How do I run BIND 9 on Apple Mac OS X?

If you run Tiger (Mac OS 10.4) or later then this is all you need to do:

% sudo rndc-confgen > /etc/rndc.conf

Copy the key statement from /etc/rndc.conf into /etc/rndc.key, e.g.:

key "rndc-key" { algorithm hmac-md5; secret "uvceheVuqf17ZwIcTydddw==";};

Then start the relevant service:

% sudo service org.isc.named start

This is persistent upon a reboot, so you will have to do it only once.

Alternatively you can just generate /etc/rndc.key by running:

% sudo rndc-confgen -a

Then start the relevant service:

% sudo service org.isc.named start

named will look for /etc/rndc.key when it starts if it doesn't have a controls section or the existing controls are missing keys sub-clauses. This is persistent upon a reboot, so you will have to do it only once.