Dynamic DNS (also known as DDNS or DynDNS) is a service for recording Internet domain names on a computer with dynamic IP addresses. Most computers connect to a router using DHCP, which means that the router randomly assigns an IP address to your computer.
It also means that your computer’s IP address is constantly changing, making it difficult to connect to the outside world. Dynamic DNS solves this problem by constantly updating its DNS service with your latest IP address. If you want to start a home network, this article will be ideal for you, because below we’ll talk about the best and free dynamic DNS service providers.
YDNS
YDNS is a free dynamic DNS provider that only requires you to sign in with your email address and password before you can get started with it. Unless you use a custom domain name, you’re limited to using the domain “ydns.eu”, but for many people, this will be sufficient.
- Create a new host with your domain name and its IP address in the “Content” field.
- You can find your domain transfer IP address on your domain provider’s name server page.
- All dynamic DNS options for the host can be accessed from the domain configuration page under the “DNSSEC” and “Records” subheadings.
Namecheap
Namecheap offers a free dynamic DNS application with their domains, which happens to be one of the best DNS services out there. It’s fast and responsive, quickly reporting your changes to Google DNS.
- After registering your account with Namecheap, go to the “Domain List” section of the dashboard.
- There are three different tiers of DNS providers within Namecheap, with free lite available to anyone who creates a “Free” account on Namecheap.
- Create a domain or transfer to switch to “Basic” DNS that guarantees 100% uptime.
- Once your domain is available, you can manage its services by going to the “Advanced DNS” section.
- Look for an option called “A+ Dynamic DNS Record” under the “Type” tab.
- To enable dynamic DNS hosting, enter “@” as “Host”, IP address, and set TTL to “Automatic”.
- For non-existing sub-domains, replace “@” with the wildcard “*”.
ClouDNS
ClouDNS offers free dynamic DNS services for Windows, macOS, Linux, and all other types of Unix systems.
- To enable dynamic DNS for your domain, log in and go to your dashboard where you have to enter your registered or transferred domains.
- Enable DNS hosting for that domain using the “Create zone” option. A pop-up window will open allowing you to create a zone with all records.
- Go to all records for your domain’s DNS zone and create an “A” record. Here you can add your own dynamic URL for dynamic DNS hosting.
FreeDNS
With its extremely minimal presentation, FreeDNS offers one of the easiest ways to quickly set up dynamic DNS. It also offers static DNS services. The account setup process is quite simple, making DNS pointing a snap.
- To use the dynamic DNS options, first add the domain to FreeDNS and then create a sub-domain.
- There are tens of thousands of domains to choose from, as well as the option to use your own custom domain names. All of these domains offer URL redirection. It is one of the most popular dynamic DNS providers, handling more than 7 billion requests per month.
- FreeDNS offers two options for updating dynamic DNS. You can download one of their dynamic DNS clients for Windows, iOS, Android, Routers, or Unix. Or if you’re a developer, you can use the API with XML.
- After adding a domain or sub-domain, all your generated update URLs will automatically appear on FreeDNS’s dynamic DNS page.
DuckDNS
DuckDNS dynamic DNS service provider is built using Amazon’s infrastructure. The website is simple, and the entire system is run by just two software engineers.
However, this system has a decent amount of written instructions to help set up DuckDNS on a number of platforms. These platforms include but are not limited to, macOS, Windows, and Linux.
- To access dynamic DNS services, add a domain name with DuckDNS or one of your custom domains.
- Update your IPv4 and IPv6 addresses in the records. These will be automatically updated as dynamic DNS entries.
Dynu
Dynu DNS is a reliable dynamic DNS provider. It offers free and paid versions, with the paid version having some extra features. However, the free version will provide reliable DNS uptime via numerous servers around the world. This is important because it implies that even top-level domains will work, regardless of which country they belong to.
- After logging in, go to the control panel on your dashboard and select “DDNS Services”.
- Add dynamic DNS. This can be a Dynu domain name or your custom domain.
- Fill in the IPv4 address of your domain name server. Dynu also supports IPv6 addresses.
- Save your dynamic DNS configuration for regular use.
It’s free to download a DDNS client, which will run in the background and automatically update the DNS record when your IP address changes. With the free version, all services are available for only one subdomain. These services include email service, domain registration, and SSL certificates. With the paid version you have all services for an unlimited number of sub-domains.
dynv6
Unlike many other names on this list, dynv6 is a truly free dynamic DNS provider. It quickly assigns public hostnames to any IPv4 or IPv6 addresses, without the need to enable your router’s port forwarding or NAT translation.
- After logging into the dynv6 dashboard, click “My Zones” to “Create Your First Zone”.
- Name it based on allowed alphanumeric characters or add your own domain.
- Add your IPv4 and IPv6 addresses. If your device doesn’t have an IPv6 address, leave this field blank.
- Add your delegated domain to the newly created DNS zone. It can be either your own domain (“example.com”) or a sub-domain in the format “dyn.example.com”.
- If you use invalid name servers, an error will be displayed.
- Once a delegated sub-domain or domain is created, you can access its DNS settings from “My Domains”. By default, they are set to a dynamic IP level.
No-IP
This US-based DDNS provider offers a free package as well as two paid packages. The free version limits you to three hostnames, a limited number of domains, and the need to verify your account every 30 days. If the accounts aren’t verified, they are deleted immediately.
- To get started, log into your No-IP account and access the “Dynamic DNS” option on the main dashboard.
- Access your computer name for which dynamic entries will be created. It’s automatically set as type “A” for these services.
- You can update IPv4 and IPv6 addresses using the “Modify” button.
- You’ll also need to download the Dynamic Update Client (DUC) for Windows, Mac, or Linux.
Conclusion
Your online communications are reliant on the DNS. Upgrading to a better DNS server to make your browsing safer and faster is a must.
You’re aware that your browser requests that information from a web host server when you conduct a search in a browser. However, DNS is an additional participant in the traffic exchange involving your browser and that server. The servers that handle your Internet requests are unable to understand domain names for, say, online casinos in Slovenia, such as those listed here, no matter how these domain names are catchy for bettors and in the niche in general. Only numeric IP addresses, such as 104.17.101.99, or lengthier numerical addresses from the current IPv6 system are understood by them. The use of memorable domain names is desired by brands. The DNS handles converting amiable domain names to numerical IP addresses to break this deadlock.
Typically, your ISP’s DNS Server is used by your home network. Following relatively dynamic interactions with other servers after receiving a domain name from your browser, the server returns the associated IP address that has been carefully examined and validated. If the domain is often used, the DNS Server might have that data cached for quicker access. The machines can now obtain the web pages you want to view because the interaction has been reduced to numbers. As you can clearly see, the DNS is necessary for any online activity you engage in. Your UX may suffer if the system experiences any issues.
