Problem with DHCP, /etc/hosts and GNOME

[Keven Ring]

Julien Olivier wrote:

>>I'm sure that they have their reasons.  But, I don't think that its 
>>required in /etc/hosts...  Just reversible [that is, they can look up an 
>>IP address for your hostname].
>>
>>    
>>
>
>Oh I see. Well, my DHCP server gives me the following hostname:
>
>[root at rfc1918 julien]# hostname
>rfc1918.space.should.not.be.used.on.publicips
>
>I think it's a weird hostname, and my modem probably does something
>wrong...
>
>Anyway, such a hostname is probably not reversible unless I add it
>manually in /etc/hosts just next to 127.0.0.1, which works.
>
>  
>
>>In my /etc/sysconfig/network file, I have the following:
>>
>>NETWORKING=yes
>>HOSTNAME=localhost.localdomain
>>
>>Then, my /etc/hosts file has:
>>
>>127.0.0.1   localhost.localdomain localhost
>>
>>It works for me with DHCP.
>>
>>    
>>
>
>I have exactly the same thing in /etc/sysconfig/network, but when the
>eth0 connection is started, my hostname changes to this strange
>"rfc1918.space.should.not.be.used.on.publicips".
>  
>
I'm very surprised, though, that your router gives you a different 
hostname every time, and isn't providing DNS services.  Perhaps it 
does...  Do you have the line:

PEERDNS=yes

in your /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0

If not, add it, and see what happens...

If you get the same behavior as before, then:

In the /etc/sysconf/network file, change localhost.localdomain to 
something else, like
my.own.private.hostname.com

Then, in you /etc/hosts file, add "my.own.private.hostname.com" to the 
127.0.0.1 line, eg:

127.0.0.1   localhost.localdomain localhost my.own.private.hostname.com

This will prevent the DHCP client from asking the server for a 
hostname.  Of course, if the router is giving you a different IP address 
every time, then home networking will be really messed up....

-- 
Keven Ring               | "Oh no,  Not Again..."
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