Want to look up a domain registration, an IP
address, or see what software a server is running? This is the
place. Start here for a Domain Name Registration Search, a Reverse
DNS Lookup, Traceroute, VisualRoute, NsLookup, Server Check, Modem
Speed Test or Ping.
Don’t forget to Bookmark this Really Useful page
[ Be sure to bookmark the original, at
http://www.webdevelopersjournal.com/lookup_tools.html
— that page will be updated; this Linux Today copy will not – LT
ed. ]
Domain Registration Search
See whether a domain is available. If it’s already registered,
use the follow up links on the second page to find out who owns it.
Many domain registration company sites offer this free service, but
the one we recommend here is more thorough than most.
Reverse DNS Lookup
Got the IP address and want to find the domain name? This is the
place.
Traceroute
Reports on the hops between routers from your machine to the
destination address, including the time for the hop (measured three
times) and the address of each router. You can do this on your own
PC if it runs Windows 95 or above. From the Start menu choose
Programs > DOS prompt. At the prompt type in tracert
www.the-domain-you-want-to-look-up.com. You can do it from the Run
menu too, but the results won’t stay on the screen.
If you’re on a network or otherwise firewalled, your PC
Traceroute won’t work. But you can still run Traceroutes through
pages on the Web. Some secure sites reject the final stages of a
Traceroute investigation.
Outgoing
Traceroute from a Swiss server
Incoming
Traceroute to your current address from Stanford University
List of remote
Traceroute sites
VisualRoute
A neat utility that shows a combination of Traceroute, Ping and
DNS information in graphical form. You can check any domain from
the Datametrics server in Fairfax, Virginia, USA.
NsLookup
Also referred to as a Domain Information Groper (Dig). Gives the
IP address of the domain you enter
Dig II
A more complicated DNS investigation tool that allows a range of
interrogations of Domain Name Servers.
What’s That Server Running?
Type in a domain and find out what server software and operating
system are behind it.
Modem Speed Test
Measures the speed of your connection – not its theoretical
speed, but how fast it’s actually running.The first site is
recommended, but it’s based in Ireland, so if the transatlantic
link is busy you’ll get false (low) results in the USA. Within
Europe it usually works well. For more accurate results, repeat the
test a few times.
Here’s a US test page – not as good as the page above (in our
humble opinion).
Ping
This tool fires packets at an IP address to check that it’s
responding. There are many security issues surrounding the use of
ping and a lot of sites will not respond. Almost all Web sites
offering remote Pings have withdrawn the service, but here’s one
that’s still running – at least for now.