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Use dig to inspect DNS answers, whois to examine domain or IP registration data, and ping to test whether ICMP packets reach a host and return. Running the three in that order separates name-resolution problems from routing or filtering problems, while remembering that none of them alone proves an application such as HTTPS is healthy.
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What each command actually tests
These utilities answer different questions, so a useful diagnosis starts by keeping their data layers separate.
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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors| Tool | Data layer | Main target | What a successful result establishes | Important controls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
dig |
DNS resource records and resolver responses | A name and record type, with an optional DNS server | The selected resolver returned a DNS response, such as an address, mail exchanger or delegation result | @server, record type, -x, +trace, output filters |
whois |
Registration or allocation directory data | A domain, IP address, autonomous-system object or other registry object | The queried WHOIS database returned whatever fields it publishes for that object | -h/--host, -I, object and server options |
ping |
ICMP host reachability and round-trip timing | A hostname or IP address | The name resolved (when a hostname was used) and ICMP probes received replies | -4, -6, -c, -W, -w |
A DNS answer does not prove that packets can reach the host. A successful ping does not prove that a web server, game service or API is listening. Conversely, a failed ping can be caused by an ICMP firewall policy even while the application works normally.
Check the Ubuntu tools before troubleshooting
Use the executables supplied for your Ubuntu release. Package names and displayed versions are release-specific, so treat the installed manpages as the authority for the exact build on your machine.
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- Check the DNS client:
dig -v - Check the registration client:
whois --version - Check the ICMP client:
ping -V
If one command does not accept its version flag, run its help output instead, for example dig -h or the command’s documented help option. A missing executable is a local installation issue; it is not evidence that the remote domain or host is broken.
Query DNS records with dig
The basic command shape
dig is designed for interrogating DNS name servers. Its documented form is dig [@server] name type. Without an explicit server, it uses the name servers configured through /etc/resolv.conf. Without a type, it performs an A lookup.
dig example.com
dig example.com A
dig example.com AAAA
dig example.com MX
dig @1.1.1.1 example.com AThe first command asks the configured resolver for an A record. The next two deliberately separate IPv4 and IPv6 answers. The MX query asks for mail exchangers, and the final command sends the A query to the resolver at 1.1.1.1 instead of the servers listed in /etc/resolv.conf. Comparing the default and explicit-server results can reveal a resolver-specific problem.
Read the response sections
A normal dig response is structured rather than being a single “IP address” line. During diagnosis, inspect:
- Status: the DNS result code. It tells you whether the query completed normally, found no such name, or encountered another response condition.
- Flags: indicators such as recursion and whether the answer came from an authoritative server or a recursive resolver.
- ANSWER: records directly answering the question, such as an A, AAAA or MX record.
- AUTHORITY: delegation or authoritative information supplied with the response, often useful when an answer is absent.
- ADDITIONAL: related records supplied alongside the main response, such as address records for listed name servers or mail hosts.
Look at the question’s name and type as well as the returned data. A response can be valid while containing no record of the type you requested. For example, an A query can return no IPv4 address even when an AAAA record exists.
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Reverse lookup an IP address
Use -x for reverse-lookup behavior:
dig -x 192.0.2.10This asks DNS for the address’s reverse-mapping name, normally a PTR record. Reverse DNS is a separate namespace from the forward A or AAAA record. A missing PTR does not, by itself, mean that forward DNS or network connectivity is broken.
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Follow delegation with +trace
dig +trace example.com+trace follows the delegation path from the DNS root toward the requested name. It is useful when a recursive resolver’s answer is difficult to explain because it shows the successive referrals and responses used to reach the domain’s authoritative servers. The trace is a diagnostic view, not a replacement for checking the resolver that ordinary applications use.
Reduce the output for scripts or quick checks
dig +short example.com A
dig +noall +answer example.com MX+short returns a compact representation, useful when you only need address data. +noall +answer suppresses the other sections and leaves the answer section visible. Use the full response again when diagnosing a failure; trimming output can hide the status, flags or authority information that explains it.
Compare resolvers deliberately
When a name works for one person but not another, query the same name and type against the configured resolver and an explicitly selected resolver:
dig example.com A
dig @1.1.1.1 example.com ARecord the status, answer, TTLs and server shown in each response. Different answers can result from caching, split-horizon DNS, policy, propagation or a misconfigured local resolver. Do not call one answer “the Internet’s answer” without identifying which server supplied it.
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Use whois for registration and allocation context
Query a domain or address
The Ubuntu whois client searches an RFC 3912 directory database. It can query a domain name, an IP address, an autonomous-system object or another object supported by the selected database.
whois example.com
whois 192.0.2.10The client attempts to guess a suitable server when possible. The output may include registrar or registry information, allocation ranges, status fields, dates, name servers and contact details, but the exact fields depend on the database and object.
Select the server yourself
whois -h whois.example.net example.com-h (also written --host) directs the query to a particular WHOIS server. This matters when an automatic referral is wrong, when you need to inspect a registry’s view, or when an object is only understood by a specialized database.
Start with IANA and follow the referral
whois -I example.comThe -I option queries whois.iana.org first and then follows the authoritative referral. It is useful for seeing which registry is responsible for a top-level domain before examining that registry’s record.
Understand what WHOIS cannot tell you
- WHOIS is not DNS. A name server listed in a WHOIS record is administrative data; it is not proof that the server currently returns the expected records.
- Different registries and databases publish different schemas. The absence of a field can mean that the server does not provide it, not that the underlying fact does not exist.
- Privacy redaction and registry policies can remove or generalize registrant details.
- A query sent to the wrong server may return an unsupported-object message or an incomplete view. Repeat it with an explicitly selected authoritative server when the result is surprising.
Test reachability with ping
Send a bounded test
ping -c 4 example.comping sends ICMP ECHO_REQUEST packets and waits for ECHO_RESPONSE packets. The command above sends four probes, then reports replies, packet loss and round-trip timing. Using a count keeps a diagnostic test from continuing indefinitely.
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Force IPv4 or IPv6
ping -4 -c 4 example.com
ping -6 -c 4 example.comThese tests can separate an IPv4 path from an IPv6 path. A hostname may have both A and AAAA records while only one address family is reachable from your network. If the IPv6 test fails and the IPv4 test succeeds, investigate IPv6 routing or filtering rather than concluding that the name is entirely offline.
Set a per-reply timeout
ping -c 4 -W 2 example.com-W 2 limits how long the client waits for each reply. This is helpful on a slow or filtered path because the command finishes predictably. The exact timeout behavior and other defaults are documented by the ping manpage installed on your Ubuntu release.
Interpret loss and timing carefully
Replies demonstrate that ICMP packets made a round trip to the responding host or gateway. The summary’s loss percentage describes those probes, not every protocol and not the health of an application. High or variable round-trip times can indicate congestion, a long path or host scheduling, but a single short run is not a performance benchmark.
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Follow these steps in order and keep the command output. The sequence prevents a ping failure from being mistaken for a DNS failure, or a DNS answer from being mistaken for a healthy service.
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- Confirm the local clients. Run
dig -v,whois --versionandping -V(or their help output). If a command is absent, fix the local Ubuntu installation before interpreting remote results. - Ask the configured resolver for the address. Run
dig example.com Aanddig example.com AAAA. Note the status, answer section, server and any authority information. - Check the resolver independently. Repeat the relevant query with
dig @1.1.1.1 example.com A, or another resolver you are authorized to use. If only one resolver fails or differs, the issue is specific to resolver configuration, policy, caching or delegation visibility. - Inspect delegation when answers remain unclear. Run
dig +trace example.com. Follow where the chain stops and compare that point with the status and authority sections from the ordinary query. - Test ICMP by name. Run
ping -c 4 -W 2 example.com. A successful run confirms that this name resolved to an address and that ICMP replies returned from the selected path. - Test each address family. Run the separate
-4and-6commands. This identifies a family-specific route, filter or host-policy problem. - Use an IP only after recording the DNS result. Pinging an address can show whether the path works without another name lookup. It cannot prove that the hostname’s application routing, certificate or virtual-host configuration is correct.
- Use WHOIS for ownership and allocation context. Query the domain and, when relevant, the returned IP. If the automatic result is unclear, use
whois -Ior-hto select the referral or server explicitly. - Escalate at the application layer. If DNS answers are correct and ICMP replies return, but the service still fails, investigate the service protocol, port, authentication, certificate, host header or server logs. Neither
dignorpingperforms that application test.
Common symptom patterns and the next check
| Observed pattern | Most defensible conclusion | Next check |
|---|---|---|
dig returns no usable answer, and ping cannot resolve the name |
Name resolution is the first suspect; reachability has not yet been tested | Inspect status and authority sections, then compare the configured resolver with an explicit resolver |
dig returns an address, but ping reports no replies |
DNS worked for that query; ICMP may be filtered or the route or host policy may be failing | Try ping -4 and ping -6, then test the application separately |
| IPv4 ping succeeds and IPv6 ping fails | The two address families have different reachability | Inspect the AAAA answer and IPv6 routing or filtering |
| Default and explicit-resolver answers differ | The discrepancy is resolver-, policy- or cache-specific | Run +trace and record which server supplied each answer |
| WHOIS shows a domain or IP, but DNS does not match the listed name servers | Administrative registration data and live DNS data are different layers | Query the listed DNS servers directly with dig @server name type |
| WHOIS omits contact or ownership fields | The queried database may redact or not publish those fields | Confirm the server and referral; do not infer a missing value |
Practical command checklist
- General address lookup:
dig example.com - IPv4 record:
dig example.com A - IPv6 record:
dig example.com AAAA - Mail exchangers:
dig example.com MX - Specific resolver:
dig @1.1.1.1 example.com A - Reverse DNS:
dig -x 192.0.2.10 - Delegation trace:
dig +trace example.com - Compact answer:
dig +short example.com A - Answer-only output:
dig +noall +answer example.com MX - Domain registration lookup:
whois example.com - IP allocation lookup:
whois 192.0.2.10 - Explicit WHOIS server:
whois -h whois.example.net example.com - IANA referral:
whois -I example.com - Four ICMP probes:
ping -c 4 example.com - IPv4-only probes:
ping -4 -c 4 example.com - IPv6-only probes:
ping -6 -c 4 example.com - Four probes with a two-second per-reply wait:
ping -c 4 -W 2 example.com
Limits, privacy and safe interpretation
DNS responses are time- and server-dependent. A recursive resolver can serve cached data, while an authoritative server can expose a different stage of the delegation process. Always record the server, query type and response sections alongside the result.
WHOIS queries disclose the object you request to the selected directory service, and returned records can contain personal or organizational information when the registry publishes it. Follow the acceptable-use rules of the server you query. Treat redaction as a property of the database, not as proof that an owner or contact does not exist.
ICMP is commonly filtered. A timeout is therefore an observation about the probe path and policy, not a definitive statement that the host is down. Likewise, a reply from a gateway can show a responding network device without proving that the final application host is reachable.
What a complete diagnosis can and cannot claim
After these checks, you can make precise statements such as “the configured resolver returned an A record,” “the IANA referral led to a particular WHOIS server,” or “four ICMP probes received replies over IPv4.” You cannot claim from those observations alone that a website, game backend or API accepts connections, serves the expected content, has a valid certificate or is available to every user. Those conclusions require an application-layer test that matches the service being investigated.
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