internet2 min read
DNS for humans: domains, records, and email that lands
A plain-English tour of A, CNAME, MX, and TXT records — and the three records that keep your email out of spam.
Your domain is your address on the internet. DNS is the phone book that tells the world where that address points. Get it wrong and your site goes dark or your invoices land in spam.
The records you’ll actually touch
| Record | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| A / AAAA | Points a name at an IP address | peery.me → 76.76.21.21 |
| CNAME | Points a name at another name | www → cname.vercel-dns.com |
| MX | Where email for the domain is delivered | mail.provider.com |
| TXT | Free-form proof & policy (SPF, DKIM, DMARC, verification) | v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ~all |
The email trio: SPF, DKIM, DMARC
- SPF lists which servers are allowed to send mail as you.
- DKIM cryptographically signs each message so receivers can verify it.
- DMARC tells receivers what to do when SPF/DKIM fail — and sends you reports.
TTL: the setting everyone forgets
TTL is how long resolvers cache a record. Before a migration, lower it to 300 seconds a day in advance. After, raise it back to an hour or more.
If you’d rather not think about any of this, my Domain & DNS Setup package handles it end-to-end.
- #domains
- #dns