Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!jarthur!arnold
From: arnold@jarthur.Claremont.EDU (Arnold de Leon)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip.domains
Subject: Is there a standard for handling localhost.domain and localhost.
Keywords: named localhost 127.0.0.1
Message-ID: <5249@jarthur.Claremont.EDU>
Date: 21 Mar 90 06:17:57 GMT
Organization: Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA 91711
Lines: 43

Is there a "standard" or recommended way of handling
"localhost.domain" (where domain is the local domain name) and
"localhost." (top level) with a nameserver?

Do most people configure localhost.domain to have A record
pointing to 127.0.0.1?

Querying one of the root nameservers for "localhost."
returns A record for 127.0.0.1.

A random survey of a couple of other domains reveal
that the nameservers for those domain return A pointing to
127.0.0.1 when asked for localhost.domain (using a random set
of domains).

The primary nameserver for Claremont.edu currently has the following
entry:

localhost	IN	CNAME	localhost.
localhost.	IN	A	127.0.0.1

Querying the primary server for "localhost." and "localhost.claremont.edu"
eventually return A record with 127.0.0.1 (with extra side trips to
the root nameservers).

Here is the problem:

The secondary nameserver is failing to get A record for "localhost."
and "localhost.claremont.edu"

What I need is something to convice our hostmaster to have the record
localhast	IN	A	127.0.0.1

instead.  If one doesn't exist I will to fight with our server
(we're the secondary) to work around the problem.

Thanks for advice.

-- 

Arnold de Leon                       arnold@jarthur.claremont.edu
Computer Science Dept., HMC          uunet!jarthur!arnold
Claremont, CA 91711                  arnold@hmcvax.bitnet