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    Unbound seems to be restarting frequently

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved DHCP and DNS
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    • C
      CiscoKid85
      last edited by

      But I still get the benefit of pre-fetch and caching.

      My actual unbound config is here.

      I found the unbound logs but I'm getting permission denied when I try to view them. I also can't do a sudo or sudo su. Any suggestions on how I can get the raw logs?

      I'd still like to fix unbound should I decide to not forward queries.

      unbound.txt

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      • K
        kejianshi
        last edited by

        Were you using unbound in 2.1.5?  (yes or no)

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        • C
          CiscoKid85
          last edited by

          I never used 2.1. My 2.2 build was a fresh install on a new pc engines build.

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          • C
            CiscoKid85
            last edited by

            If I filter for restarts, I get the following:

            Mar 2 11:52:20	unbound: [28167:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 11:52:20	unbound: [28167:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 10:49:14	unbound: [28167:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 10:49:14	unbound: [28167:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 10:49:12	unbound: [28167:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 10:49:12	unbound: [28167:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 10:49:12	unbound: [28167:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 10:09:59	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 10:09:59	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 10:03:14	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 10:03:14	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:53:20	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:53:20	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:43:24	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:43:24	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:33:30	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:33:30	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:33:30	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:33:30	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:31:00	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:31:00	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:30:56	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:30:56	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:30:20	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:30:20	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:24:02	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:24:02	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:23:29	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:23:29	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:13:34	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:13:34	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:12:04	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:12:04	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 09:09:56	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 09:09:56	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 08:09:43	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 08:09:43	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 08:02:39	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 08:02:39	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 07:52:44	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 07:52:44	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 07:49:50	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 07:49:50	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 07:42:49	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 07:42:49	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 07:40:24	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 07:40:24	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 07:38:15	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
Mar 2 07:38:15	unbound: [45732:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
Mar 2 07:37:28	unbound: [45732:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
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            • K
              kejianshi
              last edited by

              Hmmmm.  Is there a reason you don't want to use the root DNS servers (just curious)?

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              • C
                CiscoKid85
                last edited by

                Comcast operates a bunch of caching servers for content from Akamai, Netflix. I'd like to hit the locally cached servers when that content is requested. Netflix definitely streams a little faster, I think.

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                • K
                  kejianshi
                  last edited by

                  Thing is, I think hitting the local DNS without DNSSEC and harden glue and all that might be whats crashing your unbound.

                  Would you be opposed to trying it in resolver mode instead of forwarder mode for a while?  See if it stops crashing?

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                  • C
                    CiscoKid85
                    last edited by

                    Is there any additional logging I can enable that may offer better insight?

                    Would someone mind posting their config so I can try running a good one that I know works?

                    Thanks!

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                    • C
                      CiscoKid85
                      last edited by

                      How do I reset the Resolver general settings to their defaults? The GUI retains the settings from the previous config, even if I wipe out the .conf file.

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                      • H
                        hda
                        last edited by

                        Why are you hard on yourself with CLI. Just use the webGUI to stop and start what you want.

                        Stop Services: DNS forwarder.
                        Clear out System: General Setup for DNS servers
                        Set Services: DNS Resolver(interfaces & DNSSEC) only
                        Services: DNS Resolver: Advanced(Harden = true)

                        Maybe reboot.

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                        • C
                          CiscoKid85
                          last edited by

                          Disabling the forwarder and adding in the hardening both worked. I'll continue to troubleshoot w/ the forwards or perhaps just enable dnsmasq.

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                          • C
                            CiscoKid85
                            last edited by

                            It seems adding DNS servers into the general settings tab causes the unbound restarts. This seems like a bug. Does anyone know how I would report this?

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                            • K
                              kejianshi
                              last edited by

                              I don't know if its a bug or if something malicious is being done to your DNS…  Glad its working now.

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                              • C
                                CiscoKid85
                                last edited by

                                Even if it's something malicious, unbound shouldn't reboot all the time. lol

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                                • D
                                  dparring
                                  last edited by

                                  I am also seeing this issue with unbound restarting frequently on a clean 2.2 install.  It is triggered by DHCPREQUEST events in dhcpd, but only when a host name is specified in the request.  For example, a request to dhcpd like this:

                                  Mar 2 15:43:41 dhcpd: DHCPREQUEST for 192.168.1.208 from xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx (ipcam_xxxxxxxxxxxx) via em1

                                  …always results in a restart of unbound at the same exact time:

                                  Mar 2 15:43:41 unbound: [55204:0] info: service stopped (unbound 1.5.1).
                                  (followed by a bunch of info logging and then…)
                                  Mar 2 15:43:41 unbound: [55204:0] notice: Restart of unbound 1.5.1.
                                  Mar 2 15:43:41 unbound: [55204:0] notice: init module 0: iterator
                                  Mar 2 15:43:41 unbound: [55204:0] info: start of service (unbound 1.5.1).

                                  However, a DHCPREQUEST without a host name does not trigger the restart (also this is a static mapping, the one above is from the DHCP pool):

                                  Mar 2 15:47:46 dhcpd: DHCPREQUEST for 192.168.1.11 from xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx via em1

                                  I do not have "DNS Query Forwarding" enabled in the unbound configuration.  After reading this thread, I tried disabling DNSSEC and it had no effect on the restarting behavior.  I do have "Register DHCP leases in the DNS Resolver" and "Register DHCP static mappings in the DNS Resolver" enabled which leads me to believe the problem lies in the DHCP -> DNS registration functionality.

                                  I would not normally notice this behavior except that there are times where the frequent restarting of unbound sometimes seems to cause unbound to stop resolving DNS queries properly.  This usually happens when there are a lot of devices going on or offline and requesting DHCP leases.  A manual restart of unbound in the web GUI fixes it, although the restart behavior continues whenever a DHCPREQUEST with hostname is received.

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                                  • K
                                    kejianshi
                                    last edited by

                                    I think people were seeing crashes when they had devices (such as cameras or laptops) that have both a wired and wireless connection and both were connected simultaneously and shouldn't have been…

                                    You sure you don't have something like that going on?

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                                    • D
                                      dparring
                                      last edited by

                                      It is unlikely that is the case with my installation.  Of the wireless devices I have on a wired connection, most don't even have the wireless SSID configured.  Also, my AP and all wireless devices are on a separate subnet, so anything on the 192.168.1 subnet is 100% wired.

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                                      • C
                                        CiscoKid85
                                        last edited by

                                        For me, the reboots stopped when I removed the DNS settings from System -> General Setup.

                                        Interestingly, I also have DNS Registration and Static DHCP enabled in resolver.. For the time being, I'm switching back to dnsmasq while I can sort it out.

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                                        • D
                                          dparring
                                          last edited by

                                          My logs (and resultant DNS problems) indicate that previously known MAC addresses and DHCP leases frequently trigger a restart, although not necessarily 100% of the time.  I found that I can reproduce the unbound restart behavior 100% of the time by bringing a machine online with a new (to the firewall) MAC and having it initiate a DHCP request.  This is on a wired machine with no wireless card.  With this, I ran a few testing scenarios:

                                          Register DHCP leases in the DNS Resolver - enabled
                                          Register DHCP static mappings in the DNS Resolver - enabled
                                          Result when DHCP is requested - unbound restart

                                          So I disabled both:

                                          Register DHCP leases in the DNS Resolver - disabled
                                          Register DHCP static mappings in the DNS Resolver - disabled
                                          Result when DHCP is requested - NO unbound restart

                                          I enabled static only:

                                          Register DHCP leases in the DNS Resolver - disabled
                                          Register DHCP static mappings in the DNS Resolver - enabled
                                          Result when DHCP is requested - NO unbound restart

                                          I went back to the original config with both enabled:

                                          Register DHCP leases in the DNS Resolver - enabled
                                          Register DHCP static mappings in the DNS Resolver - enabled
                                          Result when DHCP is requested - unbound restart

                                          This lends some weight to the theory that the restarts are related to the "Register DHCP leases in the DNS Resolver" setting.  However, one amendment to my previous post is that my testing scenario does not set a host name, yet it still triggers a restart.  This is the dhcpd log that will reliably trigger unbound to restart when Register DHCP in DNS is enabled and the MAC address is not previously known to the firewall (newest on top):

                                          Mar 2 17:40:42 dhcpd: DHCPACK on 192.168.200.212 to xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx via em3
                                          Mar 2 17:40:42 dhcpd: DHCPREQUEST for 192.168.200.212 (192.168.200.1) from xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx via em3
                                          Mar 2 17:40:42 dhcpd: DHCPOFFER on 192.168.200.212 to xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx via em3
                                          Mar 2 17:40:41 dhcpd: DHCPDISCOVER from xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx via em3

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                                          • C
                                            CiscoKid85
                                            last edited by

                                            This sounds like a bug to me.

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