You should not use recursive groups. When rpc.nisd starts up it goes through each log. If the logs are long, this process could take a long time. If your logs are long, you may want to checkpoint them using nisping -C before starting rpc.nisd . Using uppercase letters in the name of a home directory or host can sometimes cause rpc.nisd to die.
Diagnosis First make sure that the server itself is up and running.
If the daemon has died, restart it. If rpc.nisd frequently dies, contact your service provider. It takes too long for a machine to locate namespace objects in other domains. You run niscat and get an error message indicating that the server is busy. The server is busy with a heavy load, such as when doing a resync.