Looking Up Domains and Hosts with Nslookup

CS 3000 -- Lab Assignment #6

DIRECTIONS: Before you start, scan the man page for nslookup. When you do the lab, type nslookup commands equivalent to the ones you see typed below, and examine the output. Ask questions.
 /* Start interactive nslookup. */
john@alcyone: nslookup

Default Server:  altair.csustan.edu
Address:  130.17.1.50


/* Select the primary nameserver at Cal Tech.

   We got the domain name while doing a previous lab (whois).
   We used the command:

 whois -h whois.networksolutions.com caltech.edu */

> server MERCUTIO.NI.CALTECH.EDU

Default Server:  MERCUTIO.NI.CALTECH.EDU
Address:  131.215.254.99

 

/* Enter one of the host names we got from using the command:

 whois -h whois.networksolutions.com \*caltech.edu */

See if the nameserver gives a translation to an IP number. */

> CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU
Server:  MERCUTIO.NI.CALTECH.EDU
Address:  131.215.254.99

Name:    CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU
Address:  131.215.131.131

/* Tell nslookup you want to get info about mail hubs for hosts. */

> set querytype=MX

/* Get info about this host. */

> CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU 
Server:  MERCUTIO.NI.CALTECH.EDU
Address:  131.215.254.99

/* We find out that vlsi.cs.caltech.edu and
   CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU are designated mail hubs for mail
   addressed to CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU.  The hub with the higher
   preference (lower number) will be tried first. */

CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU preference = 10, mail exchanger = vlsi.cs.caltech.edu
CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU preference = 0, mail exchanger = CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU
cs.caltech.edu  nameserver = CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU
cs.caltech.edu  nameserver = vlsi.cs.caltech.edu
cs.caltech.edu  nameserver = mercutio.ni.caltech.edu
cs.caltech.edu  nameserver = tepid.ni.caltech.edu
cs.caltech.edu  nameserver = tybalt.caltech.edu
vlsi.cs.caltech.edu     internet address = 131.215.131.129
CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU    internet address = 131.215.131.131
mercutio.ni.caltech.edu internet address = 131.215.254.99
tepid.ni.caltech.edu    internet address = 131.215.254.100
tybalt.caltech.edu      internet address = 131.215.139.100

/* Ask Mercutio to give us a complete list of all the hosts
   in its database for the domain cs.caltech.edu. */ 

> ls -d cs.caltech.edu
[MERCUTIO.NI.CALTECH.EDU]
                        1H IN SOA       csvax hostmaster (
                                        10091158        ; serial
                                        12H             ; refresh
                                        1H              ; retry
                                        6W              ; expiry
                                        1H )            ; minimum

                        1H IN NS        csvax
                        1H IN NS        vlsi
                        1H IN NS        mercutio.ni.caltech.edu.
                        1H IN NS        tepid.ni.caltech.edu.
                        1H IN NS        tybalt.caltech.edu.
                        1H IN MX        10 vlsi
                        1H IN MX        0 csvax
                        1H IN A         131.215.131.131
sol                     1H IN A         131.215.131.144
                        1H IN HINFO     "sun-2/170" "SunOS"
a                       1H IN CNAME     ariadne
mani-ce                 1H IN A         131.215.44.49
                        1H IN MX        0 smtp
                        1H IN HINFO     "NEC MobilePro 800" "CE"
byk                     1H IN HINFO     "NT" "machine"
                        1H IN A         131.215.44.32
donald                  1H IN CNAME     donald.gg.caltech.edu.
pshome                  1H IN A         131.215.131.12
c                       1H IN CNAME     centauri
z-ha-dum-vpc            1H IN A         131.215.44.33
                        1H IN MX        0 @
d                       1H IN CNAME     dogmatix
tethys                  1H IN A         131.215.131.46
                        1H IN MX        0 vlsi
cit-adel                1H IN CNAME     citadel
arvocsnet               1H IN A         131.215.131.15
ascend                  1H IN A         131.215.44.71
                        1H IN HINFO     "tracker" "unknown"
chopin                  1H IN A         131.215.131.58
                        1H IN HINFO     "Toshiba" "Win95"
SMudd-RSM-44            1H IN A         131.215.44.253
g                       1H IN CNAME     guitar
baton                   1H IN CNAME     maestro
spica                   1H IN A         131.215.44.9
                        1H IN HINFO     "PC" "linux"
h                       1H IN CNAME     harpsichord
hub                     1H IN A         131.215.131.51
                        1H IN MX        0 @
i                       1H IN CNAME     impedimenta
emerald                 1H IN MX        0 @
                        1H IN HINFO     "SGI-Octane" "IRIX6.5"
                        1H IN A         131.215.44.19
bassoon                 1H IN HINFO     "P5/120" "BSD"
                        1H IN MX        0 csvax
                        1H IN A         131.215.78.25

/* There were a lot more hosts. 
   I deleted the rest of the information. */

/* Get back into the mode in which nslookup translates from
   domain names to IP numbers. */

> set querytype=A

/* Set the current hostname to CSVAX */

> CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU

Server:  MERCUTIO.NI.CALTECH.EDU
Address:  131.215.254.99

Name:    CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU
Address:  131.215.131.131

/* Ask who is logged on to CSVAX */

> finger
[CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU]
  User     Real Name         What    Idle  TTY  Host      Console Location
adam     Adam Rifkin                 0:27  *p0 picasso  (131.215.138.63)
bond     Alan Bond                  3 days *q0 varese   (manchester.cs.ca)
casteel  Andrew M. Casteel           1:13  *p3 varese   (parsley.cacr.cal)
huny     Hunyue Yau                  0:03   p1 csvax    (varese.cs.caltec)
huny     Hunyue Yau                        *p1 varese   (w242.z208176134.)
jia      Jia Mao                     3:05  *p1 rubens   (131.215.82.182:0)
jlm      Jacob L. Mandelson          1:25  *p0 recorder (eta-ex1.ghs.com)
matta    Matt Ashton                3 days *p0 lute     (antigen.cs.calte)
mika     Mika Nystroem              2 days *pf varese   (dogmatix.cs.calt)
mika     Mika Nystroem               6:47   p3 csvax    (varese.cs.caltec)
yrliu    Yurun Liu                   0:47  *p2 chagall  (:0.0)

/* See what specific information we can get about Adam Rifkin */

> finger adam
[CSVAX.CS.CALTECH.EDU]

Adam Rifkin (adam)
Home: /ufs/wlp/adam
Shell: /usr/local/etc/tcsh
Mail forwarded to adam@vlsi.cs.caltech.edu.
  User     Real Name         What    Idle  TTY  Host      Console Location
adam     Adam Rifkin                 0:27  *p0 picasso  (131.215.138.63)

Plan:
Thwart the exceptional. Concentrate the wealth. Answer prayer, but late, and
without attention to detail. Intervene in a manner that suggests you haven't
been following the story. Break up the Beatles. Let good things happen to bad
people. Let bad behavior be mistaken for talent. Require compromise. Create
gossip, infection, butter. Make toilets in Europe difficult to flush.
Encourage Andy Rooney. Give people hormones before they have completed 
their educations. Create the impression that hair color determines
personality. Make people wait for long periods of time, often under    
fluorescent lighting.  Let the shrinking of elderly people's bodies coincide
with their sudden desire to own very large cars.  Let there be berets. Let
there be child performers. Let there be autobiography.  Let there be Cher.
  (from Henry Alford, New York Times Sunday Magazine, 5 February 1995)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
    work address:  Caltech Mail Stop 256-80, Pasadena, CA 91125-5222.
    home address:  285 West California #11, Pasadena, CA 91105.
  phone home: (626) 449-4123,  work: (626) 395-4840,  fax: (626) 792-4257.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

*

/* Note: the information we got above is quite a bit more
   than what we could get just from typing "finger
   adam@csvax.cs.caltech.edu" at a unix prompt. */

/* Change the nameserver.  This time it is one of our
   department NeXT's that runs named. */

> server csustan.csustan.edu

Default Server:  csustan.csustan.edu
Address:  130.17.1.70

/* Set the current hostname to POLLUX. */

> pollux
Server:  csustan.csustan.edu
Address:  130.17.1.70

Name:    pollux.csustan.edu
Address:  130.17.1.55

/* Ask who is logged on to POLLUX. */

> finger
[pollux.csustan.edu]
Login       Name               TTY         Idle    When    Where
amb      Amberse Banks         pts/6          1 Sat 21:51  kali.csustan.edu    

> exit