HESIOD.CONF(5)

📦
version 3.2.1 · 3 versions
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💖 HESIOD.CONF(5) 💖

okay bestie, gather round, because this is a File Formats Manual page and it's literally about the config file for the Hesiod library. yes, the file is called hesiod.conf. yes, it's giving "tiny file, big responsibilities." let's go 🎀

✨ NAME ✨

hesiod.conf — the configuration file for the Hesiod library 🦋

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

so the file hesiod.conf is the thing that decides how the Hesiod library behaves. that's it, that's the whole vibe. it's the main character of this page 💅

here's the rules, no cap:

  • blank lines? ignored. bye 👋
  • lines starting with a # character? also ignored. they're just little diary entries 🎀
  • every other line has to look like variable = value, and lowkey the value has to be a single word. one word. don't get cute with it.

and these are the variables and values you can use:

  • lhs — this one sets the domain prefix that Hesiod uses for its queries. in almost all cases you should be writing lhs=.ns. and if you don't specify an lhs value at all, the default is no domain prefix, which — heads up — is not compatible with most Hesiod domains 😭 so like, specify it, bestie.
  • rhs — this sets the default Hesiod domain. plot twist: this value can be overridden by the HES_DOMAIN environment variable 👀. and listen, you must specify an rhs line for the Hesiod library to work properly. non-negotiable, fr fr.
  • classes — this one tells Hesiod which DNS classes it should do lookups in. your options are:
    • IN — the preferred class ✨
    • HS — the deprecated class 💀 still used by some sites though, so we respect it
    • you can also specify both classes separated by a comma — that means it tries one class first, and if there's no entry available in that first class, it goes and tries the other one. very "if at first you don't succeed" of it 🫶
    • and the default value of the classes variable is IN,HS

👑 SEE ALSO 👑

💀 BUGS 💀

ngl, there's a typo-looking sentence here and we're keeping it real: There default value for lhs should probably be more reasonable. like... yeah. it should. we said what we said 🙈

🌈 the cute sign-off 🌈

this lil page is from the HESIOD.CONF(5) manual, dated 30 November 1996 — yes, a 90s icon, and it still ate 💅 periodt. go configure something, bestie 🦋✨

📦 where this page comes from