Overview
This article is a general overview of what DNS is and how it affects your website at DreamHost.
What is DNS?
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DNS (Domain Name System) is an Internet directory of names and numbers used to identify where a website and its services are hosted. Your site has a variety of DNS records for the multiple services it uses, which are controlled by different types of DNS records.
Hierarchy of website DNS records
You only need to be aware of two primary classifications of DNS records when hosting a website.
- Nameservers
- Domain records (A, CNAME, MX, etc.)
Nameservers
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Nameservers are the primary records that control where ALL of your other DNS records are managed for a specific domain. View this article to confirm where they are currently pointing.
- If they point to DreamHost: All of your records are managed at DreamHost, and your domain will automatically use the DNS records configured in your DreamHost panel.
- If they point to another company: All of your records are managed at that other company, so you would need to log into their panel to manage your DNS settings.
Domain records
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Your domain is configured with many different types of DNS records for the different services it requires. These include:
- A records
- CNAME records
- MX records
- SPF records
- SRV records
- TXT records
These records must be updated at the company where your nameservers are currently pointing.
Where is my website hosted?
Your website is hosted at the company where your domain's DNS is pointing. This is a combination of two things.
- The Registrar: The company where your domain is registered
- The Hosting Company: The company that displays your website on the Internet
The Registrar
The domain registration is the ownership of the name of your website. The company you purchased this from is the Registrar.
Your domain's DNS records are controlled by the registrar company. You must log into your account at this company to point your DNS records (nameservers or domain records) to a hosting company. In this way, you can have the domain registered at one company but host its DNS at another company.
The Hosting Company
The hosting company displays your website on the internet. Your domain's DNS records (nameservers or domain records) must point to the hosting company to display your site online.
As shown above, the Registrar and Hosting company could also be the same company. This is only true for some hosting companies like DreamHost. Not all hosting companies are able to register a domain for you.
Where do I point my DNS?
Where you point your DNS records depends on where the domain is registered and where you want to host your website.
My domain is registered at DreamHost, and I want to host my website at DreamHost
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If you purchased your domain at DreamHost, all of your DNS records are already configured to host your website. You do not need to make any changes.
My domain is registered with a third-party, but I want to host my website at DreamHost
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You can still host your domain at DreamHost if it's registered at a different company. However, you will need to point your DNS to DreamHost in order for it to function. View this article for information on how to adjust your DNS to point to DreamHost after setting up your domain in the panel.
My domain is registered at DreamHost, but I want to host my website at another company
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If your domain is registered at DreamHost, you can still host it at another company by pointing its DNS records there. This is done by either updating your nameservers or Adding custom DNS records. However, you will need to obtain the correct DNS records from the third-party hosting company.
See also
DreamHost links
- Basic DNS records
- What DreamHost DNS records do I point my site to?
- Checking where your DNS is hosted
- Nameservers overview
- Various tools to check your DNS records
- Viewing your DreamHost DNS records
- Email DNS Records: (MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC)
Third-party links