DNS Glossary

Fundamental DNS record type that maps a domain name (e.g., example.com) to an IPv4 address.

Similar to an A record, but maps a domain name to an IPv6 address instead of IPv4.

Network addressing method where incoming requests can be routed to a variety of different locations.

Canonical Name record. Maps one domain name (an alias) to another (the canonical name).

Certificate Authority Authorization. Specifies which CAs are allowed to issue certificates for a domain.

Temporary storage of DNS records on a resolver to speed up future lookups of the same domain.

Domain Name System Security Extensions. Adds cryptographic security to DNS records.

Distributed Denial of Service. An attack that overwhelms a server or network with traffic.

Mail Exchange record. Specifies the mail server responsible for accepting email on behalf of a domain.

A specialized server that handles queries regarding the location of a domain name's various services.

Delegates a DNS zone to use the given authoritative name servers.

The time it takes for DNS changes to be updated across the internet's servers globally.

Pointer Record. Used for Reverse DNS lookups, mapping an IP address to a domain name.

A server that accepts queries from clients and performs the necessary lookups to return an answer.

The 13 sets of servers at the top of the DNS hierarchy that manage the Top Level Domains.

Start of Authority. Contains administrative information about the zone, including the email address of the administrator.

Service Record. Specifies the location (hostname and port) of servers for specific services.

Time To Live. The amount of time that a DNS record is cached by a resolver before it expires.

Text Record. Allows administrators to insert arbitrary text into a DNS record, often for verification.

A text file that contains mappings between domain names and IP addresses, stored on a DNS server.