hostname.local is usually an mDNS/Bonjour name, not ordinary DNS. In this Ubuntu Server case, installing and configuring the Avahi daemon restored homeserver.local access. The user explicitly confirmed that this solved the problem.
The Ansible network and Netplan changes were not the fix. The machine already had normal IP networking; what was missing was local multicast name advertisement/resolution.
The Server Was Already on the LAN
homeserver.local did not resolve until Avahi was installed. Source: IceWhale Community Forum.The router could see the host, and the HTTP service on port 80 was running. That meant basic IP connectivity was not the same problem as .local name resolution.
Why Avahi Fixed hostname.local
Avahi implements mDNS/DNS-SD on Linux. The Ubuntu Zeroconf guide explains that machines running Avahi can advertise and resolve names such as hostname.local.
Install avahi-daemon, make sure the service is running, and ensure UDP multicast traffic is not blocked between the client and server.
Do Not Rewrite Netplan Just to Fix mDNS
DHCP, static IP settings and DNS server configuration can all be correct while .local still fails. mDNS uses multicast discovery on the local link, so it is a separate name-resolution path.
If you are working with a current ZimaOS device rather than a generic Ubuntu host, the LAN access guide helps separate address reachability from hostname discovery.
Bottom Line
The source thread has a clean verified resolution: Avahi restored homeserver.local. If the numeric IP already works, diagnose mDNS/Bonjour rather than repeatedly changing Ethernet or Netplan configuration. If the IP does not work, fix basic networking first.
