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What is Secondary DNS?

Secondary DNS is a way to add redundancy and resilience to your domain’s DNS infrastructure. Instead of relying on a single provider, you use two authoritative DNS providers that can both answer queries for your domain.

Despite the name, Secondary DNS isn’t just a backup—it’s an active part of your DNS strategy. If one provider goes down or slows down, the other continues to serve traffic without interruption.

Secondary DNS is a must for any organization that depends on the internet to do business. It’s a simple way to build resilience into your DNS without overhauling your current setup.

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Advantages of Secondary DNS

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Benefits of Secondary DNS

Reliability

Think of all the parts of your business that have redundancies. Secondary DNS is simply a safeguard that all Internet-dependent businesses should use. Over the past year, there has been a 5% growth in enterprise adoption of multi-vendor DNS configurations.

Resiliency

Even when using on-premises DNS architecture you can enjoy the benefits of Secondary DNS. Add a cloud-based provider, like DNS Made Easy, as a primary or secondary provider to your infrastructure. For extra security, configure your in-house nameservers as hidden masters. Queries will appear to be answered by your in-house nameservers but really, the cloud provider is authoritative.

Speed Boost

Secondary DNS can improve page load times. Resolving nameservers will start to prefer the provider that responds the fastest. That means queries will more often be served to the better performing provider which, over time, improves resolution times.

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Single vs. Dual Providers: Why Redundancy Matters

Relying on a single DNS provider means putting all your traffic through one set of nameservers—leaving your domain exposed if that provider experiences downtime. It’s a single point of failure that can take your services offline without warning.

With two providers, you double your authoritative nameserver coverage. If one provider goes down, DNS queries are automatically routed to the other, keeping your domain online without disruption. This built-in redundancy ensures higher reliability, better uptime, and a smoother experience for your users—no manual intervention required.

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Top Secondary DNS Strategies

There are several effective ways to build redundancy into your DNS setup, depending on your infrastructure and goals. Each strategy offers different benefits—from ease of setup to enhanced security and control.

Primary / Secondary
This is the most common configuration. You manage records with your primary provider, while your secondary provider (like DNS Made Easy) automatically syncs updates via AXFR/IXFR. This setup gives you high availability with minimal effort and ensures global reliability through DNS Made Easy’s extensive Anycast network.

Primary / Primary (Master / Master)
In this configuration, both providers act as primaries. It’s not technically secondary DNS, but it allows you to update records on either side. Tools like OctoDNS help sync changes across both providers, offering flexibility and protection against single-provider failure.

Hidden Primary
With a hidden primary setup, only the secondary provider’s nameservers (DNS Made Easy) are visible to the public. Your primary nameservers stay hidden, adding a layer of security while still distributing updates across a robust Anycast network. This is ideal for teams using on-premises DNS or custom automation that isn’t compatible with traditional DNS platforms.

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Easy DNS Configuration

1. Transfer First
You need to configure your primary provider to allow zone transfers to DNS Made Easy systems. This is configured through your primary provider (please refer to their documentation). Next, create a Secondary IP set for your domain(s) in DNS Made Easy. You must complete this step before you add your domain(s).

2. Notify Registrar
Update your domain through your registrar (where you bought your domain) to use the DNS Made Easy nameservers. Depending on if you are using a Primary/Secondary or a Hidden Primary configuration, you may only need to list DNS Made Easy nameservers or both providers’ nameservers.

3. NS Records
Update authoritative providers’ NS records for your domain (should match the registrar in step 2). ‍

4. Setup Updates
Configure your primary name server / provider to NOTIFY DNS Made Easy should any update be made. If a traditional NOTIFY is not possible then DNS Made Easy will revert to the serial number check found in your SOA record.

Built-In Redundancy for Always-On DNS

Secondary DNS from DNS Made Easy adds a critical layer of redundancy to your DNS infrastructure. With two authoritative providers answering queries in parallel, your domains stay online—even if one provider goes down. It’s a proven strategy for improving reliability, boosting speed, and protecting against outages and misconfigurations. Trusted by thousands of enterprises, our Secondary DNS helps you meet uptime demands without adding complexity.

Why It Matters:

  • Eliminate single points of failure
  • Automatically route around DNS provider outages
  • Improve query resolution speed and performance
  • Support hybrid setups with on-prem or cloud DNS
  • Increase infrastructure resilience without manual intervention
  • Trusted by enterprises with 100% reliability record
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DNS Made Easy delivers enterprise-grade DNS security and performance at a price small businesses can afford. With real-time threat detection, 100% uptime, and fast global resolution, you get reliable protection without the high cost—so you can focus on growing your business, not managing DNS issues.

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