DNS Lookup

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I check if my DNS change has propagated?

Look up the record you changed and read the banner: when Google and Cloudflare both return the new value, the change is effectively live for the large majority of users worldwide. If they differ, wait and re-check. The TTL shown on the stale answer is the upper bound on how long that cache can persist.

How long does DNS propagation take?

Up to the record's previous TTL, typically 5 minutes to 48 hours. It is not a broadcast: each resolver keeps its cached answer until the TTL expires and then fetches the new one. For a planned migration, lower the TTL to 300 seconds a day in advance, make the change, then raise it back.

Which TXT records matter for email (SPF, DKIM, DMARC)?

SPF lives in a TXT record on the bare domain (v=spf1 …), DKIM in a TXT on selector._domainkey.yourdomain, and DMARC in a TXT on _dmarc.yourdomain (v=DMARC1 …). Query type TXT on each of those names here to verify what the world actually sees.

Why do the resolvers return different TTLs for the same record?

The TTL shown is the remaining cache time at that resolver, counting down from the zone's original TTL. The two resolvers cached the record at different moments, so different remainders are normal and not a propagation problem. Only differing record values are.

Is this a full geographic propagation map?

No. Browsers can only query resolvers that offer DNS-over-HTTPS with CORS enabled, so this checks the two biggest global anycast resolvers rather than per-country vantage points. In practice that covers the propagation question for most purposes; for a country-by-country view you need a server-based service like whatsmydns.net.

What data does the tool send, and where?

Only the domain name and record type you type, as HTTPS GET requests to dns.google and cloudflare-dns.com, which is the same query your device would send those resolvers anyway if it used them for DNS. No analytics, no other endpoints, and nothing runs until you press Lookup.

Can it export my whole DNS zone?

It exports as much of it as DNS lets a browser see, which is not the same thing, and the difference matters if you are migrating. A true zone dump needs AXFR, a zone transfer the authoritative nameserver has to authorise, and which is switched off for the public on essentially every domain. There is also no query meaning 'list every name in this zone': DNS only answers questions about names you already know. So the export probes the domain itself, about 50 common labels (www, mail, cpanel, autodiscover, _dmarc, _domainkey and so on), plus any subdomains you type in, and writes down whatever answers. In practice that means a service on a name nobody would guess, such as vpn, gitlab or staging-2, will be missing from the file, and nothing will flag it. Add those names in the box before scanning. The file header records exactly how many names were probed and lists any that failed to answer, so you can see the shape of what you got. Treat it as a strong starting point for the new provider, then check it against your old control panel before switching the nameservers off.