Very Computer

Our site has Suns running sunos 4.1.1. We use network file system and
NIS extensively throughout the site therefore the machines need to
access the /etc/hosts (which is NIS mapped) so they can know where
to access NFS files at boot time.

Currently, we are not using the name server that is being established
for the company but we are thinking about connecting to it.

I am concerned because once we connect to it (by establishing a
resolv.conf file) we may no longer have access to the /etc/hosts file
locally. We have requirement where we have to set up temporary machines
in our network which we dont want to have listed in the domain name
server but we want to put in the local NIS host map or the machine's
local /etc/hosts file.

I have tried the manuals and some experimenting and found:

1. The manuals were not clear on how to have the gethost functions access
   both the domain name server and the local host files.

2. A local site that I have an account on using a Vax running ULTRIX seems
   to have done the trick, but I poked around and could not see anything
   special with their resolv.conf file and they are running as a domain
   server (no named.boot files and nothing in rc files to start the named
   daemon).

3. Another site that I have access to which is running resolv but not a
   name server (a Sun running sunos 4.0.3) will not access both the
   name server and the /etc/hosts file at the same time. ( I tried
   to rlogin into itself using the name of the machine without the
   domain name and it could not find it)

I would greatly appreciate any help you folks may have. Thanks!

Mark Allyn
206-526-8852
206-865-4699

If you would like a copy of this, please let me know.  Basically it understands
DNS/bind, and /etc/hosts.  I have no use for YP/NIC, so I didn't bother.  The
order of resolution is configurable.

Drop me a note if you would like a copy.  It's no harder to install than adding
the resolver stuff to libc.

        -Jeff
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