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wtf is net-dns?

neocturne/net-dns — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-07-17 · repo last pushed 2012-05-13

★ 2RubyAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5DormantSetup · easy

TL;DR

A pure-Ruby library for looking up domain name (DNS) information in code, instead of shelling out to tools like dig or nslookup.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      DNS lookups in Ruby
      Parses server responses
      No shelling out
    Tech stack
      Ruby
      No dependencies
    Use cases
      Audit domain configs
      Find mail servers
      Build network tools
    Audience
      Developers
      Sysadmins
    Ease of use
      Simple API
      One line lookups

Code map

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Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Write a script that checks whether a list of domains are correctly configured.

REASON 2

Look up all the mail servers for a domain to understand its email setup.

REASON 3

Build a web crawler or email client that needs DNS resolution without external tools.

REASON 4

Automate network audits by querying nameservers directly from Ruby code.

What's in the stack?

Ruby

How it stacks up

neocturne/net-dnskelseyhightower/lobstersmastodon/webpush
Stars222
LanguageRubyRubyRuby
Last pushed2012-05-132016-08-142025-01-13
MaintenanceDormantDormantStale
Setup difficultyeasyhardmoderate
Complexity2/54/52/5
Audiencedeveloperops devopsdeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
Write a Ruby script using net-dns that checks if a list of domains have valid MX records.
Prompt 2
Show me how to use net-dns to look up the IP address for a domain name.
Prompt 3
Using net-dns, write a script that finds all authoritative nameservers for a given domain.
Prompt 4
Explain how to install and use net-dns in an existing Ruby project.

Frequently asked questions

wtf is net-dns?

A pure-Ruby library for looking up domain name (DNS) information in code, instead of shelling out to tools like dig or nslookup.

What language is net-dns written in?

Mainly Ruby. The stack also includes Ruby.

Is net-dns actively maintained?

Dormant — no commits in 2+ years (last push 2012-05-13).

How hard is net-dns to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is net-dns for?

Mainly developer.

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