Python DNS Utilities

[Phil Edwards]

Hi Everybody:

I'm looking at putting together some kind of generic abstraction layer for 
handling DNS configuration files (adding entries to /etc/named.conf, 
adding/removing RR's to/from zone files, etc, etc) using Python.

Has anybody done any similar work in this area who might be willing to 
share ideas/code? I have some basic stuff working already (thanks to the 
guy who was doing my job before me) but this needs some work to improve the 
performance and extend the functionality in certain areas.

I've already looked (v. briefly!) at the pyDNS module, but this is 
concerned mainly with implementing a DNS client using Python, and I'm 
interested in the admin tasks involved in running a DNS server.

My particular issue at the moment is finding an efficient way to parse the 
torturous syntax which is permitted in the 'named.conf' file. I'm currently 
using the 'shlex' module to do this, but the code is a bit of a nightmare.

I'm even beginning to wonder if it might not be quicker to just put the 
whole DNS system into a Postgres database and maintain it from 
there...seems a shame to waste all the hard work my predecessor did though.

-- 

Regards

Phil Edwards
UNIX Systems Administrator
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