Automic VaultAutomic Vault

brew

Install massdns with Homebrew, dnf, Nix

High-performance DNS stub resolver. Version 1.1.0 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.

Install commandSecurity notes

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install massdns

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install massdns

Fedora Rawhide package metadata · massdns · source: dl.fedoraproject.org

Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#massdns

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/ma/massdns/package.nix · source: api.github.com

overview

Package summary

High-performance DNS stub resolver

Commands and aliases

  • massdns

history

Project history and usage

MassDNS is a high-performance DNS stub resolver for bulk lookups and reconnaissance. It targets use cases where users need to resolve millions or billions of names and tune resolver, output, retry, and concurrency behavior from the command line.

Project history

The MassDNS repository was created in June 2016. Its README identifies Quirin Scheitle and the Technical University of Munich among the contributors and describes the tool as capable of more than 350,000 resolutions per second without special configuration.

Release history is sparse but meaningful. Version 0.3 in 2020 replaced an `ldns` dependency with a custom DNS implementation to reduce memory allocations and added NDJSON output. Version 1.0.0 in 2021 switched the project to semantic versioning, and version 1.1.0 in 2024 added resolver-list tooling, dedicated resolver support, SVCB and HTTPS record support, and several community fixes.

Adoption history

MassDNS has a visible security and DNS-research audience, with several thousand GitHub stars and hundreds of forks. The supplied package metadata records Homebrew, Fedora, and Nix packages, which makes it accessible from both workstation and Linux server environments.

Its adoption is closely tied to subdomain enumeration and bulk DNS workflows. The README includes scripts for PTR resolution, subdomain brute forcing, certificate-transparency-derived names, and direct authoritative-name-server enumeration.

How it is used

Typical usage pipes a domain list into `massdns`, chooses a resolver list with `-r`, selects a record type with `-t`, and writes output with `-w` or stdout redirection. Output modes include simple text, full text, binary, domain-list output, and NDJSON.

The README emphasizes operational caution: public resolvers may be unreliable or generate abuse complaints, and users should adjust concurrency and prefer trusted resolvers when authenticity matters.

Why package nerds care

MassDNS matters to package users because it provides a fast, small DNS reconnaissance primitive that can be installed without dragging in a large framework.

For command-line security and network engineers, it is the DNS-side counterpart to other high-throughput reconnaissance tools: composable, pipe-friendly, and tuned by flags rather than a GUI.

Timeline

  • 2016: GitHub repository created.
  • 2020: v0.3 release removes the `ldns` dependency and adds NDJSON output.
  • 2021: v1.0.0 switches to semantic versioning.
  • 2024: v1.1.0 release adds resolver tooling and SVCB/HTTPS record support.

Related projects

  • MassDNS includes and references subdomain enumeration workflows inspired by or compatible with tools such as subbrute.
  • It is commonly used alongside wordlists, certificate transparency sources, and local recursive resolvers such as Unbound.

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

  • narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

  • metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

  • No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
  • Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 10 platform targets.
  • Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

CommandKindExposureNote
massdnscliglobal executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08
manager version1.1.0
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamcurrent
latest detectedv1.1.0

https://github.com/blechschmidt/massdns

  • infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:massdns
Version1.1.0
Package managerHomebrew
Package manager pagehttps://formulae.brew.sh/formula/massdns
Homepagehttps://github.com/blechschmidt/massdns
Repositoryhttps://github.com/blechschmidt/massdns
Upstream docshttps://github.com/blechschmidt/massdns#readme
LicenseGPL-3.0-only
Source archivehttps://github.com/blechschmidt/massdns/archive/refs/tags/v1.1.0.tar.gz
Build dependenciescmake
Uses from macOSlibpcap
Bottleavailable (on arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, monterey, sonoma, ventura, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-installnot defined
Servicenone declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source DatabaseHomebrew formula API
Taphomebrew/core
Full Namemassdns
Version Scheme0
Revision0
Bottle Stable Root URLhttps://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecatedno
Disabledno
Keg Onlyno
URL Keys
  • stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Nix95%

massdns

nix profile install nixpkgs#massdns
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Massdns
nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/ma/massdns/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
dnf95%

massdns 0.3-15.fc44

High-performance DNS stub resolver for bulk lookups and reconnaissance

https://github.com/blechschmidt/massdns

sudo dnf install massdns
  • License: GPL-3.0-or-later
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: massdns
  • 2 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Massdns
Fedora Rawhide package metadata · dl.fedoraproject.org · Fedora Rawhide package metadata: massdns from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

Related tools

  • cmakeBuild dependency declared by Homebrew.

Same workflow

  • knot-resolverShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, dns, networking, resolver.
  • adnsShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, dns, networking, resolver.
  • c-aresShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, dns, networking, resolver.
  • djbdnsShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, dns, networking, resolver.
  • dnsxShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, dns, networking, reconnaissance.
  • dohShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, dns, networking, resolver.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Used sources

  • Geiger risk classifier
  • Nucleus package database
  • av.db category and tag curation
  • cross-ecosystem install command graph
  • curated package history
  • external package-manager database matches
  • package relationship graph
  • package version freshness
  • package-page enrichment