Support - HOWTOs - Dynamic DNS Tips
As broadband services become more widely available, the need for dynamic DNS services grown increasingly important. While setting up a dynamic client is quite simple, there are certain tricks that can be used to ensure your domain is managed most efficiently.
In order to manage your dynamic DNS records using your DNS Park account, you need to create a DDNS user that will be used to authenticate any changes you make (separate from your DNS Park User login) and at least one Host Record that is marked as dynamic.
To create a DDNS user, log in to your DNS Park Account and click on Account Information in the Configuration Menu, and then DDNS Users. Provide a Username and Password for authenticating the requests that are made. Check the box labeled 'Active'. Click the button labeled Update Dynamic Users. You can always return to this screen to modify, remove, or add additional Dynamic DNS users.
Most domains will make use of more than one host for various reasons. The easiest way to give your domain the completeness is to use Alias Records, also known as CNAME records. Aliases can be created directly in your DNS Hosting configuration in the the Control Center.
Add an alias for each hostname that should exist in your domain and point that information to the dynamic host that was just created.
Any number of aliases may be added to represent systems in your domain. Most web servers will support virtual hosting when using CNAME records for those concerned with the ability to host web services.
If mail services are also hosted by a dynamic service, the mail server MUST be associated with a Host Record and NOT an Alias Record. This is most easily accomplished by the setup of the dynamic client. The dynamic clients currently supporting DNS Park allow the host that is updated to act as a mail server and it will set the appropriate Mail Record for the domain.
For more information on setup of Mail records, see our Mail Records How-To. If you need DNS Park to provide backup mail services while your dynamic host is offline, it's just a click away.
Once you have added your DDNS records to your zone, you will need to configure a client to update your records automatically when your IP changes. For more information on DDNS clients that have been tested with DNS Park, please see our Dynamic DNS Clients page.
