Domain name, DNS, hosting: who does what?

For a website to appear, three things work together: the domain name, the DNS and the hosting. They are often bought in the same place, which feeds the confusion. Yet each has a distinct role, and understanding them avoids many blockages when you change provider.

The domain name: your address

The domain name (for example my-company.com) is the address of your website and your emails. It is registered with a registrar, for a renewable period. Extensions are managed by dedicated organisations: Afnic for .fr, for example.

Good practice: register the domain name in your company’s name, on an account you have access to, and note its renewal date.

DNS: the directory

DNS links the domain name to the servers. The “DNS zone” holds records, the main ones being:

• A and AAAA: the address of the server that displays the site;
• CNAME: an alias to another name;
• MX: the servers that receive your emails;
• TXT: verifications and email security (SPF, DKIM, DMARC).

The DNS zone is often managed at the registrar, but it can be managed elsewhere, for example at the hosting provider.

Hosting: where the site runs

Hosting is the server that stores the site’s files and database. It comes in several forms: shared hosting (one server shared between several sites), virtual private server, dedicated server, or offers specialised for WordPress. The choice depends on the type of site, the expected traffic and the level of control you want.

And email?

Email can be provided by the hosting provider or by another service. It is the MX records in the DNS zone that decide where emails arrive: changing the DNS zone without taking them into account can cut off incoming messages. This is worth checking before any change of hosting.

Accesses to keep at hand

• the registrar account (domain name);
• access to the DNS zone;
• access to the hosting and to the site’s administration;
• the domain name’s renewal date.