{"record":{"id":"8c6a67c3ee4a358d","repo":"owasp-amass/amass","slug":"failed-to-obtain-the-bgptools-ip-address-v","errorCode":null,"errorMessage":"failed to obtain the BGPTools IP address: %v","messagePattern":"failed to obtain the BGPTools IP address: (.+?)","errorType":"exception","errorClass":null,"httpStatus":null,"severity":"error","filePath":"engine/plugins/whois/bgptools/plugin.go","lineNumber":64,"sourceCode":"\t\t\tName:       \"BGP.Tools\",\n\t\t\tConfidence: 100,\n\t\t},\n\t}\n}\n\nfunc (bt *bgpTools) Name() string {\n\treturn bt.name\n}\n\nfunc (bt *bgpTools) Start(r et.Registry) error {\n\tbt.log = r.Log().WithGroup(\"plugin\").With(\"name\", bt.name)\n\n\tctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), time.Minute)\n\tdefer cancel()\n\n\trr, err := support.PerformQuery(ctx, \"bgp.tools\", dns.TypeA)\n\tif err != nil {\n\t\treturn fmt.Errorf(\"failed to obtain the BGPTools IP address: %v\", err)\n\t} else if len(rr) == 0 {\n\t\treturn errors.New(\"failed to obtain the BGPTools IP address\")\n\t}\n\n\tfor _, record := range rr {\n\t\tif record.Header().Rrtype == dns.TypeA {\n\t\t\tbt.addr = strings.TrimSpace((record.(*dns.A)).A.String())\n\t\t\tbreak\n\t\t}\n\t}\n\tif bt.addr == \"\" {\n\t\treturn errors.New(\"failed to obtain the BGPTools IP address\")\n\t}\n\n\tbt.netblock = &netblock{\n\t\tname:   bt.name + \"-IP-Handler\",\n\t\tplugin: bt,\n\t}","sourceCodeStart":46,"sourceCodeEnd":82,"githubUrl":"https://github.com/owasp-amass/amass/blob/79299dce87b0085db0f2f4ef3e9c52cccb49f514/engine/plugins/whois/bgptools/plugin.go#L46-L82","documentation":"The bgptools whois plugin's Start resolves the IP address of the bgp.tools DNS name before fetching BGP-related data. It returns this wrapped error when the DNS A-record query itself fails (support.PerformQuery returns err). It distinguishes the query-error case from the empty-answer case, which returns a plain error with the same text but no %v detail.","triggerScenarios":"Calling Start when support.PerformQuery(ctx, \"bgp.tools\", dns.TypeA) returns a DNS lookup error: no network connectivity, DNS resolver failure, the name bgp.tools not resolving, or the query context (1-minute timeout) expiring.","commonSituations":"Sandboxed/offline environments or blocked egress DNS; corporate firewalls/DNS filtering blocking bgp.tools; resolver misconfiguration in containers; transient DNS outages or timeout under heavy load.","solutions":["Verify network/DNS connectivity from the host (e.g. dig bgp.tools A)","Check firewall/egress rules allow DNS and outbound queries to bgp.tools","Retry with backoff — the failure may be transient; the 1-minute context may be too tight","Inspect the wrapped %v error detail to distinguish NXDOMAIN vs timeout vs network failure","Update the miekg/dns usage or resolver config if the local resolver is misconfigured"],"exampleFix":"// before\nrr, err := support.PerformQuery(ctx, \"bgp.tools\", dns.TypeA)\nif err != nil {\n    return fmt.Errorf(\"failed to obtain the BGPTools IP address: %v\", err)\n}\n// after\nvar rr []dns.RR\nerr := retry(3, time.Second, func() error {\n    var e error\n    rr, e = support.PerformQuery(ctx, \"bgp.tools\", dns.TypeA)\n    return e\n})\nif err != nil {\n    return fmt.Errorf(\"failed to obtain the BGPTools IP address after retries: %v\", err)\n}","handlingStrategy":"retry","validationCode":"// Go: pre-check DNS resolution before starting the plugin\nif net.ParseIP(os.Getenv(\"BGPTOOLS_IP\")) == nil {\n    addrs, err := net.LookupHost(\"bgp.tools\")\n    if err != nil || len(addrs) == 0 {\n        return fmt.Errorf(\"bgp.tools not resolvable, check DNS/network: %v\", err)\n    }\n}","typeGuard":"func isDNSQueryFailure(err error) bool {\n    return err != nil && strings.Contains(err.Error(), \"failed to obtain the BGPTools IP address\")\n}","tryCatchPattern":"if err := plugin.Start(context.Background()); err != nil {\n    if isDNSQueryFailure(err) {\n        log.Warn(\"bgp.tools unreachable, skipping plugin: %v\", err)\n        return nil // degrade gracefully instead of failing the run\n    }\n    return err\n}","preventionTips":["Verify DNS and egress connectivity to bgp.tools before running the plugin","Add retry with backoff around DNS queries for transient failures","Allow a longer context or configurable timeout for slow resolvers","Log the wrapped DNS error to distinguish NXDOMAIN vs timeout","Provide an IP override option for firewalled/offline environments"],"tags":["dns","network","bgp","bgptools"],"backgroundTag":"dns-lookup-failed","analyzedSha":"79299dce87b0085db0f2f4ef3e9c52cccb49f514","analyzedAt":"2026-09-06T08:22:48.198Z","contentChangedAt":"2026-09-06T08:22:48.198Z","schemaVersion":2},"datasetVersion":"2026-09-14T00:17:10.932Z"}