How to use the DNS lookup
- Type a domain such as
example.com, or a subdomain such asmail.example.com. You can paste a full URL; only the host name is kept. - Choose the resolver. Cloudflare and Google run the two largest public DNS services, so comparing them is a quick way to spot propagation delays.
- Untick record types you do not need, then press “Look up”. All selected types are queried at the same time.
- Read the findings first, then the records, each with its TTL. “Copy records” gives you a plain-text list for a support ticket.
What each record type does
| Type | Holds | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| A | IPv4 address | Points the name at a web server |
| AAAA | IPv6 address | The same, for IPv6 networks |
| CNAME | Another host name | Makes www or a subdomain an alias of a hosting platform |
| MX | Mail server and priority | Tells other servers where to deliver email; lower numbers are tried first |
| TXT | Free text | SPF, DKIM, DMARC and site-ownership verification |
| NS | Name servers | Shows which provider answers for the domain |
| CAA | Certificate authorities | Limits which authorities may issue TLS certificates |
Worked example
Suppose a small business on example.com asks why some of its invoices land in spam. A lookup returns 10 records: one A and one AAAA address, two MX servers with priorities 10 and 20, two name servers, one CAA record allowing Let’s Encrypt, and three TXT records. Two of those TXT records start with v=spf1, so the tool reports “2 SPF records found”. Mail servers treat that as a permanent SPF error, which matches the spam problem. Merging both into one record, for example v=spf1 a mx include:_spf.example.net -all, fixes it.
TTL and propagation
Every answer carries a time to live in seconds. Resolvers may keep a cached copy for that long, which is why a change can appear on one network and not another. A record with a TTL of 3600 can take up to an hour to update for someone who looked it up just before the change. Name-server changes at the registrar take longer, often up to two days, because the parent zone uses long TTLs.
Why DNS-over-HTTPS
The lookup uses the JSON interface that both providers offer over HTTPS, so the question and the answer are encrypted between your browser and the resolver, and no ToolsPulse Hub server sits in between. The tool also shows when the resolver validated the answer with DNSSEC. Results reflect what the public internet sees; a company network with its own internal DNS can return different answers for the same name.