Domain Configuration Errors

Overview

Domain configuration errors occur when DNS records do not correctly map a domain to the hosting environment responsible for serving the website. DNS records determine where browsers and crawlers should send requests when resolving a domain name. Incorrect configuration prevents the domain from reaching the correct server.

Common Causes

• incorrect A record pointing to the wrong server IP address
• conflicting A and CNAME records defined for the same hostname
• missing records for the www subdomain
• DNS zone configured on one provider while nameservers point to another
• DNS records left over from a previous hosting provider

How the Problem Appears

• domain resolving to a parked page or default hosting page
• website loading from an outdated server after migration
• intermittent site availability depending on DNS resolver cache
• site accessible via server IP but not through the domain name

How It Is Diagnosed

• querying DNS records using dig domain.com A
• verifying CNAME records for the www subdomain
• checking authoritative nameservers using dig NS domain.com
• comparing DNS records in the provider dashboard with expected server values
• tracing DNS resolution with dig +trace

Typical Fix

• update A records to the correct hosting server IP address
• remove conflicting CNAME or legacy DNS records
• create consistent records for root domain and www hostname
• ensure nameservers match the DNS provider hosting the zone
• allow time for resolver caches to expire after updates

Related Technical Issues

• DNS Propagation
• Nameserver Errors
• Domain Email Problems