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Usage

Learn how to configure the dnsbl-exporter.

Configuration

See rbls.ini and targets.ini files in the repository for examples.

The files follow the Nagios format as this exporter is meant to be a drop-in replacement so you can factor out Nagios, one (simple) step at a time. 😊

Otherwise:

$ dnsbl-exporter -h
...
--config.dns-resolver value  IP address of the resolver to use. (default: "127.0.0.1:53")
--config.rbls value          Configuration file which contains RBLs (default: "./rbls.ini")
--config.targets value       Configuration file which contains the targets to check. (default: "./targets.ini")
--config.domain-based        RBLS are domain instead of IP based blocklists (default: false)
--web.listen-address value   Address to listen on for web interface and telemetry. (default: ":9211")
--web.telemetry-path value   Path under which to expose metrics. (default: "/metrics")
--log.debug                  Enable more output in the logs, otherwise INFO.
--log.output value           Destination of our logs: stdout, stderr (default: "stdout")
--help, -h                   show help
--version, -V                Print the version information.

System resolver

The dnsbl-exporter can use your system resolver from /etc/resolv.conf automatically.

Please note: The dnsbl-exporter needs read permissions to /etc/resolv.conf file for this feature to work.

Configure resolver as an argument:

--config.dns-resolver=system

Configure resolver as an environment variable:

DNSBL_EXP_RESOLVER=system
Please see DNS for further details.

Not every resolver is compatible with most RBLs.

Metrics returned by exporter

The individual configured servers and their status are represented by a gauge:

luzilla_rbls_ips_blacklisted{hostname="mail.gmx.net",ip="212.227.17.168",rbl="ix.dnsbl.manitu.net"} 0

This represents the server’s hostname and the DNSBL in question:

  • 0 (zero) for unlisted
  • 1 (one) for listed

Requests to the DNSBL happen in real-time and are not cached. Take this into account and use accordingly.

If the exporter is configured for DNS based blocklists, the ip label represents the return code of the blocklist.

You are listed!

If you happen to be listed — inspect the exporter’s logs as they will contain a reason.