Why Haven’t My DNS Changes Propagated?
When updating your domain’s DNS settings, you might encounter delays beyond the usual 24–48 hour propagation period. In this article, we will outline some basic troubleshooting steps to help identify and resolve potential issues.
Checking Your Nameservers
When making any changes to your DNS, you must make sure they are done on the correct nameservers for your domain.
Nameservers are specialised servers that translate domain names (like example.com) into IP addresses, allowing web browsers to locate and load websites. They are a key part of the Domain Name System (DNS) and help direct internet traffic to the correct server.
When you register a domain through us, it will be automatically assigned to our nameservers. You can change these nameservers to move control of your DNS to a different provider if needed.
NOTE: If you are unsure on how to check where your domain’s nameservers are kept, please follow this guide HERE.
Local DNS Caching
Local DNS caching is a process where your computer, router, or Internet Service Provider (ISP) temporarily stores DNS records to speed up future requests for the same website. Instead of querying a DNS server every time you visit a site, your system retrieves the cached record, reducing load times and network traffic. This means that even though you have made a DNS change to your site, you have likely cached the old DNS records for your site on your device or network.
To bypass this, you can:
- Try a different network (use your mobile network instead of your home or work WiFi network)
- Try a different browser (Microsoft Edge instead of Google Chrome)
- Restart your router
Incorrect DNS Settings
To ensure your DNS settings are correctly configured, double-check that you have entered the correct records (A, CNAME, MX, TXT, etc.) in your DNS settings. Additionally, confirm that there are no conflicting or duplicate records that could cause resolution issues. You can use online DNS lookup tools like DNSChecker or MXToolBox to verify that your changes are propagating correctly.
NOTE: If you are unsure on how your DNS records need to be input, you can follow this guide HERE
TIP: If you are unsure on how to input your DNS settings correctly, you can raise a support request and we can make the necessary changes for you (if we are your nameserver provider). Please ensure that all DNS entries you provide are submitted in plain text rather than as a screenshot – this helps prevent errors when inputting the records into your DNS settings.
TTL (Time To Live)
Time to Live (TTL) is a setting in DNS that determines how long a record is cached before it expires and needs to be refreshed. Measured in seconds, TTL helps balance speed and efficiency – lower values (e.g., 3600 seconds) allow for faster updates, while higher values (e.g., 86400 seconds) reduce DNS queries and improve performance.
NOTE: To have access to your domain’s TTL settings, you must have the domain proxy service active on your domain. For more information, you can follow this guide HERE
TIP: The lowest TTL you can set on your DNS settings with us is 3600 (1hr).
If you have any further questions, simply raise a support request from within your Online Control Panel or call us on 0345 363 3634. Our Support team are here to help and ready to assist you with your enquiry.
For assistance raising a support request please follow the following guide.