Many DNS problems come from small mistakes: wrong hostname, wrong record type, stale delegation, incorrect CNAME, or TXT formatting.

Commands to use

dig www.example.com CNAME
dig example.com NS
dig example.com TXT

Checklist

  1. Check the exact name first.
  2. Check whether the record type matches the provider instructions.
  3. Look for old provider records.
  4. Confirm the registrar delegation.
  5. Use raw output when the answer is empty.

How to use the result

The DNS answer should be compared with the intended source of truth: registrar delegation, DNS provider zone, hosting target, email provider instructions, certificate authority challenge, or internal network documentation. If they do not match, fix the source record before troubleshooting higher layers.