5 Example Usage of the rndc Command

The rndc command enables you to administer the named service.

See the following manual pages for more information:
  • rndc(8)
  • rndc-confgen(8)
  • named(8)

Enable Remote Usage of rndc

The named service is administered locally. If the service is configured in the controls section of the /etc/named.conf file, then you can also use the command line to manage named remotely. To prevent unauthorized access to the service, rndc must be configured to listen on the selected port (by default, port 953), and both named and rndc must have access to the same key. To generate a suitable key, use the rndc-confgen command: 

sudo rndc-confgen -a

The command creates the /etc/rndc.key file.

Check the Status of the named Service

Check the status of the named service as follows: 

sudo rndc status
number of zones: 3
debug level: 0
xfers running: 0
xfers deferred: 0
soa queries in progress: 0
query logging is OFF
recursive clients: 0/1000
tcp clients: 0/100
server is up and running

Reload Configuration Files after Changes

If you change the named configuration file or zone files, the rndc reload command instructs named to reload the files: 

sudo rndc reload