host.md 840 B
title: Host course: intro_pentest section: Reconnaissance
layout: lesson
Oftentimes, our reconnaissance efforts will result in hostnames rather than IP addresses. When this occurs, we can use the “host” tool to perform a translation for us. The host tool is built into BlackArch. We can access it by opening a terminal and typing:
host target-hostname
If you’ve uncovered a DNS servers, to translate it into an IP address, you’d enter the following command in a terminal:
host target-dns
For example: “host ns1.0hi.me”. The host command can also be used in reverse. It can be used to translate IP addresses into hostnames. To perform this task, simply enter:
host 198.251.86.152
Using the “-a” parameter will provide you with verbose output and possibly reveal additional information about your target.