Registration is only the first step
A registered name needs DNS settings to reach your services. Your registrar account manages the registration; the authoritative DNS provider publishes the records. These may be different companies. Check the nameservers before deciding where to edit a record.
Match each record to a service
A and AAAA connect a hostname to IPv4 and IPv6 addresses. MX directs mail delivery. TXT can carry service verification and email policy. CNAME makes one hostname an alias of another. Use the values supplied by your hosting or mail provider rather than copying another website’s configuration.
Make a change you can undo
Save the current records and their TTL values. Change only the records required for the new service. If moving nameservers, recreate the full zone at the new provider first: copying only website records can break email.
Test from the visitor’s point of view
Check the apex domain and www separately, open the site over HTTPS, and send mail in both directions. Resolver caches can temporarily show old values. DNS lookup shows what a resolver returned at the time of the request, not a promise that every network already sees the same answer. An IP location also does not establish the owner’s location.
DNS propagation: use TTL as evidence
TTL is measured in seconds. An answer with TTL 3600 can remain cached for up to an hour from the time that resolver cached it; it is not a promise that every device changes together. Compare authoritative settings with returned answers and repeat the same query with a timestamp. Different caches, negative answers and nameserver delegation can have different lifetimes. Lowering a TTL after the old answer was cached does not shorten that existing cache.
Email checks: MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC
MX directs incoming mail. SPF identifies authorised sending sources; DKIM validates a signature using a published key; DMARC checks alignment and policy. A root TXT query does not list every DKIM or DMARC record. Query _dmarc.example.com for DMARC and the selector supplied by your mail provider, such as selector._domainkey.example.com, for DKIM. Replace these illustrative names with your own domain and actual selector. Do not invent a DKIM key or copy another provider’s SPF value.
A worked change checklist
Illustrative migration: the website moves, but email stays with the current provider. Change only the website records specified by the new host. Keep mail records and verify both the main hostname and www. If moving the whole DNS provider, recreate all required records first.
- Save the previous zone and TTL values.
- Confirm the intended target with the hosting or email provider.
- Compare DNS answers, test HTTPS and send a message in both directions.
Put this guide into practice
Check your domain before making a registration decision. If it is available, the result offers Capconnect registration with the published price when known.