DNS, we have a problem...

[Rob Carroll IndusCom]

Hey guys,
OK, here's one for you...

I've got a Win2K domain, running in native mode. Originally there was
only one server, acting as DC, DHCP, DNS, and file/print. Eventually,
people started having trouble resolving hostnames... they could ping
by IP, but DNS wouldn't work. So, I figured I'd take some of the load
off the server, and built a second Win2K server, acting as a second DC
and DNS.

So now, with two DNS servers (the new one is the primary DNS), things
worked great for a couple weeks. But the problem has started to
reappear. Here's a better description of the problem:

After a hard reboot (power loss, etc.) or sometimes just out of
nowhere, people will be unable to resolve hostnames. NSLOOKUP can't
connect to the DNS server. Pinging by IP works, though. If I do:
IPCONFIG /RELEASE
IPCONFIG /FLUSHDNS
ARP -D
IPCONFIG /RENEW

This doesn't fix it. However, if I do the first three commands, and
reboot instead of the /RENEW, it usually works. Sometimes it may take
a couple of reboots for it to work.

Any ideas?

Thanks,
Rob

 

[Kevin D. Goodknecht]

Hey guys,
OK, here's one for you...

I've got a Win2K domain, running in native mode. Originally there was
only one server, acting as DC, DHCP, DNS, and file/print. Eventually,
people started having trouble resolving hostnames... they could ping
by IP, but DNS wouldn't work. So, I figured I'd take some of the load
off the server, and built a second Win2K server, acting as a second DC
and DNS.

So now, with two DNS servers (the new one is the primary DNS), things
worked great for a couple weeks. But the problem has started to
reappear. Here's a better description of the problem:

After a hard reboot (power loss, etc.) or sometimes just out of
nowhere, people will be unable to resolve hostnames. NSLOOKUP can't
connect to the DNS server. Pinging by IP works, though. If I do:
IPCONFIG /RELEASE
IPCONFIG /FLUSHDNS
ARP -D
IPCONFIG /RENEW

This doesn't fix it. However, if I do the first three commands, and
reboot instead of the /RENEW, it usually works. Sometimes it may take
a couple of reboots for it to work.

Any ideas?

Thanks,
Rob

Can you please post an ipconfig /all from the DC and one of the clients?

 

[Shane Brasher]

Hello All,

Yes, an ipconfig would be helpful.

Things to try when this occurs:
1.) From the client do a ping -a ipaddress of the DNS server.
2.) Run a netdiag on the server and client to see what kind of errors may
show up on the output.
3.) Setup netmon on the DNS server to see if the client request actually
make it to the server.

Shane Brasher
MCSE (2000,NT),MCSA, A+
Microsoft Platforms Support
Windows NT/2000 Networking