This is post #4 in my Website Foundations series which is a practical guide for website owners who want to better understand the moving parts behind a successful website. In this post, I’m breaking down one of the most confusing topics for many of my clients: the difference between your domain, hosting, and DNS, and how I help manage it all for you.
Let’s Break It Down: Domain, Hosting, and DNS
Think of your website like a house. There are three key things that make it accessible to the world:
- Your Domain Name — this is your website’s address (like example.co.nz)
- Your Hosting — this is the land and building where your site’s files live
- Your DNS Settings — this is the directory system that tells the internet where to find your website
Your Domain Name: Your Online Address
Your domain name is what people type into their browser to reach your site. You usually purchase it from a domain registrar like 1st Domains, or Freeparking.
When I work with clients, I always ensure their domain is registered in their name, so they are the legal registrant of their own domain name. I occasionally find, with new clients, that their web designer is the registrant of their domain name. This is a big no-no, as you could be locked out of your own domain name, either by a series of unfortunate events, or maliciously (holding you to ransom). And the latter happens, I’ve had clients come to me after losing domains, and email and website as they didn’t keep paying their web company and wanted to move away. So, you want to always remain in control of your domain name.
For more on the consequences of not being the registrant of your own domain name see my article at You’re not the registrant of YOUR domain name – your web developer is.
Web Hosting: This is Where Your Website Lives
Hosting is where your website’s files, images, and database are stored and then ‘served’ to people visiting your website. Not all hosting is created equal, and you often get what you pay for, with some companies forcing you to pay extra for things like SSL certificates. Some web hosts are fast and secure with excellent support, others hosts are slow and painful to deal with.
With your web hosting you want to make sure you also get:
- Daily backups
- Security monitoring
- Caching
- A content delivery network (CDN)
DNS: The Behind-the-Scenes Guide
DNS (Domain Name System) is often the most misunderstood part of how the internet works. DNS is crucial to the internet working, and if DNS goes down for a big provider it can take a good chunk of the internet down with it.
Think of DNS as a traffic controller that tells web browsers and email systems where to go.
For example, your DNS records say:
- “Website traffic? Go to this hosting server on this IP address (an IP address is a number).”
- “Emails? Route them to Google Workspace (or Microsoft 365).”
If your DNS settings are wrong, your site may go down or emails might stop working. This can happen when someone updates something without realising the consequences. For example, newbie web designers can accidentally turn off email accounts by not realising there are MX records.
Three of the most common DNS settings or ‘records’ we change are the A records, the CNAME records and MX records. Here’s what each of them does:
A Records – The Street Address
Think of your domain name (like example.com) as the name of a business.
- The A record is like the street address of that business.
- It tells the internet where the website is physically located, by pointing to an IP address (like 123.45.67.89).
In Plain Terms:
“A record” stands for Address record. It connects your domain to the actual server that hosts your website.
CNAME Records – Nicknames and Aliases
CNAMEs create shortcuts or aliases. They’re used when you want one domain or subdomain to point to another domain name, instead of an IP address. For example, adding ‘www’ to a domain name is actually using a CNAME. Or if you wanted blog.mywebsite.co.nz to go to a separate blog site you have.
Why Understanding Some of the Basics of DNS Matters
You don’t need a deep understanding of DNS, just the basics. But a surprising number of clients come to me not knowing where their domain is registered, who hosts their site, or how their DNS is managed. And if something goes wrong — like an outage or expired domain — it becomes urgent (and messy) very quickly.
I can look up where the domain is registered, but then it’s up to the client to recover their login – that’s if the registration is under their own account and not their web developers.
Want Peace of Mind?
If you’re not sure who’s looking after your domain, DNS, or hosting or you just want a second set of eyes — I’m here to help. I can review your current domain set up and help you make sense of it all.
Contact me to learn more or schedule a quick check-in.
