mdns

mdns

Simple mDNS client/server library in Golang. mDNS or Multicast DNS can be used to discover services on the local network without the use of an authoritative DNS server. This enables peer-to-peer discovery. It is important to note that many networks restrict the use of multicasting, which prevents mDNS from functioning. Notably, multicast cannot be used in any sort of cloud, or shared infrastructure environment. However it works well in most office, home, or private infrastructure environments.

Using the library is very simple, here is an example of publishing a service entry:

// Setup our service export
host, _ := os.Hostname()
info := []string{"My awesome service"}
service, _ := mdns.NewMDNSService(host, "_foobar._tcp", "", "", 8000, nil, info)

// Create the mDNS server, defer shutdown
server, _ := mdns.NewServer(&mdns.Config{Zone: service})
defer server.Shutdown()

Doing a lookup for service providers is also very simple:

// Make a channel for results and start listening
entriesCh := make(chan *mdns.ServiceEntry, 4)
go func() {
    for entry := range entriesCh {
        fmt.Printf("Got new entry: %v\n", entry)
    }
}()

// Start the lookup
mdns.Lookup("_foobar._tcp", entriesCh)
close(entriesCh)