The Zone Editor in cPanel allows you to view and modify the DNS records for your domains. DNS records control how your domain resolves — pointing visitors to your website, directing email to the right server, and verifying domain ownership.
Please note: Screens and options may vary slightly depending on your cPanel version and hosting plan.⚠️ Caution: Incorrect changes here can make your website inaccessible. If you are unsure about any step, please contact our support team before proceeding.
Accessing the Zone Editor
- Log in to your cPanel account.
- In the Domains section, click Zone Editor.
- Click Manage next to the domain you want to edit.
Common DNS Record Types
A Record
Points a domain or subdomain to an IPv4 address.
| Field | Example | |-------|---------| | Name | yourdomain.com. or subdomain.yourdomain.com. | | TTL | 14400 | | Type | A | | Record | 123.45.67.89 |
AAAA Record
Points a domain or subdomain to an IPv6 address.
CNAME Record
Creates an alias that points one domain to another domain name (not an IP address).
| Field | Example | |-------|---------| | Name | www.yourdomain.com. | | Type | CNAME | | Record | yourdomain.com. |
CNAME records cannot exist at the root domain level (e.g. yourdomain.com — only on subdomains).
MX Record
Specifies the mail server(s) responsible for receiving email for the domain.
| Field | Example | |-------|---------| | Name | yourdomain.com. | | Priority | 0 (lower = higher priority) | | Type | MX | | Record | mail.yourdomain.com. |
TXT Record
Stores text-based information. Commonly used for SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and domain verification (e.g. Google, Microsoft).
| Field | Example | |-------|---------| | Name | yourdomain.com. | | Type | TXT | | Record | v=spf1 +a +mx ~all |
SRV Record
Defines the location of specific services (e.g. SIP, XMPP).
CAA Record
Specifies which Certificate Authorities are allowed to issue SSL certificates for the domain.
Adding a DNS Record
- In the Zone Editor, click Add Record.
- Select the record type.
- Fill in the required fields (name, TTL, value).
- Click Save Record.
Editing or Deleting a Record
- Find the record in the list.
- Click Edit to modify it, or the Delete icon to remove it.
- If editing, make your changes and click Save Record.
Tips
- DNS changes can take up to 24–48 hours to propagate globally, though most changes take effect within 1–4 hours.
- Be cautious when editing existing records, especially A records and MX records. Incorrect values can make your website or email inaccessible.
- Before making changes, note down the current values so you can revert if needed.
- The Zone Editor only works if your domain's nameservers point to your hosting server. If you're using external DNS (e.g. Cloudflare, Route 53), you'll need to make changes at that provider.
- The trailing dot (
.) after domain names in DNS records is standard DNS notation. cPanel adds it automatically.
What Next?
- Email Deliverability - SPF, DKIM & DMARC — Add authentication TXT records.
- Understanding Email Routing (MX Records) — Configure MX records for email.
- Pointing Your Domain to Our Nameservers — Ensure DNS is managed here.
