What is DNS and Why Should You Care?

When you type a website name like www.example.com into your browser, have you ever wondered how it magically connects to the right website? That magic is made possible by the Domain Name System (DNS), often described as the phonebook of the internet.

As a business owner or website manager, understanding DNS is crucial. It directly affects your website availability, email services, and even your business’s security posture. If configured incorrectly, your website or emails might stop working entirely.

In this article, we’ll break down:

1. Domain registration and ownership
2. The role of DNS in connecting the digital world
3. Key DNS records: A, CNAME, MX, and TXT
4. How they are used for websites, email, and validation.

Domain Registration and Ownership

A domain name (e.g., digitaledict.com) is your online identity. Registering a domain involves purchasing the rights to use that name for a set period, typically through a domain registrar like Namecheap, GoDaddy, or Google Domains.

Key Considerations for Domain Ownership:

• Domain Registrant: The person or business who owns the domain.
• Registrar: The company where you purchase and manage the domain.
• WHOIS Information: Public data showing ownership and contact details (can be anonymized for privacy).
• DNS Provider: The service that manages your DNS records, often the same as the registrar but not always.

Pro Tip: Always keep control of your domain registrar account. Losing access to your domain is like losing the keys to your online kingdom.

What Are Nameservers (And Why They Matter)?

Once you’ve registered a domain, the next critical step is telling the internet where to find your DNS records — and that’s the job of nameservers.

Nameservers vs DNS Records

Your DNS records (A, CNAME, MX, etc.) are stored with a DNS provider, but unless your domain points to that provider’s nameservers, the rest of the internet won’t know where to look.

Think of nameservers as the address of your domain’s DNS database. If they’re incorrect, out of sync, or misconfigured, it doesn’t matter how perfect your DNS settings are — they simply won’t be found.

How Nameservers Work

When you register a domain, your registrar (e.g., GoDaddy, Namecheap) assigns default nameservers. These may work fine, but many businesses choose to use specialized DNS providers like Cloudflare for better control, speed, and security.

Example:

If you use Cloudflare, your domain’s nameservers might look like this:

bella.ns.cloudflare.com
logan.ns.cloudflare.com

You must update your domain registrar with these nameservers to route DNS queries to Cloudflare, where you’ll manage your DNS records.

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Why Cloudflare is a Smart DNS Choice for Businesses

Cloudflare is more than just a DNS host — it acts as a performance and security layer for your website and online services. And for most small businesses, it’s free to get started.

Cloudflare Benefits at a Glance:

• Blazing Fast DNS Resolution: Among the fastest globally.

• DDoS Protection: Automatic filtering of malicious traffic.

• Free SSL Certificates: Encrypt your traffic effortlessly.

• Content Delivery Network (CDN): Speeds up your website by caching static files globally.

• Real-Time DNS Updates: Make instant changes without waiting for propagation.

• IP Masking: When proxying is enabled, your web server IP stays hidden.

With Cloudflare, you can centralize DNS management, speed up your website, and lock down basic security — without complex setup or high costs.

Pro Tip:

If you’re using services like Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, or third-party email platforms, Cloudflare makes it easy to configure the right DNS records while protecting your root domain and web traffic behind a secure, high-performance proxy.

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What is DNS (Domain Name System)?

DNS acts as a translator between human-friendly domain names and machine-readable IP addresses. While you type digitaledict.com, DNS tells your browser to look for a specific IP address (e.g., 192.0.2.1) where your website or email services are hosted.

How DNS Works

When someone accesses your website:

1. The browser requests the domain name from DNS.
2. DNS looks up where the website is hosted (via A records).
3. The correct IP address is returned, and the browser connects to the server to display the website.

Key DNS Processes and Details:

• Client-Side DNS Resolution: Your device queries your local DNS resolver (often your ISP or organization’s DNS server).
• TLD Root Servers: If the resolver doesn’t have the answer, it queries TLD root servers (e.g., .com, .org).
• Recursive Query: DNS servers perform recursive lookups, asking other authoritative servers until the final answer is obtained.
• Caching and TTL (Time to Live): Resolvers cache DNS responses for a set time, defined by the TTL value, to speed up future requests.

The Most Important DNS Records (and How to Use Them)

DNS records are settings within your DNS zone that direct traffic for your domain. Here are the four most important records:

1. A Record (Address Record)

• Purpose: Maps a domain name to an IPv4 address.
• Example: @ -> 192.0.2.1
  • The @ symbol represents the root domain (e.g., digitaledict.com).
  • 192.0.2.1 is the IP address where your website is hosted.
• Usage:
  • Used to connect your primary domain to your web server.
  • Example: If your website is hosted on a specific server, the A record points your domain to that server’s IP.

Tip: If you use cloud hosting like Cloudflare or AWS, the A record may point to a proxy or load balancer.

Additional Details:

• Cloudflare Proxy: Cloudflare can sit between your users and your web server, protecting traffic while caching static content to improve speed.
• Load Balancers: DNS records can point to a load balancer to distribute traffic across multiple servers, ensuring high availability.

2. CNAME Record (Canonical Name)

• Purpose: Maps a subdomain to another domain name.
• Example: www -> digitaledict.com
  • Here, www points to the root domain (digitaledict.com).
• Usage:
  • Used to alias subdomains (e.g., blog.digitaledict.com) to another domain.
  • Commonly used with third-party services or aliases for mail (e.g., autodiscover.digitaledict.com pointing to Microsoft 365 for email client configuration).

Note: A CNAME cannot coexist with an A record for the same hostname.

3. MX Record (Mail Exchange)

• Purpose: Directs email for your domain to the correct mail servers.
• Example:

  Priority: 10 -> mail.protection.outlook.com
  Priority: 20 -> backupmail.example.com

• How It Works:
  • Mail servers look at MX records to know where to deliver emails.
  • Priority numbers tell mail services which server to try first (lower = higher priority).
• Usage:
  • Used to configure business email (e.g., Microsoft 365, Google Workspace).

Tip: Always include at least one backup mail server for reliability.

4. TXT Record (Text Record)

• Purpose: Stores text-based data in DNS, often for verification and security.
• Common Uses:
  • SPF (Sender Policy Framework): Defines which mail servers are authorized to send email on behalf of your domain. Example:

    v=spf1 include:spf.protection.outlook.com include:mail.activecampaign.com -all

  • DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail): Adds a digital signature to outgoing email for verification. Example: ActiveCampaign and Microsoft 365 provide specific DKIM records for email security.
  • DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication): Protects against email spoofing and phishing.
  • Verification: Used to verify domain ownership for tools like Google Search Console, Microsoft 365, or email marketing platforms.

Tip: Use tools like MXToolBox to test and validate your DNS settings.

How to Manage DNS for a Business

For a business with multiple services like Microsoft 365 for email, a public-facing website, and a marketing platform like ActiveCampaign, here’s what your DNS setup might look like:

• A Record:
  • @ -> 192.0.2.1 (Root domain pointing to your web server)
• CNAME Record:
  • www -> digitaledict.com (Alias www to the root domain)
  • autodiscover -> autodiscover.outlook.com (For M365 mail client configuration)
• MX Record:
  • 10 -> mail.protection.outlook.com (Primary email server)
  • 20 -> backupmail.example.com (Backup email server)
• TXT Records:
  • SPF: v=spf1 include:spf.protection.outlook.com include:mail.activecampaign.com -all
  • DKIM: Provided by email services (publish as default._domainkey)
  • DMARC: v=DMARC1; p=reject; rua=mailto:[email protected]

This setup ensures:

1. Website traffic resolves correctly.
2. Emails are delivered securely and trusted.
3. Bulk email tools (like ActiveCampaign) are verified.

Key Tools to Test and Verify DNS Settings

• MXToolBox: Test DNS, SPF, DKIM, and MX records.
• Google Toolbox: Verify email authentication.
• DNSChecker: Check DNS propagation globally.

Conclusion

Understanding DNS and its key records (A, CNAME, MX, TXT) is essential for managing your business’s online presence. By setting up and maintaining these records correctly, you ensure:

• Your website is always accessible.
• Emails reach their destination reliably.
• Your domain is protected from misuse.

If DNS still feels overwhelming, Digital Edict is here to help. As experts in managed digital services, we’ll handle the heavy lifting so you can focus on growing your business.

Need help now? Contact us today, and let’s ensure your DNS is working perfectly for your business.