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dig (command)
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<p>dig is a <a href="/facts/Network_administration/w344Ubfp">network administration</a> <a href="/facts/Command-line_tool/R9JpGmXQ">command-line tool</a> for querying the <a href="/facts/Domain_Name_System/rfxdWFsj">Domain Name System</a> (DNS). </p><p>dig is useful for network troubleshooting and for educational purposes. It can operate based on command line option and flag arguments, or in batch mode by reading requests from an operating system file. When a specific <a href="/facts/Name_server/pUgmBMNW">name server</a> is not specified in the command invocation, it uses the operating system's default resolver, usually configured in the file <a href="/facts/Resolv.conf/2ePf9Dbw">resolv.conf</a>. Without any arguments it queries the <a href="/facts/DNS_root_zone/pVhV8cWh">DNS root zone</a>. </p><p>dig supports <a href="/facts/Internationalized_domain_name/nbaJweyM">Internationalized domain name</a> (IDN) queries. </p><p>dig is a component of the domain name server software suite <a href="/facts/BIND/Mj5qNIuW">BIND</a>. dig supersedes in functionality older tools, such as <a href="/facts/Nslookup/R1vTlsSq">nslookup</a> and the program <a href="/facts/Host_(Unix)/zyIo8CLE">host</a>; however, the older tools are still used in complementary fashion. </p>