Dedicating time every week to your migration will result in a seamless and timely transition from your current provider. As you prepare to migrate your DNS to NS1, use the steps below to ensure a seamless transition.
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If you don’t already have one, create an NS1 account via http://my.nsone.net.
Note
NS1 offers a free-tier option for use of the service with no time restriction and a query limit of 500,000 queries per month. A credit card is required at signup to cover any overages. A small temporary pre-authorization charge will be placed on the credit card.
Add new users and teams to your account, assigning the appropriate permissions.
Note
You can only import a zone file if you have a current DNS provider where you have created zones for your domains previously. You will need a BIND-compatible zone file from your current DNS provider to import your zones into your NS1 account.
Import your zones into NS1 by importing a zone file utilizing AXFR or creating zones manually via the NS1 Connect portal or API.
Add records to the zone(s), as needed. Refer to NS1-supported DNS record types for details on the standard and NS1-specific record types supported on the NS1 platform.
Within the record, configure Filter Chain options to implement advanced routing techniques. NS1 offers a wide variety of filters — each applying a unique logic to processing answers (i.e., endpoints) specified within a DNS record to determine the best answer to return for each DNS query based on characteristics of the requesting client and/or the endpoint represented by each answer. You can combine multiple filters to fine-tune the processing logic to meet your specific needs and objectives.
Learn more about NS1’s wide range of monitoring capabilities—including Configuring manual DNS failover, Configuring automatic DNS failover, Configuring automatic load shedding, and other configurations using native NS1 or third-party data feeds.
Verify the configuration is accurate by reviewing the new configuration in NS1 against that within your previous provider and Testing your records. Consider the following questions:
Are there the same number of zones and records configured with your current DNS provider as in NS1 Connect?
If you are using NS1 as a secondary provider, have you configured the AXFR transfer IP address at both your current provider and in NS1?
Have you verified your Filter Chain configurations? Monitors and data feeds?
Have you performed consistency checks to ensure your zones are at parity with your current DNS provider?
Update your domain registrar with NS1 name servers that will be authoritative for your domains. As a best practice, we recommend delegating low-traffic and non-production zones first before moving over your most critical production zones.