What is DNS?
If you are a beginner to websites, you’re probably scared of acronyms like DNS?
DNS stands for Domain Name Server and there’s no need to be scared of it. You only need to set your Domain Name Servers once when you create a website and then you never have to worry about it again unless you make changes to your website hosting.
We should all be happy domain name servers exist because if they didn’t, we would all have to remember long IP addresses like 51.21.124.32 to go to our favorite websites.
51.21.124.32 is the IP address of the hosting server for WebEminence.com.
Thanks to DNS, instead of typing in 9 numbers in your browser, you can type in a domain name like WebEminence.com that is much easier to remember. Your internet service provider will direct your request to a domain name server that translates the domain name into an IP address. The IP address will direct you to the correct location so the correct website is returned and displayed in your browser.
Sounds simple right? Not really.. it is a complex process that happens in milliseconds behind the scene. If you are a new website owner, you only need to worry about setting your DNS once so that visitors will find your website when they type your domain name into your browser.
How Do I Set Domain Name Servers for my domain?
Your domain name servers are set in your domain name register account. Wherever you purchased your domain name from is where you go to set your domain name servers.
Domain name servers connect your domain name to your hosting server so there are instances where website owners purchase a domain name and hosting from the same company, like HostGator for example. In that case, the name servers may automatically be set for you.
More often, website owners purchase domain names and hosting from two different companies and so you have to login to your domain registrar to set the domain name servers. Your hosting company should have given you the appropriate name servers to use for your hosting account. If you did not receive them from your hosting account, you should contact your hosting company or search the support section of their website.
For example, if have have hosting through Hostgator, your name servers might look something like this:
ns1.hostgator.com
ns2.hostgator.com
These name servers should be entered into the settings for your domain name within your domain registrar account. Read this blog post for instructions on entering your domain name servers in your Godaddy account. Many other domain registrars will work much the same way if you do not use Godaddy for your domains.
What Happens After I Set Domain Name Servers? Why Does it Take 24-48 hrs?
Once domain name servers are set for your domain, the change does not take effect immediately. This is because the domain name system is hosted my many domain name servers all over the world. Depending on your location and internet service provider, you may be accessing any of a number of domain name servers. So an internet surfer in Arizona may be accessing the updated domain name information while someone in Maryland is not.
I have found that within 3-4 hours, most domain name changes propagate throughout the entire US and after 24 hours the change should be in effect throughout the entire world.