Managing your domain’s DNS settings depends on the type of service you are using with Z.com, whether it is connected to a web hosting service or registered as a domain-only service. Note: • If your domain is connected to our hosting, DNS changes must be made through cPanel, using the Zone Editor tool. • Domains connected to Z.com hosting will use the default nameservers (ns-wh1.web.z.com, ns-wh2.web.z.com) • If your domain is not connected to our hosting, you can update DNS settings directly from your Z.com Client Area, using DNS Management.    

1. Edit domain DNS via cPanel

1. Go to our Sign-in page. 2. Enter your Email Address and Password, and proceed to log in. 3. On the left side of the top navigation bar, click on the Domains drop-down menu and click My Domains or DOMAINS directly. 4. Click on the settings icon on the right side of your domain. 5. Click DNS Management on the left side under Manage. 6. Click Manual DNS records Setup in cPanel for a new window to automatically open, redirecting you directly to the cPanel Zone Editor page. 7. Aligned with the targeted domain, click Manage to view your DNS table or click + A Record / + CNAME Record / + MX Record for respective DNS settings directly. 8. Here, you can add, edit, or delete the DNS records for your domain accordingly. Once done, click Save Record. Note: DNS updates may take 24 to 48 hours to propagate across the internet fully. We recommend allowing this time for the update to take full effect.

2. Edit domain DNS via DNS Management

Note: • Updating your DNS settings directly from your Z.com Client Area will automatically change your domain’s current nameservers to (01.dnsv.jp, 02.dnsv.jp, 03.dnsv.jp, and 04.dnsv.jp). • The DNS Management page applies only when using the above nameservers. 1. Go to our Sign-in page. 2. Enter your Email Address and Password, and proceed to log in. 3. On the left side of the top navigation bar, click on the Domains drop-down menu and click My Domains or DOMAINS directly. 4. Click on the settings icon on the right side of your domain. 5. Click DNS Management on the left side under Manage. 6. Click Manual DNS records Setup. 7. Here, you can edit, add, or delete the DNS records for your domain accordingly. Once done, click Save Changes. Note: DNS updates may take 24 to 48 hours to propagate across the internet fully. We recommend allowing this time for the update to take full effect.

Note: Once private nameservers are created, please keep them and use them for any domain; otherwise, the registry may occasionally delete them.

1. Go to our Sign-in page. 2. Enter your Email Address and Password, and proceed to log in. 3. On the left side of the top navigation bar, click on the Domains drop-down menu and click My Domains or DOMAINS directly. 4. Click on the settings icon on the right side of your domain. 5. Click Private Nameservers on the left side under Manage. 6. You can create and manage custom private nameservers for your domain from here. Fill in the fields accordingly: Register a NameServer Name — register your private nameserver setting in here. Modify a NameServer IP — if you need to update your current IP address. Delete a NameServer — area where you can delete private nameserver settings.

Note: Private nameservers are not shown anywhere in the Z.com Client Area. Please keep a note of your settings for your records. If you want to delete any of them, enter your setting under the Delete a Nameserver field, then > click Save Changes.

Done! The change usually takes 24 to 48 hours, so allow some time for the propagation process to complete fully.

DNS (domain name system) lets users connect to websites using domain names instead of IP addresses. DNS servers allow people to input normal words into browsers to search for your website (e.g., example.com) instead of using the more complicated IP address (e.g., 163.244.44.08) to locate/view a website. DNS entries can also include mail server settings, security settings, and other application records that can be recorded in TXT files. ​​DNS records include A records, CNAME records, MX records, nameserver records, and TXT records, each with a different purpose. • A (address) record: This record maps a domain name to an IPv4 address, indicating your website’s exact location. • AAAA (IPv6 address) record: This is similar to the A record but maps a domain name to an IPv6 address. • MX (mail exchange) record: This record directs email to a domain’s mail servers and specifies the mail server responsible for receiving email messages on behalf of the domain. • CNAME (canonical name) record: This record points one domain name to another domain name. It is often used for subdomains like www to point to the main domain. • TXT (text) record: This record allows administrators to insert text into the DNS. It is often used for domain ownership verification and email security records (like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC).

Note: DNS entries are important because they include various records that give instructions about your domain name and the nameservers that identify where the DNS records are stored. Understanding how to manage and update these DNS entries is essential in keeping your website always available.

Refer to this guide on how to edit your domain DNS to add, edit, or delete a DNS record.

A CNAME (canonical name) record is a type of DNS (domain name system) used to point a subdomain to a website address. It tells the DNS servers that one domain name is an alias for another domain name. A CNAME record must point to a domain only; it cannot point to an IP address (A record). When a CNAME record is set up, it allows one domain name (the alias) to point to another (canonical name) root domain name. This is useful when you want to create alternative hostnames that redirect traffic. For example, your www sub-domain to your main domain page (non-www). With a CNAME record, a website visitor accessing www.example.com is referred to the CNAME example.com

Note: To add a CNAME record, refer to this guide on how to edit your domain DNS.

DNS propagation is the amount of time it takes for changes to the Domain Name System (DNS) records to spread throughout the internet. It may take up to 48 hours to propagate globally. When a website switches server hosts or launches a new website, the domain's nameserver DNS records may need to be updated. These Domain Name System (DNS) records may need to propagate across a selected list of DNS servers in several regions worldwide. During this time, ISPs around the world update their DNS caches with the most recent information for your domain. To check if the new DNS settings have propagated, you can perform a quick DNS propagation lookup. You may use the nslookup command on the command line or choose from any of the readily available online tools, such as https://dnschecker.org/. * Z.com cannot control how quickly your DNS propagates throughout the internet. The domain propagation period, or the time it takes for DNS changes to be fully recognized across the internet, can be influenced by several factors. Here are some key ones: 1. Time to live (TTL) settings — The DNS server may cache the information from the DNS settings in its DNS cache. This setting is temporarily cached, and DNS servers will retrieve the updated DNS information when the TTL (Time to Live) expires. A shorter TTL results in quicker distribution. For instance, with a TTL of 60 minutes, modifying a DNS record means that servers globally will retain the outdated information for an hour before discarding it and fetching the latest data through a new DNS query. 2.Internet service provider (ISP) — ISPs around the world implement different caching levels. Globally, ISPs store DNS records in their caches to facilitate faster website access for users. They conduct a single DNS lookup for each website and reuse the obtained result across multiple users whenever feasible. However, some ISPs may disregard TTL (Time to Live) configurations and continue using cached DNS records even after the TTL duration has expired. This behaviour can lead to prolonged propagation times. 3.Domain name registry — Root DNS servers are at the top of the DNS hierarchy and provide a list of top-level domain (TLD) servers to resolvers. If you change your website’s host nameserver (the DNS server with the official, correct information for your web addresses), this change must be reflected higher up in the DNS hierarchy. Root servers may have a TTL (Time to Live) of 48 hours or more to prevent overuse, so this change might take longer to propagate. How to check if DNS propagation is completed The easiest way to check if DNS propagation is completed is to use a readily available online lookup tool, such as DNSCHECKER.ORG. This online DNS Propagation Test tool provides a comprehensive list of global DNS servers. Tools like these are designed to collect, parse, and display all DNS propagation results on a DNS map. It visually shows how your DNS settings updates are propagated across different DNS servers in various regions worldwide. These resources offer a quick and easy way to verify the status of DNS changes, giving you peace of mind.

There are two ways to set up your domain's DNS records, which control and link to where your website is hosted. • Nameserver settings • A record settings    

Nameservers

Nameservers are your domain’s primary DNS record. They control where all of your other DNS records are located. DNS records for your Email and Website are managed at once through nameserver pointing. This means that if your Website and Email service are purchased from the same provider, please use the Nameserver settings. If your nameservers are pointed to Z.com, all your DNS are hosted at Z.com cPanel > Domain > Zone Editor. Z.com’s nameservers: ns-wh1.web.z.com ns-wh2.web.z.com ** Please note that the change usually takes up to 48 hours to take effect. So, allow some time for the propagation process to be completed. You may also check the propagation status of your domain/website through any available DNS checker tools online.

A records

Consider managing your domain using A record pointing if your website and Email server are purchased on different providers. You can manage your domain registration and nameservers at any registrar of your choice and keep your website hosted at Z.com. If you are managing your domain from an external DNS provider, you may need to check your Server assigned IP address and configure A records pointed to your Z.com server IP address. You may locate your shared Server IP by logging in to your Z.com cPanel

* Shared IP Address under General Information. For example,

If you are unsure and you want to check your domain nameserver setting, please visit https://lookup.icann.org/, type your domain name and it will display your nameserver settings. If your domain is registered with Z.com, this article explains how to check your nameservers setting. You may do so directly through your Z.com Client Area. 1. Go to our Sign-in page. 2. Enter your Email Address and Password, and proceed to log in. 3. On the left side of the top navigation bar, click on the Domains drop-down menu and click My Domains or DOMAINS directly. 4. Click on the settings icon on the right side of your domain. 5. Click Nameservers on the left side under Manage to view the current settings.

A nameserver is a DNS server that translates domain names into IP addresses. Nameservers store and organise DNS records, each pairing a domain with one or more IP addresses. These servers bridge between domain names, which humans can remember, and IP addresses, which computers can process. Your domain’s nameservers control where all of its DNS records are managed. If you set your domain to Z.com’s nameservers, your domain will automatically use the DNS records configured in your Z.com cPanel. However, if your nameservers are pointed to a different company, you must log into their cPanel to manage your DNS settings. Nameservers, in short, arrange the traffic direction all over the internet. When you search a domain name in the browser search bar, the browser begins to process the website you are searching and locate the correct web server. The nameserver will serve as a guide for the browser to locate the correct server to where your website is hosted. Benefits of directing my nameservers toward Z.com Managing your domain nameservers pointed to Z.com default settings will give you flexibility to adapt system changes/updates. Any DNS changes, your DNS will automatically be resolved and your website will adapt/use the new DNS information that may minimize server propagation and limit downtime due to DNS migration. Example: If your website is hosted to another server, the domain will automatically resolve to the new IP when you are using Z.com Nameserver. However, if your nameserver is pointed elsewhere and your website hosted at Z.com changes IP, then your domain’s A records to where you are managing your DNS may need to be updated to the new server’s IP.

Note: Nameserver controls your entire DNS information. This includes MX(Mail), TXT, A Records, etc. This is the most convenient way to point your domain to your website and email server provider.

When changes happen it can take up to 48 hours before DNS resolves to the new host company. You can only set a Nameserver to your primary domain, thus should you wish to point your subdomain you may need to create A record on your DNS table to point your subdomain to the hosting provider. Nameserver propagation Nameserver settings need up to 24 to 48 hours to propagate. Updates can take effect as early as 1 hour, but full propagation and resolution of the DNS changes worldwide may take up to 48 hours. Z.com’s nameservers By default, when you register your domain with us (Z.com), your domain will use our default nameserver. If your domain is registered elsewhere and you have web hosting with us, you can link your domain to our server by logging into your current registrar's dashboard and updating your nameservers to point to Z.com. Z.com Default Nameserver ns-wh1.web.z.com ns-wh2.web.z.com How to check your domain nameserver settings If you are unsure and you want to check your domain nameserver setting visit https://lookup.icann.org/, type your domain name and it will display your nameserver settings.