DNS management: the settings that tie everything together.
Nobody looks at them until the site or the email stops working. Then it turns out nobody knows who has access.
Short answer
DNS is the system that translates a domain name into the servers behind it: where the website is, where email is delivered and which services may send mail for the domain. DNS management is keeping those settings up. Jevana manages clients' DNS, documents every record and stops a change for the website from quietly breaking the email.
The records that matter in every business
| Record | What it controls | If it is wrong |
|---|---|---|
| A and AAAA | Which server your website is on | The site cannot be reached |
| MX | Where email for your domain is delivered | Email does not arrive, with no error on your side |
| SPF, DKIM, DMARC | Who may send email on your behalf | Your email lands in recipients' spam |
| CNAME | Pointers to third-party services | A newsletter, online shop or login does not work |
| CAA | Who may issue a certificate for your domain | The padlock expires and is not renewed |
Who actually has access
At many companies the domain name was once registered by a web builder, a former employee or a nephew. The login details are with that person. As long as everything works, nobody knows.
It becomes a problem at the first change: a new website, a switch of email, a certificate that expires. So the first step in DNS management is always to find out where the domain name is held and in whose name, and to make sure the owner of the business can get in. A domain name can be in your name or managed by us. Either way it is put in writing that it belongs to you.
What we do
Putting it in order
- Domain name in your organisation's name, or managed by us
- Old and duplicate records cleared out
- Every record given a reason
Keeping it up
- Changes planned, with a short TTL beforehand so a rollback is fast
- A check from outside that the records are still right
- DNSSEC on, where the registration supports it
Protecting
- Transfer of the domain locked
- Two-step verification on the account at the registrar
- Traffic to your site filtered against overload attacks, if needed
Questions
What does DNS management do?
DNS management keeps the settings of your domain name that decide where your website, email and other services are found. It looks like one-off work, but every new service needs an adjustment: a newsletter tool, an accounting package that emails invoices, a move of the site. Management stops one change from quietly breaking something else.
How long before a DNS change takes effect?
That depends on the TTL set on the record. Other servers remember the old answer for as long as that time lasts, often an hour and sometimes a day. So we lower the TTL well before a planned change. At the moment itself the switch then goes through with little delay, and rolling back is just as fast.
Does our domain name have to move to you?
No. The registration can stay where it is, and we only need access to the DNS settings. You can also place the domain name with us. Then we manage registration, renewal and DNS in one place, and nobody forgets the renewal. The domain name remains your organisation's, and you take it with you if you ever leave.
What is DDoS protection and do I need it?
A DDoS attack floods a website with so much traffic that real visitors cannot get in. Protection works by routing traffic through a network that filters out the malicious part before it reaches your server. For an online shop or a site that revenue depends on, it is sensible. We set it up through a specialist party.
Goes well with
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Business email
Mail on your own domain name that arrives, with the settings that stop it ending up as spam.
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Moving hosting
Moving your website, server or application from another host, without visitors noticing.
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Web hosting
Your website and email on your own domain, on our hardware, with updates and backups that someone keeps up.
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DNS filtering
Harmful and fake websites blocked before the page loads, at the office and on the road.
From the knowledge base
-
How do you transfer a domain name, and what can go wrong?
Moving a domain name to another provider without mail and website going down: the steps, the code and the pitfalls.
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SPF, DKIM and DMARC explained: why does your email end up in spam?
Three DNS settings decide whether your business email arrives. What they do, what goes wrong and why you should not set them up halfway.
Tell us what you run.
An introduction costs nothing. You talk straight away to one of the two people who will actually do the work.
or email info@jevana.systems