Self hosted DynDNS like service

[nry]

Hi

I have a number of VPSs used for development etc
I want to achieve a dynamically updating DNS somehow.

So if I point a domain at a particular VPS this will take care of the routing to my hope IP which changes every few days.

Is this possible? Is there a guide out there for this? And probably most importantly whats the correct term for this process? As think thats why I can't find much when searching!

Cheers

 

[TCM]

Hi

I have a number of VPSs used for development etc
I want to achieve a dynamically updating DNS somehow.

So if I point a domain at a particular VPS this will take care of the routing to my hope IP which changes every few days.

Is this possible? Is there a guide out there for this? And probably most importantly whats the correct term for this process? As think thats why I can't find much when searching!

Cheers

Point the NS entries for your domain to your VPS. Setup a DNS server and create a hostname with a low TTL (like 1 minute). Update the hostname each time your address changes. Don't do it without public key crypto.

Keywords: BIND, nsupdate

Random Google match: http://linux.yyz.us/nsupdate/

That's the correct way.

Edit: TTL depends on how often you estimate the hostname will be hit by someone. Lower means more traffic for your VPS. Higher means the chance for clients to hit an old address increases.

 

[mwarps]

If you are planning on using Dynamic IP addresses and providing authoritative DNS on those systems with Dynamic IP addresses - You can't. Glue records have TTLs between 2 and 7 days depending on the TLD. If the VPSs have static IPs, you'll be able to provide the authoritative DNS without a problem.

The overall concept is called Dynamic DNS, where DynDNS got their name.

The update client you use will directly affect how often the IP address is updated, so make sure it can send updates as often as you think the IP address will change. My IP address at home is "Dynamic" but it's been the same for 7 years.