If you recently registered a new domain name and want to host a website on it, updating the nameservers will be a requirement. What are Nameserver exactly? To keep it short and simple, Nameservers are provided by web hosting providers (or domain parking companies) and are part of the DNS. DNS, or “Domain Name System” is used to convert domain names into IP addresses. We don’t need to get into all the specifics about that inside this post, but understand that nameservers are important because they’re what helps identify where exactly your domain name is being hosted or parked on the web. When someone queries your domain by typing it into a web browser, the nameservers tell that user where their browser can go to access the website. This is how computers know the website Google.com (for example) is hosted with Provider A and not Provider B.
Updating nameservers is a relatively easy task. However, most users think once their nameservers have been updated they will be able to immediately access their website when visiting the domain in a web browser. This is untrue. Once nameservers have been updated it can take as long as 24 hours for those updates to propagate worldwide. Therefor, once you have updated nameservers on a domain, it could take you (and other users) several hours to notice the changes. Sometimes you may notice the changes on your end within an hour or two, while someone in another country might not be able to see changes for 10 or 15 hours. With that in mind, anytime you update nameservers you should plan on waiting at least 10-12 hours before doing anything on your newly updated domain. So, how do you update nameservers exactly? As I mentioned above, the process is rather simple and today I’m going to show you how it’s done at two popular registrars – GoDaddy and DynaDot.
Remember, you will always receive the nameservers you need to use from either your hosting company or domain parking company. These should look something like this: ns1.hostingcompany.com & ns2.hostingcompany.com
How To Update Nameservers in GoDaddy
Once you have successfully loged into your GoDaddy account, you should be automatically taken to the Products page which will have everything you’ve purchased listed there (domains, web hosting, email..etc). Locate the Domains section and click Manage All. This will take you to My Domains which should have all domains you have registered with GoDaddy listed. Scroll down and find the domain you wish to update the nameservers on and click it. You should now be taken to the specific details of that domain. Scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page and click Manage DNS. This will take you to a DNS Management page. Scroll down and find the Nameservers section. Click the Change button and select Custom from the drop down. Then, edit the nameserver to those provided by your hosting or parking provider and click Save. Congrats, You’ve now successfully updated your domain nameservers inside GoDaddy!
How To Update Nameservers in DynaDot
Once you’ve logged into your DynaDot account, click My Domains on the left hand side. Then click Manage Domains. (Note: You’ll notice a section called Name Servers directly below Manage Domains. This is not the section you want. You would use this section if you want to remove nameservers from your account.)
Once you click Manage Domains you should be taken to a page that lists all of your domains. Find the domain you wish to update the nameservers on and click it. You should now be taken to the specific details for that domain. The very first setting will say DNS Settings, click on Manage next to DNS Settings. A popup will then display. Select Name Servers from the first drop down and enter your name servers into the first and second boxes. Finally, click the Save Name Server button and you should see a confirmation message. Congrats, You’ve now successfully updated your domain nameservers inside DynaDot!