Mere seconds can make or break a user’s experience with your website. A robust domain name system (DNS) solution is the backbone of your online presence, helping to ensure that users can access your website quickly and reliably. Because most businesses today have a global, distributed customer base, they need a DNS service that can keep up.
A robust, fully managed global network is non-negotiable for a DNS solution to deliver speed, security, and uptime. A global DNS network ensures that wherever a user is in the world, they can quickly connect to the nearest DNS server for fast, reliable resolution, keeping your website accessible, no matter the time or location.
From midsized organizations seeking to enhance user engagement or a small startup aiming to make its mark, selecting the right DNS infrastructure can be a game-changer.
What is a Global DNS Network?
DNS has long been referred to as the phonebook of the internet (although, in today’s parlance, comparing it to Google Maps is likely more appropriate) — storing human-readable domain names and translating them into IP addresses. A global DNS network means that copies of this phonebook are stored in servers worldwide. This way, a user in London, Sydney, or Tokyo can find and navigate to your website just as easily as any other user. A global DNS network makes things faster, more reliable, and helps your website stay online even if something breaks in one part of the world.
At a high level, this is how speed, resilience, and scalability work within a global DNS network:
- Speed: Speed is king when it comes to internet browsing, and data shows that 53% of users will abandon a mobile site if it takes more than three seconds to load. A global DNS network equates to faster resolution times and a better overall experience.
- Resilience: If one DNS server goes down due to a failure or attack, others can take over. This redundancy ensures continuous service.
- Scalability: The network can automatically adjust to handle spikes in traffic, whether from regular usage or potential threats like Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks against DNS servers.
Benefits of a Strong Global DNS Network
A strong global DNS network offers a range of benefits that enhance your online presence. It ensures your business can deliver speed, stability, and trust to users and is an essential part of modern digital infrastructure for any business operating at scale.
- Faster Resolution Times: A global network reduces latency, improving load times and leading to a better user experience. Page speed is also a factor in mobile search ranking.
- Guaranteed Uptime: With 100% uptime SLAs supported by historical data, you can trust your services to remain available at all times.
- Built-In DDoS Resilience: A robust network can handle and deflect large traffic surges, keeping services uninterrupted during DDoS attacks.
- Improved Redundancy and Reliability: By using a network of servers worldwide, you protect against local failures and regional internet disruptions.
- Instantaneous Changes: Quick updates to DNS records are vital during security events or when routing changes are needed. A global network ensures that any changes are propagated quickly, reducing the risk of configuration conflicts.
Check out this post for a deeper dive into the Benefits of a Global DNS Network.
Key Elements to Look for in a Global DNS Network
A global DNS network is a coordinated system of smart infrastructure designed to keep the internet fast, secure, and reliable no matter where your customers are. If you’re looking for a DNS solution with global reach, keep an eye out for these essential features:
Strategic PoP Placement
At the core of any global DNS network are DNS servers spread across multiple locations. This reduces load times and avoids long digital “travel routes” that slow website access. These points of presence (PoPs) store DNS records and answer requests from users trying to visit your site. By placing PoPS in strategic locations close to major internet exchange points, DNS providers ensure low latency and strong connectivity.
Full Network Ownership
When a DNS provider has full control over how traffic is managed and secured, it can fine-tune how DNS queries are processed and delivered, routing traffic through the most efficient paths.
Advanced Security Architecture
DNS servers are prime targets for cybercriminals. That’s why global networks incorporate advanced security features to safeguard your domain from tampering, hijacking, and downtime. Look for DNS providers that use firewalls, scrubbing algorithms, and DDoS mitigation. Both proprietary solutions and Tier 1 contracts can safeguard against cyber threats.
Multi-Tiered Redundancy (IP Anycast+)
Unfortunately, sometimes things break—servers crash, networks go down, and disasters happen. Redundant, load-balancing server clusters are crucial to prevent single points of failure and enhance uptime. To make things even more efficient, global DNS networks use Anycast routing. This technique allows multiple DNS servers to share a single IP address. When someone visits your website, Anycast automatically sends their request to the closest, fastest, and healthiest DNS server available. It’s like calling customer service and being connected to the nearest open agent without waiting on hold.
Instant DNS Updates
A DNS provider with a global network should enable real-time DNS record propagation by combining high-speed replication, optimized data routing, and intelligent caching invalidation. This means that any changes made to your DNS records (such as SPF, DKIM, DMARC, MX, A records, etc.) are available instantly, ensuring that users can continue to enjoy speed, reliability, and availability when browsing your website.
Common Pitfalls with Weak DNS Networks
Not all DNS networks are created equal. Relying on a weak or underpowered DNS network can introduce problems that can affect your online presence and user experience. Here are some common pitfalls businesses face when DNS infrastructure falls short:
Limited PoPs
If your DNS provider operates only a handful of servers worldwide, users located far from those servers will experience higher latency. That means slower load times, degraded performance, and a frustrating experience, especially for global audiences.
Slow DNS Propagation
DNS propagation can take anywhere from a few minutes to 72 hours, depending on various factors including time-to-live (TTL) setting and DNS efficiency.
When DNS changes take too long to propagate, users and applications (APIs often navigate your website too) may see out-of-date information, potentially resulting in downtime. These delays can easily translate to lost traffic and customer confusion.
DDoS and Outage Vulnerability
While DDoS attacks have long been a mainstay of the cybercrime economy, they are only increasing in size and frequency, and malicious actors are increasingly targeting DNS as a way to disrupt businesses. A small, fragmented DNS network may not have the infrastructure to absorb or deflect large-scale DDoS attacks. Worse yet, a regional outage or ISP issue could take down your DNS resolution entirely if there’s no global failover in place.
Weak or Unproven SLAs
Some providers boast 100% uptime on paper but lack the historical performance or transparent metrics to support that promise.
A robust global DNS network helps mitigate these issues, ensuring faster response times and better DNS performance.
Why DNS Made Easy Sets the Standard
DNS Made Easy is a leader in DNS solutions known for its robust security and reliability. Our proprietary scrubbing and firewalls protect every PoP, reducing the threat of DNS hijacking and DDoS attacks.
With 100% historical uptime, our system is trusted and independently validated by third parties. This ensures your online presence remains constant, essential for businesses and online services reliant on steady DNS performance.
Our fully managed network infrastructure ensures true self-sufficiency, enabling us to deliver reliable online experiences anywhere, any time. We are proud to offer
- Proprietary Security: Advanced firewalls safeguard against malicious traffic.
- Unmatched Uptime: Guaranteed continuity and stability.
- Instant Updates: Our system enables instant DNS updates that boost responsiveness.
Global DNS Support with DNS Made Easy
A DNS solution is only as robust as the network that supports it. Choosing a DNS provider with a strong global network allows you to provide users with a seamless, reliable online experience. DNS Made Easy helps reduce the risk of DNS-based attacks and enhances readability and availability with lightning-fast resolution, built-in security controls, and global propagation in sections.
Don’t settle for less when it comes to your critical infrastructure. Explore how DNS Made Easy can elevate your DNS performance.