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Proxy By Hostname Windows DNS Configuration

When using EZproxy with proxy by hostname, you need to create two Domain Name System (DNS) entries, one of which contains a wildcard. The following steps explain how to create the required entries under Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 200x.

For purposes of this document, assume that you are adding the entries ezproxy.yourlib.org and *.ezproxy.yourlib.org with the address 192.168.10.15.

These steps must be performed on a machine that has DNS Manager installed. Follows the appropriate instructions for your version of Windows.

Windows 200x

You will perform these steps within your Forward Lookup Zones.

  1. Navigate to your domain record (e.g. yourlib.org), right click on it, select Properties, and click on the WINS tab. Verify that "Use WINS forward lookup" is not checked. If this is checked, the wildcard DNS entry will not work unless you uncheck it and save this setting. It is exceptionally rare for sites to need this option checked. If you do need this checked, consult DNS for an alternative method to setup the required entry for proxy by hostname.
  2. If the ezproxy.yourlib.org A record does not already exist, navigate to yourlib.org and use "New host" then type ezproxy with address 192.168.10.15 to create the ezproxy.yourlib.org A record.
  3. Navigate to yourlib.org and use "New domain" then type ezproxy to create the ezproxy.yourlib.org domain.
  4. Navigate to ezproxy.yourlib.org and use "New domain" then type * to create the *.ezproxy.yourlib.org domain.
  5. Navigate to *.ezproxy.yourlib.org and use "New host" then specify a blank host name with address 192.168.10.15 to create the *.ezproxy.yourlib.org A record. You will be asked to confirm that you want to create this entry, which is required to complete this step.
  6. Verify that the update worked by opening a command prompt window and issuing a command like this:
    nslookup login.ezproxy.yourlib.org
    The nslookup should show you the address of the server, no matter what name you type in front of .ezproxy.yourlib.org.

Windows NT

  1. If the ezproxy.yourlib.org A record does not exist, navigate to yourlib.org and use "New host" then type ezproxy with address 192.168.10.15 to create the ezproxy.yourlib.org record.

  2. Navigate to yourlib.org and use "New domain" then type ezproxy to create the ezproxy.yourlib.org domain.

  3. Navigate to ezproxy.yourlib.org and use "New host" then type * with address 192.168.10.15 to create the *.ezproxy.yourlib.org A record.

  4. Verify that the update worked by opening a command prompt window and issuing a command like this:
    nslookup login.ezproxy.yourlib.org
    The nslookup should show you the address of the server, no matter what name you type in front of .ezproxy.yourlib.org.