Get started with DNS

Put your domain on E2E DNS: add an A record that sends your website’s visitors to your server, then point the domain at E2E’s nameservers. A quick command after each step shows that it worked before you move on.

If you came here to set reverse DNS for a mail server or a node’s IP, go straight to Set up reverse DNS.

You need:

• A registered domain, such as example.com, and a sign-in to the control panel of the registrar you bought it from.
• The IPv4 address your website runs on, such as the public IP of a node. See Get started with Node.
• A list of every record the domain uses today, if it is already in use. Your current DNS provider’s control panel shows them. E2E needs the same records so that your website and your email keep working after the switch.
• A role in the project that lets you create resources, which is what shows Add Domain.

Add your domain

1. In MyAccount, under Network, click DNS. If you have no domain yet, click Get Started. Manage DNS opens.
2. Click Add Domain.
3. In Domain, enter your registered domain, such as example.com, with no www in front.
4. In IPV4 Address, enter the address your website runs on, such as 203.0.113.10.
5. Click Submit.

If your account setup is not complete, Submit first opens the profile setup. Finish it, and then add the domain.

You see Domain has been created successfully., and your domain appears in Manage DNS as example.com., with a dot at the end.

Check the records E2E created

In the domain’s row, click Actions, then Manage. The domain opens on Edit DNS Record, with its records on the Domain Name System Record tab. E2E created these for you:

• The SOA and NS records, which name E2E’s nameservers. They stay as they are.
• An A record for the domain itself and one for www, both pointing to the address you entered.
• An MX record with priority 10, pointing to the domain itself.

The A and MX records have a TTL of 14400 seconds, which is four hours. The TTL is how long other DNS servers keep a copy of a record before they ask again.

If your email is handled by another server or provider, the MX record must name that server instead. See Set up email records.

Add the records your domain already uses

If your domain is already in use, add each record from your list with Add Record, the same type, name, and value as at your current provider. See Add a DNS record for A, AAAA, and CNAME records, and Set up email records for MX and TXT records.

Check that E2E answers for your domain

E2E’s nameservers answer for your domain as soon as you add it, before you change anything at your registrar. Ask one of them directly, from any computer with dig:

dig @ns50.e2enetworks.net.in example.com A +short

The output is the address you entered:

203.0.113.10

Run the same command for each record you added, with its name and type, such as dig @ns50.e2enetworks.net.in www.example.com A +short. When each one answers as you expect, the domain is ready to switch.

Point your domain to E2E

1. On Manage DNS, click Nameservers. The dialog lists Nameserver1: ns50.e2enetworks.net.in and Nameserver2: ns51.e2enetworks.net.in.
2. Sign in to your registrar’s control panel, and open the nameserver settings for your domain.
3. Replace the domain’s current nameservers with these two, and save.

Your registrar passes the change on to the domain’s registry. Resolvers pick it up as their copy of the old nameservers expires, which can take up to 48 hours.

Check that the domain points to E2E

To see the nameservers the internet now has for your domain, run:

dig NS example.com +short

Once the change has spread, the output lists E2E’s two nameservers:

ns50.e2enetworks.net.in.
ns51.e2enetworks.net.in.

In MyAccount, open the domain and click Diagnostics. The nameserver check reads Your nameservers point to E2E Networks cloud nameservers. with No fix required. If it still reads Your DNS is currently hosted with another provider., it lists the nameservers it found under Current nameservers are:. Your old nameservers there mean the change is still spreading; click the refresh button later to run the checks again. If they are neither your old ones nor E2E’s, check the nameservers you saved at your registrar.

Your domain is now on E2E DNS. The records you add or change in MyAccount are the answers the internet gets.

What to do next

• Set up reverse DNS: give your server’s IP your own name, which mail servers check.
• Set up email records: MX, SPF, and DKIM for the domain’s email.
• Add a DNS record: more names for your sites and services.
• Check your domain with Diagnostics: what each check means.
• Troubleshooting DNS and DNS FAQ: fixes for common problems, and short answers.