DNS Alias Record

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A DNS Alias Record is a type of DNS record used to map a domain name to another domain name, similar to a CNAME (Canonical Name) record, but with important differences in functionality.

What Does an Alias Record Do?

An Alias Record allows you to point a domain name to another domain or hostname while behaving like an A record at the root level.

✅ Example:

example.com → mywebsite.com

When someone visits example.com, it resolves to the IP address of mywebsite.com.

Alias Record vs. CNAME Record (Key Differences):

FeatureAlias RecordCNAME Record

Can be used at root?✅ Yes❌ No

Points to IP address?✅ Resolves to IP Address❌ Resolves to hostname

DNS Query BehaviorActs like an A recordChain of lookups

Performance ImpactFaster resolutionSlight delay due to extra query

When to Use an Alias Record:

Root Domain Redirect:

If you want example.com to point to www.example.com.

CDN Services:

If using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) like Cloudflare or AWS CloudFront.

Load Balancers:

When pointing to cloud resources like elb.amazonaws.com.