How can I set up DNS for my website?
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thomaswilliams9181
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Tue Jun 23, 2020 5:23 pm
- Os: CentOS 5x
- Web: apache + nginx
How can I set up DNS for my website?
I have a specific DNS problem for my website - I can access my website using its static ip address but not its domain name. Here's a description of my situation:
I registered a website name, say, "xxx.com", at GoDaddy.com, but the web app is hosted on a AWS lightsail Ubuntu instance with a static ip;
In the "DNS Management" page of this same on GoDaddy.com, I specified custom name servers as those provided by AWS
On AWS Lightsail, I then created an "A" DNS record that maps "xxx.com" to the ubuntu instance's static ip: "A" - "xxx.com" -> "x.x.x.x"
I was able to reach my website using "xxx.com" last night, but after rebooting the Ubuntu instance this morning, the domain name is unreachable while the website can still be accessed using its ip address
I have 2 questions -
How would AWS' name servers know that I am the rightful owner of this purchased domain name "xxx.com", by allowing me to map "xxx.com" to a certain ip address?
Did I miss something during the process above that made my website unreachable today using "xxx.com"? Why was it working yesterday but not today??
Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!
I registered a website name, say, "xxx.com", at GoDaddy.com, but the web app is hosted on a AWS lightsail Ubuntu instance with a static ip;
In the "DNS Management" page of this same on GoDaddy.com, I specified custom name servers as those provided by AWS
On AWS Lightsail, I then created an "A" DNS record that maps "xxx.com" to the ubuntu instance's static ip: "A" - "xxx.com" -> "x.x.x.x"
I was able to reach my website using "xxx.com" last night, but after rebooting the Ubuntu instance this morning, the domain name is unreachable while the website can still be accessed using its ip address
I have 2 questions -
How would AWS' name servers know that I am the rightful owner of this purchased domain name "xxx.com", by allowing me to map "xxx.com" to a certain ip address?
Did I miss something during the process above that made my website unreachable today using "xxx.com"? Why was it working yesterday but not today??
Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Re: How can I set up DNS for my website?
If you don't want to purchase a domain name, you'll need to implement something like dynamic DNS. There are a few sites that offer free dynamic DNS. I used no-ip before I had a static IP address and a domain.
Basically you install a client on a workstation in your LAN and it updates a DNS subdomain they give you with your public IP. But that still resolves to your public IP address so if people wanted to, they could easily find that.
Basically you install a client on a workstation in your LAN and it updates a DNS subdomain they give you with your public IP. But that still resolves to your public IP address so if people wanted to, they could easily find that.
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paul_wilson
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2021 9:04 am
- Os: CentOS 5x
- Web: apache
Re: How can I set up DNS for my website?
If you are hosting your own server or have a cloud server, you will need an A record pointed at the server’s IP address.
1. In your Dyn Standard DNS account, go to My Zones/Domains.
2. Click Dyn Standard DNS Service beside the domain you would like to manage.
3. In the Add DNS Record section, select A from the TYPE dropdown menu and paste your server’s IP address into the DATA field.
4. Click Create Record.
Setting Up Your Domain’s Email Address Using Gmail
If you are setting up your domain’s email address using Gmail, you must add several records to validate your domain’s email address with Gmail.
1. In your Dyn Standard DNS account, go to My Zones/Domains.
2. Click Dyn Standard DNS Service beside the domain you want to manage.
3. Test your email by sending to and from it.
I hope this helps!
Paul Wilson
1. In your Dyn Standard DNS account, go to My Zones/Domains.
2. Click Dyn Standard DNS Service beside the domain you would like to manage.
3. In the Add DNS Record section, select A from the TYPE dropdown menu and paste your server’s IP address into the DATA field.
4. Click Create Record.
Setting Up Your Domain’s Email Address Using Gmail
If you are setting up your domain’s email address using Gmail, you must add several records to validate your domain’s email address with Gmail.
1. In your Dyn Standard DNS account, go to My Zones/Domains.
2. Click Dyn Standard DNS Service beside the domain you want to manage.
3. Test your email by sending to and from it.
I hope this helps!
Paul Wilson