My /etc/resolv.conf shows
# Generated by NetworkManager
search [value provided by local network]
nameserver 127.0.1.1
The nameserver value is not the one provided by the local network (checked using nm-applet), but the search is.
I've removed dns=dnsmasqd from /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf. There's only dnsmasq-base installed.
I don't want to set DNS permanently because I still want resolv.conf to be updated by the VPN, so
no prepend domain-name servers in /etc/dhcp/dhclient.conf
no dns-nameservers in /etc/network/interfaces
no /etc/resolvconf/resolv.conf.d/ base head tail files.
resolv.conf remains the same when I set the DNS on nm-applet using Automatic (DHCP).
When I set Automatic (DHCP) addresses only, there is no search value, but nameserver 127.0.1.1 is still in resolv.conf.
Edit: Did some more checking.
/etc/NetworkManager/dnsmasq.d is empty.
$ cat /usr/lib/NetworkManager/conf.d/10-dns-resolved.conf
[main]
dns=systemd-resolved
/etc/systemd/resolved.conf is all commented out.
$ systemd-resolve --status
Global
DNS Servers: 127.0.1.1
DNS Domain: [same as resolv.conf]
How do I configure that the DNS values from nm-applet overrides the systemd-resolve?.
Ultimately, what I want is to initially set the dns in resolv.conf to my preferred server, and then when I connect to VPN (nm-applet's OpenVPN), resolv.conf will have the value provided by the VPN.