DNS Web Client

Introduction

This example connects to a named server and makes a request using an Ethernet shield. The sketch in the example illustrates how to connect using DHCP and DNS.

You Will Learn

• Connect to a server using the Arduino Ethernet Shield.
• Make a request that searches for "Arduino" on Google.
• Print incoming data on the Serial Monitor.

Hardware & Software Needed

• Arduino Ethernet Shield

• Shield-compatible Arduino board (Arduino UNO and Mega)

• Ethernet Cable

• Arduino IDE (online or offline).

• Ethernet Library

Circuit

The Ethernet shield allows you to connect a WizNet Ethernet controller to the Arduino via the SPI bus. It uses pins 10, 11, 12, and 13 for the SPI connection to the WizNet. Later models of the Ethernet shield also have an SD Card on board. Digital pin 4 is used to control the chip select pin on the SD card.

The shield should be connected to a network with an ethernet cable. You will need to change the network settings in the program to correspond to your network. Mount the Ethernet Shield to your Arduino Board.

Programming the Board

Now we will get to the programming part of the tutorial.

We need to install the libraries needed. Simply go to Tools > Manage libraries... and search for Ethernet Library and install it.

Upload the sketch to the board.

Code

Before we start, lets take a look at some core functions of the program:

• Client

  - Client is the base class for all Ethernet client based calls. It is not called directly, but invoked whenever you use a function that relies on it.

• EthernetClient()

  - Creates a client which can connect to a specified internet IP address and port (defined in the

  client.connect()

  function).

• client.connected()

  - Whether or not the client is connected. Note that a client is considered connected if the connection has been closed but there is still unread data.
• DNS lookup happens when

  client.connect(servername,port)

  is called.

  servername

  is a URL string, like

  "www.arduino.cc"

  .

Upload the sketch below to your board:

Copy
1/*
2
3  DNS and DHCP-based Web client
4
5 This sketch connects to a website (http://www.google.com)
6
7 using an Arduino Wiznet Ethernet shield.
8
9 Circuit:
10
11 * Ethernet shield attached to pins 10, 11, 12, 13
12
13 created 18 Dec 2009
14
15 by David A. Mellis
16
17 modified 9 Apr 2012
18
19 by Tom Igoe, based on work by Adrian McEwen
20
21 */
22
23#include <SPI.h>
24#include <Ethernet.h>
25
26// Enter a MAC address for your controller below.
27// Newer Ethernet shields have a MAC address printed on a sticker on the shield
28byte mac[] = {  0x00, 0xAA, 0xBB, 0xCC, 0xDE, 0x02 };
29char serverName[] = "www.google.com";
30
31// Initialize the Ethernet client library
32// with the IP address and port of the server
33// that you want to connect to (port 80 is default for HTTP):
34
35EthernetClient client;
36
37void setup() {
38
39 // Open serial communications and wait for port to open:
40
41  Serial.begin(9600);
42
43   while (!Serial) {
44
45    ; // wait for serial port to connect. Needed for Leonardo only
46
47  }
48
49  // start the Ethernet connection:
50
51  if (Ethernet.begin(mac) == 0) {
52
53    Serial.println("Failed to configure Ethernet using DHCP");
54
55    // no point in carrying on, so do nothing forevermore:
56
57    while(true);
58
59  }
60
61  // give the Ethernet shield a second to initialize:
62
63  delay(1000);
64
65  Serial.println("connecting...");
66
67  // if you get a connection, report back via serial:
68
69  if (client.connect(serverName, 80)) {
70
71    Serial.println("connected");
72
73    // Make a HTTP request:
74
75    client.println("GET /search?q=arduino HTTP/1.0");
76
77    client.println();
78
79  }
80
81  else {
82
83    // if you didn't get a connection to the server:
84
85    Serial.println("connection failed");
86
87  }
88}
89
90void loop()
91{
92
93  // if there are incoming bytes available
94
95  // from the server, read them and print them:
96
97  if (client.available()) {
98
99    char c = client.read();
100
101    Serial.print(c);
102
103  }
104
105  // if the server's disconnected, stop the client:
106
107  if (!client.connected()) {
108
109    Serial.println();
110
111    Serial.println("disconnecting.");
112
113    client.stop();
114
115    // do nothing forevermore:
116
117    while(true);
118
119  }
120}

Testing It Out

After you have uploaded the code to your board, open the Serial Monitor in your IDE. You should see this:

In the Serial Monitor we print the incoming bytes from the

client.println("GET /search?q=arduino HTTP/1.0");

arduino

char c

client.read();

Troubleshoot

If the code is not working, there are some common issues we can troubleshoot:

• You are using the incorrect mac address
• You have not installed the Ethernet Library

Conclusion

In this tutorial we have used the Arduino Ethernet Shield to connect to Google and make a search request. The data from the search request is then printed to the Serial Monitor in the Arduino IDE.