An A record, or address record, maps a domain name to an IPv4 address. It provides the IPv4 result returned when DNS resolves that name. section 3.1.5 section 3.3
Distinguish A records from commonly tested DNS record types:
- A: domain name to IPv4 address. section 3.1.5
- AAAA: domain name to IPv6 address. section 3.1.5
- CNAME: one domain name to another domain name. section 3.1.5
- PTR: IPv4 address to domain name for reverse DNS lookups. section 3.1.5
Table 3.1 DNS record types (view table figure)
| Record type |
Description |
Example |
|---|---|---|
| A |
Points to an IPv4 address |
example.com -> 192.0.2.1 |
| AAAA |
Points to an IPv6 address |
example.com -> 2001:db8::1 |
| CNAME |
Points to another domain name |
www.example.com -> example.com |
| MX |
Specifies the domain’s mail server(s) |
example.com -> mail1.example.com |
| NS |
Specifies the domain’s authoritative DNS server(s) |
example.com -> ns1.example.com |
| PTR |
Used for reverse DNS lookups, mapping an IP address back to a domain name |
192.0.2.1 -> example.com |
| SOA |
Provides administrative information such as admin contact details, a serial number, etc. |
example.com -> Admin: admin.example.com; Serial: 123456789; etc. |
Compare A records with AAAA, CNAME, MX, NS, PTR, and SOA records in a compact reference table. section 3.1.5
