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What is DNS and how does it work?

DNS is the system that translates domain names into IP addresses. We explain how it works and what types of DNS records exist.

Domains & DNS DNS & Propagation

DNS (Domain Name System) is the system that allows when you type bacan.com in your browser, that name to be automatically translated into the IP address of the server where the website is hosted. Without DNS, you'd have to memorize numerical addresses like 203.0.113.42 to access any site.

How does DNS work step by step?

  1. You type a domain in your browser.
  2. Your operating system queries the DNS server of your internet provider (or whichever you have configured, such as Google DNS or Cloudflare).
  3. That server searches its cache or queries the domain's nameservers.
  4. The nameservers respond with the IP address of the server where the website is hosted.
  5. Your browser connects to that IP and loads the page.

This entire process happens in milliseconds.

The most important types of DNS records

  • A Record: associates a domain or subdomain with an IPv4 address. It's the most basic and necessary record for your website to work.
  • AAAA Record: same as the A record but for IPv6 addresses.
  • CNAME Record: creates an alias for a domain pointing to another domain name. Widely used for subdomains like www.
  • MX Record: indicates which servers handle email for that domain. If changed incorrectly, you'll stop receiving emails.
  • TXT Record: stores free-form text. Commonly used for domain verification (Google, Microsoft) and email security configurations like SPF and DMARC.
  • NS Record (Nameserver): indicates which DNS servers are authoritative for that domain.

Who manages my domain's DNS?

DNS is managed by the provider whose nameservers are configured for your domain. If you have your domain at Bacan and haven't changed the nameservers, Bacan manages your DNS. If the nameservers point to another provider, that provider manages the DNS records.

You can view and modify your domain's DNS records from the Bacan panel if your nameservers are pointing to Bacan.

Why do DNS changes take time to apply?

Each DNS record has a TTL (Time To Live) — the time during which servers around the internet cache that record. When you make a change, servers that already have the old version cached will keep using it until the TTL expires. That's why DNS changes can take anywhere from a few minutes to 48 hours to be reflected globally.