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Types of Lookup Tools to Get Information About a Domain’s DNS Configuration

Lookup tools are helpful resources for users to obtain specific information regarding the configuration of a domain name system (DNS). These tools are unique in that they retrieve and present details related to a particular DNS record type, including mail servers, aliases, and other pertinent records.

There are various lookup tools that help users gather specific information about a Domain Name System (DNS) configuration. Each lookup tool is designed to retrieve and provide details about a particular DNS record type such as mail servers, aliases, and other relevant records.

They are commonly used by network or website administrators, developers, and technical users to troubleshoot DNS-related problems, verify DNS configurations, check email delivery settings, and ensure the proper functioning of various network services.

Let’s explore the main types of lookup tools and the purpose of using them.

MX Lookup

The MX Lookup Tool helps find the mail servers for a domain: it makes it easy to lookup MX records and identify mail exchange servers. The tool by IdolsGate can also perform DNS MX lookup, i.e., check that DNS records are published.

With an MX Record Lookup, you can:

  • Lookup MX records — enter a domain name to instantly get the MX records and mail servers.
  • Perform MX server lookup — verify mail server IPs and confirm the mail servers.
  • Bulk MX lookup — perform MX lookups for multiple domains.

CNAME Lookup

An online CNAME lookup tool makes it easy to search CNAME records for a domain.

With a CNAME record lookup, you can:

  • Perform CNAME record lookup — enter a domain name to instantly get the associated CNAME record details.
  • See domain aliases — the tool will show you what domain the CNAME record is pointing to.
  • Lookup CNAME on any platform — commonly, online CNAME lookup tools work on Windows, Linux, Mac, mobile browsers, etc.

PTR Lookup

PTR records allow you to find out the hostname of a particular IP address. With our free PTR record lookup tool, you can instantly search for domains by IP address.

Let’s explore how to lookup a PTR record. In fact, it’s super easy: just enter the IP address in the online PTR lookup search bar.

Why might you need this tool? For instance, you’re attempting to send an e-mail from your account but experiencing bounce backs. One of the reasons for this is PTR record errors on your DNS. Our PTR lookup service will map the IP address to a hostname.

A-Record Lookup

IdolsGate’s A-Record Lookup is an online tool that lets you query DNS servers to check A- (address) records and get instant results.

Want to find the IP address associated with a domain? The tool lets you instantly perform a DNS A-record lookup to see which IP a domain resolves to.

With this A-record lookup tool, you can perform domain A-record lookup and website A-record lookup. For that, just enter a domain name and get its A-record details from DNS servers.

SOA Lookup

SOA lookup is querying a domain’s Start of Authority (SOA) record in the DNS.

DNS SOA lookup tools let you get administrative details of a domain, such as SOA records.

NS Lookup

What is NS lookup? NS lookup stands for nameserver lookup. It is a network diagnostic tool to retrieve information about a domain name’s NS servers.

Need to find the nameservers for a domain? IdolsGate’s free NS lookup tool makes it easy to fetch and view NS records.

With an NS Lookup, you can:

  • Perform NS record lookup — enter a domain to instantly get the nameservers configured for the domain.
  • Identify authoritative nameservers — NS records show the primary and secondary nameservers for the domain.

SRV Lookup

SRV lookup refers to querying DNS for SRV records to locate services on a domain.

Here are some examples of when SRV record lookup can be useful:

  • Discovering services — an SRV query can find and return the host and port for a service like Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) voice calling.
  • Service migration — if a service changes servers, the SRV record can be updated to point clients to the new location.
  • Load balancing — SRV records can have multiple entries to distribute load across servers.

Use an online SRV lookup by IdolsGate to find specific services running on a domain.

TXT Record Lookup

A DNS TXT record lookup refers to querying a domain’s TXT records from DNS to retrieve text data associated with a domain. In other words, it’s a tool for domain TXT record lookup. It’s commonly used for investigating email authentication and verification status.

With our TXT Record lookup, you can:

  • Lookup TXT records.
  • View sender policy framework (SPF) records.
  • View DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) records.
  • Retrieve TXT records used for domain verification.

By using different lookup tools, tech experts can gather specific information about a domain’s DNS records, validate configurations, troubleshoot issues, ensure security, and optimize the performance of network services associated with the domain. Each lookup tool serves a unique purpose and helps focus on a specific aspect of the DNS infrastructure. Give it a try!



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