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User Guide - Managing DNS and Domains

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Applicable Plans - All eApps Plans (General VPS, Plesk, cPanel and Zimbra)

User Guide - Managing DNS and Domains

The Domain Name System (DNS) is a hierarchical naming system for computers, services, or any resource connected to the Internet or a private network. It associates various information with domain names assigned to each of the participants. Most importantly, it translates domain names meaningful to humans into the numerical (binary) identifiers associated with networking equipment for the purpose of locating and addressing these devices worldwide - from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_Name_System

Overview

This User Guide is designed to help you with the process of adding domains to your eApps subscription using the Parallels Business Automation (PBA) Control Panel, and managing the DNS for your domains. There is also a section on basic troubleshooting tools.

The section on Adding Domains is applicable to all eApps customers. The section on Managing Your DNS is applicable to eApps customers who host their domains in the eApps DNS.

Adding Domains using the PBA Control Panel

Managing your DNS using the PBA Control Panel

eApps Name Servers

Troubleshooting DNS problems

Links to other information


Adding Domains using the PBA Control Panel

eApps Web Hosting uses the Parallels Business Automation (PBA) Control Panel to give our customers an easy yet powerful way to manage their Virtual Private Servers (VPSs). The PBA Control Panel allows you to manage the VPS, install and remove applications, add e-mail users, and much more.

The Control Panel also allows you to Add Domains to your VPS, and then manage the DNS for those domains (if those domains are using eApps DNS). eApps Web Hosting places no limits on the number of domains you can host in your VPS.

For information on adding sites to your VPS, see the User Guide - Managing your websites with the Apache web server

Add Domain

To add a domain, log in to your Control Panel, and click on the System Tab. If necessary, click on the Select Another System (Subscription) link on the left and choose the correct Virtuozzo Container.

Scroll to the bottom of the Control Panel screen to Domain Management. In that section, click on All My Domains. In the next screen, click on the Add Domain icon. Here you can either Use an existing domain registered elsewhere or Create a subdomain.

Add Domain
Add Domain


For these examples, the place holder domains of eapps-example.com or example.com are used. Please be sure to substitute your own domain name.

Use an existing domain registered elsewhere

This option is used when you are adding a new domain to the VPS. This can be a domain that you just registered, or one you already own.

Tech tip The standard DNS template used by eApps Hosting considers "www" as an alias or CNAME. This means that if you add your domain as www.example.com, you will end up with DNS entries such as www.www.example.com or mail.www.example.com, which can cause confusion.

New Domain - enter the domain name you wish to add to the VPS, in the form of the Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN). This means that you will add example.com , not www.example.com.

Host domain in eApps DNS - this is checked by default. Unless you are using a third party DNS provider for your domain, please leave this checked. This will create a DNS Zone file for your domain in the eApps name servers, and set the eApps name servers as authoritative for your domain.

Create a subdomain

This option is used when creating a subdomain to an existing domain. For example, if you already have the example.com domain added to the VPS, this will allow you to create a subdomain for example.com, such as test.example.com

Domain - enter the name of the desired subdomain here (in this example, the name would be test). In the drop down menu to the right, choose the FQDN you wish to create the subdomain for (in this example, the FQDN would be example.com).

If you choose the default of Select Provider's domain, this will create the subdomain in the .virtual.vps-host.net domain. This is useful if you simply want to create a subdomain as a test site without having it associated with an existing FQDN on your VPS.

Host domain in eApps DNS - the same information applies for a subdomain as it does for a new domain.

Used by subscription

The Used by subscription drop down menu is where a domain is associated with the correct subscription. If you have only one VPS, you have only one subscription, and this will be the only choice in the drop down menu.

If you have multiple subscriptions, please choose the correct one from the list.

Note Not associating a domain with a subscription means that to the Control Panel, the domain is in limbo. If you have multiple subscriptions, and have added a domain but cannot add that domain as a site, or ping the domain name or see any DNS entries for the domain, please check in the System Tab, All My Domains - find that domain, and look to the far right column for Used by subscription. If you see N/A there, you will need to click on the domain and associate it with a subscription. This is a common support ticket and one that has an easy fix.


Once the domain or subdomain has been added, click Save. This returns you to the All My Domains screen, and you can now click on the domain you just added.

Once you click on Save, the DNS Zone file is created for the domain (if you have hosted the domain in eApps DNS). It will take several hours for the DNS changes to propagate across the Internet, so the domain may not resolve right away as a Site or even respond to pings. It may also take a few hours for all the entries to show in the DNS Zone tab.

The "correct" answer is that it takes 24 to 48 hours for these DNS changes to propagate, but the "real" answer is usually three to four hours, depending on how quickly your ISPs name servers refresh. The eApps name servers will update and push out the DNS change within 10 minutes, but we have no control over how quickly any other name servers update.

Managing your DNS using the PBA Control Panel

If you are hosting your domains in eApps DNS, this section will explain how to manage your DNS using the PBA Control Panel.

If you are not hosting your domains in eApps DNS, please contact your DNS hosting provider for more information.

Understanding DNS Records

To see the DNS records for your domain, log in to your Control Panel, and click on the System Tab. If necessary, click on the Select Another System (Subscription) link on the left and choose the correct Virtuozzo Container.

Scroll to the bottom of the Control Panel screen to Domain Management. In that section, click on All My Domains. Then click on the name of the domain you wish to view. In the next screen, click on the DNS Zone tab at the top of the screen.

Note The DNS Zone tab is only available if you are hosting your domain in eApps DNS.

This screen shows all the DNS records in the domain zone file. To make it easier to see what is listed, click on Type so you can sort by the type of record. Click on Type until the first record is the A record for the domain.

DNS Zone
DNS Zone

There are several types of DNS records that are used in the DNS Zone tab.

DNS Records available in PBA Control Panel DNS Zone tab
Name of DNS Record Function
A Used to map an IP address to a domain name
CNAME Used to alias a hostname to a domain name
MX Maps a hostname to the mail server for a domain
NS Specifies the authoritative name server(s) for a DNS Zone
SOA Specifies the authoritative information about a DNS Zone, such as the primary name server and domain administrator
TXT Human readable text, often used for SPF records
SRV Specifies information on available services

  • The A record is the DNS record that points your domain name to the IP address assigned to your VPS. If the A record doesn't exist, or points to an incorrect IP address, your domain will not resolve properly.
  • The CNAME record is used to map an alias to a hostname. Remember that in the eApps DNS, the hostname of www.example.com is actually just a CNAME for example.com. Since they both resolve to the same domain and site, one is an alias of the other.
  • An MX record is the hostname of the Mail eXchanger for the domain. This is where the incoming e-mail for a domain is delivered to.
  • The NS records are the Name Servers for that domain. These are the servers that direct the requests for the domain to the correct DNS records.
  • An SOA record is a Start of Authority record. This record specifies the authoritative name server, the e-mail of the domain administrator, a serial number and information about the timing for DNS Zone refresh.
  • The TXT record is used for human readable text, but usually now has machine-readable data, such as an SPF record or Domain Keys.
  • An SRV record is used for new protocols such as SIP or XMPP.
  • PTR record  - if you need a PTR record added, please contact eApps Support.

Adding a DNS Record

To add a DNS record to the DNS Zone, click on the New Record icon New Record

There are five fields for New Record : Name, TTL, Type, Priority, Value and Comment. Depending on the type of DNS record you add not all fields may be available to you.

New Zone
New Record
  • Name - usually used for a CNAME, but can be used for other types of records such as A or MX records.
  • TTL - this is the Time To Live, in seconds. This is the length of time the DNS record is active before the record is refreshed at the authoritative name server for the domain. 600 seconds is 10 minutes. This value cannot be changed. 
  • Type - select the Type of record from the drop down menu
  • Priority - this value is only relevant for an MX or SRV record. The lower the number, the higher the priority.
  • Value - the FQDN or IP address for the new DNS record
  • Comment - an optional comment can go here

Here are three examples, one showing a new CNAME, one showing a new MX record, and one showing a new A record pointing to a hostname that is off the eApps network.

Adding a CNAME

This example adds a CNAME of test.eapps-example.com to the existing DNS Zone.

Add CNAME
Add CNAME record
  • Name: test : this is the name to be aliased to the A record
  • TTL: this will always be 600 seconds, or 10 minutes
  • Type: CNAME : this record is an alias, or CNAME
  • Priority: since this is a CNAME, no Priority is available
  • Value: this is the hostname the new CNAME is being aliased to, ending with a period (.)
  • Comment: add a comment if you wish

Adding an MX record

This example adds a new MX record to eapps-example.com with a priority of 10, which will bypass the existing Postini MX records and deliver e-mail directly to the VPS

Add MX record
Add MX record
  • Name: leave this blank
  • TTL: this will always be 600 seconds, or 10 minutes
  • Type: MX : this is a Mail eXchanger record
  • Priority: the lower the number, the higher the priority
  • Value: this is the hostname that the MX record accepts mail for, ending with a period (.)
  • Comment: add a comment if you wish

Adding an A record

Add A record
Add A record

This example adds an A record to an existing DNS Zone. This might be done to point a subdomain to a different hosting service, for example a subdomain of blog.eapps-example.com to a service that offers hosted blogs.
  • Name: add the name of the subdomain, in this example blog
  • TTL: this will always be 600 seconds, or 10 minutes
  • Type: A : this is an A record
  • Priority: since this is an A record, no Priority is available
  • Value: this will be the IP address of the third party service, ending with a period (.)
  • Comment: add a comment if you wish

Note If you are pointing a DNS record at a third party service, you will need to contact that service provider in order to determine the correct records and DNS information.

eApps Name Servers

eApps maintains four name servers. Two are located directly on the eApps network, and two are located outside the eApps network. This allows for greater redundancy and failover.

Name Server IP Address
ns1.eapps.com 216.154.208.2
ns2.eapps.com 64.57.252.2
ns5.eapps.com 67.23.10.165
ns6.eapps.com 67.23.5.74

The name servers of ns3.eapps.com and ns4.eapps.com are used as caching name servers - they are used by the VPS to cache outbound requests. They are not available for use outside the eApps network, do not add them as name servers at your registrar.

If you are adding the eApps name servers at your domain registrar, use at least ns1.eapps.com and ns2.eapps.com. If possible, add ns5.eapps.com and ns6.eapps.com. Most registrars should have enough spaces for you to all all four name servers.

Note Make sure that you have added the domain to your eApps Control Panel before you add the eApps name servers at your registrar.
If you have registered your domain through eApps, the correct name servers will be set by default at our registrar, which is eNom.


Troubleshooting DNS problems

If your domain or site is not resolving, here are some tools to assist with finding the reason. Both command line and web based tools are shown.

Tech top This information assumes that you have already checked the obvious things, such as determining if your web server is running and that your domain has not expired, and that your hosting account at eApps has not been suspended. 

Web based tools

  • Traceroute - http://www.traceroute.org/ allows you to run a traceroute from various locations around the world to your VPS (or any IP address)

Command line tools

There are several command line tools that can be used to troubleshoot suspected DNS problems. On a Windows system, nslookup is used. On a Mac OS X, Linux/*BSD/UNIX system, use either dig or nslookup.

Note These are just examples to show the basic usage of these commands. Please see the official documentation for more information.

nslookup

The nslookup command is used to do DNS lookups and queries on Windows systems. It is also available on Mac OS X, Linux/*BSD/UNIX system. The commands for nslookup are fairly similar for a Windows system or a UNIX/Linux/*BSD/Mac OS X system.

To use nslookup on a Windows system, open the DOS or command prompt (accessing the DOS or command prompt can vary depending on which version of Windows you have, please read your operating system documentation or consult Microsoft?s online help if you have any questions )

On a Mac OS X/Linux/*BSD/UNIX system, open a terminal session.

From the command prompt, use nslookup to find out the basic information for a domain:

[root@example ~]$ nslookup eapps-example.com
Server:         192.94.73.20
Address:        192.94.73.20#53

Non-authoritative answer:
Name:   eapps-example.com
Address: 69.89.6.54

[root@example ~]$


To find the name servers for a domain:
C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator> nslookup
> set type=ns
> eapps-example.com
Server:         192.94.73.20
Address:        192.94.73.20#53

Non-authoritative answer:
eapps-example.com       nameserver = ns1.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com       nameserver = ns2.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com       nameserver = ns6.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com       nameserver = ns5.eapps.com.

Authoritative answers can be found from:
ns1.eapps.com   internet address = 216.154.208.2
ns2.eapps.com   internet address = 64.57.252.2
ns5.eapps.com   internet address = 67.23.10.164
ns6.eapps.com   internet address = 67.23.5.74
> exit

C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator>


To find the mail servers (MX records) for a domain:

[root@example ~]$ nslookup
> set type=mx
> eapps-example.com
Server:         192.94.73.20
Address:        192.94.73.20#53

Non-authoritative answer:
eapps-example.com    mail exchanger = 300 eapps-example.com.s7b1.psmtp.com.
eapps-example.com    mail exchanger = 400 eapps-example.com.s7b2.psmtp.com.
eapps-example.com    mail exchanger = 100 eapps-example.com.s7a1.psmtp.com.
eapps-example.com    mail exchanger = 200 eapps-example.com.s7a2.psmtp.com.

Authoritative answers can be found from:
eapps-example.com       nameserver = ns6.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com       nameserver = ns1.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com       nameserver = ns5.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com       nameserver = ns2.eapps.com.
ns1.eapps.com   internet address = 216.154.208.2
ns2.eapps.com   internet address = 64.57.252.2
ns5.eapps.com   internet address = 67.23.10.164
ns6.eapps.com   internet address = 67.23.5.74
> exit

[root@example ~]$

dig

The dig command is used on Mac OS X/Linux/UNIX/*BSD systems to issue DNS queries. The dig command is not available on Windows by default. It has to be installed as a third party tool. See Links to other information for a link to a Windows dig install.


From the command prompt, use the dig command to find out the basic information about a domain with dig domain.com

[root@example ~]$ dig eapps-example.com

; <<>> DiG 9.5.1-P1 <<>> eapps-example.com
;; global options:  printcmd
;; Got answer:
;; ->>HEADER<<- opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 63839
;; flags: qr rd ra; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 1, AUTHORITY: 4, ADDITIONAL: 1

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;eapps-example.com.             IN      A

;; ANSWER SECTION:
eapps-example.com.      295     IN      A       69.89.6.54

;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
eapps-example.com.      295     IN      NS      ns1.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      295     IN      NS      ns6.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      295     IN      NS      ns5.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      295     IN      NS      ns2.eapps.com.

;; ADDITIONAL SECTION:
ns1.eapps.com.          172476  IN      A       216.154.208.2

;; Query time: 16 msec
;; SERVER: 192.94.73.20#53(192.94.73.20)
;; WHEN: Tue Feb  9 12:31:00 2010
;; MSG SIZE  rcvd: 145

[root@example ~]$


To find the name servers for a domain use dig domain.com NS +noall + answer

[root@example ~]$ dig eapps-example.com NS +noall +answer

; <<>> DiG 9.5.1-P1 <<>> eapps-example.com NS +noall +answer
;; global options:  printcmd
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      NS      ns5.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      NS      ns2.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      NS      ns1.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      NS      ns6.eapps.com.
[root@example ~]$


To find the MX (mail server) records for a domain with dig domain.com MX +noall + answer

[root@example ~]$ dig eapps-example.com MX +noall +answer

; <<>> DiG 9.5.1-P1 <<>> eapps-example.com MX +noall +answer
;; global options:  printcmd
eapps-example.com.   536  IN   MX   400 eapps-example.com.s7b2.psmtp.com.
eapps-example.com.   536  IN   MX   100 eapps-example.com.s7a1.psmtp.com.
eapps-example.com.   536  IN   MX   200 eapps-example.com.s7a2.psmtp.com.
eapps-example.com.   536  IN   MX   300 eapps-example.com.s7b1.psmtp.com.
[root@example ~]$



You can also use dig to query a specific name server with dig @name-server.com domain.com 

[root@example ~]$ dig @ns1.eapps.com eapps-example.com

; <<>> DiG 9.5.1-P1 <<>> @ns1.eapps.com eapps-example.com
; (1 server found)
;; global options:  printcmd
;; Got answer:
;; ->>HEADER<<- opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 10346
;; flags: qr aa rd; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 1, AUTHORITY: 4, ADDITIONAL: 4
;; WARNING: recursion requested but not available

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;eapps-example.com.             IN      A

;; ANSWER SECTION:
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      A       69.89.6.54

;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      NS      ns5.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      NS      ns6.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      NS      ns1.eapps.com.
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      NS      ns2.eapps.com.

;; ADDITIONAL SECTION:
ns1.eapps.com.          600     IN      A       216.154.208.2
ns2.eapps.com.          600     IN      A       64.57.252.2
ns5.eapps.com.          600     IN      A       67.23.10.164
ns6.eapps.com.          600     IN      A       67.23.5.74

;; Query time: 109 msec
;; SERVER: 216.154.208.2#53(216.154.208.2)
;; WHEN: Tue Feb  9 12:40:57 2010
;; MSG SIZE  rcvd: 193

[root@example ~]$


For an abbreviated reply, with just the A record use dig @name-server.com domain.com +noall +answer 

[root@example ~]$ dig @ns1.eapps.com eapps-example.com +noall +answer

; <<>> DiG 9.5.1-P1 <<>> @ns1.eapps.com eapps-example.com +noall +answer
; (1 server found)
;; global options:  printcmd
eapps-example.com.      600     IN      A     69.89.6.54
[root@example ~]$


Links to other information

dig for Windows - http://members.shaw.ca/nicholas.fong/dig/
dig command information - http://www.oreillynet.com/linux/cmd/cmd.csp?path=d/dig
nslookup information from Microsoft - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/200525
Wikipedia DNS entry - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_Name_System
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