NS record

An NS record names a DNS server that is authoritative for a zone, a part of DNS managed together. “Authoritative” means the server is configured to provide the official DNS data for that zone, rather than merely returning a cached answer it learned from elsewhere.

How do NS records affect a domain?

At the top of a zone, NS records list its authoritative name servers. A parent zone also publishes NS records when it delegates a child zone. For example, the .com zone points example.com toward the name servers responsible for that domain. Those servers then answer queries using the records configured in their zone.

An NS record contains a server name, such as ns1.example.net; it does not contain the server's IP address. A DNS lookup service (a resolver) may need to look up an A or AAAA record for that server name before contacting it. If the server name is inside the delegated zone, the parent may publish address data called glue, so the lookup can reach the server without first needing an answer from that same server.

Is an NS record the same as a nameserver?

No. A nameserver is the DNS server or service. An NS record is DNS data naming a server for a zone. The domain's registrar can publish delegation information at the parent, while a DNS provider operates the actual authoritative service; these roles may be handled by one company or by different companies.

Related terms

• Nameserver — the service or host named by an NS record
• DNS delegation — how parent zones point to child servers
• DNS zone — the data served authoritatively
• DNS record — general record context