This is a continuation of the headless install document at http://ipliance.com/index.php/eng/Install/Mini-Server-Headless-Install

In this case, a problem with FQDN.

What do do?

A good place to continue from here is to read the "Next Steps" pdf file generated automatically by Server Setup and placed on the server desktop. In this particular instance, it has some helpful hints regarding how to correctly set up DNS services.

****From the PDF file****************************

If your server only needs to be accessed by clients on the your local network (IP subnet), your server can provide the necessary domain name resolution. In order for your clients to use your server for name resolution, you need to configure your server’s DNS service to provide DNS forwarding, and then configure your DHCP server (usually your network router) to provide your server address (192.168.1.109) as the primary DNS server. To configure DNS forwarding, make a note of the DNS servers that are currently being used by your router or DHCP server. Open Server Admin, connect to your server, select DNS service, click Settings, and then add those DNS servers to the Forwarder IP Addresses list. For information about how to change the DNS servers that your router or DHCP server provides to clients, see the manual for your device.

********************************

Use Server Admin to correct DNS problems. The server may only be accessible using it's ip address during DNS configuration.

Checking DNS in Server Admin displays an obvious problem. The .109, the original setup ip provided by DHCP, is in the zone record. 192.168.1.5, the new manually configured ip address, should be the server ip address.

Editing the existing zone file..

..then using Network utility on a client to check forward and reverse DNS lookups proved fruitless.

The only way I have so far discovered to reliably change DNS zones:

• Stop the DNS service.
• Completely remove the DNS Zone files.
• Create new Zone files with the corrected information.
• Restart DNS

Then when Network Utility on a client resolves ip to FQDN and FQDN to ip, finish up the steps to make this server the authoritative DNS for the local network. Basically follow the "Next Steps" pdf document.

Set the house router to use this server for primary DNS. Every router configuration screen is different, primary DNS setting is available somewhere on all of them. Make a note of the ip addresses the router is currently using for DNS resolution.

Enter, as forwarding ip addresses, the list of DNS servers the router was formerly using.

**Very Important, easy to miss**

Open screen sharing on the server, access System Preferences, set the server to look to itself for name resolution. That is, change DNS server from 192.168.1.1 to 192.168.1.5 but leave the router set to 192.168.1.1. 127.0.0.1,<router ip> in the DNS Server field for Network settings on the server.

Verify the server can still access the outside world..

Client computers can cache DNS information. This causes some fuzzy problems until the next DHCP renewal. There are command line ways to forcibly clear these caches. In my experience, it has been reliable enough just to remove any mention of 192.168.1.1 from the DNS server settings on the clients and reboot them. Temporarily switching DHCP modes will also work, when that is easier.

UPDATED May 05, 2010

Did a DNS with TLD of .house and seems to work.

In terminal window on server as root:

#hostname mini3.brethower.house

#host 192.168.1.5

returns name point to mini3.brethower.house

#changeip -checkhostname

Returns the same results as the two commands above with one command.

END OF UPDATE

More info, or want expert heavy lifting? In Southwest, MO, doug.brethower@lakedata.net

Elsewhere, look for a member of the Apple Consultants Network. ACTC - Apple Certified Technical Coordinators. Experts who are educated and trained, who care about giving clients the personalized service and attention to detail that maximizes the value of Apple Server Systems.