What is Reverse DNS?

Reverse DNS is a service that associates IP addresses with domain names. While regular Forward DNS resolves domain names to IP addresses, Reverse DNS does the opposite. It allows you to look up the domain name associated with a given IP address, providing a way to identify the host or server corresponding with that IP address. It's commonly used for security and administrative purposes, such as verifying the authenticity of incoming email servers or identifying the origin of network traffic based on IP addresses.

Reverse DNS service provided by ClouDNS is a Premium DNS service for IP network owners and operators and it is not included in the Free plan. The Reverse DNS hosting is a business class service and supports both IPv4 and IPv6 Reverse DNS zones.

DNS plans supporting Reverse DNS

DDoS Protected L
$39.95/month
  • +4 Anycast DNS servers
  • DDoS protection for DNS
  • 400 DNS zones
  • Unlimited records and queries
  • 3 DNS Failover checks
  • 1,000 Mail forwards
  • Extended Features
Buy Now
DDoS Protected M
$11.95/month
  • +4 Anycast DNS servers
  • DDoS protection for DNS
  • 50 DNS zones
  • Unlimited records and queries
  • 2 DNS Failover checks
  • 100 Mail forwards
  • Extended Features
Premium L
$14.95/month
  • +4 Anycast DNS servers
  • 400 DNS zones
  • 20,000 DNS Records
  • Unlimited DNS queries per month
  • 3 DNS Failover checks
  • 1,000 Mail forwards
  • Extended Features
Buy Now
Premium M
$4.95/month
  • +4 Anycast DNS servers
  • 50 DNS zones
  • 2,000 DNS Records
  • 200M DNS queries per month
  • 2 DNS Failover checks
  • 100 Mail forwards
  • Extended Features
DDoS Protected L
$39.95/month
DDoS Protected M
$11.95/month
Premium L
$14.95/month
Premium M
$4.95/month
Reverse DNS:
? DNS zones: 400 50 400 50
? DNS Records: 20,000 2,000 20,000 2,000
? DNS queries per month: Unlimited 200M ? Unlimited 200M ?
? DDoS Protection: - -
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30 day Free Trial
No credit cards required
24/7 Live chat support

Why do you need external Reverse DNS service?

Being a network operator is a hard job. You have a lot of things to do. The Reverse DNS is something you can simply move to ClouDNS and free you from the tasks to support multiple DNS servers for authority DNS. With us, you are completely free to move away from your network the most DDoS Attacked UDP service - the DNS.

The service is very useful for those administrators who manage their own mail servers. Reverse DNS must exist for the IP address from which the outgoing e-mail is sent. The reason is that many mail servers on the Internet are configured to reject incoming mail from any IP address that does not have Reverse DNS (rDNS).

*Standards from the IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) suggest that every domain should be capable of Reverse DNS lookup. Learn more

The Reverse DNS hosting provided by ClouDNS is built on Anycast DNS Network which provides the maximum possible speed and security from any location in the world.

Benefits of using Reverse DNS

Reverse DNS provides valuable information about IP addresses, which can be extremely beneficial for a variety of reasons. Moreover, if Reverse DNS is configured properly, it can massively enhance the overall performance and security of a network.:

Email Deliverability

Improve your email deliverability rates by configuring Reverse DNS records correctly. By doing so, it proves the authenticity of your emails.

Network Troubleshooting

Quickly identify and resolve issues by tracing IP addresses back to their corresponding domain names.

Security

Detect and prevent malicious activities, such as spam, phishing, and hacking attempts, by identifying the true source of IP addresses.

Online Reputation

Establish a positive online reputation by ensuring that your IP addresses are associated with legitimate domain names.

How to configure Reverse DNS in ClouDNS?

Setting up Reverse DNS in ClouDNS is simple and essential for ensuring your network runs smoothly. To do that follow these steps:

  1. Login to your ClouDNS account
  2. Navigate to DNS zones and select Create zone
  3. Choose either the Master reverse zone or Secondary reverse zone option
  4. In the Generate zone by subnet field enter the reverse zone name (IP address)
  5. If configuring a Master reverse zone Add PTR record(s) for your domain(s) and Request IP delegation to ClouDNS servers from the IP owner
  6. If configuring a Slave reverse zone Enter the Master server IP and Click Register

IPv4 Reverse DNS

ClouDNS provides both Primary and Secondary DNS for IPv4 Reverse DNS zones. Supported network ranges are:

/24 - 255 IP addresses
/25 - 128 IP addresses
/26 - 64 IP addresses

/27 - 32 IP addresses
/28 - 16 IP addresses
/29 - 8 IP addresses

/30 - 4 IP addresses
/31 - 2 IP addresses
/32 - 1 IP address

IPv4 Reverse DNS ensures each IP address has a corresponding PTR (Pointer) record. This mapping is crucial for services like email servers that require PTR records for domain validation and aids in network diagnostics by enabling traceable IP address logs.

IPv6 Reverse DNS

ClouDNS provides both Primary and Secondary DNS for IPv6 Reverse DNS zones. The supported network ranges are from /32 to /128. With IPv6 Reverse DNS, IPv6 addresses are mapped to domain names using PTR records in the ip6.arpa domain. This is vital for managing the vast IPv6 address space efficiently and troubleshooting, ensuring each address can be resolved to its domain for security and operational needs.

DNS zones

Each network range (IP block list) requires one DNS zone to be configured. For example, if you have /22 IPv4 network range, you need to separate it into 4 DNS zones for each /24 sub-network. There is no limit on the number of PTR records which can be configured into the DNS zone.

DNS zones are vital for organizing PTR records for both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses. Structuring IP ranges into DNS zones allows for more efficient management of IP address resolution, ensuring quick DNS propagation and reliable domain name resolution.

Instant DNS propagation

Our Managed DNS service operates under self-developed system with instant DNS propagation over all data centers included in our network. The web-based control panel allows our customers to monitor the propagation over all data centers in real-time. You can check anytime for any of your domain names what is the update status for each data center. In combination with low TTL values (as low as 1 minute) our customers can deploy any changes faster without any downtime.

Need help?

DDoS Protected L
$39.95/month
  • 400 DNS zones
  • 20,000 DNS Records
  • Unlimited DNS queries per month
  • Reverse DNS zones
  • DDoS Protection
  • DNS Failover & DNSSEC
  • Free zones migration
  • 24/7 Live chat support
  • More details
Buy Now
DDoS Protected M
$11.95/month
  • 50 DNS zones
  • 2,000 DNS Records
  • 200M ? DNS queries per month
  • Reverse DNS zones
  • DDoS Protection
  • DNS Failover & DNSSEC
  • Free zones migration
  • 24/7 Live chat support
  • More details
Completely free trial. No credit cards required. No tricks.
Start Free 30-day Trial
Premium L
$14.95/month
  • 400 DNS zones
  • 20,000 DNS Records
  • Unlimited DNS queries per month
  • Reverse DNS zones
  • DNS Failover & DNSSEC
  • Free zones migration
  • 24/7 Live chat support
  • More details
Buy Now
Premium M
$4.95/month
  • 50 DNS zones
  • 2,000 DNS Records
  • 200M ? DNS queries per month
  • Reverse DNS zones
  • DNS Failover & DNSSEC
  • Free zones migration
  • 24/7 Live chat support
  • More details
Completely free trial. No credit cards required. No tricks.
Start Free 30-day Trial

Need a custom quote?

If you need a custom quote, additional zones or set up of a branded DNS service, please click the button and fill the form!

Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ

  • What happens if I don't have Reverse DNS configured? - Without Reverse DNS, your email servers might face deliverability issues, and network diagnostics can become more challenging. Some services might also reject connections from IP addresses without a valid PTR record.
  • How can I check Reverse DNS? - You can use online tools or command-line utilities like nslookup to verify your Reverse DNS settings.
  • What should I do if my Reverse DNS does not match the SMTP banner? - Ensure the PTR record for your IP address matches the hostname in your SMTP banner. Update your Reverse DNS settings and configure your mail server with the correct hostname to avoid email deliverability issues.
  • Still have questions about ClouDNS Reverse DNS? - You can contact us via our 24/7 Live chat support or if you prefer, you can send a message on support@cloudns.net.

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