GNet Solutions » FreeBSD Administration

A name server is one of the most critical servers on a network, it allows for the translation of host names into IP addresses; as well as a few other really neat functions. This is a guide for setting up a simple DNS server along with Webmin for graphical administration.

• Install BIND:
  

  pkg install bind912 bind-tools
  

• Start and enable BIND at boot:
  

  sysrc named_enable="YES" 
  service named start
  

  • NOTE: Since I am already running my DNS inside of a jail I need to disable automatic chrooting of BIND via the following command:
    

    sysrc named_chrootdir="" 
    

GUI Frontend¶

• Install Webmin
  

  pkg install webmin
  

• Enable Webmin at boot:
  

  echo 'webmin_enable="YES"' >> /etc/rc.conf
  

• Run the Webmin setup.sh script in order to setup the various config files:
  

  /usr/local/lib/webmin/setup.sh
  

• Log into the Webmin panel and go to Servers -> BIND DNS Server -> Edit Config File and change the listen-on parameter so the DNS server will listen on the network:
  

  listen-on    { 192.168.16.66; };