---
title: "EAI_AGAIN on Mac: check a temporary name lookup failure · Kilobat Guides"
url: "https://kilobat.app/guides/eai-again"
description: "EAI_AGAIN means a name lookup could not finish now. Check DNS, the network and the environment where your command runs."
---

Error messages

# EAI_AGAIN on Mac

EAI_AGAIN indicates that a name could not be resolved at this time. A later attempt may succeed.

Applies to: macOS and command-line tools that report getaddrinfo errors. Containers and remote machines have their own network settings. · Checked: 2 November 2026

## Symptoms

- An app or command reports EAI_AGAIN while looking up a host.
- A package download or other network request fails before it reaches the server.

## Likely causes

- **A temporary resolver failure.** The configured resolver may not answer or may return a temporary failure.
- **A network or VPN problem.** The path to the configured DNS server may be unavailable.
- **A different execution environment.** A container, VM or remote machine can use different DNS settings from the Mac.

## How to check

1. Retry the command once. A temporary failure may clear.
2. Look up the failing host on the Mac. Replace example.com with the host in the error.

   ```
   dscacheutil -q host -a name example.com
   ```
3. Show the Mac's current DNS configuration.

   ```
   scutil --dns
   ```
4. If the command runs elsewhere, test DNS in that environment too.

## How to fix it

1. If other names fail too, check the connection and DNS. See [DNS not resolving on a Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/dns-server-not-found).
2. If a VPN provides private DNS, reconnect it or ask its administrator.
3. Check proxy and resolver settings in the container or remote environment when it alone fails.

## With Kilobat

1. Check the host from this Mac. A container or remote environment needs its own check.

   ```
   kilobat why example.com
   ```

## Questions

**Does EAI_AGAIN mean that the domain does not exist?**

No. It reports a temporary lookup failure. It does not prove that the name is absent.

**Does a successful Mac lookup prove a container can resolve the name?**

No. A container may use a different resolver and network path.

## Sources

- [The Open Group: getaddrinfo](https://pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/9799919799/functions/getaddrinfo.html)
- [Apple Support: Change DNS settings on Mac](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/change-dns-settings-on-mac-mh14127/mac)

Checked on 2 November 2026.

## Related guides

- [DNS not resolving on a Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/dns-server-not-found): When DNS fails, the Mac cannot change a name such as apple.com into an IP address.
- [ERR_NAME_NOT_RESOLVED in Chrome on Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/err-name-not-resolved): Chromium describes this error as: “The host name could not be resolved.” Chrome could not get an address for the site's name.
- [“npm error code ETIMEDOUT” on Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/npm-etimedout): ETIMEDOUT means that the other side did not answer in time.
- [“curl: (6) Could not resolve host” on Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/curl-could-not-resolve-host): curl exit code 6 means that curl could not get an address for the host name.