What are Domain Name Servers?

A Domain Name Server (DNS) is a computer that has both the software and the data (zone files) needed to resolve domain names to Internet Protocol (IP) numbers. Domain names must be programmed into a minimum of two nameservers hosted on separate networks.

Your DNS settings dictate things like where your domain name resolves to on the Internet, and how email to your domain name is handled.

How do I set or modify my DNS?

When you register a domain name with WebFarm, the domain name will be set to WebFarm's DNS Servers by default.

If you wish to change your DNS, use the "Edit Domain Servers" button in My Account.

What should I set my DNS Servers to?

If your domain name is using Web Hosting services at WebFarm, your Domain Name Servers should be set to:

ns.webfarm.co.nz

ns2.webfarm.co.nz

How can I edit my DNS records?

Use the "Edit DNS Records" button in My Account.

What DNS Records can I edit?

You can edit the following DNS Records using the "Edit DNS Records" button in My Account

- IP Number (A record) - point your domain name to your website.

- Aliases (CName record) - an alias of a canonical name

- Mail servers (MX Record) - define your email server(s)

- Descriptive Records ("TXT" Record) - apply text records for other information (such as SPF)

What are DNS Records?

DNS Records include;

MX Record (Mail Exchange Record). Creates a mail route for a domain name. A domain name can have multiple mail routes, each assigned a priority number. The mail route with the lowest number identifies the server responsible for the domain. Other mail servers listed will be used as backups.

A Record (Address Record). Assigns an IP address to a domain name.

CNAME Record (Canonical Name Record). Creates an alias of a canonical name. The alias gains all properties of the original, including IP addresses and mail routes.

TXT Record (Text/Descriptive Record). Provides additional information about a domain name. These maybe used to provide SPF (Sender Policy Framewor) spam filtering rules.

I cannot find any place to edit my name server records, where can I do this?

The 'Edit DNS Records' option will not appear if your Domain is not currently using the WebFarm nameservers (ns.webfarm.co.nz and ns2.webfarm.co.nz).

If you wish to edit DNS Records using WebFarm's management system, then you must change your nameserver settings to use WebFarm's nameservers by using the 'Edit Domain Servers' button.

What is the Caching Time (TTL) setting for?

The caching time (TTL: Time To Live) is the amount of time a visitors Internet provider will hold the domain name records for before asking for new ones.

Normally these should be set to the default of 8 hours, however if you plan on changing your DNS records and would like it to occur quicker than 8 hours you can change this record at least one day before making the changes.

Can a drop the TTL (Time To Live) for my DNS Records?

Yes, the TTL of your domain name records for your domain can be modified using the "Edit DNS Records" button in your My Account management by using the Caching time option.

We recommend that you set this at least 1 day before making any record changes to allow time for the change to take effect.

How do I get existing DNS records for my domain?

If you want to set up the WebFarm DNS records for your domain to be the same as the name server previously used for your domain:

1) You could email the technical contact for the operator of your previous nameserver

or

2) You can use this website: http://www.dnsstuff.com/ to get information, but you have to know what records are already set up for your domain.

Use the "DNS lookup" tool - the top of the right column. Enter your domain name (e.g. yourdomain.co.nz and try the "A" search and the "MX" search.

Note that the MX search returns the name of your mail server and the IP number for that mail server on separate records.

Repeat the "A" search for www.yourdomain.co.nz if you think this points at a different server (in most cases it will be the same). If you use any subdomains (such as shopping.yourdomain.co.nz hosted on different servers, then repeat the search with those subdomains.