SYNOPSIS

       rndc [-c config-file] [-k key-file] [-s server] [-p port] [-V]
            [-y key_id] {command}

DESCRIPTION

       rndc controls the operation of a name server. It supersedes the ndc
       utility that was provided in old BIND releases. If rndc is invoked with
       no command line options or arguments, it prints a short summary of the
       supported commands and the available options and their arguments.

       rndc communicates with the name server over a TCP connection, sending
       commands authenticated with digital signatures. In the current versions
       of rndc and named named the only supported authentication algorithm is
       HMAC-MD5, which uses a shared secret on each end of the connection.
       This provides TSIG-style authentication for the command request and the
       name server's response. All commands sent over the channel must be
       signed by a key_id known to the server.

       rndc reads a configuration file to determine how to contact the name
       server and decide what algorithm and key it should use.

OPTIONS

       -c config-file
              Use config-file as the configuration file instead of the
              default, /etc/rndc.conf.

       -k key-file
              Use key-file as the key file instead of the default,
              /etc/rndc.key. The key in /etc/rndc.key will be used to
              authenticate commands sent to the server if the config-file does
              not exist.

       -s server
              server is the name or address of the server which matches a
              server statement in the configuration file for rndc. If no
              server is supplied on the command line, the host named by the
              default-server clause in the option statement of the
              configuration file will be used.

       -p port
              Send commands to TCP port port instead of BIND 9's default
              control channel port, 953.

       -V     Enable verbose logging.

       -y keyid
              Use the key keyid from the configuration file.  keyid must be
              known by named with the same algorithm and secret string in
              order for control message validation to succeed. If no keyid is
              specified, rndc will first look for a key clause in the server
              statement of the server being used, or if no server statement is
              present for that host, then the default-key clause of the

       Several error messages could be clearer.

SEE ALSO

       rndc.conf(5), named(8), named.conf(5)ndc(8), BIND 9 Administrator
       Reference Manual.

AUTHOR

       Internet Systems Consortium



BIND9                            June 30, 2000                         RNDC(8)