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Gok Demir
Asked: 2011-07-19 09:14:40 +0800 CST

How to reload /etc/hosts file in AIX without reboot

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How to reload /etc/hosts file in AIX without reboot? I am trying to ping a new entry but it still shows previous version. Thanks

aix hosts

3 Answers

  1. Flush the netcd DNS cache:

    netcdctrl -t dns -e hosts -f

    Hostname lookup order is determined using /etc/irs.conf, /etc/netsvc.conf and then $NSORDER.

    Keep in mind though, that irs.conf and $NSORDER are typically not used.

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  2. The hosts file change should be immediate. But AIX can be configured to look at DNS first and the hosts file second. Check the /etc/netsvc.conf file to see if "local" is listed first.

    If you are running named on the server you may need to restart it for DNS lookups... but the hosts file isn't normally cached anywhere.

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  3. I had the same problem and my new entry was the last line in the /etc/hosts file. I added a new blank line to the end of the file and magically it worked! :)

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