Help understanding DNS on a no-server LAN

[Guest]

I have 3 PCs on a small business workgroup - they are all windows xp 32 pro.
We have a wireless internet gateway for internet access. We're all on the
same workgroup - a simple 'home / small business' LAN.

I am using a piece of software (www.spiceworks.com) which searches the LAN
for PCs (it's looking for WMI information). It searches a range for IP
addresses for potential connections on the LAN (say 192.168.1.1-254). For
each one of these PCs found, it puts some WMI info into its database. Simple
concept.
Except that my LAN has DHCP, so each PC would change the IP every so often.
No problem - the software doesn't store PC info by IP address, but by
hostname.
However, I seem to be unable to get any form of nslookup working.
Neither nslookup ip_address and nslookup host_name works - the console
output is below.
Anybody able to help me out here on how to start to solve this issue ?
I presume that the issue is that I am not running any local DNS server, and
the router isn't acting as one (unless RIP on my router is something that I
should enable - whatever it is).
Many thanks for any help out there.

C:\>nslookup 192.168.1.1
DNS request timed out.
timeout was 2 seconds.
*** Can't find server name for address 192.168.1.254: Timed out
*** Default servers are not available
Server: UnKnown
Address: 192.168.1.254

DNS request timed out.
timeout was 2 seconds.
*** Request to UnKnown timed-out

C:\>

 

[Kerry Brown]

You are correct. You would need a local dns server with your computers
registering themselves with the server.

 

[Guest]

So how do I install an easy DNS server ?
Microsoft Internet Connection Sharing includes a DNS server, but I am not
using DNS.
I would have thought that Microsoft had a solution for DNS lookups on a
workgroup without external software being needed.
Is there a Microsoft solution ?
Having searched a bit on this issue now, I can't see for sure.

Any clues out there please ? Many many thanks !

 

[Kerry Brown]

In workgroups name resolving locally is done with NETBIOS. Make sure NETBIOS
is enabled on all computers. It won't fix the nslookup problem but it may
fix any problems applications are having.

 

[Jim]

I have 3 PCs on a small business workgroup - they are all windows xp 32
pro.
We have a wireless internet gateway for internet access. We're all on the
same workgroup - a simple 'home / small business' LAN.

I am using a piece of software (www.spiceworks.com) which searches the LAN
for PCs (it's looking for WMI information). It searches a range for IP
addresses for potential connections on the LAN (say 192.168.1.1-254). For
each one of these PCs found, it puts some WMI info into its database.
Simple
concept.
Except that my LAN has DHCP, so each PC would change the IP every so
often.
No problem - the software doesn't store PC info by IP address, but by
hostname.
However, I seem to be unable to get any form of nslookup working.
Neither nslookup ip_address and nslookup host_name works - the console
output is below.
Anybody able to help me out here on how to start to solve this issue ?
I presume that the issue is that I am not running any local DNS server,
and
the router isn't acting as one (unless RIP on my router is something that
I
should enable - whatever it is).
Many thanks for any help out there.

C:\>nslookup 192.168.1.1
DNS request timed out.
timeout was 2 seconds.
*** Can't find server name for address 192.168.1.254: Timed out
*** Default servers are not available
Server: UnKnown
Address: 192.168.1.254

DNS request timed out.
timeout was 2 seconds.
*** Request to UnKnown timed-out

C:\>

You could consider using the HOSTS file for that purpose. It isn't too
difficult to keep the addresses of 3 computers consistent if they have
identical copies of that file.
Jim