process-id file.

SEE ALSO
       RFC 1033, RFC 1034, RFC 1035, rndc(8), lwresd(8), BIND 9 Administrator
       Reference Manual.

AUTHOR
       Internet Software Consortium



BIND9                           June 30, 2000                        NAMED(8)