NetBIOS Name Resolution

[titan]

So, on my Linux client I have to type:

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$ mount.cifs //ser.ve.r.ip/share mount/point

What I'd like to type is:

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$ mount.cifs //servername/share mount/point

I've added "wins" to the hosts line of nsswitch.conf on the client, but that didn't do the trick. Is there something I have to do on the server?

The Windows clients use the server name just fine. It's just my Linux client that does not seem to make the connection...pun intended.

[smakkythecamel]

If it's just 1 client can you manually add an entry to the hosts file? /etc/hosts I believe. this will match the hostname to IP address and you should be sweet. There could also be a different file that you do this to, but I can't remember what it is at the moment.

[titan]

If it's just 1 client can you manually add an entry to the hosts file? /etc/hosts I believe. this will match the hostname to IP address and you should be sweet. There could also be a different file that you do this to, but I can't remember what it is at the moment.

Editing the hosts file would be a last resort. Actually, I wouldn't have to edit the hosts file at all since it already has the address of the server in there.

I want to resolve the NetBIOS name, not a domain name.

[SecretSquirrel]

You need to look into the configuration of winbindd that comes with Samba. It is designed to allow a Unix system to use wins name resolution. Also, the shortname of the server is likely not in the hosts file.

Change this

192.168.0.1 foobar.somedomain.com

To this

192.168.0.1 foobar.somedomain.com foobar

In the hosts file so that your system can resolve the shortname as well. If the WINS name is different then the shortname, you can append the WINS name to the line as well.

--SS

[titan]

You need to look into the configuration of winbindd that comes with Samba. It is designed to allow a Unix system to use wins name resolution. Also, the shortname of the server is likely not in the hosts file.

Change this

192.168.0.1 foobar.somedomain.com

To this

192.168.0.1 foobar.somedomain.com foobar

In the hosts file so that your system can resolve the shortname as well. If the WINS name is different then the shortname, you can append the WINS name to the line as well.

--SS

I know that the short name isn't in the hosts file. I haven't put it in there. Let's all forget the hosts file for a while, okay? I'm not asking how to edit that because I know precisely what to do with it. Also, it does not answer NetBIOS name resolution.

I'm looking into winbind right now. I had compiled Samba without it enabled on the Linux client, so I'll find out in a few minutes if that the solution.

[titan]

winbind is the answer. On my client I configured the samba init script to just start winbind -- I don't need the whole server starting -- and that was it.

Thanks for the nudge, SS.