The PING and NSLOOKUP commands

The commands "ping" and "nslookup" are useful for finding out where a domain points, or for troubleshooting a network issue.

PING: Shows the IP address a domain resolves to. This gives you a clue as to where, for example, your website is hosted.

NSLOOKUP: Tells you the name of the server.

Windows

• Open the command prompt by pressing the Windows key on your desktop, then type cmd and press Enter.
• A new window will open. Type ping domainname and press Enter.
• The result will show the IP address the domain points to.
• By typing the command nslookup ipaddress in the same window and pressing Enter, you will see the server name if one exists.

macOS

• Open Finder.
• Then open Terminal: Applications > Utilities > Terminal.
• A new window will open. Type ping domainname and press Enter.
• The result will show the IP address the domain points to.
• Using the command nslookup ipaddress and pressing Enter will show the server name if one exists.

Feel free to try our online tool for information about a domain name. You can access it here.