(Desktop) Validating, recursive, caching DNS resolve with support for DNS-over-TLS. Designed to be fast, lean, and secure Unbound incorporates modern features based on open standards. Unbound was recently audited.
Unbound
nlnetlabs.nl/projects/unbound/about
Our take
Running your own validating recursive resolver is the way to stop trusting anyone else’s DNS, and Unbound is the lean, well-audited tool for it with DoT support. The cost is that you become the operator: setup, caching behavior, and upstream choices are now your job, which is more than most people want. The right call for self-hosters and small networks chasing real independence; unnecessary if a reputable public resolver already satisfies you.
GitHub at a glance
NLnetLabs/unbound
Stars
4,649
+ 45 this week
Last commit
3d ago
healthy
License
BSD-3-Clause
Latest release
release-1.25.1
1mo ago
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Unbound license, in plain English
BSD-3-Clause Permissive
Permissive: use and modify freely. You just keep the notice and do not use the authors' names to endorse your version.
Permits
- Commercial use
- Modification
- Distribution
- Private use
Requires
- License and copyright notice
Does not provide
- Endorsement using author names
- Liability cover
- Warranty
Why it matters: Permissive licensing lets anyone reuse this, including inside closed products. That is freedom to build on, but no guarantee that downstream copies stay open.
Plain-language summary of the project's license, not legal advice. Read the full text for the exact terms.