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D34DM347
Asked: 2015-09-01 08:01:13 +0800 CST

What's the difference between listing nameservers in /etc/resolv.conf and /etc/network/interfaces in Ubuntu 12.04?

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I am deploying Ubuntu 12.04 VM's from a template using vCenter 5.5. When I try to add nameservers using a customization specification they are added to the resolv.conf file. The VM will not use these nameservers, and will be unable to resolve names. I can, however, manually specify the same nameservers using the dig command and successfully resolve names. If I manually add nameservers to /etc/network/interfaces the VM will use them and becomes able to resolve names. What is the cause of this behavior?

ubuntu

1 Answers

  1. Best Answer

    If you have resolvconf installed on your system it will manage /etc/resolv.conf for you. Anything you manually put into resolv.conf will be replaced eventually, which is why name servers need to be defined in /etc/network/interfaces or the interfaces.d directory.

    If you want to control resolv.conf manually remove the resolvconf package.

    Note: It is typically best to configure and manage your system based on the best practices defined by your distribution or vendor. If you remove resolvconf make sure you aren't breaking anything else that requires it.

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