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DNS resolution failed

Why FTP/SFTP DNS lookups fail and how to fix hostname resolution issues quickly.

Diagnose this automatically

Check whether the hostname resolves before debugging credentials or firewall rules.

terminal
npx ftpmonitor check --protocol sftp --host example.com --port 22
Shareable output
terminal
npx ftpmonitor check --protocol sftp --host example.com --port 22 --format slack --copy

Prefer the browser? Run the same check on the homepage.

If DNS resolution fails, the hostname can’t be converted into an IP address.

This is usually a typo, missing DNS record, or a DNS/VPN/network resolver issue.

Common causes

  • Misspelled hostname
  • DNS record does not exist (NXDOMAIN)
  • Internal hostname used outside the VPN/network
  • Local DNS resolver misconfiguration
  • Intermittent DNS failures (timeouts / SERVFAIL)

Fix checklist

  1. Verify the hostname spelling (copy/paste; watch trailing spaces).
  2. Run `nslookup <host>` or `dig <host>` from your network.
  3. If the hostname is internal-only, connect via VPN or run checks from inside the network.
  4. Try an alternate resolver (1.1.1.1 / 8.8.8.8) if allowed.

Quick commands

nslookup <host>
dig +short <host>
ping <host>  # only to test resolution; ICMP may be blocked
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