Adding DNS Records — Record Types Guide

Adding DNS Records — Record Types Guide

This article covers how to add each supported DNS record type in OpusDNS.

Where to Find It

Path: Left sidebar → DNS Zones → All DNS Zones → click a zone → "Add DNS Record" button

General Steps (All Record Types)

1. Click "Add DNS Record".
2. Select the Record Type from the dropdown.
3. Enter the Record Name (subdomain or "@" for root).
4. Enter the TTL (Time to Live) in seconds.
5. Enter the record-specific value(s).
6. Click "Apply changes".

A Record (IPv4 Address)

Points a hostname to an IPv4 address.

• Name: Enter subdomain (e.g., "www") or "@" for root. Placeholder: "www"
• Value: Enter an IPv4 address. Placeholder: "192.168.1.1"
• Multiple values: Click "Add another A value" to add multiple IPs (round-robin)
• Error if invalid: "Invalid IPv4 address format."

Example: Name: www, Value: 93.184.216.34, TTL: 3600

AAAA Record (IPv6 Address)

Points a hostname to an IPv6 address.

• Name: Subdomain or "@"
• Value: Enter an IPv6 address. Placeholder: "2001:db8::1"
• Error if invalid: "Invalid IPv6 address format."

Example: Name: www, Value: 2001:db8::1, TTL: 3600

CNAME Record (Canonical Name)

Creates an alias pointing to another hostname. Only one CNAME allowed per name.

• Name: Enter subdomain only. Placeholder: "www". Description: "Enter subdomain name."
• Value: Enter the target hostname. Placeholder: "www.example.com"
• Restrictions:
• Cannot have the same name as the zone ("CNAME records cannot have the same name as the zone")
• Cannot coexist with other record types at the same name ("There's a non-CNAME record with this name")
• Error if invalid: "Invalid hostname format."

Example: Name: blog, Value: myblog.wordpress.com, TTL: 3600

MX Record (Mail Exchange)

Directs email to mail servers with priority.

• Name: Usually "@" for root domain
• Value: Two fields per record:
• Priority — Numeric priority (lower = higher priority). Placeholder: "10"
• Hostname — Mail server hostname. Placeholder: "mail.example.com"
• Error if invalid: "Invalid MX record - hostname must be a valid hostname."

Example: Name: @, Priority: 10, Hostname: mail.example.com, TTL: 3600

TXT Record (Text)

Stores arbitrary text, commonly used for SPF, DKIM, domain verification.

• Name: Subdomain or "@"
• Value: Enter text content. Placeholder: "Hello World"
• Note: Long records may trigger "Record too long."

Example: Name: @, Value: v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ~all, TTL: 3600

NS Record (Nameserver)

Delegates a subdomain to specific nameservers.

• Name: The subdomain to delegate
• Value: Nameserver hostname. Placeholder: "ns1.example.com"
• Error if invalid: "Invalid hostname format."

Example: Name: sub, Value: ns1.subdomain-provider.com, TTL: 86400

SRV Record (Service)

Specifies the location of a service (used by SIP, XMPP, etc.).

• Name: Must follow _service._proto format. Placeholder: "_sip._tcp". Description: "Enter service and protocol."
• Value: Enter priority, weight, port, and hostname. Placeholder: "10 5 80 service.example.com."
• Error if invalid: "SRV record name must follow _service._proto format (e.g., _sip._tcp)."

Example: Name: _sip._tcp, Value: 10 5 5060 sip.example.com., TTL: 3600

CAA Record (Certificate Authority Authorization)

Controls which certificate authorities can issue SSL certificates for your domain.

• Name: Usually "@" for the domain root
• Value: Three fields:
• Flags — Usually "0". Description: "CAA flags (0-255)"
• Tag — Choose from:
• "Authorize certificate issuance" (issue) — Allows a specific CA to issue certificates
• "Authorize wildcard certificates" (issuewild) — Allows a CA to issue wildcard certificates
• "Report policy violations" (iodef) — URL to report violations
• "Custom tag" — Enter a custom alphanumeric tag
• Value — The CA domain or reporting URL. Placeholder: "ca.example.com"
• Error if invalid: "Invalid CAA record format."

Example: Name: @, Flags: 0, Tag: issue, Value: letsencrypt.org, TTL: 3600

PTR Record (Pointer / Reverse DNS)

Maps an IP address back to a hostname (reverse DNS lookup).

• Name: Must be a valid reverse DNS name. Placeholder: "1.168.192.in-addr.arpa."
• Value: The target hostname. Placeholder: "ptr.example.com"
• Error if invalid: "PTR record name must be a valid reverse DNS name"

ALIAS Record

Similar to CNAME but can be used at the zone root. OpusDNS resolves the alias server-side.

• Name: Enter "@" for root domain or subdomain
• Value: Target hostname. Placeholder: "alias.example.com"
• Error if invalid: "Invalid hostname format."

Example: Name: @, Value: myapp.herokuapp.com, TTL: 300

Setting TTL Values — What to Choose

TTL determines how long resolvers cache a record before re-checking.

Tip: Lower your TTL before making changes, wait for the old TTL to expire, then make your change. After confirming it works, raise the TTL back.