DNS host
The provider whose authoritative nameservers serve a domain's zone, where its records (MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC) are actually created and edited.
What it means
The DNS host runs the nameservers listed in the domain's NS records. It might be the registrar, a CDN, a cloud provider or the company itself. Records only take effect at this provider, so the first step in any setup guide, "log in to your domain host", means this one.
To find it, look up the domain's NS or SOA records. Records added at a registrar or old provider that is no longer authoritative have no effect.
DNS hosts differ in what they support: long TXT records, CAA, TLSA, DNSSEC signing and short TTLs.
Related terms
On this site
Sources
What this definition rests on. The wording is ours; the facts are theirs.
- RFC 9499: DNS Terminology, section 6rfc-editor.org
- RFC 1034: Domain Names: Concepts and Facilities, section 4.2rfc-editor.org
- Google Workspace Admin Help: Set up DMARCknowledge.workspace.google.com
All 432 terms in the glossaryThe wiki: blocklists and bounce codes