--- title: DNS url: 'https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener/dns' markdown: 'https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener/dns.md' lang: en date: '2026-09-17' description: 'Here you will find answers to the most common questions related to DNS administration. ServeTheWorld has a dedicated DNS section in the control panel, separate to domains. This allows you to manage your DNS records independently of your hosting account, so they stay in one place even if you move be…' taxonomy: category: - docs --- [](#)- [Norsk](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/no/domener/dns) - [English](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener/dns) [ STW Knowledge Base ](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en) [ Domains ](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener) DNS # DNS Here you will find answers to the most common questions related to DNS administration. ServeTheWorld has a dedicated **DNS** section in the control panel, separate to [domains](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener/administrasjon). This allows you to manage your DNS records independently of your hosting account, so they stay in one place even if you move between servers or change your hosting plan. You can also prepare changes as drafts and review them before changes go live, roll back with a 90-day history, import and export a DNS zone, apply ready-made record templates, and run built-in diagnostics. If DNS is new to you, [DNS Fundamentals](https://stw.no/en/tutorials/dns/dns-fundamentals/) explains how domain names, IP addresses, lookups, and authoritative answers fit together. - [Where can I find DNS administration?](#where-can-i-find-dns-administration) - [Open a zone and read the records](#open-a-zone-and-read-the-records) - [Add or change a DNS record](#add-or-change-a-dns-record) - [Review and publish your changes](#review-and-publish-your-changes) - [Undo a change you have not published](#undo-a-change-you-have-not-published) - [Examples of creating or changing DNS records](#examples-of-creating-or-changing-dns-records) - [Forward a domain to another web address](#forward-a-domain-to-another-web-address) - [Point your domain at a service with a template](#point-your-domain-at-a-service-with-a-template) - [Back up or move a zone](#back-up-or-move-a-zone) - [Roll back a change with Time machine](#roll-back-a-change-with-time-machine) - [See who changed what with the audit log](#see-who-changed-what-with-the-audit-log) - [Check whether a change has taken effect](#check-whether-a-change-has-taken-effect) ### Where can I find DNS administration? Log in at [https://my.servetheworld.net](https://my.servetheworld.net/) and click **DNS** in the main menu. The **DNS zones** screen lists every domain whose DNS you can manage here. Find the domain and click its row, or **Open**, to manage its records. If you don't see your domain in the **DNS** section, its DNS may still be managed in the older Plesk editor during the transition. In that case, open the relevant web hosting account under **Products → My Products → Manage → DNS Settings** and edit the zone there. ![ServeTheWorld DNS zones list showing each manageable domain, its status, record count, and last change](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/DNS-Zones-EN.png) ### Open a zone and read the records A zone holds all the DNS records for one domain. Open a zone to view and change them. Inside the zone, the **Records** tab lists each record by **Type**, **Name**, **Value**, **TTL**, and **Status**. You can use the search box to filter by type, name, or value, and use the **Web**, **Email**, and **Security** filters to narrow the list. The `@` symbol in the **Name** column means the domain itself, for example `yourdomain.no` with no prefix. See [Common DNS Records](https://stw.no/en/tutorials/dns/common-dns-record-types/) for a guide on what each field and record type does. ![A zone's Records tab listing record type, name, value, TTL, and status](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Zone-Records-EN.png) ### Add or change a DNS record 1. Open the zone and stay on the **Records** tab. 2. To add a record, click **New record**, choose the **Record type**, fill in the **Name** and value fields, choose a **TTL**, then click **Add as draft**. When you add an A record, the **Your servers** shortcut can fill in the IP address of a hosting service attached to your account, so you don't have to look it up. 3. To change a record, click **Edit** on its row, update the field, then click **Save change**. 4. To delete a record, click **Edit** on its row, then **Delete record**. Nothing is live yet. Adds, edits, and deletions are all saved as **drafts** until you publish them. For advice on planning, backing up, and verifying DNS changes, see [How to Change DNS](https://stw.no/en/tutorials/dns/how-to-update-dns/). ![The New record dialog set to an A record, showing the name, IPv4 address, and TTL fields](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/New-Record-EN.png) ### Review and publish your changes Open the **Changes** tab, or click **View diff** to see exactly what will be added, changed, and removed before anything goes live. 1. Review the old and new values under **Changes**. 2. Click **Publish** to apply the changes. You can publish several drafts at once. 3. After publishing, each record moves from **Pending** to **Active**. ![The Changes tab showing a draft A record as an addition before publishing](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Example-A-Diff-EN.png) ### Undo a change you have not published If you have not published yet, click **Discard** on a single change in the **Changes** tab, or **Discard all** to clear every draft. Discarding leaves your live records exactly as they were. ### Examples of creating or changing DNS records Most record types follow the same pattern. Add the record as a draft, review it under **Changes**, then publish. Some things you can do here: - **Create an A record** — To point `yourdomain.no` to a server, click **New record**, keep the type as **A**, set **Name** to `@`, enter the server's IPv4 address, then **Add as draft**. - **Create an A record for a subdomain** — To point `example.yourdomain.no` to a server, use the same steps but set **Name** to `example`. - **Change an A record** — To point a domain or subdomain to a new server, click **Edit** on the existing A record, replace the value with the new IP address, then **Save change**. - **Create an MX record** — To direct mail for `yourdomain.no` to a mail server, choose type **MX**, set **Name** to `@`, enter the mail server hostname under **Mail server**, and set a **Priority** (a lower number is preferred first). The form also has quick buttons for ServeTheWorld mail, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, and Mailgun. - **Create a CNAME record** — To point `www.yourdomain.no` to another hostname, choose type **CNAME**, set **Name** to `www`, and enter the hostname under **Target**. - **Create a TXT record** — To add an SPF, DKIM, DMARC, or verification record, choose type **TXT**, set **Name** to `@` (or the name your provider specifies, such as `_dmarc` or a DKIM selector), and paste the value under **Text value**. - **Create an SRV record** — To direct an application to the correct service and port, choose type **SRV** and fill in **Service name** (for example `_imaps._tcp`), **Priority**, **Weight**, **Port**, and **Target**. - **Forward a domain to a web address** - To send visitors from `yourdomain.no` to another address, choose type **Forward**. For more detail on website records, see [Pointing a Domain](https://stw.no/en/tutorials/dns/a-records-cnames-and-subdomains/). [Email DNS Records](https://stw.no/en/tutorials/dns/email-dns-records/) covers MX, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, while [SRV Records](https://stw.no/en/tutorials/dns/srv-records/) explains the extra fields used for service discovery. ### Forward a domain to another web address A forward sends visitors who go to your domain on to another web address, for example pointing `yourdomain.no` at a page on a different site. We create the records it needs and issue the HTTPS certificate for your domain automatically. 1. Open the zone and click **New record**. 2. Under **Record type**, choose **Forward**. 3. In **Name**, enter the subdomain to forward, or `@` for the whole domain. A forward on `@` also covers `www` as lng as `www` has no records of its own. 4. In **Destination URL**, enter the full address visitors should be sent to. 5. Choose a **Forwarding type**: - **Redirect (301)** sends visitors onwith an HTTP 301. The address bar shows the destination, and the lath and query are kept. - **Frame** shows the destination insude a full-page frame, so the address bar keeps your domain name, but this casn cause problems with search engines, link sharing, and sites that refuse to be framed. 6 - Click **Add as draft**, then review and publish under **Changes**. ![The New record dialog set to a Forward, showing the destination URL and the Redirect and Frame options](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/New-Forward-Record-EN.png) ### Point your domain at a service with a template A template adds the records for a common setup in one step, so you don't have to enter them by hand. Open the zone and click **Templates**. If the domain has ServeTheWorld web hosting, you'll be offered a **From your server** template under **Detected for this domain**. This adds the records that point the domain at your hosting, which is useful when the hosting exists but the DNS isn't set up yet. Select it and click **Use template**. You can also point the domain at an email or service. Choose **STWMail**, **Google Workspace**, **Microsoft 365**, or **Shopify**, then click **Use template**. Every template adds its records as drafts, so you can review them under **Changes** before publishing. See [Email DNS Records](https://stw.no/en/tutorials/dns/email-dns-records/) to understand what the MX, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records in an email setup do. ![The Templates dialog listing STWMail, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, and Shopify options](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Templates-EN.png) ### Back up or move a zone Exporting a zone creates a copy of its DNS records for backup or transfer to another DNS provider. Importing lets you bring records from an existing DNS setup into ServeTheWorld without adding each one by hand. Click **Export / Import** inside a zone. - **Export** — Copy as BIND, or download the zone as a `.zone` file, CSV, or JSON for a backup or migration. - **Import** — Paste BIND text or upload a zone file. Imported records are shown in a preview, added as drafts, and can be reviewed under **Changes** before you publish. Invalid lines are reported and skipped, and the apex NS records we manage automatically are ignored. BIND is a widely used plain-text format for DNS records, often saved as a `.zone` file. You may receive one when moving DNS from another provider. ![The Export and Import menu with copy, download, paste, and upload options](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Export-Import-EN.png) ### Roll back a change with Time machine Time machine keeps a full snapshot of the zone every time it changes, so your can return to an earlier state if a change causes a problem. Shapshots are kept for 90 days. Open the **Time machine** tab. Each entry shows the date, who made the change, and a summary. - **View contents** shows the full set of records in that snapshot. - **View diff** shows what changed at that point. - **Restore** rolls the zone back to that snapshot. Restore takes effect immediately, so check the snapshot with **View contents** or **View diff** first. ![The Time machine tab listing dated snapshots with View contents, View diff, and Restore](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Time-Machine-EN.png) ### See who changed what with the audit log The audit log records who changed your DNS and when, which is useful for checking an unexpected change or confirming a teammate's work. Open the **Audit log** tab. Each entry shows the action, the affected zone, the date, and the person or system that made the change. You can filter by time period, actor, action, or zone, and click **Show details** to see the full before-and-after for an entry. ![The Audit log tab listing actions with date, actor, and a Show details link](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Audit-Log-EN.png) ### Check whether a change has taken effect Open the **Diagnostics** tab to check the zone's health and to compare your published records against public resolvers (Google and Cloudflare). Click **Check now** to run the check again. A draft cannot show up in these checks because it is not yet live. Publish the change first, then check. Public resolvers can also keep an older answer cached for a while, so a recent change may take time to appear everywhere. See [DNS Propagation](https://stw.no/en/tutorials/dns/dns-propagation/) for a step-by-step way to compare authoritative answers, public resolvers, and local caches. ![The Diagnostics tab separating zone health from delegation and propagation checks](https://stw.no/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Diagnostics-EN.png) [ ](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener/administrasjon) [](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener/endre-eierskap-domener) --- ## Navigation - Parent: [Domains](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener.md) - Previous: [Manage domains](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener/administrasjon.md) - Next: [Change domain ownership](https://faq.servetheworld.net/myserve/en/domener/endre-eierskap-domener.md)