We have a few hundred domains that point to different servers - some on a shared environment and some dedicated. We would like to be able to easily update IP's in groups of domains, improve timeout issues with traffic distribution and also monitor any downtime from the web server.
Would you recommend we use an external managed DNS provider like dnsmadeeasy.com or neustarultraservices.biz to manage all these issues? Or any others? Do they really make a big difference or should we continue to use the name servers settings from the hosting provider?I use dnsmadeeasy.com, if you want quick IP updates, failover and to be able to split services then it's good. It comes at price of course, so you need to decide if it's worth the money for your particular circumstances.i have used dnsmadeeasy.com and its great! it really make dns user friendly.I use dnsmadeeasy.com, if you want quick IP updates, failover and to be able to split services then it's good. It comes at price of course, so you need to decide if it's worth the money for your particular circumstances.
DNS Made Easy comes at a price?
I use UltraDNS (some old domains / old contracts that I'm locked into) and DNSMadeEasy is a fraction (often 1/1000th) of the price. If you think DNS Made Easy comes at a price then companies like UltraDNS and Akamai are not even worth mentioning. :stickout:
But to the original poster (kyle9):
Yes, we notice that you get a much better service when you outsource the DNS compared to that junk that is usually part of your registrar or your own system.The difference with managed dns providers is that they are specialists in the field. Like anything else, a specialist tends to do that one job better than a generalist. They also have staff who deal with dns every day as their *main* task. In addition, their hardware is dedicated to dns and nothing else.
A generalised hosting provider focuses on the web server side of things and dns is an afterthought.
Just look around at the technical forums of "hosting specialists" asking the most basic of questions on dns setup. Hardly confidence inspiring.
However, when looking for a managed dns provider, make sure that it is indeed their specialty. In looking around the search results, there are a lot of companies around that have managed dns services as a heading under their main services menu. Along with hosting, email services, domain sales, and ssl certificates. That is not a specialist no matter what they claim in the page title.I didn't realize that hosting providers would not already do a proper job of dns management. I am also happy to see that these other dns providers monitor server connections and notify of any issues. Thank you all very much for your feedback.I didn't realize that hosting providers would not already do a proper job of dns management. I am also happy to see that these other dns providers monitor server connections and notify of any issues. Thank you all very much for your feedback.As a provider, I am shocked to hear there are providers that do not do proper dns management. That should never be an issue.Regards,I am shocked to hear there are providers that do not do proper dns management. That should never be an issue.
In an ideal world
But, in truth, all you have to do is to take a look around here.
There is no way that a customer would know that his provider is on WHT asking questions that any qualified vendor should already have mastered. Lots of web hosting templates being sold that claim the host buying it can walk on water.Hey Plumsauce,
Do you think you see that around so much more because of the number of resellers? Not trying to knock any resellers, but as pointed out with the "walk on water" comment it can be made sound so easy. Or do you see this across the board?
I for one think it is good to see them here asking questions and wouldn't want to do anything to keep them from doing that. Asking questions is how we learn.
BTW congrats on Basicstate!I can't give recommendations in your situation, I'm only using managed DNS for around 10 domains right now. However if you are going to use a managed DNS service - I can recommend dnsmadeeasy.com.Having managed DNS does help out. DNS isn't really my kind of thing - having managed DNS means that professionals are taking care of things and my mind is at rest. It also means that if the DNS servers mess up one day, I don't have to try and take care of something that will probably end up confusing me alot!!Onec again I would also recommend dnsmadeeasy if you are going to managed dns, they are not only very cheap but they are very stable. We've had 100% dns uptime for the past few years that we've used them.I for one think it is good to see them here asking questions and wouldn't want to do anything to keep them from doing that. Asking questions is how we learn.
Asking questions, yes.
But running before crawling, no.
There are soooooo many people attempting to get their dns right when they should be using a managed dns service and using their valuable time on other things. Over what? $6.95 a year?
Some people will never *get* dns. That is a fact of life. It happens in other pursuits, why not dns?Asking questions, yes.
But running before crawling, no.
There are soooooo many people attempting to get their dns right when they should be using a managed dns service and using their valuable time on other things. Over what? $6.95 a year?
Lots of people will waste a small fortune to save a thin dime.
Some people will never *get* dns. That is a fact of life. It happens in other pursuits, why not dns?
You do have a good point.
Lots of people will waste a small fortune to save a thin dime.
Totally agreed. Most people do not value their own time more than a few cents per hour.
I spoke to someone the other day that would spent almost two full weeks setting up a spamassasin-email filtering program because he didn't want to pay Postini the $25 yearly fee that he was quoted....
In the end.... his solution doesn't even work that well...
The same goes for DNS..... If you can get your domain on IP anycasted name servers for a few dollars per year.... Why even bother doing it yourself?
Would you recommend we use an external managed DNS provider like dnsmadeeasy.com or neustarultraservices.biz to manage all these issues? Or any others? Do they really make a big difference or should we continue to use the name servers settings from the hosting provider?I use dnsmadeeasy.com, if you want quick IP updates, failover and to be able to split services then it's good. It comes at price of course, so you need to decide if it's worth the money for your particular circumstances.i have used dnsmadeeasy.com and its great! it really make dns user friendly.I use dnsmadeeasy.com, if you want quick IP updates, failover and to be able to split services then it's good. It comes at price of course, so you need to decide if it's worth the money for your particular circumstances.
DNS Made Easy comes at a price?
I use UltraDNS (some old domains / old contracts that I'm locked into) and DNSMadeEasy is a fraction (often 1/1000th) of the price. If you think DNS Made Easy comes at a price then companies like UltraDNS and Akamai are not even worth mentioning. :stickout:
But to the original poster (kyle9):
Yes, we notice that you get a much better service when you outsource the DNS compared to that junk that is usually part of your registrar or your own system.The difference with managed dns providers is that they are specialists in the field. Like anything else, a specialist tends to do that one job better than a generalist. They also have staff who deal with dns every day as their *main* task. In addition, their hardware is dedicated to dns and nothing else.
A generalised hosting provider focuses on the web server side of things and dns is an afterthought.
Just look around at the technical forums of "hosting specialists" asking the most basic of questions on dns setup. Hardly confidence inspiring.
However, when looking for a managed dns provider, make sure that it is indeed their specialty. In looking around the search results, there are a lot of companies around that have managed dns services as a heading under their main services menu. Along with hosting, email services, domain sales, and ssl certificates. That is not a specialist no matter what they claim in the page title.I didn't realize that hosting providers would not already do a proper job of dns management. I am also happy to see that these other dns providers monitor server connections and notify of any issues. Thank you all very much for your feedback.I didn't realize that hosting providers would not already do a proper job of dns management. I am also happy to see that these other dns providers monitor server connections and notify of any issues. Thank you all very much for your feedback.As a provider, I am shocked to hear there are providers that do not do proper dns management. That should never be an issue.Regards,I am shocked to hear there are providers that do not do proper dns management. That should never be an issue.
In an ideal world
But, in truth, all you have to do is to take a look around here.
There is no way that a customer would know that his provider is on WHT asking questions that any qualified vendor should already have mastered. Lots of web hosting templates being sold that claim the host buying it can walk on water.Hey Plumsauce,
Do you think you see that around so much more because of the number of resellers? Not trying to knock any resellers, but as pointed out with the "walk on water" comment it can be made sound so easy. Or do you see this across the board?
I for one think it is good to see them here asking questions and wouldn't want to do anything to keep them from doing that. Asking questions is how we learn.
BTW congrats on Basicstate!I can't give recommendations in your situation, I'm only using managed DNS for around 10 domains right now. However if you are going to use a managed DNS service - I can recommend dnsmadeeasy.com.Having managed DNS does help out. DNS isn't really my kind of thing - having managed DNS means that professionals are taking care of things and my mind is at rest. It also means that if the DNS servers mess up one day, I don't have to try and take care of something that will probably end up confusing me alot!!Onec again I would also recommend dnsmadeeasy if you are going to managed dns, they are not only very cheap but they are very stable. We've had 100% dns uptime for the past few years that we've used them.I for one think it is good to see them here asking questions and wouldn't want to do anything to keep them from doing that. Asking questions is how we learn.
Asking questions, yes.
But running before crawling, no.
There are soooooo many people attempting to get their dns right when they should be using a managed dns service and using their valuable time on other things. Over what? $6.95 a year?
Some people will never *get* dns. That is a fact of life. It happens in other pursuits, why not dns?Asking questions, yes.
But running before crawling, no.
There are soooooo many people attempting to get their dns right when they should be using a managed dns service and using their valuable time on other things. Over what? $6.95 a year?
Lots of people will waste a small fortune to save a thin dime.
Some people will never *get* dns. That is a fact of life. It happens in other pursuits, why not dns?
You do have a good point.
Lots of people will waste a small fortune to save a thin dime.Totally agreed. Most people do not value their own time more than a few cents per hour.
I spoke to someone the other day that would spent almost two full weeks setting up a spamassasin-email filtering program because he didn't want to pay Postini the $25 yearly fee that he was quoted....
In the end.... his solution doesn't even work that well...
The same goes for DNS..... If you can get your domain on IP anycasted name servers for a few dollars per year.... Why even bother doing it yourself?