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WordPress Glossary: DNS

WordPress Glossary: DNS

When you’re setting up your website on a VPS or any other hosting platform, you’ll come across a lot of technical terms. One such term is DNS, which stands for Domain Name System. This article will provide a comprehensive understanding of DNS, its importance, and how it works in the context of WordPress.

What is DNS?

DNS is a protocol within the set of standards for how computers exchange data on the internet and on many private networks, known as the TCP/IP protocol suite. Its basic job is to turn a user-friendly domain name like “server.hk” into an Internet Protocol (IP) address like 70.32.23.41 that computers use to identify each other on the network.

Why is DNS Important?

DNS is like the phonebook of the internet. Without DNS, we would have to remember the IP addresses of every website we want to visit, which is not practical. DNS makes it easier to browse the internet by allowing us to use easy-to-remember domain names.

How Does DNS Work?

When you type a domain name into your browser, your computer uses DNS to retrieve the IP address for that site. This process involves several steps:

  • Your computer sends a DNS query to your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
  • The ISP’s DNS server checks its cache for the corresponding IP address. If it’s not there, it sends the query to the root DNS servers.
  • The root servers respond with the address of the Top-Level Domain (TLD) DNS server (e.g., .com, .net, .org), which stores the information about the domain.
  • The TLD DNS server responds with the IP address of the domain’s DNS server.
  • Finally, the domain’s DNS server responds with the IP address of the domain, and your computer can now connect to the website.

DNS and WordPress

When you’re setting up your WordPress site on a Hong Kong VPS hosting, you’ll need to point your domain to your VPS’s IP address. This is done by updating the DNS records of your domain. Here’s how you can do it:

  1. Login to your domain registrar’s website.
  2. Find the DNS settings page.
  3. Change the A record to point to your VPS’s IP address.
  4. Save the changes.

It may take up to 48 hours for the changes to propagate across the internet. Once it’s done, you can access your WordPress site using your domain name.

Conclusion

Understanding DNS is crucial for anyone running a website. It’s the system that allows us to use easy-to-remember domain names instead of complex IP addresses. When setting up your WordPress site on a Hong Kong VPS hosting, you’ll need to update your domain’s DNS records to point to your VPS’s IP address. With a basic understanding of how DNS works, you can troubleshoot issues and manage your website more effectively.