Install Dig on Windows 10/11 | Easy Setup – OrcaCore

In this tutorial, you will learn how to Install Dig on Windows 10/11. The “dig” is a robust command-line tool developed by BIND for querying DNS nameservers. It can identify IP address records, record the query route as it obtains answers from an authoritative nameserver, and diagnose other DNS problems.

You can now proceed to the guide steps below on the Orcacore website to set up the Dig tool on Windows from CLI and by downloading it manually.

To complete this guide, log in to your Windows client and follow the steps below. In this guide, you will learn to Install Dig on Windows 10/11 in two ways:

Method 1. Install Dig on Windows with Chocolatey

The easiest way to Install Dig on Windows 10/11 is to use the Chocolatey package manager.

Chocolatey is a package manager for Windows that builds on top of existing Windows technologies, using NuGet for packaging. Chocolatey downloads applications from their official distribution point and then installs, upgrades, uninstalls, and configures them silently on your machine, including dependencies, per the instructions in the package.

First, you need to open a PowerShell console and execute the following command to install Chocolatey:

Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force; [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol -bor 3072; iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))

Then, run the following command to install the **bind-toolsonly** package:

choco install -y bind-toolsonly

And that is it! You can now run the dig command from both CMD and PowerShell.

If for some reason, you don’t like to use Chocolatey, you can still install dig by manually downloading the bind tool package. The following section provides detailed instructions on how to do it.

Method 2. Install Dig on Windows Manually

First, you need to visit the www.isc.org/download/ page and download the latest version of BIND.

After the download has finished, extract the ZIP file. Then right-click on the BINDInstall and choose run as administrator from the contextual menu.

Check the Tools only checkbox and click the Install button.

If successful, you will see the message: “BIND installation completed successfully”.

Add Dig to Windows Path variable

At this point, you need to add the bin directory (C:Program FilesISC BIND 9bin), which contains the dig.exe file, to the Windows PATH variable.

Right-click on This PC and select Properties. Go to Advanced system settings > Environment Variables. Edit the PATH variable under the System variables.

Click OK to confirm the changes and exit the Environment Variables window.

How to Use the dig Command on Windows?

The basic usage of the dig command is to specify the domain name you want to look up and the type of record you want to query (e.g. A for address records, MX for MX records). Let’s see some examples.

Note: Types of DNS records you can query include: A, AAAA, MX for Mail exchanger, NS, and TXT.

Find the IP address of a website or domain (A record):

dig example.com A

Find the IPv6 address of a domain (AAAA record):

dig example.com AAAA

You can specify the nameserver you’d like to query:

dig A example.com @8.8.8.8

Looks up MX records:

dig mx example.com

The -x option performs a reverse lookup when you specify the IP address:

dig -x 8.8.8.8

Conclusion

At this point, you have learned to Install Dig on Windows 10 and Windows 11 in two different ways. Also, you have learned the basic usage of dig. Hope you enjoy it.

Alternative Solutions for Installing Dig on Windows

While the Chocolatey and manual BIND installation methods are effective, other approaches exist for installing and utilizing the dig command on Windows. Here are two alternative methods:

Method 3: Using Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)

Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) allows you to run a Linux environment directly on Windows, without the overhead of a traditional virtual machine. This provides a convenient way to access Linux tools like dig without leaving the Windows environment.

Explanation:

WSL effectively creates a compatibility layer that enables a Linux distribution (like Ubuntu, Debian, or SUSE) to run alongside Windows. Once a Linux distribution is installed via WSL, you can use its package manager (e.g., apt for Ubuntu/Debian) to install dig. This approach offers several advantages:

Simplified Installation: Installing dig within a Linux environment is often simpler and more streamlined than installing it directly on Windows.
Access to Other Linux Tools: WSL provides access to a wide range of other Linux command-line tools, which can be beneficial for network troubleshooting and system administration.
Isolated Environment: WSL provides an isolated environment for running Linux tools, preventing potential conflicts with Windows system files.

Steps:

Enable WSL: Open PowerShell as Administrator and run the following command:
```
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux
```
You might need to restart your computer after enabling WSL.
Install a Linux Distribution: Open the Microsoft Store and search for your preferred Linux distribution (e.g., Ubuntu). Install it.
Launch the Linux Distribution: Once installed, launch the Linux distribution. It will prompt you to create a user account and password.
Install dig: Open a terminal within the Linux distribution and run the appropriate package manager command to install dig. For Ubuntu/Debian, use:
```
sudo apt update
sudo apt install dnsutils
```
This command will install the dnsutils package, which includes the dig command.
Run dig: You can now run the dig command from the Linux terminal within WSL.
```
dig example.com A
```

Method 4: Using Docker Containers

Docker provides a platform for running applications in isolated containers. You can use a Docker image that includes dig and other network utilities to perform DNS lookups without installing dig directly on your Windows system.

Explanation:

Docker containers package an application and its dependencies into a single unit, ensuring consistent execution across different environments. By using a pre-built Docker image containing dig, you can quickly and easily access the tool without the need for manual installation.

Steps:

Install Docker Desktop: Download and install Docker Desktop for Windows from the official Docker website (https://www.docker.com/products/docker-desktop/).
Run a Docker Container with dig: Open a command prompt or PowerShell and run the following command:
```
docker run --rm -it alpine/dig dig example.com A
```
This command does the following:
- docker run: Runs a new container.
- --rm: Automatically removes the container when it exits.
- -it: Allocates a pseudo-TTY and keeps STDIN open, allowing you to interact with the container.
- alpine/dig: Specifies the Docker image to use. Alpine Linux is a lightweight Linux distribution, and this image includes the dig command. (There isn’t necessarily an "alpine/dig" image, an alpine image with dig installed is more common. alpine/dig is used for demonstrative purposes and is the same as the dig command being ran. alpine/dig should be replaced with a docker image with dig installed, such as networkstatic/dig.
- dig example.com A: Specifies the command to run inside the container (in this case, dig example.com A).
Revised command using the networkstatic/dig image:
```
docker run --rm -it networkstatic/dig dig example.com A
```
Interpret the Output: The output of the dig command will be displayed in the console.

Advantages of using Docker:

No Direct Installation: Avoids installing dig directly on your Windows system.
Isolated Environment: Provides a completely isolated environment for running dig, preventing conflicts.
Reproducibility: Ensures consistent results across different environments.
Cleanliness: Docker containers are easily removed, leaving your system clean.

These alternative methods provide flexibility in how you Install Dig on Windows 10/11, catering to different preferences and technical requirements. Whether you prefer the integration of WSL or the containerization approach of Docker, you can effectively access and utilize the dig command for DNS querying and troubleshooting.