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When I mention the word hosting, most people think of the places where websites live. This is correct of course but hosting is a broader term in the world of the Internet. Application, database, image, storage, and email hosting are all typical examples of what people think of upon hearing the term. However I wanted to explain one that’s often overlooked but essential in making a website work - Domain Name System hosting, or DNS hosting.

“What exactly is DNS anyway? And I really don’t need it right?” Sorry - wrong. If you have a website and a domain name and actually want the domain name (like www.sundog.net) to point to where your website is hosted, then you need DNS. Without it, the world doesn’t know where to go to get your website. DNS makes the connection between that pretty URL you have and the location of your website’s files on the server.

Whenever we as users type in a URL into our browsers, our computers take that URL to the DNS server that’s been assigned for them to use. The DNS server looks through it’s tables and talks to other DNS servers in order to give our machines the correct IP address of the server that’s hosting that website.

DNS hosting isn’t always free either. Sometimes your domain name registrar will include DNS hosting when you register your domain name - but most offer the service for a small monthly or yearly fee.

Just keep in mind, DNS is a vital component that enables a website to do it’s job. It’s not some extra fee or service that a hosting company is trying to con you into buying.