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Testing DNS Resolution

A Linux system administrator is expected to know how to configure a system's DNS settings. Nearly all modern Linux distributions use NetworkManager to handle a host's DNS settings. In this learning activity, we will utilize the `nmcli` utility to configure our DNS resolution.

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Level
Clock icon Beginner
Duration
Clock icon 30m
Last updated
Clock icon Aug 30, 2025

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Table of Contents

  1. Challenge

    Review current DNS configuration.

    You have successfully been able to ping the gateway for the network. Now you need to verify that the system is capable of communicating with the network. Do the following to complete the review:

    1. Run the host command to see if your system can resolve hostnames to IP addresses.
    2. Check to see what DNS server entries you have in the /etc/resolv.conf file.
    3. Review your network connections via the ip and the nmcli commands.
    4. Your default connection should be highlighted with the name System ens5. (Hardware changes may result in the name of the active interface changing, proceed with the lab using the name shown in place of 'ens5'.)
    5. Use the nmcli command again to review your DNS IP settings.

  2. Challenge

    Configure your system to use your network's DNS.

    1. Use the nmcli command to modify the system's default connection to use the network's DNS server.
    2. Verify the settings by using the nmcli command, and by checking the /etc/resolv.conf file.
    3. Re-activate the network connection to have our /etc/resolv.confshow the new DNS server.
    4. Verify your settings once more.
    5. Attempt to resolve a hostname to an IP address.
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