DNS and VHOSTS need clarification

[turnbui]

I know its got to do with being in my LAN but I'm confused. I can type

http://192.168.1.7

in a browser and I get back the default/first vhost defined. I'm on Linux.
I can type the name

http://tony2.homeip.net

but I don't get the vhost unless I put an entry in the /etc/hosts file viz:-
192.168.1.7 tony2.homeip.net
But I want to use DNS which IS working on my Linux box. I have the following entry for this vhost as proved by dig

tony2.homeip.net 86400 IN CNAME ian.turnbui.com

Why does this not work when I remove the /etc/hosts entry for tony2.homeip.net

Any help really appreciated.

 

[RhythmAce]

Look in /etc/resolv.conf. You should see both a public dns server as well as your own. Other wise a name which is not an FQDN will not resolve.

 

[turnbui]

This was solved by removing the CNAMEs and defining a separate zone for the homeip.net